As a business owner, handing over your website to someone else can feel like a huge step and it took months, if not years to even accept that it was now time.
I, Jodie, had originally built our Mobile Bar website from scratch. Like many small business owners, I started by doing as much as I could in house. Over time, the website evolved and grew, but with that came layers of systems, pages and elements that weren’t always working together as they should. Functionally, I knew what I wanted the website to do, the challenge was bringing it together in a way that felt polished, modern and truly reflective of our brand. It had reached the point where it needed more than just tweaks, it needed someone who knew what they were doing!
Our priority was to create a website that was easier for customers to use. With simpler navigation, fewer pages and a clearer journey through the three key sections of our homepage. We wanted something that looked professional but also felt intuitive and easy to explore.
The Search for the Right Fit
Choosing who to trust with that redesign was, in many ways, the biggest challenge. Because I knew I was capable of doing a lot myself, it took me at least a year to seriously consider outsourcing it. Even once I had made that decision, the process of choosing the right person felt overwhelming. After asking for recommendations on Facebook, I was flooded with suggestions. More than 100 companies and freelancers were recommended to me. What followed was months of research, comparison and trying to work out who would truly be the right fit for our business. Eventually, I narrowed it down to three. One thing that immediately stood out about The Web Barn was that the websites in their portfolio were actually showing up in Google search results. While they don’t position themselves as SEO specialists, this gave me confidence that the websites they build are set up properly from the start. That practical proof mattered.
A Personal, No-Pressure Approach
What truly set The Web Barn apart, though, was the personal approach. From the first conversation with Charlotte, I felt reassured. She was down to earth, approachable and never sales-led. There was no pressure, no jargon, and no sense of being “sold to.” Instead, it felt like a genuine conversation about what would work best for our business and not what would make her the most money. She was flexible with calls, happy to speak at short notice when needed, and always communicated in a way that felt clear and easy to understand. Most importantly, it felt like she had a genuine interest in our business and what we were trying to achieve.
Guided Through the Process
Once the decision had been made, what had previously felt like a huge project suddenly became manageable. I was guided through each stage of the redesign, with clear communication throughout. Naturally, some parts took a little longer than expected, but with information and decisions moving both ways, that was to be expected. What stood out was how well everything was communicated. I was kept up to date along the way, which made the process feel collaborative and far less daunting than I had imagined.
The Results
Since launching the new website, we’ve seen an improvement in the quality of enquiries coming through. When we ask clients where they found us, the most common answer is Google. For us, that has been a huge indicator that the redesign has done exactly what we needed it to do, not just look better, but work better both back end and for the client.
The website now feels aligned with our brand, easier for customers to navigate, and far more representative of the quality of service we provide.
Final Thoughts
If you’re in the position I was in, overwhelmed by recommendations and unsure who to trust, my honest advice is to take the time to find the right fit.
I’m so glad I spent the time to carefully whittle down the options and ultimately chose The Web Barn.
What could have felt like a huge undertaking became a smooth, guided process, and the end result has had a real impact on our business so thank you Charlotte at The Web Barn!
