By Judith Briles
It’s an “oh-oh” time. And it deals with your website.
- Are you really protected?
- Do you know where all the details are backed up?
- Do you have all your log-ins, codes and anything else that you need if you must access it immediately?
- If you need help, do you know where to go? Who to ask?
- If you have a webmaster, what if he or she gets hit by a bus? Or yikes, dies?
It’s come to website chat time.
How about creating this Website Due Diligence Plan for the New Year?
1. Who owns your website? Is the copyright in YOUR name?
Not in your webmaster’s, a lawyer’s or someone else that helped you out as your started down your website journey.
2. Who is your webmaster?
Do you have the logins to the accounts—all of them, meaning user names and passwords?
Do you know what format was used; any special templates were used or created; images purchased or apps?
Do you know what was purchased for the creation of your website that you paid for? You may choose to leave your webmaster and what is yours, you want.
3. Who has the login credentials to your website?
It better be you as the primary. You may have a virtual assistant or two who has access … but who? And, if you terminate anyone who has access or leaves your employment or confidence—CHANGE passwords immediately.
4. Do you know the name of the web host or server, its website and HELP phone number?
Do you have the logins to the accounts? And does it know you exist?
5. Where is your website domain registered?
Make sure your name appears anywhere on the ICANN/WhoIs database registration for your domain.
6. If you have a Shopping Cart … which one is used?
What are the logins? Are you getting regular reports … or even checking them online?
7. What about backup?
Do yourself a HUGE favor and create a minimum of a monthly backup on both physical and online locations that you can access in case of an emergency.
8. You have subscribers … excellent.
Do you know how to access their names and contract info? And, do you have a backup of names, addresses and how they opted in?
9. Start the conversation.
If you have staff, start to gather all of the above:
- sites
- apps
- usernames
- passwords
And definitely, have a heart-to-heart with your webmaster. This is your publishing and authoring lifeline. It’s a must have on your computer. It’s a must have printed out in a notebook or manual that your partner, spouse or trusted colleague can find instantly if something happens to you.
A key support person can become ill, have personal problems, quit or die. Stuff happens. Your business is your business. You need a plan to take care of the “stuff happening” side of what we all deal with at the most inconvenient times.
Dead Social has create a check list on what to do if someone dies and a website is involved. Check it out here.
You will thank me for this Christmas time goose.
Photo: BigStockPhoto
