You have a lot on your plate. Keeping your website safe from hackers shouldn’t be one of the items on your to-do list. And yet it’s a crucial part of ensuring your website — your business’s face to the world — runs smoothly.
I care as much about your website as you do. After all, your website’s success reflects back on me.
What’s Included
- A complete security lock-down
- Premium plugins to protect from hackers and malware
- Ongoing security upgrades
- Website back-ups stored in a secure location
- WordPress software, plugin and theme updates
- The cost of premium plugins used to design your site, such as Gravity Forms, as well as your theme
- Special hourly rate for content updates
- Hack repairs
Why is Website Maintenance So Important?
Over 30,000 websites are hacked every day. No site is too small to discourage hackers from trying to break in. A hacked website can stand to lose a lot of revenue, and sites that spread malware are penalized by Google with a poor ranking. Strong passwords and keeping your software, theme and plugins up to date with the latest security measures go a long way. But sometimes that isn’t enough. And if you don’t maintain regular back-ups, restoring your site after an attack becomes an impossible task.
Features of the Website Maintenance Package
Brute Force Protection
Limit the number of failed login attempts per user. If someone is trying to guess your password, they'll get locked out after a few failed tries.
File Change Detection
If someone manages to log into your site, they could possibly add, remove or change files. Email alerts will notify you of any file changes so you know if you've been hacked.
404 Error Detection
If a bot is scanning your site looking for a way in, it will generate a lot of 404 errors. IP addresses that generate a high number of errors in a short period of time will be locked out.
Regular Malware Scanning
Hackers use malware to gather sensitive information and gain access to your website's back end. Regularly scheduled malware scans help protect your site from known malware threats.
Strong Password Enforcement
Strong passwords are an import first step toward securing your site. Set which level of users on your site need to have strong passwords.
Lock Out Bad Users
Users who have too many failed login attempts, generate a lot of 404 errors or appear on a bot blacklist will be locked out of your site.
Regular Website Backups
Schedule full backups of your entire website and database and store them in a secure location.
Website Software Updates
WordPress, as well all the plugins and the Thesis theme, will be updated from time to time. These updates often include important security updates, so it's important to keep your software up to date. Along with using strong passwords for your website, keeping your software up to date goes a long way toward protecting your site.
Sometimes running an update can cause part or all of your website to stop working. I'll make sure that doesn't happen or fix it if it does.
Your Website Software Licences
I I built your site, then I used a premium theme as well as a number of premium plugins to build it. In order to ensure you get the latest updates for your theme and plugins, and to make sure your site continues to work optimally, you'll have to keep up your annual software licences. When you sign up for the maintenance package, the licence renewals are included.
Content Updates at a Discounted Rate
I'd love for you to feel empowered to update your website content yourself. But I know that you have a lot on your plate. I'd be happy to update your content at a discounted hourly rate of $50 per hour when you sign up for website maintenance.
Your Investment
$80 per month
$120 per month for two websites
Not Ready for the Maintenance Package?
That’s okay. But I wouldn’t feel right if I didn’t give you some advice on ways you can maintain your site yourself, if you have the time. Here are some tools I recommend, which are included in the maintenance package, along with a few other things:
- Run regular back-ups with the Backup Buddy plugin ($89/year)
- Protect your site from hackers with iThemes Security Pro ($80/year)
- Store your back-ups on the Cloud with iThemes Stash ($35/year)
- Budget at least $250 for unhacking should your site get hacked
- Listen to this podcast from Camp Tech to learn more about website security.
And remember, some of the tools I used to build your site are premium and have an annual fee for renewal. If you don’t opt for the maintenance package, you’ll have to buy your own licences for these tools if you want to continue to use them after the first year. Here are just some of the tools included in my website packages:
- Beaver Builder theme and add-ons ($200-500/year)
- Gravity forms ($250/year)
Your Investment
$80 per month
$120 per month for two websites