Switching website maintenance vendors - challenges and solutions

With our website maintenance business growing well we are constantly faced with on-boarding new clients either who don't have anyone maintaining their site or are unhappy with the current maintenance service providers.

As you can imagine switching website maintenance vendors can be painful all around. In most cases the agency losing the business, cooperates as they don't want their reputation spoiled by unnecessary confrontation. And of course if there is no agency in the picture better still.

Here are some of the common issues faced when switching website maintenance vendors and ideas on how to tackle them:

The existing website is a messWhen faced with such situations we have to evaluate if the current design is salvageable and if it is, then we go for a complete recode of the underlying source code keeping elements of the design the same. If the design is too outdated then we strongly recommend a complete redesign exercise.

After the underlying code of the site has been rewritten, the content is salvaged and plugged into our Content Management System and the site is handed to our customer support team.

Usually after such an exercise, the performance of the site improves dramatically as legacy issues are addressed, search engine friendliness is improved and overall loading speed of the site also improves.

The Intellectual Property of the website is scattered or misplaced
One of the first questions we ask when we come in for a maintenance contract is, 'Who has the domain?' It amazes me how businesses are careless with their digital intellectual property such as domains, hosting accounts, control panel details etc.

Usually multiple managers have handled the site and with each change the information gets more scattered and lost. They have no idea who is handling the domains, who is hosting the site, what are the annual charges being applied etc. They do not have access to Google Analytics (if any) or access to the CMS (if any).

It takes days of painstaking work and searching to put together the missing information and take charge of the website.

Migration of CMS systems
One of the biggest challenges we face when migrating a client's website to our maintenance services is that of the CMS.

CMS or content management systems are of two types - custom ones and open sourced ones. Both are made of the same technological components at the core but are maintained, updated and operated very differently. Some commonly used open source CMS include Wordpress, Drupal and Joomla.

Source: https://www.miracleworx.com/switching-website-maintenance-vendors-challenges-solutions.htm

Read more about: Ecommerce Website Design Gurgaon

How to evaluate design options presented by your web design agency

Presenting designs and getting them approved is a constant part of any web designer's life. Most times the client 'gets' what we are trying to do and approves the design with minor modifications. But there are times when clients have difficulty understanding the design or don't connect with it immediately.

We realized that such clients, although brilliant at their profession, don't possess the tools or the expertise to evaluate a design. They make some elementary mistakes which causes a good design to get rejected or drastically changed.

Here are a few things we would love for our clients to keep in mind when evaluating the design options presented by the agency.

It's important to avoid snap judgments.
It's also important to avoid snap judgments early on. Design can be extremely subjective and people's opinion on the design can change with prolonged exposure to the design. Instead of deciding immediately, spend some time with the submitted designs. Let your mind adjust to them and notice the details.

Ask your web design agency to explain their thinking
I am surprised how few clients actually ask the design agency for their thought process. After a cursory introduction to the design, most client launch into their opinion on the design which is usually a knee jerk reaction.

A question and answer session with the agency about their thinking, why the layout has been designed that way and what the approach is to the entire website.

Sometimes clients are surprised at the thought process designers have put into the design which they did not grasp immediately. E.g. A common example is the correlation between the design elements and the company logo or monogram.

Don't involve too many people in the design approval process
As the saying goes, 'Too many cooks spoil the broth'. This is especially true for design approvals. We have sat in meetings where opinions were solicited from everyone including those completely outside the management or marketing roles. The result was a smorgasbord of feedback which decimated the designs and we ended up with something very ordinary.

We recommend that the design evaluation team be kept to a maximum of 3 people. Just enough to encourage healthy discussion but not so many that the whole issue becomes confused.

Look at the design as a whole as well as its separate elements.
The first thing you look for and is the easiest to judge is how does the design look as a whole. As a client, you need to be at least 60-70% satisfied with how the design overall looks. Don't shoot for 100% otherwise it will go into perfectionist territory and endless loops.

Don't throw the baby out with the bath water, as the saying goes. Don't get stuck on only one aspect e.g. colours or font. Instead view the design holistically. You might not like any one aspect of the design presented to you, whether its color or font or anything else. But try and look past that and evaluate the design holistically. Does it tick the boxes in other aspects such as navigation, layouting etc.

