Ten Money-Crushing Reasons To Avoid Cheap Website Options

When you consider that over 90% of people in the English-speaking world use search engines and social media to find products and services, website design and development matters — a lot!

Your online platform is a 24-7 sales team. It’s the first impression most people have of your company. So if it looks sloppy and unprofessional — or it’s not functioning correctly — people will likely pounce on that back button and move on without giving your business a second thought.

But aesthetics aren’t the only reason you should invest in a professional website design and development team. So today, we’re counting down the top 10 reasons you should avoid DIY website services and work with an expert. Ultimately, it could be the difference between success and failure.

1. Performance

Steve Jobs once said, “Design is not just what it looks like and feels like, design is how it works.” In other words, a website’s performance is just as crucial as its aesthetics. When things don’t operate how users expect, they quickly grow frustrated and click away — and the statistics bear this out.

• Conversion rates drop by about 5% with each second of load time.
• One study revealed that 70% of users say they weigh website speed when deciding whether to buy something off a site. The slower a site, the less reliable it feels.
• Google reports that mobile sites that take over 10 seconds to load suffer a 123% bounce rate. Where the extra 23% comes from, we’re unsure. The point is that users treat poorly performing sites like sour milk.

What do all of these stats and figures mean for businesses? If you want an effective website, ensure it’s equipped with Usain Bolt’s speed and functions properly. Why is that a strike against cheap websites? Because they usually contain bloated code that slows everything down, rendering the website useless.

TL;DR: A website’s performance and speed matter just as much as its design, and cheap websites are often bloated and slow.

2. Flexibility

Cheap websites are usually static, and the ones with a bit of functionality are frequently buggy. Plus, most pre-programmed platforms are immutable; you cannot tweak them to your specifications. However, when you enlist a website design specialist, the sky’s the limit. They can bring your exact vision to life.

TL;DR: A website should grow with a business. Using professional designers and developers makes it easier. Plus, they can produce exactly what you envision.

3. Design

As we mentioned above, design is of paramount importance. And while symmetry and style are somewhat innate, non-professionals lack the design expertise to understand why certain things look good, and others don’t. For instance, most folks don’t know if 20-pixel or 40-pixel margins are more appealing to the eye and cannot spot a kerning issue.

However, people who’ve dedicated their lives to creating gorgeous things know how to polish a website design to perfection.

TL;DR: A site’s aesthetics are of paramount importance. Ugly designs repel potential clients and customers.

4. Scalability

One of the most common problems with DIY startup websites is that they tend to be static, making it difficult to add functionality as your business grows. Moreover, some website builder programs won’t allow you to migrate your site to another host. It’s like the Hotel California: you can check out but never truly leave.

TL;DR: Professional designers and developers can build a site that leaves room to grow. Plus, they won’t hold your site hostage if you decide to go in another direction.

5. Cost

Sure, we may be able to sign up for social media accounts without whipping out a bank card, but we’re still paying by giving out our personal information. And when it comes to website development, there’s no such thing as a totally free ride. A catch is always lurking in the corner. Some supposedly free platforms only allow you to host with them, and others nickel-and-dime you for basic upgrades.

We’ve worked with people who fell for terrible deals and ended up bleeding thousands of dollars a month for a sub-par platform. Not to be overly dramatic, but it’s heartbreaking. Because too many folks get taken for a ride, and they don’t realize they can enlist a professional digital marketing team for the price they’re paying to an unresponsive con-person who does little more than hosting their site.

TL;DR: When it’s all said and done, some DIY website programs end up costing more than working with a dedicated professional digital marketing team.

6. Support

Picture it: you sit down at your desk one morning, flip on the computer, and discover that your site is down — or worse, it’s been hacked. What would you do?

People who build their own websites are often out of luck, and finding a solution takes days. Plus, all too often, that solution costs a whole lot of money. After all, putting out programming fires is a lot more costly than building something secure from the beginning.

