For a lot of businesses, their website is their business card. The first impression you give a potential client. It reinforces why a client chose you to begin with. Having your site hacked is a huge headache. It damages your business and reputation. It deters people from believing in what you have to offer. And in some instances, may even lead to your clients having their information stolen.
Maintenance on a website is extremely important. I get it, if I am buying a TV, why are you trying to sell me insurance? Don’t you believe in the product you are selling me? If you are building a website for me, why are you trying to get me to pay for the monthly upkeep of the site?
It is simple, most people purchase a website, and never touch it. Or I will hear “I don’t believe in updates; they always seem to mess things up”. It is especially important to make sure you update your site frequently. It is one of the key components to keeping hackers out. Couple that with good security and backup plugins, and you are on your way to sealing up any cracks you may have on the site.
Technology is always evolving, so is how hackers work. When a site is developed, it is set up to deter what would-be hackers are commonly doing at the point in time in which a website has been completed. But they are constantly trying to get in, sometimes hundreds of times a day. Sometimes hundreds of times an hour. I see this on security logs all the time. The more popular or successful a site equals more traffic, which equals the likelihood of hackers trying to get in. But this is not limited to high traffic sites, as they are trying to get in anywhere they can.
I have had personal sites hacked in the past, way back when I started designing sites. This was before I understood the importance of trying to seal things up. I was like a lot of people; I did not have the time to update the site or want to spend money on a remotely decent security plugin. Why would they target me? I thought I am just a guy with a podcast. Besides, my developer made sure hackers could not get in, right? Wrong, they target everyone.
So, one day I started seeing Viagra ads on my site. I tried everything, they just kept sprouting up. I ended up paying hundreds of dollars to have the ads removed from my site. I could have paid a tenth of that to just implement a security plugin.
I am a hands-on person; I learn from experience. This led me to investigate security plugins and research what other measures I could implement to keep people out. It also made me implement a backup solution if all else fails. Since the Viagra incident, I have thwarted various attempts to inject fake ads for banks, online retailers, and others. All thanks to having a security protocol in place that was able to eliminate any threat before it became something serious.
Imagine, you are about to make that huge announcement on your site. A big sale, a monumental achievement, you set the date, rally the troops on social media, all eyes on you. And then, the night before, your site goes down. It has been rerouted to a counterfeit site that is now poised to steal your clients, and their information, and make you look like crap in the process. In most cases, this was avoidable.
I mentioned backups above, they are equally as important as any other component on your site. Web hosts all offer backups as part of hosting plans. But sometimes their backup services fail. I also know this from previous experience. But, thanks to having a backup plugin in place, I have been able to recover sites when things go south. Isn’t one backup good enough? In theory, yes, but it is highly recommended that you take extra precautions and have several backups, in the event, one does not work or gets corrupted. It is good practice to back up your site frequently. Once backed up, you should also save several backups if something does slip through the cracks, and you need to revert to a specific date.
We are all busy, and in most cases, people do not have the time, nor care to have to update their sites frequently. That is where purchasing a maintenance plan comes into play. All software is vulnerable to getting hacked. Because of this, you install software on your computer to ensure it does not get infected with a virus, malware, or ransomware. It is also the reason why you take your car to the shop to ensure it is still running in tip-top conditions. It is why a technician checks an elevator frequently to ensure it is working correctly, and you don’t have to unwillingly take the stairs. It is why you install an alarm system in your house or car to deter people from burglarizing or vandalizing your property. The list goes on and on.
A maintenance plan is all these things. It is a moat, and a castle wall to help keep the wolves at bay. It is a parachute in the event that you need to eject and float back to safety. It is a preventive measure that helps ensure that your business is not losing money because some hacker decided to go to town on your site.
In most cases, a maintenance plan will cost less than what you’re paying for that internet, phone, and TV package you have at home. Or what cord-cutters are paying for all of the streaming services they’re subscribed to. Doesn’t it make sense to take the appropriate steps to keep your web presence going, and ensure you can keep paying for all of those services?
No site is 100% bulletproof, but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t try and make it as bulletproof as possible. Feel free to send us any questions you might have about our maintenance packages.
Why pay for a maintenance package? Imagine investing all of your hard-earned money in a new website, only to have it go offline for an extended period of time. How much money will that cost you in the long run? How will your reputations be affected? Investing in a maintenance package will help ensure that your site is up 24/7/365.
Included in a standard maintenance package are the following, updates to your site’s plugins and theme. Security monitoring encompasses the installation of a WordPress security plugin, a firewall, an SSL certificate, automated email notifications, and clean-up if there is a security issue. Up-time monitoring is implemented to be notified in the event that your site goes offline, and to help determine any speed issues.
The premium maintenance package includes site updates, a pro-security plugin that offers additional protection against hackers, up-time monitoring, broken link monitoring and repair, page speed optimization, pro site backups, database maintenance, site migration, tech support, and monthly audits.
Service packages can be combined for a discounted cost.
