Website maintenance packages: what’s included and why do you need one?

A website maintenance package is a service agreement under which an outside provider takes care of the ongoing tasks needed to keep a business’s site secure, operational and up to date.

Why do I need a website maintenance package?

Put simply, without the right maintenance, your website will struggle to achieve its goals or perform at its best. So the most obvious reason for needing a package is that it keeps your site functioning as it should. At the same time, it means your site stays looking fresh, relevant and up to date, and gives visitors and potential customers the best possible experience. Here’s a round-up of some of the other reasons why you need a service like this:

• To save time and effort: With the service provider handling all the specialist, time-consuming tasks, you’ll be better placed to focus on your core business. Equally, you may not have the skills required for website maintenance in-house.
• Security: This is an absolutely crucial one. Regular updates and monitoring as part of your website maintenance package help ward off cyber threats and keep your site secure.
• Peace of mind: You’ll have the assurance of knowing your website is in the hands of experts, meaning you don’t have to worry about technical problems or anything else.
• Package deal: With an arrangement like this, all the services you need to keep your website performing well are supplied under the umbrella of a single provider, meaning you have just one point of contact and everything you need is covered.

What does a website maintenance package typically include?

The following services should come as part of the deal for your website’s maintenance:

Regular back-ups
Frequent back-ups keep your website’s data safe, allowing for the speedy restore of service in the event of a technical error or other problem, including cyberattacks.

Software and plug-in updates
These keep the core software of your website up to date, as well as its themes and plug-ins. This is key for security and so that you have access to new features.

Technical support
If you have any website-related queries or problems, you’ll have a support team on hand to help. This side of things should cover fixing bugs and other troubleshooting activities and implementing minor fixes or tweaks.

Uptime monitoring
Your package deal should include frequent, proactive checks to make sure people can access your site, and that it is up and running properly – ideally your website’s uptime would consistently be 99.9% or higher. Modern users expect near-constant availability, while downtime costs money as well as user trust and brand reputation, while in certain sectors, such as healthcare and finance, downtime can lead to legal problems and compliance violations.

Your provider should also regularly check and improve your website speed and uptime to ensure a smooth user experience and help avoid downtime.

Additional services
Your plan may also include content updates, i.e. adding images or text. Another commonly offered task is ensuring all links are working and not broken. Some packages for online stores may also incorporate a certain level of e-commerce support.

Equally, some will offer Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) monitoring and analytics, e.g. monitoring website statistics and introducing best practices to improve rankings with the major search engines.

Finally, there could be device compatibility checks, involving making sure the site works just as well on mobile devices as it does on desktop screens.

In summary, services differ considerably between providers, so you need to be sure exactly what your chosen package covers.

Website maintenance packages from SWSweb

At SWSweb, we’ve been offering website support since 2012. Check out our Joomla and WordPress website maintenance packages here. We do everything necessary to keep your website secure, current and functioning optimally. What we provide includes:

• Speedy UK hosting
• SSL certification
• Daily back-ups
• 24/7 uptime monitoring
• System updates
• Additional security features

Get in touch today, tell us a bit about you and your website, and what it needs and then we’ll take it from there.