Source: https://www.miracleworx.com/how-to-evaluate-design-options-presented-by-your-web-design-agency.htm

Read more about: Ecommerce Website Designing Company in Delhi

Proactive website maintenance helps website owners leverage their websites to the maximum

Proactive website maintenance helps website owners leverage their websites to the maximum.
Website maintenance is one of the most important and under serviced areas of web designing. Once the web design phase ends, the actual work begins. Unfortunately many web design firms and their clients do not give this phase much importance. However our philosophy at MiracleworX is quite different.

We believe in having a strong support team updating the sites regularly for the clients.
We have worked very hard to create a system and a team to help our clients update their sites as efficiently as possible. With a ticketing system that tracks each request we ensure that nothing slips through the cracks and each request is given its due importance.

Due to the system our clients are one of the most active users of their websites.
Our clients know that there is someone who will respond quickly and efficiently to their requests. This encourages them to keep updating their sites and remain very active. They are able to respond faster to industry changes and their sites are always up-to-date.

Our support team has become an extension of the client's own team.
I love it when clients treat our support team members like their own. There is a deep trust and appreciation between the client and our team which in turn fosters not only routine work but also innovation and risk taking by the client. Due to this dynamic our client websites are always evolving.

Website updates is one less thing our clients have to worry about.
In our crazy world business owners are always stretched for time and resources. Have proactive website maintenance resources gives them one less thing to worry about and frees them to concentrate on their core work.

Source: https://www.miracleworx.com/proactive-website-maintenance.htm

Read more about: Ecommerce Website Design Agency in Delhi

How to select the best digital marketing company for your needs

Digital marketing companies are sprouting all over the place. They are being started by everyone from teenagers to retired ad execs with a lot of time on hand. And of course battle hardened digital veterans as well.

However it is becoming ever more difficult for clients to distinguish between these agencies. They all have really weird names (many of which were probably dreamed up in a haze of smoke) and some out-of-the-box sales pitch which they feel shows their unique thinking. Ultimately they only confuse the prospective clients.

So what are the factors that should actually matter when picking an digital marketing agency. Here are a few to consider:

1. Longevity - Avoid here today, gone tomorrow, operators
This industry is notorious for companies starting one day and disappearing the very next. We have been in business for over 14 years and have seen countless upstarts come and go. Some have even lured a few of our clients away with impossible promises, only to disappear into smoke later.

It might sound clichéd and old fashioned but companies that have survived for years in this tough market are here to stay and have something unique in them that's allowed them to weather the storms. Longevity is usually a good indicator of whether they will be here the next year and onwards.

2. Good all round capabilities
Too many digital companies have only one core competency such as SEO or SEM and try and cover for the other areas through partnership or outsourcing. In such cases you might get good results on that one service but will get screwed in the other areas.

Good digital firms have solid all round expertise and experience. Of course it's impossible for every firm to be good at everything. However look for firms that have the broadest possible skill set. This should include technical abilities along with creative ones.

Always check with them, which part of the digital mix they will be doing in-house and which they will outsource or partner for. Make sure that not too much of the work is outsourced.

3. Management team that talks in real terms
Whether it is digital or not, marketing is marketing. You need an agency with both feet planted firmly on the ground. They should talk in real terms about expected results, possible challenges, problem areas and likelihood of success and failure.

They should be upfront about the risks and rewards of each channel they are using and should have a common sense approach to digital strategy.

There are too many con artists out there blowing smoke up client's backsides. Beware of such snake oil salesmen.

4. Realistic costs
What's 'realistic' is hard to define because it depends on a lot of factors. But I have noted that most clients have a very good feel of what the budget should be. Multiple quotes (but not too many) also helps set a median.

There are usually two types of digital agencies to avoid. The first we can call 'fishers'. They quote ridiculously high prices and wait for the big fish to reel in. They thrive on clients who either don't know better or don't care. The second is the 'do anything to get business' types who will quote so low that it will be impossible to service the client over the long term. They will cut corners or eventually leave the client in a lurch.

The best cost I feel is the one that pinches the client a little but is also not so high to make it a major pain for the client to justify within the company.

Source: https://www.miracleworx.com/how-to-select-the-best-digital-marketing-company-for-your-needs.htm

Read more about: Ecommerce Website Design Agency in Delhi