Do You Have What it Takes to Build Your Own Website?

January 27, 2023

Everybody loves a good quiz, and today, I’m going to guide you through a self-assessment. 

Do You Have What it Takes to Build Your Own Website? 

When I say build your own website, I don’t mean learn how to code, learn PHP and JavaScript and HTML, and all that junk. That’s a whole career. As a business owner, those aren’t things you need to know how to do. 

When I say build your own website, I’m talking about using a building system like WordPress or Weebly or Wix. And systems that don’t start with the letter W, like Shopify, GoDaddy Website Builder and Squarespace.

There are all kinds of ways you can, through a supported system, build your website. That’s what we’re assessing today. Do you have what it takes to build your website using one of those systems? 

I don’t want you to think I’m going into this lightly. 

Web design is not a cakewalk. It doesn’t matter if you build your website yourself or hire someone to do it for you. I know it is an investment of your time and your energy. 

If you’re anything like me, business owner slash aerialist, yogi, runner, mom of two small people and two dogs, both time and energy are in high demand. Whether you’re looking to build a website that stops scaring away potential customers or you want to automate tasks through your websites, getting a new site will allow you to focus on the more important things.

A website is an investment in your business and one you should feel in control of and educated making. 

No one jumps into building their own website thinking, “I know exactly how this works.” 

If you’re thinking, “oh, maybe I shouldn’t build my own website because I don’t know exactly how it works,” it’s okay. 

You are one of many embarking on this adventure. 

No one knows how it works at the beginning. I didn’t know how it worked at the beginning, and I’ve been building websites for 20 years. Even seasoned developers belly-flop every day because the Internet is a weird and unpredictable place. 

When you know building your own website is the right or maybe the only decision you can make for your business right now, don’t have to go it alone. 

There are training programs all over the internet to help you figure out how to build your site on your own. We even have one at MayeCreate called the Better Than DIY Website program. We planned this program to put you in the driver’s seat and only teach you what’s most important to power your site. 

You deserve a website to take you to the next phase of your business. 

If that involves growth or adding new features to your site, I know with all my heart that WordPress will be the right platform to get you there. But if WordPress isn’t your jam, I get it. Just make sure that you get the system that can do what you need it to do for you. 

If you’re unsure which platform is the best for you to build on, I  just did an episode comparing Weebly and Wix and Squarespace and WordPress. You can listen to it, and hopefully, it will help you decide what platform to use. 

But we’re getting ahead of ourselves here. Before you choose which platform to build your site on, we need to decide if you should be building your own site at all. 

With that said, let’s start this quiz already. 

QUESTION 1 

What kind of website are you building? 

If you are building a website that will automate your business and take it to the next level, then you should hire a web designer. 

You’re going to need someone who builds websites on a semi-regular basis to help you get through the process. 

As a matter of fact, if you’re building a big, robust, automating site, you can probably close this tab now. You already have your answer – you should not build your website yourself.

Is your goal just to have a website that won’t scare visitors away? 

Or maybe you just want a website that provides the right information to customers. You can do that on your own. You can absolutely build that website.

If that sounds like you, let’s move on to question number two.

QUESTION 2

Rate your tech confidence level on a scale of 1-5. 

Note I didn’t say tech-savvy. 

You don’t have to know how to build a website to build one yourself or to work with a design professional. However, you have to choose the right method to build your site that matches how comfortable you feel with learning new technology. 

I have an uncle who’s a #1. He literally doesn’t do email. His wife checks his email for him. Uncle Nick, I’m sorry, but you should not build your own website. You’re not that guy. 

Believe it or not, I personally live someplace between a 4 and a 5. There are certain new technologies I will adopt and use immediately, but there are others I’m not super jazzed about.

If you rated yourself a 3 or above, you’re all good. 

You can probably build your own website. You’re comfortable enough in your own technical abilities to stay confident, comfortable and calm through the process. Even if you hit a bumpy spot along the way, you’re going to be able to get through it. 

Now that we know your tech confidence let’s move on to question number three. 

QUESTION 3

Rate your design expectations on a scale of 1-5. 

I’m telling you, I am a 5. I want my stuff to look amazing. And that’s okay because I’m also a graphic designer, and I can make my stuff look like whatever I want. 

Here’s the deal, though. Your design expectations have to match up with your design ability. So I bet you can guess what we’re going to rank next…

QUESTION 4

Rate your design ability on a scale of 1-5. 

