Website support and maintenance FAQ's
We hope the following help answer any questions you may have about our services, but please get in touch for a detailed chat about how we can help you.
Website support FAQs
What websites do you support?
At SWSweb our primary focus is on WordPress and Joomla, but we support many other platforms, including HTML sites, Wix, Square Space and Shopify and we will gladly help with any other platform your site may be built with.
How quickly do you solve issues?
We aim to complete your support request within 24 to 48 hours, but this is subject to what is required. For example, a hacked website will get priority and be solved within a few hours; subject to complexity, a content change, which is not a high priority, will be completed within 24/48 hours.
We try to make sure everything is completed quickly, Monday to Friday, and will prioritise where needed; just let us know if it's urgent, and we'll do our best to prioritise where possible.
What are your charges?
Our ad-hoc website support is £35 per hour. We charge by the minute, so if your changes only take 30 minutes, we'll only charge £17.50, plus VAT.
What are your payment terms?
We bill at the start of the month for work completed during the previous month.
Invoices are due in 30 days by bank transfer, direct debit or debit/credit card.
What is a CMS system?
A CMS, or Content Management System, allows you to log in to your website and make edits to the web pages, add blog posts and make other simple changes.
They have grown in popularity over the last ten years, as the older method of website design was to build a site in code, which meant only developers could make edits.
A CMS puts the website owner in control, allowing you to make edits whenever you need to.
Which CMS platform should I use for my website?
This is difficult to answer without knowing what your website is for.
A simple company website giving basic information would work well in WordPress, or to be fair, if you don't mind being locked into a closed platform such as Wix, it does a perfectly good job.
We work mainly with WordPress and Joomla, as they are open platforms. Meaning you can pick the site up and move it to a new host without having to rebuild it.
A closed platform such as Wix, or Weebly, means you are stuck with them, regardless of price rises or shortcomings when you wish to add more features they don't allow.
If you need an eCommerce site, Shopify is a great option but both WordPress and Joomla can also run shopping carts.
There are pros and cons to all website systems, get in touch and we'll be happy to discuss whats best for you.
Will my site be down whilst you’re working on it?
Generally, no, your site will not be down while we work on it.
If we are adding some new content, it does not affect the status of the site. Any new content is added in draft status so as not to affect anything, and bigger changes, such as adding new features, would be performed on a test copy of your website on our development server to avoid any potential issues.
When we perform plugin updates on WordPress sites, your site can be down for a fraction of a second while a plugin is updated. This is how WordPress works so there is nothing we can do about this, but we perform updates outside of main office hours to avoid disruption as much as possible.
Can I see changes before they go live?
Yes, absolutely and we recommend it.
For example, if we're adding a new page to your site, or adjusting an older one, we do it as a copy, hidden from search engines so it doesn't get indexed and share it with you before making it live.
And for larger jobs, such as a redesign, or adding a new feature we'll perform this on a staging site on our development server, ensuring there is no risk to the live website.
We're happy to offer temporary staging areas for any client if you also want to work on changes yourself.
Can you review the speed of my website?
Yes, certainly! SWSweb can review and improve your site speed if you want to pay for ad-hoc website support or as part of your monthly website maintenance package.
Can I change the layout of my website?
Yes, you can. We can either do this for you or show you how to do it, it does depend on how your website has been built as to how easy it is to change layouts, but we'll be happy to take a look and advise on how to do it.
How can I make changes on my own website?
When it comes to making changes to your website, we can provide instructions or a walk-through demonstration to show you how to do so yourself. Get in touch with us today.
Website maintenance FAQs
Why do I need website maintenance?
If your website runs on WordPress or Joomla, both platforms update their software regularly, usually on a monthly basis. The reason for this is they are so well known; hackers often target them, so security fixes are released whenever a vulnerability is found.
The plugins and extensions that may run different features of your website also receive updates frequently, again for security and new features.
With around 60% of hacked websites being hacked due to out-of-date software, it's imperative to keep your site up to date at least on a monthly basis.
Our monthly maintenance packages do just that; we run updates on WordPress or Joomla as well as all their plugins multiple times per month, meaning your website is much less of a target to hackers.
