Is It Time to Say Goodbye to My Personal Website?
As a seasoned web designer and developer with over 13 years of experience as an art director at a reputable agency, I’ve found myself pondering an important question: Is my personal website still worth maintaining?
Despite my expertise in the digital realm, I have a freelance website that often feels more like an afterthought. Updates are infrequent, and the traffic I receive is largely limited to random visits from bots or broken links. In fact, I can’t recall a single meaningful inquiry that turned into a freelance project.
With my hosting renewal fee of $300 approaching next week, I’m seriously reconsidering the value of this investment. It’s difficult to justify such an expense when the primary returns seem to be nonexistent. Instead, I’m contemplating a shift towards a more streamlined online presence, perhaps a simple link-in-bio page that serves my needs without the overhead.
The question now stands: Do you have your own website, and how do you find value in it?
Update: Finding a New Direction
After receiving valuable feedback from the community, I’ve decided to take a step back and reevaluate my online presence. I downgraded my Webflow hosting account, although I did not back up my site before making that change—definitely a lesson learned!
As I explore options similar to platforms like linktr.ee, I’m leaning towards using Notion to create a hybrid space that functions both as a link page and a mini-site. After all, after a long day of designing and developing, the last thing I want to do is spend my evenings fussing over my portfolio.
Ultimately, my portfolio should speak for itself, and I simply need a basic online presence to accompany it. A big thank you to everyone who shared their thoughts!
If anyone has suggestions for hosting a Notion site, I would love to hear them. Your insights could help shape my next steps!
2 responses to “Do You Have Your Own Website? Considering if It’s Time to Replace Mine.”
It’s great to hear that you’re considering optimizing your online presence, especially given your experience as a professional web designer and developer. Your situation is quite common in the industry, where many professionals feel the pressure to maintain a personal website, often at the expense of time and resources that could be better utilized elsewhere. Here are some insights and practical advice that might help guide your decision:
Evaluating the Need for a Personal Website
Purpose and Objectives: First, clarify the purpose of your personal website. Is it primarily to showcase your portfolio, or do you envision it as a landing point for potential clients? If the answer leans more towards portfolio showcasing, a simplified or alternative solution might suffice.
Frequency of Updates: Given that you’ve mentioned rarely updating your current site, consider if this lack of engagement is indicative of whether a personal site is actually necessary for you in its current form. If the content is stagnant, it might not be serving its purpose.
Alternative Options: As you mentioned exploring link-in-bio solutions, services like Notion or Linktree can serve as effective alternatives without the overhead of traditional website management. These platforms can create neat portfolios or landing pages that can link to your work, social profiles, and contact information. Additionally, tools like Carrd provide a simple interface for creating one-page websites that can be easily updated.
Benefits of a Link-in-Bio or Notion-style Page
Simplicity and Minimalism: Such pages allow you to condense your presence to essential information without the clutter of an entire website. Users can find your work quickly, which may appeal to clients browsing for services.
Time Management: With your busy schedule as an art director, having an easily updatable page eliminates the pressure to maintain an extensive site and frees up valuable time.
Cost-Effectiveness: Using platforms like Notion, which can function as both a note-taking tool and an online presence, can significantly reduce costs compared to full web hosting services, especially since you mentioned spending $300 annually.
Implementation Tips
Styling and Branding: Even with a minimalist approach, ensure that your page reflects your personal brand. Use your design skills to make it visually appealing, as this is still an opportunity to showcase your expertise.
Portfolio Integration: Consider embedding links to your best work directly on the page or linking to platforms like Behance or Dribbble if you use those to showcase your projects.
SEO and Visibility: While link-in-bio pages might lack the SEO benefits of a full site, you can still be strategic about the content. Use relevant keywords in your descriptions and titles to ensure you’re searchable, and promote your new page through social media.
Feedback Loop: After setting up your new link-in-bio or Notion page, gather feedback from friends or colleagues. They may have insights on what works or areas you could improve that you might not have considered.
Final Thoughts
Ultimately, whether to ditch your website hinges on how well your current setup serves your needs and future goals. Entering a less traditional route can offer both simplicity and functionality. Careful design and thoughtful content curation will be key, even on a minimalist platform. A streamlined online presence should not only reflect your work but also make it easier for potential clients to connect with you.
As for hosting your Notion site, you might want to look into using Notion’s own sharing features or platforms like Super or Potion that can convert Notion pages into standalone websites, complete with custom domains. This could bridge the gap between a professional appearance and the ease of use that you’re after.
Embrace the change—you’ve got this!
It sounds like you’re embarking on an exciting transition with your online presence! The decision to simplify your portfolio is definitely a worthwhile consideration, especially in our fast-paced digital landscape where clarity and accessibility often take precedence over complexity.
One aspect to keep in mind as you explore Notion for your new setup is the potential for SEO, even on a minimalist site. While Notion isn’t traditionally known for its SEO capabilities, there are tricks you can employ to optimize content visibility. For example, utilize clear, descriptive titles for your pages and consistently incorporate relevant keywords throughout your text.
Additionally, consider integrating a few high-quality visuals of your work within Notion—it can still serve as a visual portfolio without becoming cumbersome. Platforms like Notion also allow you to keep your content organized and user-friendly, which could enrich the user experience compared to a traditional, more static website.
Lastly, since you’re shifting towards a link-in-bio style, it might be beneficial to include social media links and professional networking sites to broaden your outreach. This could lead to enhanced engagement compared to relying solely on traffic directed to your portfolio.
Best of luck with this revitalized direction! I’m looking forward to seeing how your Notion site evolves. If you have any questions during the process, I’d be more than happy to help!