Regardless of where your business is based, your website is usually the first point of contact for potential customers. It’s important to design your website so that people can get a good first impression of your business. It needs to show not only what you offer them, but give them a reason to buy from you. This means that you should look into hiring someone to do your site from scratch rather than using a simple template. Doing so will give you the best possible selling platform for your business. That being said, here are a few reasons why using a template rather than having a professional design your website is a bad idea.
You Probably Won’t Own Your Domain
In some cases, template sites will rent the domain, but not actually own it. This means that you are locked into whatever services and quality the site gives by default, and cannot easily change to a new service provider. While it can be a little more expensive, purchasing your own domain from $3 to $150 per month depending on use, services, and security is worth it. This allows you to change the service and even the site itself as needed. You will also need an FTP program, but they are usually free or cheap. Otherwise, it can be as easy or as difficult as you wish.
Search Engine Optimization
While there are a number of disadvantages of using a template, one of those is that you do not have as much ability when it comes to getting your site ready for search engines. There are a number of great tricks that you cannot take advantage of when you are working from a template. Working with a designer on your website instead will help you to have more options with search engine optimization and help you to rank better for the things that you want to rank for.
Less Customization
By taking advantage of CSS grids to provide website consistency and being able to manipulate the code directly, there is nothing you cannot do when it comes to your site. By programming the site yourself you can make the site do what you need it to, not what a template limits you to doing. Even experts claim that coding and CSS grids provide more flexibility when coding a website.
Added Personality
While there may be some good reasons to use a template, one of the greatest disadvantages of using them is that it’s a lot harder to add your own personality and style to your website. Templates are a great start, but they lack the personal touch a website designed specifically for your business, and that lack of personality may turn potential customers away. Having a website professionally designed will help you to make sure that your personality and brand are reflected in the best way on your website.
Ultimately, it is up to the owner to decide on whether or not he should use a template. However, while a template will save time and money, a customized site will be well worth the investment. That personal touch is always worth it and one that potential customers will respond to favorably.