5 Reasons why GoDaddy, Wix and Weebly are probably tanking your business

Building your own website is like an average person cutting or bleaching their own hair. Can they do it? Absolutely they can! But should they? Really?

Now, I am not a hairstylist. I have no professional training in hair care whatsoever. So I can guarantee you that if I tried to cut my own hair, it would be an utter disaster. In fact, my husband has asked me many times to cut his hair. And that’s just not going to happen.

Why not? 

• I don’t have the training.
• I don’t know the techniques.
• I don’t know how to style.
• I don’t know what looks good on each face shape.
• I don’t have the proper tools.
• I don’t have the knowledge. Point. Blank. Period.

So If you’re using (or thinking of using) GoDaddy, Wix, SquareSpace, Weebly or another DIY builder, ask yourself:

• Do I have specific branding or a color scheme I want to use?
• Do I have any technical ability?
• Do I have the time it takes to figure it out?
• Do I know how to write compelling copy that attracts clients?
• Do I know how to set up a sales or lead generating funnel?
• Do I know what Google requires for ranking websites?
• Do I know how to set up an email list with an incentive?
• Do I know how to install online booking?

I suspect that most salon and spa owners will have answered “No” to most of the questions listed above. Obviously, this is not meant to shame you.

Cutting, coloring, and styling hair all need training, skill, and technique. And so does online marketing.

These questions are only scratching the surface. There is much more involved in building a professional and successful website.

So why would a DIY website be bad for your business?

Let’s dig in..

1. No Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Jimmy Wales, co-founder of Wikipedia said: “If it isn’t on Google, it doesn’t exist”. This could not be a truer statement.

DIY or not, SEO (or lack thereof) is the number one reason why many websites are unsuccessful. It’s also the main reason that new places go out of business. If potential customers can’t find you on Google, you simply don’t exist.

The vast majority of business owners are not trained in this complicated area. Even if you hire a website developer, this does not mean they’re trained in advanced SEO strategies. In my experience, they typically are not. At best, they only know the basics.

So if they don’t even know, how could you?

2. Slow Load Times

Speed, especially on a mobile site, is one of Google’s top-ranking factors. Ideally, your mobile website should load in 3.5 seconds or less. That’s not easy to do with a DIY site. Don’t believe me? Check your website’s load time here.

Generally, if you’re DIY’ing it, you’re probably going to opt for the cheapest hosting plan. In my 20+ years of dealing with hosting plans and companies, cheapest = slowest.

At places like GoDaddy, your website is sharing a server with hundreds or thousands of other websites. That means sharing resources like space, bandwidth, and memory. So if other websites on your server are having a busy day, (think holidays), it will definitely slow down your site. This, in turn, will affect your ranking ability.

Along with the server speed, DIY website builders have bulky code, load lots of scripts and don’t compress your photos. What does that mean? LONGER LOAD TIMES.

3. You have limited Technical Knowledge and Time

The ads on television make it sound like it will be easy. For only $X/month, you can build an amazing and professional website in minutes. It’s just not true.

In fact, many of these DIY companies offer professional help for a “low fee”. So what does that tell you? Most people struggle with it!

Even if you do have some technical skills, websites are a whole different ball game. Even if you are able to get the website looking halfway decent, how does it stand up to the Google test? Find out your Google score here.

As with most things in life, you get what you pay for and time is money. And those 2-hour wait times for a phone call to Godaddy or Wix support?

Who’s got time for that?

4. Lack of Branding and Customization

The majority of website visitors have indicated that a “DIY feel” impacts their ability to trust the business. They conclude that an unprofessional website = an untrustworthy business.

DIY builders also have limited customization options. It can be difficult to make a cookie-cutter template feel “on brand.”

So unless you have HTML and CSS knowledge, you likely won’t be able to make it look much different than hundreds of other sites that use the same template.

5. Your content shows a lack of Professionalism

One thing that DIY’ers tend to do is write copy only about themselves and their businesses. In fact, the content is really an after-thought. People generally just throw a few sentences or paragraphs out there without much thought or research.

“We have 1,000 years of experience.”

“We won this award and that award.”

“Look at all of the amazing things we do!” Blah, blah, blah.

But..

• What about the client and their needs?
• How will your business solve their problem or address their needs?
• How will your business make them feel?
• How will your business take care of them better than anyone else?

That’s the type of copy that will resonate with your potential clients and in turn, with Google.

DIY websites AND content are usually pretty transparent. They kind of look like that outfit that your mom made you when you were five years old.

The idea of it was cute but the execution was difficult and the outcome much less tailored than expected. And… everyone knows by looking at it, that it was homemade. (No offense mom!)

In the end, if you care about your business, your reputation and your Google ranking, DIY is not the way to go.

By saving a few bucks in the beginning, you could be losing major dollars down the line. You may kill your business before it even has the chance to get off the ground.

Now I’d like to hear from you…

Have you had a bad experience with a DIY website?
Tell me about it in the comments below.