Can I update my own website after it is built?

What you should be able to change

A website that only the person who built it can touch is a problem waiting to happen. Your hours change. A holiday closes you for a week. You add a service or retire one. Those edits should take you a few minutes, not an invoice.

Google itself advises owners to check in on published content and update it as needed, or delete it if it is no longer relevant. That is hard to do when every change needs a phone call to a developer.

• Opening hours and holiday closures
• Photos of recent work
• The words describing a service
• A notice, such as a delivery delay or a new location
• Menus, price lists or a list of what you offer
• Staff names and pictures

What is better left to a professional

Not everything should be edited by the owner. The layout, the way pages are connected and the way the site works on a phone are easy to break by accident.

A sensible setup keeps the parts you change often simple and fenced off, so one wrong click does not scramble your front page. Changes to booking, payments, forms or the structure of the site are worth asking a professional to do.

Questions to ask before you hire someone

Put these to any designer, ours included. The answers tell you how much of the site is really yours.

• Which parts can I edit myself, and which can I not?
• How do I log in, and is the login in my name?
• Will you show me how to make a change before you finish?
• If I need help later, how quickly do you reply?
• If we part ways, can I take the website and the words with me?
• Who owns the domain name and the hosting accounts?

What it means if the answer is no

Some owners are told they cannot edit their own site, or that it is safer if they do not. Sometimes there is a good reason. More often it is how the designer keeps you coming back, and every small change becomes a small bill.

A middle road also works. You do the simple edits, and a person you trust looks after the rest and replies when you ask. That is how our looked-after service works for owners who would rather not touch it at all.

What to do next

Try one small change on your own site today, such as your opening hours. If you cannot find where to do it, or you do not have a login, you have your answer. Ask whoever built it for access, in writing.

If you are planning a new site, say up front that you want to change everyday things yourself. See how we build for that on our website design page, or get in touch.