Should I Hire a Full-Time Website Developer

We are living in a day and age where most businesses have websites,. Most websites have a specific set of features.  (This is all dependent on your product or service of course.) Does your business have a website that requires updates on a monthly basis? Or, maybe you are in the process of creating a website to help promote your brand and assist with the marketing of your business? None the less, we’re confident that at some point you are most probably going to ask yourself: “Should I hire a full-time website developer or not?” To help you answer this question, let’s first have a look at what website developers do.

What Does A Website Developer Do Exactly?

Apart from creating and designing a website, a website developer also maintains all the website’s technical aspects. For example:

• Assisting with the hosting of a website.
• Working with the hosting company to ensure the website is live at all times.
• Ensuring that the site architecture is in place.
• Assisting in protecting the website from hackers or viruses.
• Ensuring that the website is performing at optimal levels which include, but are not limited to, the website’s loading speed and server response times.

SEO – or Search Engine Optimisation – is an integral part of designing your website. Read this article to find out more of how SEO works.

What Are The Benefits Of Hiring A Full-Time Web Developer?

Below are just a few of the pros when it comes to hiring a full-time web developer.

1. More Affordable Work Rate Per Hour

In general, website developers charge per hour. The average going rate when it comes to hiring a web developer is between R400 to R600 per hour on average. This means that if the work you require on your website – as part of your digital marketing strategy – amounts to 10 working hours, it can easily set you back R4000 to R7000. If there is enough work to do within your organisation and if your website needs constant updates then hiring a full-time website developer can help you save costs.

2. You Will Have More Control Over Your Website

As much as you own your own website, the truth is that it’s not always fully in your control. This is because you might lack the technical skills to get to what you need to have accessed at any given time.  By having someone dedicated to your website you are ensuring that your site is fully under your control.

3. Easily Implement New Ideas And Speed Up Productivity

Another pro is that you can easily implement and proceed with new ideas when it comes to your business and digital marketing strategy. No need to waste time in explaining to someone over an e-mail what you need done. No time will be wasted on quotes or finding out if the specific developer you are outsourcing the work to is 100% capable of doing the what is requested.

Do You Need A Full-Time Web Developer?

The question remains, do you actually need a full-time web guy? If you’re a small business and only occasionally find yourself needing to do a few updates on your website, then the chances are you might not need a full-time website developer.

Hiring one when you don’t actually need one will only put financial pressure on your business. This s is where outsourcing – or using specific user-friendly platforms like Wix, WordPress or Shopify – can help you save money.

What Platforms Should I Use When Building My Own Website?

It becomes easier to build your own website every day. Today we have platforms like WordPress, Wix, Joomla, and Shopify, and they are all designed to make your life easier when it comes to developing or creating a website.

If you just want a standard webpage or website that explains your product or service, then using a platform like WordPress is ideal. It also allows you to easily add new blog pages and menus which makes it easier for you to make it easy for users to learn more about your business.

If you are selling a specific product and if you are planning on selling it online, then using a platform like Shopify is a great way to get started. Shopify is user friendly and affordable. Not to mention that it’s currently the fastest growing e-commerce platform in the world. All for good reason of course!

Other platforms you can look at to create a website for your business is Wix, Drupal, Joomla, and Squarespace. As much as all these platforms are similar, they also have their own set of features that set them apart.

It’s up to you to test them out to see which one you prefer at the end of the day.

Marketing Your Website

Keep in mind that having a website is doesn’t necessarily mean your business is going to take off. You need to ensure you are marketing your website. That is where digital marketing expertise, gained through a digital marketing course, can help you take things to a whole new level.

Our Digital Marketing Course will give you the underpinning knowledge to grow yourself within the digital marketing field. It is widely acknowledged as one of the best online digital marketing courses on the market.

Our digital marketing certificate provides a solid platform on which you to assist any business operating within the digital sphere. As digital marketing skills are now in demand in every single industry you need to sign up for this digital strategy course today! Digital School of Marketing sets the standard within the local and international industry in terms of foundational digital marketing education.

Get in touch with the Digital School of Marketing

We are accredited by the Media Information and Communication Technology SETA. This means that you’ll be a hot commodity in the digital marketing arena armed with your qualification from DSM. So, if you are ready to propel yourself in the fastest-growing career in the century and learn digital marketing then the Digital Marketing Course – the best digital marketing course in South Africa – is just for you! Read more here.