04 Dec
If you’re reading this article, then congratulations, as you have no doubt created something to be proud of. Your business is likely thriving, and you are ready to take it up a level, perhaps you are inundated with work and need to outsource your website management whilst you get back to the real business. You may even be wondering to yourself; you’ve got this far on your own, so why would you need a WordPress maintenance plan?
The reality is, the bigger a company gets, the greater the loss suffered by downtime or other technical glitches. This may not just be a financial loss; a company’s reputation can be tarnished if their online presence is consistently compromised. Using the services of a reputable WordPress maintenance company will mitigate these risks as you can be safe in the knowledge an expert is behind the wheel.
Pursuant to this point, you should also assess your ability. Your knowledge of WordPress may have got you to this point; however, are you set up to scale your business efficiently? Evaluating your database along with SEO and even assessing the suitability of third party plugins are all vital steps to keeping your website functional as you scale. The right WordPress maintenance company will consider these when taking up a package with them. This could even result in increased short term profitability as your google rankings and user experience improves.
Now you’ve decided if you’re going to take the leap and outsource your WordPress maintenance, what should you be looking for from your WordPress maintenance provider? With so many WordPress maintenance companies out there, which one do you choose? What is the difference between them and what do you really need? This should be the first question you should ask yourself, what do you need from your WordPress maintenance package? The scope of work between agencies can vary greatly, so understanding what you need is really the first step.
Level of involvement
Are you wanting them to take on the updating of content and if so, how frequently? Will you be providing them with content to update such as blog articles/ images etc.? Do you need them to keep on top of essential updates, or are your demands going to be more technical and require development work? Be open and honest with what you need and the level of service you expect. This sets a solid foundation for you to build your business relationship.
Check Reviews
A great way to check if a company can deliver on what they promise is to look for reviews on trusted third-party websites such as Trustpilot or FeeFo. Take any testimonials on their website with a pinch of salt, they may well be accurate, but at the same time, testimonials displayed on websites are curated. Pay close attention to negative reviews, sometimes these can be paid for by a competitor, but have a read and see if there are any you feel are genuine as this can often give you insight into what will happen when you turn from a sales prospect to a customer.
Talk to their support
Once the decision has been narrowed down to a couple of possibilities, talk to their support. This is beneficial from a few angles, it gives you a good idea on how quick you can get in touch with them once you’re a customer, and you can talk to them and see what else they can offer to help your company. The more you can do with one company the better in some respects, giving one company a lot of business will help strengthen relationships and give you greater priority over other clients should something go wrong. Some may say don’t put all of your eggs in one basket, but as long as you have contingencies planned, any risks would be mitigated.
Is their service proactive or reactive?
In my opinion, proactive WordPress management companies are much more effective than reactive. They will be keeping on top of updates and also be performing preventative maintenance. If the company you choose is reactive, you’re going to be chasing down support if and when something goes wrong.
Show your due diligence
The internet is littered with people claiming to be WordPress experts, and as the industry isn’t regulated, anyone can claim to be a WordPress expert with no actual qualifications. If you’re looking for a company you can depend on, make sure they are a registered company. If you are in the UK, this can be checked on the HMRC website or on companycheck.com.
Here you can see everything from their registered address, to their last few years cash flow. Once you have the company details, check their registered premises, do they have an office or is it someone’s house.
I’m not saying freelancers or startups can’t be reliable, but if you are using a freelancer or someone setting up a new company, make sure they have a sterling reputation or at the very least make sure you can easily get out of any contracts should their service not be up to scratch.
What’s your commitment?
This leads me nicely onto my next point. What kind of contract are you committing to and how likely are your business needs going to change over the length of this contract? The most conservative plan you will see is a month on month rolling charge and if possible I would always advise trying to push for this. It gives you a get out option if the service isn’t what you expected and it gives you the flexibility to adapt in the case your business evolves.
Service Level Agreement
One other aspect which sets reputable companies apart from the rest are service level agreements. This is a contract which details the level of service to expect from the company. This can include the basics of what is included with the package to guarantee support response times. Having this in place means the company is confident in their abilities to deliver on what was promised.
Conclusion
In conclusion all these points highlighted are to ensure you are working with a reputable company and to make sure you’re getting the best value for money by only paying for what you need.
WP Agents can help with all of these aspects and are so confident in their service that Further to this, you can talk to their support and get a free consultation.
Get in touch with WP Agents today via the following link click here.
