Protect your brand on the web: 4 questions to ask your web designer
categories: small business websites
I'm often asked by small businesses to redesign an existing website. Their first attempt at creating a web presence is outdated or broken, or their old vendor has moved on or proven difficult to work with. Whatever the case, suddenly it becomes important that the business have access to information they never paid attention to before. Without that information, the change to a new site can be a whole lot more difficult, and they stand to lose control over their brand on the internet.
Fundamentally, every website needs a name and a place to live. Domain registrars are responsible for keeping track of those names and pointing them to the right place on the internet. Hosting providers provide websites a place to live, a home for all of the files that make a website work.
Usually the person setting up your website will set both of these up for you, and that's fine. What's important is that you request -- and demand, if necessary -- the information you'll need to access both the registrar and the hosting provider without that person's help. Without information about both of these things, it will be difficult for you or your new developer to make changes to your site; you'll be locked into using the same developer who created your site in the first place.
Here are some questions you should ask your developer before you commit to working with them:
- How will I be notified when my domain needs to be renewed? Make sure your developer lists you as a contact during domain registration; you don't want to lose your domain name if your developer neglects to renew it for you.
- How can I change my domain's "name server" to point it at a different hosting provider? At some point down the road, you may be calling someone like me to overhaul your website, and you may need to change your domain's name server (DNS) information to get your domain pointing to the right place. If you can't get this information from your developer, be very wary -- without this information, you won't be able to keep your site's name if you ever want to move it!
- How will I be able to access my site's files? In most cases, your developer can provide you with a username and password so you or your develper can use FTP (file transfer protocol) software to download the files; if not, ask the developer to explain why, and insist on receiving an archive of the entire site when it launches.
- If my site requires a database, will you provide a copy of it on request? Sites that collect information from users or that allow you to edit their content using an administrative interface usually use a database. This database changes as your site gets used, so you can't just get a copy of it when your site launches. You may want to offer to pay your developer to make routine copies of your database and provide them to you.
Your domain name is your business's brand on the internet; once your site is up, you'll put it in marketing material, you'll put it on your signage, you'll give it to prospective customers. It's imperative that you have a way to control it and point it to the right place, no matter how much you like or trust your developer; getting answers to these questions can save you big headaches down the road.