However, folks who work with a professional development team can contact their point person, who will jump on the problem immediately. And more often than not, you won’t incur an extra fee. Rounded Digital provides Managed WordPress Hosting & Security services that pair beautifully with our WordPress Support packages to eliminate any worries that can pop up.

TL;DR: When you work with professionals, there’s always a knowledgeable person you can contact in the event of an emergency.

7. Time

When you’re starting a business, time is a precious commodity, and ideally, you should be spending it developing the service or product — not trying to teach yourself how to build and market a website. People who choose the DIY route are invariably amazed at what a time-suck it turns out to be. They mistakenly think dedicating an hour or two a day on it will get the job done — but it never does.

When you hand off the work of web development and design to someone with experience, not only does it save you time, but you wind up with a superior outcome.
TL;DR: DIY websites suck up hours of precious time that could be better spent networking and developing your business.

8. Optimization

Don’t believe the naysayers; search engine optimization is still one of the most crucial marketing verticals in which every business should invest. Ultimately, we live online, and companies that secure a top Google ranking tend to make a lot more money.
The problem with cheap websites is that few are truly SEO-friendly. Most purport to be, but they’re not.

Ask yourself if you know what to look for in terms of optimization. What coding faux pas are red alerts? Where do you look for them? If you don’t know the answers to these questions, it’s probably wise to work with someone who does.

TL;DR: Search engine optimization leads to bigger profits, and cheap websites often score low on the SEO scale — even ones claiming to be SEO-enabled.

9. Experience

Yes, there are many DIY SEO tutorials online. And sure, you could implement a few broad-stroke tactics that may make a bit of difference. But a professional website team has been in the trenches. They can spot potential problems from miles away, divert the course, and find workable solutions.

Test yourself. Do you know the answers to the following questions?

• What is a responsive layout?
• How can you prevent a page from taking longer than 5 seconds to load?
• What type of navigation schemes work best for restaurants? Professional firms? Ecommerce sites?
• Where can I find quality images that won’t break the bank?
• What is the best type of hosting for my platform?
• What’s the first thing you do if your website displays an error message?
• What is the optimal amount of items a web page should contain?

TL;DR: Experience matters. Professionals know how to get the job done right in a reasonable amount of time. They understand the pitfalls to avoid and the safe shortcuts to take.

10. The Right Tools

Do you have an account at SEMRush or Ahrefs? What about Mangools or Moz? We swear we don’t mean to sound rude — but do you even know what those things are?

Over the past 30 years, website development and digital marketing have grown by leaps and bounds. What started as a handful of Internet early adopters fiddling around with keyword stuffing is now a multi-million-dollar industry — complete with analytics tools to measure the success of campaigns and plan new ones.

That’s what services like SEMRush and Ahrefs are: digital analytics tools. They come with dozens of bells, whistles, and invaluable reporting mechanisms that allow account holders to assess the competition for any niche, monitor search trends, analyze link backs, and generally have a god’s-eye-view of a given industry’s online landscape.

Most professional marketing firms maintain accounts with all of these platforms because it’s a must to stay competitive these days.

If you’re thinking, “Oh, in that case, I’ll just get myself accounts, too,” you may want to consult your budget. Premium access for all will run you hundreds of dollars a month. Secondly, there’s a steep learning curve. While these programs provide robust insights, it takes a while to learn how to use them effectively.

TL;DR: Digital marketing experts have access to powerful analysis tools that can make a world of difference in your climb to the top of the SERPs.

Connect With a Professional Website Designer

Don’t hamstring your venture with a sub-par website. Get it done right the first time by enlisting the assistance of a professional website design team. Rounded Digital works with businesses from all industries, and we’ve helped countless companies fly up the search engine rankings, resulting in higher conversions, increased exposure, and more profits.

Many of our clients are surprised to learn that hiring a website development and digital marketing team won’t break the bank. If you’re serious about success, let’s talk. Reach out today to learn more about your options.