My Web Developer Fell Off The Face of the Earth!.
Has this happened to you? It happens all the time. Web developers move on to new opportunities and desert their old clients quite frequently.
There are a number of ways to deal with this, but forethought is probably the best.
Understand that you will want to update your website.
Often when people build their first website they think of it as a one-shot job. They don’t look ahead enough to realize that one day they are going to want to change information on the site.
You will want to change the information, and sooner than you think. You’ll want to add new information. You’ll want to remove obsolete information. And, you will think of new features that you want to add after the site has been up for a little while.
So, what do you do? There are a few options.
Get Back in Touch with the Web Designer
This often works, however it probably won’t work forever. Web developers and designers do tend to drop off the face of the earth for a number of reasons. They might have moved on to new opportunities. They might only be interested in generating new, large jobs and not interested in little maintenance jobs. They could simply be too busy to respond.
There are other problems with this approach. You’re going to pay top dollar for these changes. Web Developers make their money on new business and maintenance contracts. They don’t depend on, nor want, little jobs where they just update a paragraph here or there. To discourage this, they charge their highest prices for these types of changes.
In addition to paying top dollar, you’re also probably going to wait a while for these changes to happen. You will be on the back burner. You might want the change made right away, but your web designer is probably busy with projects which came in prior to your request. He or she has an obligation to those clients as well, and must prioritize his or her work according to the greater commitment.
Maintenance Contracts
Web Developers and Designers usually offer some sort of maintenance package in which they charge a monthly fee which insures that they will perform updates when needed. The fee usually isn’t very high, but it is often extra money that the client doesn’t want to spend.
Think about what you will want. If you want changes made in a timely manner and you want to rest assured that your web designer is available, a maintenance contract is the way to go. It’s very possible that the monthly fee will work out to be about what you would have paid for piece-meal updates.
Learn to Update it Yourself
If you’re used to software this might be a way to go. There are a number of web packages out there that can enable you to update the pages.
There is a learning curve and if you don’t have time to do this, this will be a royal pain in the neck. You will have to learn to update the page and upload it to you server.
If you aren’t comfortable around software then this is not an option for you.
Have a Content Management System Built into Your Website.
This actually makes the most sense. Content management systems empower you to make necessary updates easily. WordPress as a Content Management System – a state-of-the-art publishing platform which is feature rich, continuously updated, with thousands of man hours in development time and a focus on aesthetics, web standards, and usability. Think about using this and you will be able to update it yourself. SeeHow To Build An Attractive, User-Friendly Website Any Non-Techie Can Update And Maintain
Now I Know what I SHOULD have done, but what do I do now?
If your web developer fell off the face the earth you need to find a new one. GGWebGroup. We will help you get past this little pothole in the road. We will also convert your website to use a content management system, if you like. Just call us at (210) 369-8203 or email gretchen@ggwebgroup.com
