Anyone who has launched a website will probably tell you that an under construction page is a good idea. We use them all the time for a simple reason: they work. In fact, we’re using one for our latest project to create simple, user-friendly WordPress Funeral Home Websites. The fact is that under construction pages build excitement. They let your site start to get indexed and they’re a great tool for building up a social media following and a mailing list. Even Google’s own Matt Cutts thinks under construction pages are a good idea.
So, if you’ve had a look around our site at all, you’re probably wondering why we aren’t using an under construction page ourselves. Everything is half empty, there are unfinished pages in our services section, and the design isn’t even completely worked out in some areas. Frankly, it’s embarrassing. And that’s exactly why we made it live.
You see, there’s a trap that tons of developers and agencies fall into. With all the client meetings, deadlines, and a workload that never seems to get any smaller, it’s extremely easy to let your own company’s website fall by the wayside. This is when an under construction page becomes more of a problem than a tool.
Think about it. How many times have you worked with a WordPress development shop or an internet marketing agency who only had a coming soon page or a basic splash page for a website? How many times have you heard lines like this: “Well, we’re so busy with client work that our site isn’t quite there yet…”? If your experiences are anything like ours, I’m willing to bet that number is pretty high.
This is not acceptable.
Believe me, I understand about how easy it is to let your company fall to the bottom of the pile. We’re still guilty of it to this day. However, just because it’s understandable doesn’t mean you should accept it. If you run a business on the web and your site is an under construction page or a splash page I dare you to go take it down. What’s the matter? Scared? Don’t be! Check out these…
Five Reasons Why You should Take Down Your Under Construction Page Immediately
1. Motivation – This one is pretty obvious. If you’ve been coasting along for months or even years with an under construction page, you need a swift kick in the ass to get you to change it. Your under construction page is a security blanket and you need to drop it immediately. It will be uncomfortable and difficult, but that’s the goal!
2. You Can Start Blogging – One of the biggest reasons developers and agencies should avoid coming soon pages is because using them means you can’t start blogging until you’re 100% finished with your website. Think of all the traffic you’re missing out on! In the time it will take you to completely finish your website, you could have written 10, 20, maybe even 30 awesome blog posts. Have you made your site live yet? 
3. Your Google Rankings Will Improve – Everyone knows that content is king. If your entire web presence is a single under construction page and some social media profiles, there’s not much hope for you on Google. Sure, you’ll probably rank for your business name… but that’s about it. Plus, with no blog posts, services pages, or any other content to speak of, how are you going to get any links after the initial launch? Nobody is going to link to your six-month-old splash page, no matter how cool it is.
4. You’ll Attract Better Clients – On top of the additional links and Google rankings you’ll obtain after making your site live, you’ll also start attracting a better class of clientele. A high value customer needs to be able to trust that your company isn’t going to fall off the face of the planet tomorrow. That’s pretty difficult for them to do when you can’t even finish your own website! Having a complete web presence adds credibility and sustainability to your brand. If you want to work with better clients, you need to wow them and trust me, a splash page isn’t going to cut it.
5. You Can Be Proud of Your Company – In my mind, this is the most important reason to dump your coming soon page. Before I started FAT Media, I was a freelance designer and developer. I had plenty of clients but I never had a website and I was always pretty ashamed of it. I avoided giving out business cards and networking with people because I was so ashamed. While this might be a little extreme, I believe that anyone who does business online feels at least some sense of shame if they haven’t devoted the necessary time to their own website. You need to be proud of what you’re doing if you ever want to be truly successful, so go rip off that band-aid and get your damn site up!
Well, I think I’ve stated a pretty good case for taking down your under construction page. Maybe you agree, maybe not. Let us know in the comments or start a conversation with us on twitter. I hope this helps other companies take the plunge and start improving their identity on the web. Stop leaning on that crutch and start improving your web presence. You won’t be sorry!
Sidenote: If your project is in the very early stages and you need an easy way to create an Under Construction Page with WordPress, check out SeedProd. There’s really no easier way to launch your site.