What is included in a monthly website maintenance plan?
Our website maintenance monthly plans all include the following:
- Hosting on a shared server
- Regular backups stored remotely
- SSL certificate (for https:// encrypted connection)
- 24/7 uptime monitoring so we are alerted should your site go down for any reason
- Malware scanning of all files
- Software updates to WordPress or Joomla along with plugins/extensions every month
All of the above is £49 per month, plus VAT.
If you require help making content changes, such as adding blog posts we can add time at a discounted hourly rate as well as providing:
- Broken link checking
- Mixed content checking
- Performance monitoring
- Content delivery network (CDN)
Does website maintenance affect my search engine rankings?
Yes, it can. Keeping your website maintained and ensuring its plugins are up to date and running on the latest server software will aid performance which in turn makes the site load faster, which Google is very keen on.
If you use our hosting services, we also optimise your site for Google's Pagespeed Insights tool, aiming to get your site running as fast as possible, which again will help your website ranking.
There is a lot more to SEO, but website maintenance is certainly a very helpful part of it.
Do you offer any premium plugins if we opt for a maintenance plan?
Yes, we have licenses to lots of great WordPress and Joomla plugins which, as a maintenance customer, you are welcome to utilise at no extra cost.
For example, on WordPress, we have licenses for the entire Beaver Builder suite, an amazing framework and website page builder.
We have form systems, including Gravity Forms and Formidable Forms, to make complex forms and quizzes.
And security and backup software from Akeeba, as well as many others.
Not all plugins are free, as different websites require different features, but if we have a license to it, you're welcome to use it.
WordPress FAQs
Why does WordPress need support?
WordPress runs approximately a third of the world's websites, a huge number!
Because of that, it is also the most exploited platform targeted by hackers. Any time a bug or security issue is identified, WordPress sends out an update.
It's imperative for the security of your website to keep WordPress up to date to avoid being hacked.
There are no guarantees as some sites will never be hacked no matter how out of date they are, whilst up-to-date sites could have an undiscovered vulnerability. But the key to remaining as safe as possible is to keep your site updated and be less of a target.
Approximately 60% of hacked WordPress sites are due to out-of-date software and plugins. Our maintenance plans keep these all up to date every month.
Can I use Shopify with WordPress?
The simple answer is yes. But these are two totally different platforms, so you will need two websites.
We sometimes see clients running WordPress for their main website with their general business information, blog and contact page but a separate link off to a Shopify site that runs their online shop.
There's no reason you can't do this, and it works well for some people. WordPress does have the option to add a shopping cart system, WooCommerce is the most well known and can run a simple shop with ease, but if you want more bells and whistles Shopify is a great option.
Is WordPress secure?
So long as you keep WordPress and its plugins up to date regularly, our maintenance plans take care of this for you, then yes, it is secure.
But like any website, if you don't use strong passwords, you make it easy for a hacker to gain entry.
There are security plugins you can install to help enforce strong passwords and add extra layers of protection, such as two-factor authentication. For our customers, we install a strong Web Application Firewall, offering real-time malware scanning and our hosting servers have an excellent firewall system and DDoS protection.
What if I need help on how to use WordPress?
We provide WordPress training and can help with anything from simple content edits to working with plugins. Get in touch with us, and we'll be happy to schedule a training call using screen sharing software, or we can deliver a training session at your offices.
How to backup a WordPress site?
Backups are essential for any website, but with WordPress being the most hacked website platform, due to it being so popular, having a regular backup is incredibly important.
The best way to back your WordPress website is via your hosting provider. Any good host, such as ourselves, will offer regular backups so if something should go wrong, your site can be restored quickly.
If your host doesn't provide a backup service, there are WordPress plugins that can perform backups for you.
If you sign-up with our hosting, or maintenance plans we do the backups for you, but if not, we'll be happy to help set up a backup plugin on your website; get in touch to discuss the options.
What if I just want to add plugins to WordPress?
It's easy to add plugins to WordPress, just go to the plugins area, and you can search for literally any type of plugin to add features to your site.
