Honey, I need a web site.

That’s what my self-employed husband said.  Why did he think he needed one?  Because he got the domain for Boyle Aviation.  Go Daddy had a special and he got it for a year free.  So he decided he should have a web site.

OK, so I, who just happens to have worked on bunches of web sites as a project manager, writer, etc., got the job to build the site. I got a template and started on the layout.  I discovered that my design skills are very limited.  I had trouble sizing the picture.  And getting the Google map into the home page was an all-afternoon effort.

When I was finally done, the husband reviewed the site, changed a few words and … it’s published.

The site has been up for a month now.  I haven’t touched it since the launch. If you google Boyle Aviation, you won’t find his site.  Who has time for that search engine optimization stuff, updates and getting links from other web sites?

Several sole proprietors that I know have had the same experience.  Family members who have read up or taken a class in school have offered their free web services.  And what happens to my husband happened to them.

Here are a few things to consider before you place a large part of your business marketing into the hands of a friends or relative:

Skill Level: There are plenty of products that take the coding out of the job.  The advantage is that it’s easier to build a site.  The disadvantage could be that you’re stuck with a fixed template that you can’t change.  This just happened to an author friend of mine.  Her spouse couldn’t get around the template to correct some small issues, so there they remained.  Therefore, someone with HTML skills that can fix that photo just right or wrap that body copy by digging into the code in a template can help.  I don’t have those HTML skills and it shows.

Creativity Level: It is rare to find someone who can handle both the coding and creative sides of Web design.   These are very different, very necessary skills for a successful web site. Too many times, a programmer tried to do the layout, it looks like everything is packed into one tight page.  One good programmer and one good designer are what you need.

Writing Ability: We all took English in school and passed.   This does not make us creative writers.  Good, short copy for web sites is an art.  So, now you are looking for a writer, in addition to a programmer and a designer.

Who has the Time: Once the site is up and running, does your friend or relative have time to monitor, update and tweak your site?  Analytics, search engine optimization, blogs, and social networking all require daily attention to keep your site fresh and bringing in business.

I generally follow the old adage that – friends don’t let friends design their business web sites.  Take a good long look at your site and see if you need to make a change from a family run site into a managed communications tool for your business.