Investing in a custom WordPress site is the best decision you can make for your business. We’re going to explain why in this article and we promise we have your best interests in mind.
If you are like many small business owners, you are working diligently to make every dollar count. The bills pile up quickly, while revenue doesn’t always keep up. Fixed expenses must be covered, so it can be tempting to put off marketing expenses. Are you truly growing your business this way?
Marketing Budgets
The U.S. Small Business Administration recommends spending 7 to 8 percent of your gross revenue for marketing and advertising. This number should jump to as much as 20 percent for new companies. Still, in our experience, even the most savvy business owners are reluctant to spend money on marketing.
Anecdotally, we believe the reason for this is because it feels like it’s hard to measure the return, which makes it feel less like an investment and more like just another bill. Let’s be honest, one peek at the complicated Google Analytics dashboard and even we sometimes want to turn the computer off for the day.
In all seriousness, the whole reason for a custom WordPress site is to both prove its worth and help you feel great about it. If it’s done right, pinching pennies will be a thing of the past and you will be confident in your ROI.
Which Lead Are You
As is the case with most service providers, our pricing typically elicits one of three responses:
- “Never mind and thanks anyway.”
- “Your prices are actually really reasonable compared to what “big” agencies are charging. Let’s do it!”
- “Will you update my current site or just use a website builder, like Wix or Squarespace?”
All of these responses are completely reasonable, but which one has a growth mindset? Let’s break them down.
Never Mind
That’s OK. We’re not the right fit for everyone, but are truly sorry to see you go. Of course, we’d still like to understand why you declined a custom WordPress site. Follow-up emails for feedback in these instances generally refer to tight budgets. We totally get it!
Perhaps this blog will convince you that it’s worth the investment so that your budget won’t be so tight!
Let’s Do It
We strive to keep our rates affordable for small business owners, while still paying our own bills. Overhead is kept at a minimum so we can pass along those savings to you. We focus on financially sound practices and really respect the fact that money doesn’t grow on trees. Additionally, our goal is to make every client a source of referrals, so we always look at the bigger picture. We want you to consider our services to be top notch, starting with attractive pricing… yet, building a fantastic site still costs money.
Fortunately, you’re the kind of client who sees the value in this investment. Check out these two scenarios by Molly Meyer for an idea of how you might approach a new website.
Scenario 1
Consider, though, if one of these websites was underperforming and converting only 1 in every 10,000 visitors into a customer (the conversion rate).
With 5,000 monthly visitors (which is on the high side), a 1 in 10,000 conversion rate would translate to only one new online customer every two months.
If the owner of this website was investing $1,000 a month in online advertising, their cost to acquire each customer would be $2,000.
Scenario 2
Now consider an updated and conversion rate-optimized website—a website that converts every 1 in 500 visitors into a customer.
With a 1 in 500 conversion rate, we’re talking about 10 new customers per month, with the same amount of traffic.
If the owner of this website was investing $1,000 a month in online advertising, their cost to acquire each customer would be $100.
That’s spending 95% less to acquire each new customer.
Benefits of a Custom WordPress Site
So, you are now convinced that a custom website is worth the investment. What exactly is it that makes it cost more than a website builder template site?
- Research & Discovery: We’re going to make sure we learn about your business, your needs, your industry, and your competitors.
- Project Management: We take care of all the details so you don’t have to worry about keeping track of what’s been finished and what needs to happen.
- Content Development: We guide you through the kind of images, text, and call to actions your site needs to help it convert.
- Custom Design: The design is completely unique and original, tailored to your brand identity, to help you stand out from your competitors.
- Custom Functionality: Any extra features that need to be designed or added will take additional time to create and implement.
- SEO: Layers of SEO strategies are applied as the site is designed and developed to get maximum results from your on-line presence.
In other words, you’re paying for the expertise of an experienced, knowledgeable marketing team. You’re also paying to not have to waste valuable time and energy in services that don’t work the first time around.
Wix (or Squarespace, or Weebly, etc.) Lead
Still wanting to pursue a website builder site? Again, we get it! Your budget is tight. We are asked frequently if we can save money by building a Wix (or Squarespace, or Weebly, etc.) site. It always makes us think of that really funny meme making the rounds on the internet, but we’re still happy to help even if we can’t convince you WordPress is best.
Before we get started, we do ask ourselves if charging for a website that’s not really in the best interest of the client is the right thing to do. If not, we’ll politely decline the project – we truly have our clients’ best interest at heart. We would much rather take the time to build what you truly want or need and charge you a reasonable (but higher) rate. Then, we can do an amazing job without website builder limitations and provide an enormous return on your investment.
WordPress is Best
There’s also just the nitty-gritty of why WordPress is technically more sound. Here are the top nine reasons in our opinion.
- The software is free and open-source.
- WordPress adapts so you can make any type of website.
- WordPress supports many media types.
- WordPress is easy to learn and offers a large community for support.
- WordPress can easily scale up with numerous themes and plugins.
- SEO and security are priorities for WordPress.
- WordPress allows full control of your website.
- WordPress offers exceptional blogging options.
- WordPress is the most popular platform and growing annually.
Interestingly, WordPress runs 43.2% of the entire internet. Wow.
More Things To Know About Website Builders
Now, a few things to consider when building on a website builder instead of WordPress.
- There are a limited number of themes to choose from and chances are you’ll look exactly like any other competitors who use the same builder.
- The ability to customize your site is limited by the website builder’s offerings.
- You are bound to the terms and conditions of that builder’s platform
- Taking data, metrics, analytics, and content with you when you change builders (or move to WordPress) will be a major chore, if not allowed at all.
- SEO application is tedious and is not always the priority on these platforms.
- While website builders advertise that sites can be built in no time, the reality is that a professional looking site will take countless hours and will still likely need paid technical support to launch successfully.
- The Wix/Weebly folks own all parts of your website. If they go out of business or decide to take your site down for any reason, it is gone.
WordPress Is A Business Investment
As a business owner, you have a few options when it comes to your cash flow and your company. You can save money OR you can invest it in your business. When you start investing in your company, you see growth. You are no longer asking, “What is the cost?”, but rather “What is the return?”.
It’s important to note that a high ROI can also mean happier customers, happier employees, time savings, brand awareness, and other important factors other than money. For example, a custom WordPress website shows your customers you are serious your product or service. It builds trust by showing you believe in what you’re doing and that you plan to be here for the long run.
A custom WordPress website is a business investment that will bring you a very rewarding ROI and is the best marketing decision you can make!
Jenny Green, Co-Owner of Fisher Green Creative, specializes in digital strategy development, social media marketing, and SEO for small businesses. Away from helping clients or studying the latest marketing trends, Jenny volunteers her time coaching youth soccer, enjoys a cold craft IPA, and works to save the elephants. Connect with Jenny on LinkedIn or email.