However, it's often a good idea not to! The more plugins you add, the slower your website will perform. And there are some really old, out-of-date plugins in the WordPress repository, so we'd recommend asking us for our advice before adding any new plugins.
There may be other ways to achieve what you're trying to do, such as using code, or we have an extensive list of safe and reliable plugin providers and often licenses which our customers are welcome to make use of.
What happens if I don't renew WordPress?
Not keeping WordPress up to date is a bad idea. WordPress runs approximately one-third of all websites globally. Because of this, it's also the most targeted by hackers.
Hackers often gain access to a website through a software vulnerability, a known bug. If your WordPress site is running old versions of plugins or WordPress itself hackers will be hunting for websites running those versions to try and get control of your site for malicious purposes such as sending spam.
Keeping your site up to date helps minimise the risk of getting hacked. Get in touch today for our WordPress maintenance plans to keep your site secure and monitored.
Joomla FAQs
Is Joomla better than WordPress?
In our opinion, yes. But the vast majority of web agencies and developers will disagree!
WordPress has become the most popular because it's deemed easier to use, with fewer options and a much larger range of plugins and add-ons as a result of the larger user base. Don't get us wrong, we use WordPress every day, and most of our site builds use WordPress, but that doesn't mean it's the best!
But out of the box, without any addons, Joomla is head and shoulders better than WordPress. But it has a steeper learning curve, and we generally only recommend it for larger websites where its categorisation and sorting abilities make it far better to use.
We can easily expand on this question and ask is Shopify better than Magento or WooCommerce? Is Wix easier to use than WordPress? Probably yes. It all comes down to what you need your website to do and how much information it will hold, how good it is at SEO and how fast it performs.
We'll help you make the right choice when you start a project with us and explain the pros and cons, which, ultimately, all the website-building platforms have; nothing is perfect, at least not that we've found so far!
Is Joomla good for SEO?
The simple answer to this is yes. Joomla includes SEO features built in, that WordPress requires plugins to add. So immediately, you are slowing down your WordPress site by adding a plugin.
Need to add Meta titles and Meta descriptions to your pages? In Joomla you can do this without any plugins, so yes, Joomla is good for SEO, so long as you get someone who knows how to build it well, but this is the same for any platform.
Is Joomla secure?
Joomla is as secure as any other platform but goes beyond WordPress by allowing you to set the password strength of users' passwords without adding any security plugins. This is great for making strong passwords, as you can set the number of characters, how many upper or lower case letters and if symbols should be used.
It also has two-factor authentication built in to improve login security further, again something you'd need to add a plugin for on WordPress.
It receives frequent security updates, so yes, it is secure.
But like any website platform, we always add extra security; we use Akeeba Admin Tools to help with this; along with having an excellent firewall on our hosting servers to cover DDoS attacks and brute force login attempts, we have security well covered.
Web design FAQs
How long does it take to build a website?
This is tricky to answer as it's so different for every website. We will generally have a site built within ten working days. However, this is subject to the design phase and all content being available.
If you require one of our pre-built designs and can provide all your content upfront, the site will be ready within ten working days.
For bespoke designed websites, meaning you get a site specific to your brand and content. The design phase will take at least one to two weeks, subject to how long it takes to approve with edits.
Content is the most significant time-consuming factor in building a website. We generally expect you, the client, to provide the content you require on your site. You know your business better than we do; however, we can provide copyrighting services if needed.
What sort of websites do you build?
At SWSweb we primarily build websites using the WordPress and Joomla platforms.
The reason we focus on these two systems is they are open source, so they do not cost anything to build with, but they also provide the most flexibility in allowing various functionalities and ensure you, as the website owner, can easily make edits when you need to.
Plus they can be moved from host to host, meaning you are not tied in with any one hosting company. Unlike Wix, Weebly or Shopify where you are tied into their hosting and systems.
How much does a website build cost?
Website builds are costed on a site-per-site basis, but as a guide, our bespoke built sites in WordPress start from £1249 plus VAT. An eCommerce store in Shopify or Magento would cost from £2999 plus VAT.
