8 Things to Consider When Choosing a Web Design Company

Hiring a web design company is a big decision regardless of your business size. Your website is what people will associate you with. So it’s essential to hire an efficient and responsible web design company to create your site.

The common signs of a good web design company are evident right from the start.

• In order to deliver exactly what the client wants, they will show interest in fully understanding your company or business goals.
• They will try to get a detailed picture of your requirements.

There are several other very important factors to keep in mind when you are deciding to collaborate with a website design company:

1. Is there a support system put in place?

Ongoing support after your website is live can be particularly crucial. A solid warranty with a web design company will mean that it’s not only easy to communicate with, but also, any maintenance you may need will be taken care of quickly.

If you are ever having trouble with:

• Your email
• Hosting
• Domain management
• The management of the content or
• The function of your website

It is imperative that you are able to fix the issue as soon as possible. Hiring a company means that they should be very accessible and easily contactable.

Ideally, you want to employ web designers who are happy to go the extra mile. While you will never hear, ‘Sure, we can do a redesign for you for free’, it’s important you feel like you’re getting good value for your money and being looked after.

Beware though, some design companies tack on additional charges after you have already committed to them. So as a precaution, always agree on a project outline before you begin.

2. Is there enough transparency?

There are some great designers who provide good quality and cost-effective professional web designs out there. But there might be several hiccups along the way for the lack of transparency.

Miscommunication between clients and web design companies has a much higher probability of developing misunderstandings and provides more room for errors and mistakes. It is also harder to hold companies accountable for any promises or mistakes they make in the absence of transparency. This creates paranoia in the client.

There are a lot of horror stories out there about people putting their hard-earned cash down as a deposit only for the people responsible for disappearing altogether!

Recently, a client of ours obtained a quote for what she thought was a responsive site that she wanted us to match. However, when reading it back, we realised that the quote was cleverly worded and was not actually on a responsive site at all.

Having a design team that is easy to reach and talk with fosters honesty and reduces the likelihood of these sorts of mishaps.

3. Is the market comprehensible?

If you are running a local business, you will have your own unique community around you as well as a larger market in your city and country.

It can, therefore, be vital to hire a company that gets where you’re coming from and understands the culture and the competitors within your industry. Furthermore, they should also have a great web design portfolio.

Though the designers might not initially know much about your business or your style, by being close to you, they will develop a better understanding of where you’re coming from. This will enable them to guide you through the web design process.

Establishing a connection with your web company is crucial for two reasons:

• First of all, when going forward with a new website, it is much easier if you don’t have to get travel vaccinations or apply for a visa!
• Second, having a design company in close proximity makes engagement and communication much simpler.

It’s also much easier to simply visit the agency in person to gauge how they operate and if they would be good to work with.

This is especially important when it comes to ecommerce design and integration, as things can change very quickly in particular markets. And employing a local design agency will mean your web design company not only have a better understanding of your needs, they are also guaranteed to be contactable when you need them to make changes.

4. Is the client base thoroughly researched?

The web design company you hire needs to be in tune with your client base. A design that appeals to 50-year-olds will not have the same impact on 30-year-olds.

Each segment of the population has their own taste and preferences. Just as you need to understand your own client base, the designing company should also have a good idea.

There is no better alternative than research in this regard. The necessary information should be collected through comprehensive studies, surveys and analysis of recent trends.

Both parties, the client and the web design company, need to play a part in researching the client base thoroughly. As the client, it is your responsibility to do the heavy lifting and compile a detailed investigation of your client base. This is crucial for both in and out of web designing.

After which, you hand over everything to the web design company so they can double check and expand the existing knowledge. Together, these will allow the designers to get a crystal clear idea of what your client base truly craves.

5. What are their SEO capabilities?

When choosing a web design company, it is wiser to understand their SEO capabilities to ensure that your website will not only look good but also perform well in search results. On-page SEO, technical SEO, content optimisation, link building, analytics and reporting, and local SEO are some of the SEO capabilities that you must look for.

