Should You Build Your Own Website?

Building a website can be a great way to save costs and take complete control over your site’s design, however there are various disadvantages that may make it more beneficial to hire a pro. Here are just a few questions to ask yourself before building your own site.

Do you know how to code?

If you’re fluent in JavaScript, you may be able to build your own website from scratch with no problems. If you don’t have any programming knowledge, you may have to rely on a drag-and-drop website builder.

There are lots of website builders out there – some are free, whilst others may require you to pay. WordPress is the most commonly used website builder and is one of the easiest to use, although some may find it limiting. Other website builders include Wix, Weebly, Joomla and Shopify all with their own pros and cons. It’s worth doing some background research into these platforms – you’ll find many sites providing information such as these WordPress facts that could help you to make the right choice. You could even try watching YouTube tutorials to see how easy each website builder is to use.

How complex does your website need to be?

If you’re only hoping to create a basic website, it should be no challenge to create it yourself. However, if you plan to add some complex design or animation, you may want to consider hiring professionals.

You’re unlikely to be able to create anything complex using a website builder – whilst there’s always the option of adding plug-ins, too many of these could slow your website down making it less user-friendly. Meanwhile, if you’re coding a website from scratch, you need to be certain that you have the know-how to pull off these complexities.

Do you have the time?

Creating a decent website takes time. Even if you’re creating a WordPress-based website, you’ll probably want to spend some time customising it so that it doesn’t look too much like a template. Meanwhile, coding a website from scratch is certain to take a while.

Web development companies often have teams of programmers dedicated to creating websites, allowing them to be produced at a faster rate. Whilst you will have to invest money into their services, the time saved could be worth it in certain cases (e.g. if you’re building a company website).

All in all, it comes back to the factor of complexity. A basic website may not take long to produce, however a complex website could take many days. Consider whether you have the time to build a website to your exact specs – you don’t want to be rushing it and making sacrifices to your original concept, just because you didn’t have the time.