What Type of Websites Are There?

Most of the time, we put websites into two simple categories. The first type is what we call a static website. You might hear them referred to sometimes as a “brochure website” or a “beginner website.” Essentially, a static website is just that, “static.” Generally, you have some content that you need a website for, and you don’t expect that content to change, or if it does, it changes very rarely.

Website maintenance, changes, and upkeep on a static website fall firmly into the hands of your web designer or design studio because it’s technical. The exception to that rule is if you are a bit savvy with HTML, and you can go in and cowboy code a few edits when you need them. Most of the time, however, that is not you, and so you need a professional to help you make changes on the rare occasion your static content needs to be updated. An excellent way to think of static websites is, “set it and forget it.”

The other type of website is a bit more complex. It’s called a content management system or “CMS” for short.

What is a Content Management System?

A content management system is one of the few naming conventions in web design that is actually a good description of what this piece of software does. Content management systems are a type of software system that keeps track of the different content on your website.

It usually uses a database to store things like images on web pages, written text used to describe your brand and services, product images in your e-commerce system, and so forth. The value of this is that the database logically stores all of the website content so that it can be accessed when someone wants to visit your website.

Ultimately, a CMS can save you money in the long run by allowing you and your team to update, evolve, and change the site over time to reflect your growing brand.

Another significant benefit of a CMS is that it’s user-accessible. What we mean by that is that you, the website owner, can log in to that CMS and do a host of things to add to, edit, or maintain your website — something you generally cannot do with a static site unless you know how to write code.

Ultimately, a CMS can save you money in the long run by allowing you and your team to update, evolve, and change the site over time to reflect your growing brand. Handling these tasks in-house means you don’t need to go to a web designer every time you need a change made.

When Would I Need a CMS?

Determining website needs always comes down to a question of intent. If you intend to make regular changes and updates to the website, you should be looking at a CMS to support your team. Even to the most ardent holdout, it has become apparent that regularly updating and adding content to your website is essential.

This last year of the pandemic shutdown has shown us just how valuable a website is to the success of your business in terms of providing important information to our customers and clients, selling our products in an online space, booking appointments, and being reachable when in-person contact is limited. Your website, therefore, is the ever-present information center for your brand. As such, it should be kept current and updated on a regular basis.

What is WordPress?

WordPress is nothing more than one type of content management system. It started a simple piece of software used to write blog posts on, but over the years, it has continued to build an enterprise-level infrastructure and community support arm that makes it perfect for small, medium, and large-sized businesses.

The standard layout of the WordPress dashboard.

Their software’s focused planning and evolution make WordPress a popular “multi-tool” that can be used to build simple to very complex websites. As a result, WordPress is used by thousands of companies and powers millions of websites. An online article recently reported that there are approximately 46 million active WordPress websites, accounting for roughly 39.6% of the internet. That is a staggering number.

The focused planning and evolution of their software makes WordPress a popular “multi-tool” that can be used to build simple to very complex websites.

What does that mean for you and your website needs? Well, if you are considering a CMS to power your site, you probably want one that has a wide array of support (from the software company itself and the community at large). Both of those are major selling points of the WordPress system.

There are other CMS options out there that are really good. Applications like Joomla, Drupal, Sitecore, and others will also get you to where you want to be and will do it well. But there is a reason that WordPress has achieved what it has over the years.

What is the Difference Between WordPress, Squarespace, and Wix?

Due to their crazy marketing campaigns, most everyone is familiar with affordable website services such as Squarespace and Wix. The promise of gorgeous websites and a low barrier of entry for just a few dollars a month are attractive to the entrepreneur looking to keep costs down. And, they should be.

Both of the Wix and Squarespace platforms are solid choices. They do a great job of getting business owners up and running with a good-looking site, and like other CMS’ like WordPress, they allow you to edit and revise site content when you or your team need to. That equates to flexibility and saving a few shekels.

The areas we typically see issues in for those considering a monthly managed website service are primarily two-fold. The first is related to getting up and running at the beginning. There are hurdles, and you should go into it knowing it will be a learning experience.

One of the consistent issues we see is the difficulty users experience in making their website look as good as the marketing promised and then keeping it looking good over time. It doesn’t take much to say that you can have a beautiful website for $25 a month, but putting it into practice is different. What you are being sold is the promise of a push-button service, but getting a template to look how it does in the demo can be a challenge for the uninitiated. That’s because good design is still good design and requires some skill to execute meaningfully. There’s just no push-button for that.

What makes Squarespace and Wix so popular is the ease with which they can create a website, but many times you need more than what those platforms can provide.

As a result, we have a fair number of clients who pass on a website with us due to the upfront costs and decide to save a few dollars using Squarespace or Wix. Though, they often come back to us to help build out their website on the new platform because it is challenging to get it to look good.

The second area we consistently see clients having issues with on these platforms are hitting the ceiling and outgrowing the service over time. What makes Squarespace and Wix so popular is the ease with which they can create a website, but many times you need more than what those platforms can provide.