This may sound exactly like the last question I asked, but it’s not. The last one was your expectations. This one is how well you feel like you can design. 

If your expectations and your abilities match up, you’re golden.  

So, in my case it’s OK that my design expectations are a 5. As it turns out, (as you already know) I am a professional designer. 

But if you dread playing Pictionary and your teammates do too (because your design ability falls shy of a toddler)and your expectations are a 5, you have a problem. You’re not going to be able to create something you’re happy with. You may not be a great candidate to DIY your website. 

Even the “know it when you see it folks” may have a tough time designing their own site.

I have a lot of clients like this. They know it when they see it, but they can’t imagine it, so we give them multiple designs. They pick the parts they like, and we Frankenstein them all together. It would be tough for them to do it on their own if they can’t come up with ideas to try.

QUESTION  5

Rate your writing expectations on a scale of 1-5. 

Now that we’ve assessed your design ability and expectations, we need to discuss your writing ability and expectations. 

Building your website is more than just being comfortable with technology and putting together pretty page layouts and graphics. It’s also about writing the content that goes into your website. If you’re going to DIY it, then you’re going to have to be able to tackle that part of the project too. 

Even if you’re happy with a bulleted list – Google is not. And really neither are your prospects so, you can’t just have a bulleted list on the pages of your site. That is a bad plan. You need to have between 500 and 1000 words on each page. 

I’ll be covering the dos and don’ts of writing for your website soon. You may want to check it out if you’re worried about the writing. 

Rank yourself on a scale of 1-5 for your expectations, and then, like with design, we’ll rate your ability. 

QUESTION  6

Rate your writing skills on a scale of 1-5. 

I’m not sure where my non-emailing uncle Nick falls on this scale. He might be able to write. He can definitely tell a story. Maybe he’s a 2. Or maybe he’s a 3. Nick’s really confident talking about his business. 

Hey, Uncle Nick, if you’re reading, you’re moving up the scale! 

Just like the design ability and the design expectations, your writing skills and expectations have to be in line. 

If you want super punchy, amazing copy that converts and sells but can barely write an email, you’re not set up to do the writing part of your project.  

If you are a 3 in your writing skills and a 3 in your expectations, you can totally write your own website text. 

Here’s the good news.

Just because you’re not the best writer doesn’t mean that you couldn’t do the rest of your website build. You could always outsource the writing part of your website project. 

I traded out brochure design with a writer friend to have her write the content for my first website. There’s no shame in that. Heck, my designers will admit to anyone who asks that they just see words as shapes. That’s why we have people who can spell and write on staff too.

So all my 1s and 2s out there, who are comfortable with tech and design don’t give up on the idea of building your own site. Just call for backup. Hire somebody to write the content for you or rope a friend into writing the rough draft for you tor proof.

It can be pretty cost effective to outsource the writing for your site and just do the part of the project you’re comfortable with. Give it a thought.

That’s the end of the self-assessment! 

Which means we have one last big question… 

Do you have what it takes to build your own website? 

There are probably some of you out there who are a little frustrated with the results of this quiz because you don’t have the budget to build your own site. 

You may feel like you don’t have enough design experience or writing experience. Or maybe you don’t feel comfortable enough with technology to build your website. 

If you’re feeling discouraged, ask yourself, “am I willing to go outside of my comfort zone a little bit to learn?”

If you’re below a 3 average, all it’s going to take is a bit of elbow grease to move you up to a 3 and get this project done. 

For my first website, I couldn’t even figure out how to publish it on the web. Now I have a website company I’ve owned for the last 17 years. I develop websites for other people to make a living. If I can figure it out, I know you can figure it out. 

If you can make a PowerPoint, if you can talk about your business, and if you’re willing to commit the time, then you can do this…if you’re willing to get outside your comfort zone. 

If you are committed to this DIY website journey but don’t know where to start to get it done. I want to return to my original thought: You do not have to build your website alone or figure it out yourself. 

There are training programs all over the internet that will help you set up a website that will help you grow your business. 

If you want to have professional design help and you want to build in WordPress, you should check out our Better Than DIY Website program. 

You will build a professional quality website in five weeks, and you don’t have to learn to code. You don’t have to take out a second mortgage to get it done, either. It is a done-with-you program. You’ll meet with the designer to customize the design of your site. 

At the risk of sounding like a total dork, nothing makes me happier than building websites that solve problems for businesses. I know the Better Than DIY Website program is just one more way I can fulfill my happy and keep you happy. Through the program, you don’t have to figure all this out on your own.