What Should Website Maintenance Actually Include?

If you pay someone to maintain your website, you should be able to explain what that payment covers.

That gets harder when the proposal says “updates, security, and support” without explaining what anyone will actually do. Does support include fixing a broken form? Can you send over new photos? If the site goes down on a Saturday, when will someone respond?

Before comparing monthly prices, get those details in writing. A useful website maintenance agreement identifies the work, how often it happens, and who takes responsibility when something needs attention.

Here is what I would look for.

Start with the website you actually have

A WordPress website, a Shopify store, and a custom web application need different kinds of care. The plan should reflect your setup and the services already covered by your host or platform.

For WordPress, ask who handles the core software, themes, plugins, backups, and checks after updates. For Shopify, ask about the storefront, apps, product information, checkout checks, and recovery of store content. A custom application may also need someone responsible for its database and connections to other services.

Then describe what the site does for your business. A page that lists your services has different needs from a store taking orders throughout the day. Your maintenance plan should account for that difference.

Know what can be restored

“Backups included” leaves several questions unanswered.

What gets backed up? How often? How long are copies kept? Where are they stored? Who restores the site, and is that work included in the fee?

For a typical WordPress site, a complete recovery needs both the files and the database. Photos and theme files are different from the database that holds posts and settings. WordPress explains the two parts of a backup (opens in a new tab).

Shopify recovery works differently. Its backup documentation (opens in a new tab) describes exports and theme copies, along with limitations on transferring information back into a store. Ask exactly what the proposed backup method can recover. A downloaded theme alone does not include the rest of your store data.

I would also ask when a restore was last tested. The frequency should fit the site and the consequences of losing recent changes. If your business records new orders or inquiries all day, discuss how that information would be protected during a recovery.

Ask what happens before and after an update

For WordPress, the job should include a way to recover if an update causes trouble, a check for compatibility, and a review of the affected parts of the site afterward. Those steps align with WordPress’s own update guidance (opens in a new tab).

Ask how higher-risk changes are handled. A test copy of the site can help, provided it represents the live setup closely enough to make the test useful.

The schedule matters, too. Find out how routine updates are planned and how urgent security fixes are assessed. “We check once a month” still needs an explanation of what happens when an important issue appears between checks.

No maintenance plan removes every risk. You are looking for a sensible process and a person who can explain it.

Test the things customers need to do

A website can load while an important part of it fails. Checking that the homepage opens does not tell you whether a customer can request a quote.

Agree on the actions that need testing. Depending on your business, that might mean:

• Submitting an inquiry and confirming it reaches the right inbox or system.
• Opening the booking link and checking that the correct service can be selected.
• Checking the phone link on a mobile device.
• Going through the agreed checkout test and reviewing the resulting notifications.

For a contact form, seeing a thank-you message is only one part of the check. Someone should confirm the test submission arrived where your business expects it.

Checkout tests need planning. Shopify recommends testing (opens in a new tab) during setup and after payment-setting changes. It also warns that customers cannot place live orders while payment providers are in test mode. Have the person responsible choose an appropriate method and coordinate the test so it does not interrupt sales.

The agreement should say which functions are checked and when, including after relevant changes.

Define support before you need it

“Support included” can mean very different things. Ask how you report a problem, when someone is available, and what happens after they acknowledge it.

A response-time target tells you when to expect a reply. It does not necessarily tell you when a repair will be finished. An uptime alert tells someone a problem may exist. It does not automatically mean someone is available to fix it overnight.

Get clear answers about both response and repair coverage, including evenings, weekends, and third-party failures. If the booking service itself goes down, for example, your website provider may be able to diagnose the issue or arrange a workaround but cannot promise to repair that service.

Also separate routine changes from new work. Replacing a photo, adding a service page, and building a customer portal involve different amounts of work. Ask which requests are included, what limits apply, and how additional work is approved.

Expect a short record of the work

You should not have to learn a reporting dashboard to find out what happened to your website.

A useful maintenance summary can be brief. It should tell you what was updated, what was checked, whether any problems were found, and what still needs a decision. When a check was skipped or a repair is waiting on another provider, that belongs in the summary too.

Request dates and specific results. For example, “contact form tested Tuesday; message received in the sales inbox” tells you more than “website health checked.”

If the monthly agreement includes improvements, ask for those to be identified separately. A new landing page or a revised product layout should be easy to distinguish from routine upkeep.

Decide how much ongoing help you need

A monthly agreement can make sense when your site needs regular attention and you want a consistent person handling it. A simpler site with infrequent changes may be manageable with a lighter arrangement, provided the necessary checks and responsibilities are still assigned.

Compare the scope before judging the price. One proposal might cover updates and backups. Another might also include regular content changes, development time, and planned improvements. Those are different services.

Before you agree to either, ask:

“Can you show me what you will check, what I can request, and what happens if something breaks?”

You should get an answer you can understand without a technical translation.

At Hernbrode, I work directly with business owners on ongoing maintenance, updates, and website improvements. I review the setup and confirm the monthly scope before starting, including which responsibilities sit with me and which stay with your host or platform.

You can read about monthly website management or tell me what you need help with.