Deeper technical needs that arise over time, like complex form submissions, automatic subscription services, custom integrations, etc. require a bit more lifting power than Squarespace or Wix provide. So, these tasks become infinitely more challenging to create in a beginner eco-system. That is where a CMS like WordPress shines. Because of its enterprise capabilities and deep community support, there is not much that WordPress cannot implement.

So, once again, that idea of intent comes into play. When deciding on what you should use to power your website, it’s worth spending time thinking about what you need in year one might vs. years 2-10 and beyond. They are most likely radically different.

There is nothing wrong with using Squarespace or Wix to power your site. Heck, we’ll even build it for you. But considering a more advanced CMS like WordPress from the beginning is always a good idea. In the long run, it could save you time and money.

Aren’t WordPress Websites Expensive?

Good question. The most direct answer is that they can be. Some considerations fit into that calculation, however. Here are a few items that can affect the price:

• What is the size of the site?
• Does it need complex interactions like animation or video?
• Does the site need an e-commerce component?
• Does the website need to talk to other services or technologies?
• Does the site need to meet accessibility standards for people with disabilities?
• Does the site need to serve content in different languages?

During our initial discussions, we’re looking at these considerations and others to help determine the cost of the website.

The critical thing to remember, however, is that the website is an investment. We often ask people to imagine that they have a full-time salesperson that they’ve hired to create interest in their company, generate leads, and represent the company’s best intentions and services. We then ask what would that be worth to them? What would they have to pay that person for 40 hours a week to build their business? Now, what is it worth if they are doing it 24/7? That is your website.

Your website is not a passive thing that you “need to have.” If you see it that way, then you’re looking at it wrong. A competent website adds real value to your business. It’s providing awareness, knowledge, and connectivity to your potential and existing clients. That is valuable.

Why Should I Consider WordPress for My Business?

As you’ve probably gathered from this article, much of the decision-making process regarding websites comes down to intent. Should I have a static site or a CMS? If I need a CMS, should I use a beginner platform like Wix or Squarespace or invest in a more robust service like Joomla, WordPress, or Drupal? In the end, it comes down to what you need to do with that site in the long run and what is the best, most flexible solution for your business.

WordPress is a solid choice if you need a more robust site because you are selling products, or you need to book appointments online, or you need a space where you can go from 10 pages to 50 or 100 pages in a year. Again, you want flexibility now and in the future for yourself and your team. WordPress is a robust option that lets you do many complex, technical things, but you don’t have to be a “techie” to manage and maintain it.

Which Way Should I Go?

Whichever direction you decide to go with your website, remember that much of what you do is about planning for the future. You want to pick a platform that will help you now, and that can grow with you in the foreseeable future.

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It can be tempting to think that once your website is up and running that it will largely take care of itself. Yet, like most investments (car, office, employee), there are certain things that need to be done to keep that investment working for you. Regular maintenance on a website keeps it up and running the way it should be, as well as protecting your site against those who would seek to do it harm.

What is Your Time Worth?

The question of time value is a valid question and relates directly to the idea of why website maintenance is so important. We’ve worked with dozens of clients that didn’t take the time to update or backup their websites only to have them go down or be exploited (read hacked) which forced them to take time away from areas they needed to focus on so they could research how to fix their website. Many times these situations could have been avoided by simply spending a little time updating their website.

What is the Value of Your Online Investment?

How much money have you dropped into getting your website to where it is today? Even if you didn’t hire a design studio and you took the time to do all the work yourself, what is the dollar value associated with that time? $5k? $10k? More? Generally, it’s not a small number. So, having to cope with website issues that most likely could be bypassed with a bit of prevention seems like a small price to pay. You’ve already made the investment (in dollars and time), maintaining the site doesn’t take all that much more effort. Let’s get down to brass tacks.

An Ounce of Prevention

You know that old adage that your granny used to say to you? An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure? Well, here are a few reasons why website maintenance is necessary and important as a preventative strategy:

The Value of Regular Website Updates

When you had your website initially built, your web designer may have told you of all the benefits you would receive from using a content management system (CMS) like WordPress, Drupal, Joomla, Magento, etc. A CMS really is a great way for companies to easily create/manage pages, make changes, and/or edits to a site on an ongoing basis after it’s launched. A CMS does this by taking something that is a very complex system (the website itself) and wrapping it in a user interface that is as simple to use as Microsoft Word. That ease of use comes with a price, though.

A CMS is a complex piece of software, and as a result, it needs updates from time to time to keep it running the way it should. When these updates are skipped, it can cause problems.

A CMS is a complex piece of software, and as a result, it needs updates from time to time to keep it running the way it should. When these updates are skipped, it can cause problems. For instance, the site might seem glitchy or not act right until an update is installed. When your website and its CMS is not updated, that old software can cause problems in how the site operates and it might even provide an access point for hackers who are looking for a way to exploit a site.

