I heard this more often than I expected. 11 of the 55 businesses I audited had a broken relationship with their web developer or agency. The person who built the website was no longer available, and the business was stuck.
How it happens
It happens gradually and then all at once. One business had a relationship with their web agency that had “drifted” to the point where technical support simply wasn’t available any more. Emails went unanswered. Phone calls weren’t returned. The business needed changes to the website and had nobody to make them.
Another had a developer who stepped back due to health reasons. Completely understandable. But the business was left with a website they couldn’t update themselves. They didn’t have the login details for the hosting. They weren’t sure who the domain was registered with. The developer had built everything on a custom system that only he understood.
A third was paying an agency hundreds a month for what amounted to a handful of minor content changes. The agency had been the right choice when the website was built, but the ongoing relationship had become expensive for what it delivered. The business felt locked in because they didn’t know how to move the site elsewhere.
The dependency problem
The issue isn’t that developers or agencies are unreliable. Most are good at what they do. The problem is dependency. If one person or one agency is the only one who can update your website, fix a bug or make a change, you have a single point of failure in your business.
21 of the 55 businesses I audited had domain ownership discussions as part of the review. In several cases, the business wasn’t sure whether they owned their own domain name. If your developer registered the domain on your behalf and it’s in their account, you’re dependent on them for something fundamental.
Three things to check this week
First, confirm you own your domain name. Log in to the domain registrar (GoDaddy, 123-reg, Namecheap, whoever) and check the domain is in your name with your contact details. If you can’t log in, that’s a problem. If you don’t know who the registrar is, run your domain through a WHOIS lookup (just search “WHOIS” and enter your domain). Sort this out before anything else. Your domain is your address on the internet. You need to own it.
Second, make sure your website is on a CMS that you or someone on your team can update. WordPress, Squarespace, Shopify, Wix, whatever works for your business. If every change requires a developer, you’re dependent. Most modern CMS platforms are designed for non-technical users to manage day-to-day content. If yours isn’t, or if you’ve never been shown how, that’s a training issue, not a technology one.
Third, create a document with your critical digital details. Domain registrar login, hosting provider login, CMS login, Google Analytics access, social media passwords, email provider. Store it somewhere secure that isn’t dependent on one person. If your developer disappeared tomorrow, could someone else pick up where they left off? If the answer is no, this document is your insurance policy.
Choosing your next developer
If you’re looking for a new developer or agency, a few things to look for based on what I saw go wrong across 55 audits.
Ask whether they’ll build on a standard CMS. Custom-built websites feel special but they create dependency. If the only person who understands the code walks away, you’re starting from scratch. WordPress powers over 40% of the internet. It’s not exciting but it means any developer can pick it up.
Ask who owns what. You should own the domain, the hosting account, the CMS login, the analytics access. Everything. Your developer works on your property, not the other way round.
Ask for documentation. When the site is built, you should receive a handover document explaining how it works, what plugins it uses, how to update content and who to call if something breaks. If the developer resists this, that’s a red flag.
A good developer wants you to be independent. They want you to come back because their work is good, not because you’re trapped.
This article is part of a series based on findings from 55 digital audits. Read the full case study for the complete picture, or get in touch if you’d like an honest look at where your business stands.