So, you’ve built a website. The design is finished, content has been written, and your site is officially live! That means you’re done, right?
…not exactly.
What many first-time website owners don’t realize is the amount of time and upkeep it takes to keep your website running smoothly after its initial launch. You still need to install updates, monitor plugins and themes, and keep your website secure.
One of the easiest ways to keep your website running and up-to-date is consistently performing website maintenance.
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What is website maintenance?
Why do I need a website maintenance plan?
What is Website Maintenance?
Website maintenance is the constant upkeep and support of your website. It’s all the after-launch details that many people don’t think about including software updates, security, and more.
Website maintenance is an ongoing process that ensures your website stays functioning and performing well.
What’s Included in a Website Maintenance Plan?
The exact services may differ between web agencies, but, here at Yemba, our maintenance plan includes WordPress core updates, theme and plugin updates, daily backups, uptime monitoring, and SSL certificates.
Let’s look into each of these.
Updates (WordPress core and plugins/themes)
WordPress’ team regularly releases software updates that improve performance and increase security efforts. These updates are vital to keeping your website up-to-date and at peak performance. The same goes for many plugins and themes.
However, keep in mind, there’s always a chance updates like this can break your site. When you let a professional handle updates, they can make sure nothing goes wrong.
Here at Yemba, our team will make sure your church or nonprofit has a recent backup of your site in case anything breaks. We also have the technical expertise to know when an update is ready to go or when one may cause an issue. You can rest easy knowing that your site’s updates are in expert hands.
Daily Backups
As we mentioned above, sometimes a simple mistake or innocent update can wreak havoc on your church or nonprofit’s website. The easiest way to prevent any major problems is by running daily backups of your website.
A backup simply creates a copy of your website. If your website breaks, gets hacked, shuts down, or gets deleted, you can restore that backup and your perfect website is back in no time!
Here at Yemba, we perform backups daily to make sure we always have a current copy of your website.
Uptime Monitoring
Sometimes, for any number of reasons, your church or nonprofit’s website could unexpectedly go down. Unless you’re checking your website every hour of the day, you may not realize it immediately. This can keep your site from engaging with web visitors who want to learn more about your organization.
Uptime monitoring is a process where you consistently monitor a website and check for any downtime. If any issues are found, you can begin identifying and fixing the problem as soon as possible.
SSL Certificates
An SSL certificate is important for keeping your website secure. This certificate is an electronic document that verifies your website’s identity and encrypts any data transferred from your site to web visitors. Having this certificate can also boost your SEO!
Here at Yemba, if you subscribe to a maintenance plan, we’ll provide this certificate and install it for you at no extra cost. We’ll also keep an eye on the expiration date and renew your certificate so that you don’t have to!
So, why do I need a website maintenance plan?
Now that you know what website maintenance is, let’s discuss why a plan is important.
It takes preventive measures
Rather than just dealing with problems as they come, an effective website maintenance plan stops the problems in their tracks. For example, running daily backups before your site breaks down is easier than building your entire website back from scratch.
Here at Yemba, we work hard to keep your website in top notch shape so that any problems that arise can be taken care of in no time.
It increases site security
Important updates and SSL certificates like we discussed above are vital to maintaining your website’s security. If you launch your website without taking future website maintenance into consideration, you’re potentially putting your website and any web visitors at risk.
It takes away the pressure
Consistent website maintenance is no easy feat when you’re also trying to run a church or nonprofit. (Especially if you don’t have the extra time or technical expertise.) If you subscribe to a website maintenance plan, you can let someone else tackle the hard work for you!
Our team at Yemba would love the opportunity to serve your church or nonprofit organization. Let us take away the pressure of running a site on your own.
Why do I NOT need one?
Here at Yemba, we strive to be honest and straightforward with the churches and nonprofits we serve.
If your team has a dedicated tech person who knows how to handle updates, backups, and more, you may not need to purchase a maintenance plan. Just make sure you’re covering all the services listed above for the best website results.
Ready to sign up?
If website maintenance is too much to tackle on your own, don’t worry. Our team at Yemba is more than happy to help.
Contact our team today to discuss how we can best maintain your website. We can’t wait to serve you!
Ready for a website maintenance plan?
We can’t wait to talk about your project.
Let’s set up a call.