The Protection that Comes From Whole Site Backups

Accidents happen, it’s true. Regardless of how much preparation goes into your site, problems can arise from time to time. A web server issue can damage files on your site or your site could be hacked and problem causing malicious code injected into your pages. There are a lot of things that can go wrong that are out of our control. That’s where regular backups come in handy. By doing, at the very least, a monthly (or weekly or daily) backup of the entire site you guarantee that you have a copy you can revert to should there be an issue.

In most cases, if your website is using CMS you might need a plug-in to help manage your backups. That is because aside from the files that make up your site, you also need to make a copy of the database that your site uses to store your page copy and images. A web designer can help you get that setup and teach you how to run it yourself or you can get that service as part of a monthly service package.

A Pound of Cure

That’s the prevention. Now, where’s the cure?

Regular Website Maintenance is Necessary

As you can see, regular website maintenance is something that every website owner should be working on—a necessary pursuit when safeguarding your investment.

Now we’re realists, and as such we understand that taking the time to learn how to do monthly maintenance and then diligently following a monthly schedule can be tough. It takes you away from working on your business, which many times means you’re losing money.

We asked the question, “What is your time worth?” earlier in this article. That question is essential to this topic for one very clear reason—your time IS valuable. We know this. Every minute you’re not focused on developing relationships or doing the work means things aren’t moving forward. Unfortunately, though, if you don’t work on maintaining your website, no one else is going to do it for you… or will they?

Getting Help

Many of the companies we work with on a monthly basis realize that their time is better spent on bringing clients in the door rather than navigating the learning curve of handling their own website maintenance. The cost in time when compared to what they might be paying for monthly website maintenance doesn’t balance. So, we offer an array of services designed to help businesses keep their sites working and problem free so these entrepreneurs can get back to what they do best.

Whether you engage an agency to help with site maintenance or you do it yourself, there are some basics that need to regularly happen in order to keep your site in proper working order. Updating software and regular backups will go a long way to protecting your investment.

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Why Website Maintenance Matters

Let’s face it. There are less than reputable people out there who would love nothing more than to gain access to a website and cause issues. Many times it’s just to say they did it, but there are others that use the opportunity to cause serious, permanent damage to a website. At the very least, they can leave malicious code on your web server designed to re-route unsuspecting clients and customers to locations other than your website.

Because websites many times rely on software from different vendors for certain functionality, they require periodic updates to stay current.

Most of these attacks of opportunity are possibile due to out of date software used to run and manage your site. Perhaps your web design studio showed you the value of having your website built on a content management system (CMS) like WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, or another framework. Because these CMS’ many times rely on software from different vendors for certain functionality, they require periodic updates to stay current. A lot of the time, CMS updates happen because a software vendor learns of a new way that hackers can exploit a website using their plug-in / software and the vendor releases an update to remove the vulnerability. That’s a good thing.

Moving away from the most obvious concern of exploitation, website maintenance can also provide protection through regular, whole site backups, uptime monitoring, and a variety of other small services that provide stability to your website.

What Type of Maintenance Services Are Available?

There are a variety of maintenance services that can be offered. Here are a few of the core services you can expect from a website maintenance program:

• Regular website updates
• Daily, weekly, monthly, or quarterly website backups
• Uptime monitoring
• Website security scanning
• Regular website audits

Other services that can be provided but may not be part of a standard maintenance package (or are more infrequent package services) are:

• SSL setup / maintenance
• Audit and fix of broken links on site
• Page speed assessment and optimization
• Audit and fix broken images on site
• Meta data and schema data audits and fixes

How Much do Website Maintenance Services Cost?

That depends on the level of support services you’re looking to use on your website. Most companies will offer a series of services bundled in a few monthly packages that you can subscribe to. You pick the package that fits your budget and move forward accordingly.

Most companies will offer a series of services bundled in a few monthly packages that you can subscribe to.

Many studios and agencies have also started to include additional hours of service work that can be applied to helping in other areas beyond just the maintenance program. This is perfect for small businesses who need monthly changes to their website content. That can take the form of new website pages that need to be created, content edits, or other small monthly tasks. That is the type of monthly website maintenance / retainer package that we offer here at Shop. We’ve found that most companies have a variety of little tasks that they need help with in addition to monthly maintenance. By bundling a few hours or work time in with the maintenance duties, we are able to better serve our client’s website needs and the client feels like they are not receiving a bunch of hourly bills for a few monthly changes across their site.

Is the Money Worth What You Get?

As mentioned earlier, your website most likely represents one of your more dollar intensive business investments. If you think about it, you’re website is your frontline sales resource. It’s out there working for you 24 hours a day, seven days a week. What would you normally spend for an employee who could do that same level of service for you on a monthly basis?

Taking good care of your website through a regular series of maintenance services helps to keep your site up to date, operating smoothly, and selling your services. And if there is an issue, regular website maintenance puts in place the tools to quickly identify issues and get them resolved in a timely manner.

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