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What to do if your web site designer goes out of business

It's a scenario that plays out every day: a small business decides to make changes to their web site, but when they try to contact their web designer, he seems to have disappeared off the face of the earth. There is no response to telephone calls or emails, there is no word of him in local business circles, and his own business web site - if he ever had one - is gone as well. The business does not know how to access their own web site, they do not know how to update it, and for that matter, they do not know if they have any rights to it. Some might say this is the price you pay for allowing an amateur to run your web site, but for business owners in dark economic times, it is no laughing matter. Even well-established and highly professional web design firms are not immune to sudden turns of fortune. Banks can foreclose, offices can flood, and web developers can get hit by the proverbial bus.

So what can you do in a worst-case scenario where you cannot access your business web site because your designer is no longer trading?

First, don't panic. You can, and will, get your web site back in some form.

Second, engage the services of a professional web site designer to take the lead in the recovery process. Choose a designer who blends technical knowledge with a good commercial acumen. If you do not know a reputable designer, the networking events promoted on this web site are excellent opportunities to find one. You should expect to pay the designer's standard hourly charge or a fixed project fee for the service.

Third, reference your web site information inventory. If the break in service with your current web designer is permanent, the inventory will hold the information you need to recover your web presence or transfer it to to a new designer. To begin the process, download our simple web site information inventory template free of charge.

We suggest that you download and complete the inventory even if you have an excellent relationship with a strong web firm. A good web designer will be happy to supply you with this information, as a good designer will not see the process as a threat. If the request causes grumbles, excuses, or open hostility from your web designer, it might be time to find a new one.

Fourth, get your business back online as soon as possible. You cannot wait for your issues to be resolved first. If there is an ownership standoff with the previous designer, the process of recovering your web presence can take several weeks and numerous unpleasant snail-mail missives to resolve. And in the Web 2.0 world, have no doubt that your competitors will seek to capitalise on your absence from the web, possibly even gloating about your "closure" to your most lucrative customers. Ask your new designer to set up a fresh presence for your business, even a temporary holding page, which will carry your business through until regular service is restored.

Finally, approach your new web presence with lessons learned. Always have a backup plan - as well as actual backups - in place, and maintain good communications with your new web team.

www.idea15webdesign.com

Posted 04.11.09
By Heather Burns (Idea15 Web Design)

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