What’s Behind a Website?

Since October 2023 I’ve been running Build a Website workshops, focused on helping small business owners or operators build websites.

Seeing outcomes and watching people manage their digital presence has been rewarding.

Still, more heartwarming has been seeing people attend my workshops to learn something new or understand what’s happening behind the scenes of their existing websites.

COMMON ISSUES

Many business owners engage a software developer only to find they are handed a website they don’t know how to maintain.

Simple requests like a change of address can be met with a large bill, legalities, and long timeframes which often leaves a business owner wondering ‘What’s behind a website’?

Another common scenario I’ve seen is business owners seeing their final website, and feeling it could be of higher quality - often what this means is, that it could be more relevant to their business and customers.

This issue is a result of the website being designed and built from a technical perspective, but not from a business owner’s perspective (ie. without thinking about how to design a site to sell the brand and make it easy for website visitors to take key actions).

Some tips and tricks for those wanting a website

Understanding what’s behind a website is important and can empower business owners to make informed decisions.

If you’re keen on maintaining your website yourself be sure to ask your developer about the tools they plan to use, invest in a training session where your developer can teach you how to update the content management system, and establish clear agreements with developers and to how you can maintain a functional and compliant website without unnecessary headaches or expenses.

For those who feel their website can be of higher quality, have a look at businesses with websites that you admire, and note down why you like it, how it made you feel, and what your experiences on the website were.

If you are interested in learning something new or meeting new people my next workshop is on Saturday June 15, at 2pm at Greenhouse Coworking Suva.

It will be a wonderful half-day of networking with like-minded people, learning a new skill, and leaving with a website.

By: Shenal Harakh

• Shenal Harakh is the founder of her eponymous software development agency Shenal (www.shenal.online), which builds tech products for startup clients around the world.She is currently based in Fiji and is running workshops to digitally upskill communities. Head to https://fiji.shenal.online/ to sign up and keep up to date with new workshops, or follow her work on LinkedIn: Shenal Harakh or Twitter: @shenalyo.