Dec 2, 2020 Written by David Barlev

5 Signs It’s Time to Call a Web Development Company

A group of guys at computers

How do you know when it’s time to call a web development company?

If the usual phone call and snail mail approach just isn’t cutting it for your business, it might be time to speak with a professional who can help you get established on the web.

But wait… it’s expensive to work with a web developer, isn’t it? You may be thinking of holding off hiring a web development company to save money. We don’t blame you, but sometimes it’s worth spending money to make money.

In this blog, we’ll talk about why it may be time to call a web development company and get started on beefing up your online presence.

1. People Aren’t Calling as Much

A laptop on a tableIs your business suffering a decline in inbound sales opportunities? Are the phones not ringing as often? It might be time to work on a stronger web presence. With an efficient, SEO-heavy website, you can start to engage with prospective customers earlier in the purchase funnel.

A good web development company can give you pointers about how to narrow your focus so you don’t waste all your marketing dollars on useless strategies. Some solutions might include shrinking your geographical target areas, writing new web pages that highlight your industry niche, and revising your written content so that it better fits the formats recognized by search engines.

You can also talk to a web developer about spending more money on ads. Yes, it’s a more expensive route, but it’s effective in generating leads and finding new business. If this isn’t the right choice for you, your web developer may let you know what would work better.

In any case, if your business seems to be weakening, talking to a web developer can help you build some ideas about what to do next.

2. You Can’t Handle All the Business

On the flip side, you may be dealing with the problem of not being able to manage your business using the usual tools. For example, an electrician with too much business may start to overbook appointments and end up missing chances to serve customers better. This is a problem, obviously, as reputations can suffer if customers feel mistreated.

When word of mouth is crucial to your business’s success, having a clean website that manages your data and customer information can make a world of difference.

A web developer has the capacity to not only update your website for appointments but also build custom dashboards like this one to see where your time is best spent. In many cases, custom dashboards help businesses identify wasteful practices so they can make the best use of their time.

With the right web developer on your team, you’ll be able to take your business to new heights by letting computers do a little more of the heavy lifting.

3. Your Website Isn’t Cutting It Anymore

A woman on a laptopIf you want people to visit your website, it has to be visible to search engines.

For search engines to index your site and send people there, you must address a few housekeeping items such as efficient site mapping, proper SEO keywords, and elimination of copied content.

Poorly designed sites lead to higher bounce rates (people leaving shortly after arriving), and search engines measure bounce rates when calculating your site’s relevance. You may even have to make changes to your accessibility settings to avoid an ADA lawsuit.

In all these cases, a savvy web development company can help.

They can look over your website, show you where it slows people down, and make the right changes to keep business flowing. Some of these things may not even be apparent to you. For example, did you know long URLs can hurt your SEO visibility score? How do you change that? Let a web developer give you some tips on what to do for a successful website.

Moreover, there’s nothing quite like a facelift to give your business a new look and feel. If your site has grown stale and antiquated, a redesign could be the difference between people trusting your brand or dismissing it as outdated.

When choosing a web development company, find out about their past marketing and branding experience. Some companies have a team in-house to consult with you and take care of all those logo and color scheme details.

Even if you don’t need a full redesign, it’s worth asking about so you have ideas for the future. Odds are you will have to rebrand at some point anyway—why not get started on the blueprint now?

4. Your Business Handles Complex Online Tasks

Some websites perform more complex operations than others. Our electrician friend from earlier isn’t likely to need a data-heavy website because their services are performed in-person. On the other hand, a business like Trivago or Expedia is entirely built on web design.

They use the internet to take out the in-person aspect of the travel business.

If you have a unique idea about an online service that could benefit people, it’s time to talk to a web development company and generate some new ideas. Not only can they help your idea take shape and form, but they may have insights about how to save money on development while delivering a more elegant solution to customers.

These kinds of projects take time and money, but it’s possible to keep costs low by planning out the roots of your web app, incorporating APIs wherever possible, and paring your idea down to its most essential parts.

In other words, taking lots of time to plan out your project is the best way to keep costs down with a web developer. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t seek advice, but you should wait to do so until after you have a fairly specific outline of your plan.

When it comes to complex software like this, realize that it will take at least six months or so to build. This isn’t going to be an overnight project, so if it’s urgent, get in touch with someone right away to get started.

5. You Want Your Own App

A screen full of codeIf everything goes right, the next step for your business is to find a way into your customers’ daily lives. This is no better achieved than through a custom app. Mobile business apps keep customers engaged through useful services (no, not notifications) like account information and service options.

There are a few ways to tackle the deployment of a custom mobile app, but if it’s going to be worth it, you should speak with a competent web development team.

Skilled professionals know how to keep your function and design choices consistent from platform to platform, so no matter where your customers choose to use your services, they can count on working with the same basic product.

Some people choose to use app templates that take web development companies out of the picture. If your software ideas are simple and straightforward, this may be the best route for you. However, to have any level of sophistication on your app, you’ll need to work with an experienced team.

The other benefit to working with a team of developers on your app is that they’ll be able to scale your services as the business grows. Unless you are a coder yourself (in which case, why are you reading this?), you could end up corrupting your app and losing important data—and that costs a lot to repair.

Working with a web development company here ensures that your software is reliable and, at the very least, you are not responsible for problems with it. That’s peace of mind that money can buy.

What Should You Do Next?

Once you call a web developer, the dream starts to become real. Give yourself the best chance of success by speaking with an experienced team of web developers before you plan your app. Most developers charge nothing to throw ideas around and help you gauge how realistic your dreams really are.

One possible outcome might be that your idea isn’t ready to go yet, in which case you’ll save thousands of dollars on wasted development. Thank your stars that someone was honest with you and go back to the drawing board.

Another outcome could be that your developer has a better idea, allowing you to start working on something even better than you initially imagined.

If you’re feeling the stress of a weak web presence, call a web development company and start hashing out some ideas.

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