Designing Your Own Website VS Hiring A Web Design Agency

Designing, building and launching a website 20 years ago was incredibly difficult to do without a specialist involved. Back when websites were hand-coded and possessed a fraction of the power and necessity that they do in everyday business today. In 2023, this is far from the case. With modern day, template-based web design tools such as Wix, Squarespace and WordPress, the everyday business owner can successfully launch their company's website without the need to hire professionals. With that said, thousands of freelancers and agencies across the planet make healthy livings providing full-scale web design services to startups, small businesses and large corporations. This begs the question, should you build your own website, or hire a professional?

‍

Designing Your Own Website

Unless you have a "production-ready" knowledge of programming code, most business owners opt for using one of the many web design tools on the market today. Customizable website builders such as Squarespace, let you choose a template and make simple changes through a drag and drop method of swapping text and images to make the site your own.

‍

When is it right to build your own website?

There are many businesses who thrive from the convenience and affordability of website builders. Whether designing your own website is the right choice for you and your business often comes down to convenience, price, time and project-scale.

‍

The Pros

Hands-On Design Convenience

Building your own website means that you get to choose the theme or template for your website and have far more control over it's design and functionality. When you decide to change up your look, you have the ability to login to your website control panel and make any changes at your convenience.

‍

Cheap Monthly Fees

Website Builders typically offer competitive hosting rates for keeping your website online and accessible. This is especially true if you don't require any additional features such as extra space or a custom domain.

‍

Best For Getting A Very Simple Website Up In A Hurry

Simply selecting a pre-built template, adding your logo and information, and hitting launch can be done quite quickly if you're a tech savvy individual. Many website builders let you purchase your domain (at an extra cost) and attach it to your website through their platform allowing your website to be accessible in a flash.

‍

The Cons

Difficult To Rank On Google & Other Search Engines

One of the largest downfalls of templated websites is the out-of-the-box poor SEO performance. Because anyone with a computer can start building a website with these tools, Google tends to rank them lower or not at all by default. Unless you have quite a lot of traffic out of the gate and a healthy knowledge of Search Engine Optimization, it can be difficult to be found on Google.

‍

The Learning Curve Can Be Time Consuming

Brand new startup owners may have more free time to learn the ins and outs of a website builder, but most small to large businesses operators can't spend the necessary hours, days or weeks learning the systems and becoming a full-time web designer.

‍

What's Your Competition Doing?

This is the most important question you should be asking yourself when debating between hiring a web design agency vs building your website yourself. In some industries you may be able to skate by with a self-designed and managed website but if your competition has an excellent website with all of the bells and whistles and a top-tier Google ranking, than you'll almost definitely struggle to compete with them on your own.

‍

Hiring A Web Design Agency

There are hundreds of thousands of web design agencies across the planet that help businesses of all sizes design, grow and manage their website. Hiring a web design agency consists of: researching local or remote freelancers, examining their previous work and references, and hiring a team or individual based on your business's project needs, budget, etc.

‍

When is it right to hire a web design company?

In 2023, competing in the online space can be the make or break for many industries. From ranking high and abundantly on search engines, to closing deals, making sales and capturing data, your business's website acts as the online home front of your brand and lead capturing system. Any businesses that are seriously looking to grow in an online capacity should consider hiring a web design or digital agency.

‍

The Pros

Focus On Your Business

One of the major benefits of hiring a web design agency for your website is the stress, worry and time relief. Building a quality, competitive website requires time and expertise. Breath comfortably knowing that experts are handling the various development processes while you focus on what you do best... running your business!

‍

Quality Content Equals Quality Results

Businesses that excel online do so because they've spent the time, money and resources on both establishing and growing their web presence. They've battle tested their sales funnels, mobilized their website for mobile users and ensured their site is fast and accessible. These are areas that quality web designers both manage for you and improve on a regular basis.

‍

Search Engine Optimization

Ranking your website on search engines, otherwise known as Search Engine Optimization (SEO), is one of the most critical parts of owning and operating a business online. Hiring a qualified agency ensures that SEO is top of mind and the necessary technical steps are taken to appear on Google. Expertise matters in this space. Unless you become an SEO pro yourself, it will be difficult to compete with those who do decide to hire the right person for the job.

‍

The Cons

Less Hands On

When you're not dragging and dropping every component yourself, you're relying on a team of professionals to bring your ideas to life. Hiring a web design agency that offers revisions is a good way to mitigate the risk of ending up with something you don't want. If you're tech savvy with website builders, you can design mostly everything the way you want within the confines of your selected template.

‍

The Cost Of Doing Business

It's no secret that hiring a web design agency can be an expensive endeavor. Costs can range from a few hundred dollars to 5, 10 even $20,000+. Agencies that offer flexible pricing models, or a web design quote calculator can help give you an idea of the costs associated with getting your website designed and launched. Use this article to determine what goes into pricing out your website.

‍

Hiring The Right Agency Can Be Daunting

Finding the right agency for the right price can be difficult and nerve-racking. The majority of website sales are done through referral as most customers are nervous about trusting agencies with such an important part of their business. Web design agencies that boast reputable case studies and positive reviews are usually worth taking a chance on vs those who don't.

‍

Still Not Sure What's Best For You?

If you consider yourself a tech savvy person, we suggest giving a website builder like Wix a try to see how you like it. 1-person businesses or startups may opt for the cheaper, more hands-on route of designing their website themselves. However, if time and quality are top of mind, we suggest getting in touch with a reputable web design agency and chatting with them about your business' needs.

‍

If you're still not sure where you land, you can always book a call with an expert to figure out what the best options are for your business.