The last thing you want to become in a relationship with your Drupal web developer is … stuck. It should be a fluid connection with many moving parts working together before, during and after your website launch.

You envisioned your website – and, therefore, your business – as fast, strong and secure, right? If you don’t think you’re feeling or seeing that in your Drupal site, we’ve put together 6 signs to guide you toward a breakup with your current development situation. Because, trust us, it’s not you, it’s them.

Your Drupal developer is high.
No, not that kind of high. We mean high on price quotes for projects and project updates. If you’ve been detailed and defined in your requests, you should, in turn, receive a detailed breakdown of costs for each Drupal upgrade – and the reasons – so it’s not just a shockingly high number. We think it’s important to have a solid conversation with our clients, asking things like, “What’s your budget, what are your goals throughout the process,” so you can get an accurate analysis of pricing, rather than play a guessing game.

Updating content on your site is a hassle.
It shouldn’t be. If your Drupal website is designed and configured the proper way, with a simple, structured content management system (CMS), updating content and/or making edits should be seamless. It shouldn’t take too much of your precious time to make those changes and see them live. Take pause if updating content requires you to maneuver through a maze of cryptic pages, links and passcodes. Does adding a new blog post shouldn’t take two hours? No one has that kind of time – or patience. Which is why you should consider a Drupal development partner that provides ongoing support and maintenance so you understand how to easily update your website on your CMS.

Your analytics are lacking.
Yes, you may be receiving analytic reports … but are you getting the right ones that could truly help your bottom line? Analytics that probe into the behavior of the users of your website are intensely valuable. What did users actually use while they were visiting, where did they go and for how long? When you follow the movements of your customers, you find out how they interact with this living, breathing website – whether they pause on an inspirational testimonial, blog or visual or click a call to action. And what or if your priorities should change? We like to take a deep dive into these analytics, delivering reports to you that should make it all clear, guide you and assess on how your website is meeting your goals.

You don’t feel secure.
That’s never a good thing online. If your Drupal website isn’t protected with an arsenal of security, you’re at risk for hacking and cyber-attacking, which are becoming more everyday occurrences. Take this online quiz to see to measure your site security. If the results, have you concerned, it might be time to find a better path of protection.

Unused pages are clogging your site.
If pages on your site are showing up that you didn’t know existed, a proper cleaning in the process of removing pages and links wasn’t completed. Broken links, dead-end and duplicate pages not only reflects poorly on your business but can also send up red flags to search engines. Ongoing monitoring of your content rids you of these extra-page nuisances.

You are not being heard.
Have you ever had a support or change request only to find your email voicemail left unanswered? If you are hearing crickets, then it might be time to consider other options. The days of set-and-forget-it websites are over and ongoing collaboration is key to keeping a Drupal website fresh to engage new visitors and keep them coming back. And, on a side note, web developer language (geek talk) is fine amidst developer colleagues, but Drupal developers should understand that you probably don’t understand – or need to – all levels of technical he dives into on a regular basis. Industry jargon isn’t impressive, it’s a wall of frustration. Effective communication, however, is key to all successful relationships, including this one.

Got you thinking? We have plenty of experience helping clients work through a past of unhealthy relationships with Drupal web developers and create successful and secure websites. If you’re checking yes to these six signs, let’s chat.