By Lisa Moore & Sarah Morgan
We’re all for empowerment, taking matters into your own hands, and do-it-yourself projects. After all, that’s why YouTube and Pinterest exist, right?
Unfortunately, trying to do something yourself and pulling it off expertly are not always possible.
We’ve all been guilty of overeager confidence fueled by the notion that we can save a buck and expand our horizons with a little DIY. The problem is these projects aren’t always as simple as they seem.
The time and effort can be more than anticipated when you realize doing things properly takes more finesse and understanding than originally expected. Associated costs often add up as you undertake multiple tries to achieve that Pinterest-level quality you’re aiming for.
Website development is no different. DIY in this field is possible, but not advisable.
Seeking Assistance
When turning to LKF for web programming and development, most organizations understand the importance of finding the ideal partner to perfect their website. After all, your website is the 24/7-sales person, a digital representation of your brand, and, in some cases, your only opportunity to make a good first impression on your audience.
We’ve also encountered folks who appreciate our skills yet see the price tag attached as a barrier. Others don’t believe that usability standards or SEO tactics are necessary in general or in their specific case. Perhaps they have someone in-house that’s up for the challenge.
Whatever the case may be, they choose to try their hand at website redevelopment internally.
Time and time again, these folks struggle with the intricacies of web development and eventually come back to us asking for help. We’re happy to partner with them and get their project over the finish line.
LKF’s 12-person Technology Services Team offers more than 130 years of cumulative website experience. Our agency started developing websites nearly 20 years ago and has seen a vast number of changes in the industry.
As such, it’s our goal to stay on top of the multiple facets key to our work. Our philosophy ensures that all the pillars of web development are at their peak to provide the best and most appropriate website for our clients. These pillars include usability, accessibility, SEO, clean coding, custom design, flexibility to update, and security (both within the website and our hosting environment).
Our experience and focus have led the LKF team to develop more than 80 custom websites in the past seven years alone without sacrificing quality or client satisfaction.
An individual would be very hard-pressed to be capable of providing the same experience and expertise as our team. Our Technology Services team is living proof that teamwork makes the dream—and website development—work.
That’s where the DIY typically falls apart on web work. Sure, someone could build a website on their own with one of the many off-the-shelf tools that exist. The problem is the ever-changing world of web makes it almost impossible for anyone even somewhat experienced to use these tools to produce a website that meets SEO standards, usability and accessibility requirements (some that vary by industry), security needs (some dictated by more recent legislature), and current design aesthetics.
In the end, the time commitment and learning curve required of your internal team would likely cost more than our estimate and result in lower quality, functionality, and engagement.
A Client’s Perspective
Don’t take our word for it. Cathy Baldwin, Director of Marketing & Communication at JM Wilson is happy to share her experience. With a highly capable internal team, Cathy took her website redevelopment work in-house. After years of time and effort, she circled back to her partners here at LKF–and we’re so glad she did!
The outcome is a beautiful and masterfully functioning website that combined the wants and needs of her internal team with the experience of the LKF Technology Services Team.
“I had someone on staff who had done some basic web building with a familiar program and thought we could run with that to build a new website for JM Wilson,” Baldwin said. “Too far down the road I came to realize that building a website was more than just plug and play. It requires creative minds, strategic vision, and technical expertise.
“LKF Marketing had been my support for all these things for over 20 years with other projects and they certainly came to my rescue to salvage this one. It was a huge relief for me and still is as LKF continues to handle the more complicated aspects of our site that we are proud of.”
Call on Our Team
Whether you attempt it on your own first or partner with us from the get-go, you can always lean on your friends at LKF!
We take the time to listen in the planning phase to understand your wants and needs for the site. We know you have internal brains with great ideas. We want them in the meetings, too!
Together, we’ll build an amazing online presence for you without the frustration of a Pinterest fail or cautionary YouTube D-I-Don’t.
Oh! Did we mention the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals awarded LKF a Platinum Hermes Award for JM Wilson’s website to boot?
Contact us to team up with our Technology Services Team and see what we can build together!
