• little guy branding answers:  Why Should You Outsource Website Hosting & Maintenance?
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Generating the content and state-of-the-art functionality of your business website is often a labor of love that takes a lot of time and effort to get the way you want it to be. So, it’s no wonder why so many small businesses want to keep their website hosting and maintenance in-house. Though a lot of companies who take this route inevitably start to feel like they are wasting a lot of precious manhours maintaining their website as well as taking care of all the nuts and bolts details that go into seamlessly hosting their online presence.

If this sounds like you, then you might be thinking about outsourcing your website hosting and maintenance needs to a third party. In this article, we will take a closer look at the benefits of outsourcing to help you better explore if it is truly right for your company’s website. It’s probably best to divide things up into two sections, to separately examine website maintenance and website hosting as separate entities.

Top Reasons Why You Should Outsource Website Maintenance

Security

Today’s business websites are composed of thousands of lines of code working on specific software platforms. Unfortunately, experienced hackers are good at finding vulnerabilities to exploit with certain codes, and without routine updating your site can be increasingly at risk of trolling or exploitation.

Having your website updated and refreshed on a frequent basis, as well as maintaining state-of-the-art virus software will go a long way toward protecting your website and all its intellectual properties. Though this can gobble up man hours for an inexperienced in-house IT staff. When you outsource your web hosting, you can trust that your website’s security is being handled efficiently and with the industry’s best practices.

Customer Retention & Professionalism

Simple things like ensuring your site is properly maintained and free of things like broken links will go a long way toward sending the right message to your potential new and existing customers. A site with broken links, accessibility / navigation issues and outdated content can be frustrating to your site’s visitors, increasing the chances that they will “Bounce” to your competitor’s website.

Software Updates & Performance

Having your website hosted by a third-party vendor also ensures that every page of your site is being properly maintained and optimized to contemporary standards. This includes basic things like software updates and monitoring for other performance issues that can be optimized in a way that provides your customers with a robust experience when they visit your site. In the event of a problem, the third-party host will also have a backup version of the site that can be installed in a timely manner.

Fresh Content

Website visitors want to see fresh content when they visit your site. It is one of the prime factors that encourages repeat business. Fresh content creation will also go a long way toward improving your ranking on some of the most popular search engines like Google. Whereas outdated content can send the wrong message to customers and search engines that you are floundering, failing to stay relevant, or potentially getting ready to go out of business.

If you have an in-house article or a promotion that you want to publish on your website, but you aren’t an accomplished copywriter, outsourcing to a third-party vendor for website maintenance can also help ensure your message appears on the site properly edited. This will go a long way toward maintaining a professional appearance.

Search Engine Optimization

Unless you have an in-house staff of dedicated and experienced content writers, you will likely struggle with the phrases, terms, and content strategies needed for effective SEO practices. Outsourcing to a third-party host and maintaining your website will go a long way toward improving your rankings and organic search presence on popular search engines.

Are There Any Drawbacks To Outsourcing Website Maintenance?

In the past, there was a concern that outsourcing your website maintenance would lead to a loss of control over the content. Though today’s internet ecosystems and digital communication technology have made it easier than ever to maintain firm control of your website as the primary account holder, while giving sub access to a truly experienced professional handles all the nuts and bolts details of site maintenance.

Top Reasons Why You Should Outsource Web Hosting

Lower Operating Costs

When you outsource your web hosting needs to a professional third-party vendor, you get the peace of mind that comes with knowing that they have the experience and essential training to take care of your site cost-effectively. This lets your in-house IT staff focus on what they do best, without asking them to spend a lot of inefficient manhours dealing with the nuts and bolts details of web hosting. This translates into significant savings in the long term.

Gaining Access To New Markets

As the developing world starts to grow its presence and demand, it also opens up new opportunities for international sales or domestic sales that effectively reach niche markets. By outsourcing your web hosting needs to a professional vendor, you can trust that the functionality needed to operate on international platforms will be infused into every page of your company’s website.

Flexibility

Outsourcing your web hosting gives your company the ability to downsize or expand when needed, or to explore a niche market that is ready for an opportunity. This can help you trim down your existing staff, or repurpose individuals with specific skill sets into roles that let them focus on what they do best.

Peace Of Mind

When you outsource your web hosting, you can enjoy the peace of mind that comes with knowing that true professionals are using the industry’s best practices to ensure that your company website is safe and secure. This includes state-of-the-art security software and virus protection to thwart hackers at every conceivable step.

Focus On Business Growth

When you don’t have to worry about the nuts and bolts details of website hosting it frees you and your staff up to explore new avenues of growth for your business. This might be advanced training for key employees, expanding your sales staff, or growing your lineup to meet a larger client base focusing more on what you do best with sales, service & marketing efforts.