Time to hire a web designer? Many solopreneurs and bloggers start their online businesses with a tiny budget. This means you probably created your website yourself or if you had a techy friend, they may have done it for you. But now your tiny business is growing and you’re ready to make a bigger investment in your online presence. You’re probably wondering if you need to hire your own web designer. Here are some hints it might be time to do just that…
You need shopping cart software.
WordPress is awesome and there are a few shopping cart plugins available. But often, these plugins have serious limitations or require you to spend hundreds of dollars in updates and themes.
If you keep struggling with a plugin or if it’s no longer meeting your customers’ needs, you should consider installing your own shopping cart software like WooCommerce. It integrates with WordPress and lets you have the best of both worlds. But the software can be tricky to install which is why you’ll want a good web designer to help you.
You need a consistent look.
If you’re using software from several different companies without customizing any settings, your branding can get muddled. Your customers may not realize your forum or shopping cart software are secure because they don’t have your logo and coloring.
A good web designer can help you achieve a consistent look so your customers’ experience is smooth. Customers should be able to transition between different elements of your sales funnel without feeling confused or overwhelmed.
You need to learn how to use your software.
So, you had someone else install the software you’re using on your website. Maybe you paid a designer that eventually went out of business or maybe someone with a bit of tech knowledge set it up for you.
You want to change the price of an item or add new pictures of your products. You want to host a sale or set up coupons so customers can receive discounts. Maybe your customer wants to pay you but keeps running into a problem with your shopping cart. The only problem is you don’t know how to use the software so you can’t help her.
Find a web designer you trust and have her teach you how to work the software on your website. You could also look for a designer that offers video courses so you can get an over-the-shoulder peek.
Hiring a web designer can be a smart investment in your business. But make sure to learn how to manage your site and software yourself. Then you have the skills you need if you run into a problem with your website later on.
