We all have fears about redesigning our websites. Maybe you’re afraid it will cost too much or you will choose the wrong CMS and it will be too difficult to manage moving forward. Fortunately, all of these fears have very simple solutions to overcoming them. Here are some of the most common fears we hear when working on website redesigns and how we help clients overcome those fears.
IT WILL COST TOO MUCH
This is probably the number one concern when it comes to redesigning a website. For starters, there is always someone who can do it for less. If you drive yourself crazy looking for the cheapest quote that covers all your needs you’ll end up having your sister’s cousin’s brother-in-law designing your website and likely not accomplish your actual goals. So what can you do? Well, set clear goals ahead of time. Is your goal to meet a deadline or is it to have a site that generates real, qualified leads? Do you want to amplify your brand or integrate with certain systems you use? Make sure these goals are clearly stated in your RFP (request for proposal) or outlined in your calls with prospective web design companies.
IT WON'T TURN OUT RIGHT
Once again, the key here is having your goals in place and clearly defined. Knowing what you need out of your site, or taking the time to figure it out, will help everyone involved stay on the right track and give you a site that fits your unique needs. It also helps to have an open mind. You may have your heart set on a certain idea but when you look at the site as a whole and how you can use it to accomplish your goals, there may be a better solution available. Sometimes people are worried things won’t integrate with other systems, for example their CRM. This is why it’s important to do your research and make sure you’re choosing the right CMS for your needs. We’ll talk about that more in worry #3. However, what’s important to note is that you no longer even have to worry about spending months and months on a site redesign only to be disappointed with the outcome. This is because it doesn't have to happen all at once by a set deadline anymore. There is a new approach to website design called Growth Driven Design (GDD) that works to avoid the risks associated with traditional web design by focusing on creating real impact while continuously learning and making improvements to your website.
PICKING THE WRONG CMS
Yet again, this one comes down to knowing, you guessed it, your goals. At Duo we use Drupal for a number of reasons. When leveraged properly it’s great at tackling highly complex things, managing multiple integrations, organizing a large amount of data, and more. If you’re looking to use content to generate highly qualified leads that come to you, HubSpot may be the route to take. There are a bunch of great CMS choices out there but they all have different strengths and weaknesses. Take the time to find out which one will work best for you instead of rushing to pick one just to get your site redesigned quickly.
I CAN'T PROVE IT'S WORTH IT
It might feel like that right now. If your site isn’t designed to measure progress toward your goals then that would be pretty difficult. As marketers we’re being held accountable for revenue generation more than ever. It’s time we stop focusing just on how nice the website looks and start really caring about how the website is going to be a tool for attracting business. Your website has a goal. That goal needs to be SMART: specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time-bound.
WE DON'T ACTUALLY NEED IT
A lot of times some members of a company will argue that you just don’t need a website redesign. Maybe they think your website already looks fine or that you just need to migrate your existing site content to a new system to fix the problem. To take a deeper look at these concerns read the original article on Duo Consulting's blog.
This post originally appeared on Chicago web design agency Duo Consulting's blog. The author, Stephanie Casstevens, is the Marketing Manager and a HubSpot, Inbound, and Contextual Certified Marketer, Stephanie spends most of her day creating uniquely valuable content for Duo and Duo's clients. Read more from Stephanie on the Duo Consulting blog.