Again every site is different; the above is just a guide. We charge 50% upfront and 50% on completion unless it's a very large site then a payment plan during the build process will be agreed upon in advance.
Can you make sure my website is mobile-friendly?
Yes, when we design and develop websites, we make sure they are mobile-friendly, as we understand how important it is that your website works on both desktop and mobile devices.
For older websites, rebuilding may be required if they are not mobile-friendly already. We'll be happy to check for you and provide a no-obligation quote to make sure they are mobile-friendly.
What page builders do you use when building a website?
On WordPress builds we use Beaver Builder. It's not the most commonly known, but it is head and shoulders better than Divi, Elementor, WPBakery and all the other page builders we've worked with over the years. We'll be happy to provide a free demo of how it works before working on a new site build.
For Joomla sites, we use SP Page Builder, another fantastic and easy-to-use page builder that ensures you have access to edit all areas of your website. Again, we're happy to provide a demo of how it works.
Do you offer website build for e-commerce sites?
We certainly do! We often build shopping carts using WooCommerce on WordPress sites or eShop by JoomDonation on Joomla. The latter works much better for larger shops.
We've also worked with Shopify, Magento (now Adobe Commerce), Prestashop and Opencart.
Web hosting FAQs
What kind of hosting do I need for my website?
The vast majority of website hosting servers run on Linux. One of the main alternatives is Microsoft Windows, but we have never found them that stable.
All our servers run Linux, and this is the only type of server we recommend.
Where are your servers?
Our web servers are all based in the UK. We rent the server hardware in a secure data centre in London and then run the server software and maintain it to ensure your website is secure and high performing.
Is a shared server better than a dedicated server?
This depends on your requirements. For the majority of simple websites, a shared hosting server is all you need.
A shared hosting server is where your website sits on the same server as lots of other websites. It shares the resources of the server with the other sites. The key benefit to this is it keeps the cost down considerably.
A dedicated server is where your website is the only site on the server, meaning it can use all of the resources.
We only recommend a dedicated server for larger eCommerce sites and sites with a lot of traffic, 10,000 plus visitors per month.
For the majority of business websites, a shared server will work perfectly well.
How much does hosting cost?
Our standard hosting packages cost £99 per annum, plus VAT. Standard hosting will work for the majority of WordPress or Joomla websites.
Even some smaller eCommerce stores run great on our standard hosting, but if you have a busy site with many visitors, a dedicated server starts at £249 per month plus VAT.
Search Engine Optimisation FAQs
What is SEO?
SEO stands for Search Engine Optimisation, the process of increasing your website’s position in Google and the visibility in the search engine results pages.
Do I need SEO Services?
SEO services are a good idea to build-up your website visitors and deliver more leads. We can put you in touch with our SEO partner, Front Page Advantage, who will be happy to review your website and support you with SEO services going forward.
What do your SEO services cover?
Our trusted partner, Front Page Advantage, provides our SEO services. Their services cover website content, navigation, performance, mobile usability, and communication such as blogs or news articles. At SWSweb, we work together to see positive website and business changes for our clients.
Financial and other FAQs
Do you have insurance?
Yes, we have £1,000,000 of Professional Indemnity Insurance.
What payment methods do you accept?
We accept bank transfers, direct debit or debit/credit cards.
What are your payment terms?
We invoice for website support and maintenance plans on 30-day terms at the start of each month for work completed in the previous month.
For website design projects, we invoice for 50% upfront, to be paid within seven days and then the final 50% after the site goes live.
Do you adhere to GDPR?
As a hosting company we take our GDPR responsibilities very seriously. We are both a data processor and data controller and are registered with the ICO.
Are you Cyber Essentials certified?
Yes, we are Cyber Essentials certified, our cerification number is 46dd70b4-0cf7-4f4d-b1cc-bd5ce36757a0, you can find us on the IASME register using this number or searching for SWSweb.
30-Day Money Back Guarantee
We're so sure you will love our service, we offer a 30-day money-back guarantee. So what's stopping you?
Give us a call, or send us your first request, and we'll start helping improve your website straight away!