Here, on-page SEO includes optimising individual web pages to rank higher and earn more relevant traffic, whereas technical SEO involves optimising the backend of your site to crawl and index more effectively.

Questions you can ask when inquiring about the company’s SEO capabilities,

• Can you show some examples of websites you’ve optimised for search engines?
• What specific SEO strategies do you usually implement during the web design process?
• How do you stay updated with the latest SEO trends and algorithm changes?
• Do you provide ongoing SEO services and support once the website is launched?
• What tools and metrics do you use to measure and report on SEO performance?

6. What is their approach to user experience (UX) design?

Evaluating a web design company’s approach to user experience (UX) design is another must-have factor to ensure your website is intuitive, engaging, and effective in achieving its goals. Simply put, here are some key considerations you need to consider when evaluating a web design company’s website process.

Timeline and milestones: Ensure the company provides a clear timeline with specific milestones to track progress.

What you need to look for:

• A detailed project plan outlining key phases and deliverables.
• Regular updates on progress and any potential delays.
• Defined milestones to measure progress and ensure alignment with project goals.

Client feedback incorporation: Check how the company integrates your feedback. Regular updates and iterative revisions should be part of their approach.

What you need to look for:

• Scheduled meetings or check-ins to review progress and provide feedback.
• A collaborative approach where your input is valued and considered.
• Clear documentation of feedback and how it has been addressed.

Communication: Effective communication is essential. The company should be easily reachable and provide regular updates on the project status.

What you need to look for:

• Clear and consistent communication channels (e.g., email, phone, project management tools).
• Regular updates on project status, milestones, and any issues.
• Responsive and proactive communication from the design team.

7. How do they measure the success of the website post-launch?

A web design company that has worked with businesses similar to your industry will be much more familiar with your industry standards, trends and best practices. Their experience will help them understand your industry’s unique needs and challenges.

Also, they are most likely better able to understand your target audience’s preferences and behaviours. Experienced companies can streamline the design process as they already know the common pitfalls and effective strategies.

So they can suggest and implement features relevant to your business type. For example, an ecommerce site might need advanced filtering options, while appointment scheduling capabilities are way more efficient for a medical website.

8. What kind of security measures does the company implement?

As websites handle sensitive data, including personal information, payment details, and business information, you must make sure that the web design company you will work with has robust security measures in place to protect data from breaches, theft, and unauthorised access.

Questions you can ask about security measures:

• What security protocols do they implement to protect your data?
• How do you handle user authentication and authorisation?
• What security measures do they take to prevent and respond to cyber-attacks?
• How do they ensure compliance with data protection regulations?
• What encryption methods do they use to secure data transmission?
• Do they perform regular security audits and vulnerability assessments?
• How do they handle security patches and updates?
• Are there any backup and disaster recovery plans in place?

In conclusion, It’s not over yet

Here are a couple of things you should look out for when deciding to collaborate:

• It’s important to look carefully at the creative agency that will make your site before you commit to working with them.
• A good agency will offer choices of platform, ongoing support, the ability to purchase additional maintenance, and initial training in your site’s CMS.
• Often you can tell if the company is a good fit for you by having a look at their portfolio and seeing how many happy clients they have already.

Make no mistake about it, we have barely scratched the surface. With the primary issues addressed there still remains a breadth of issues to tackle in more detail.

To recap, and to add certain key factors of web design work, are you still finding yourself worried about the following questions?

1. Do you provide custom-made templates?
2. How long does it take to complete a website design?
3. Did you tried & tested designs which have been known to drive revenue?
4. Do you audit webpage designs?
5. Does SEO work its way into your web design procedure?
6. What are the metrics for measuring web design success?
7. Will the design be dynamic in accordance with the growth of my business?
8. Is web hosting services included in your work?
9. How much do you charge? Is there a package-based system in place?
10. Will my site be responsive and optimised for device diversity?
11. Do you provide online marketing services?
12. How collaborative is your relationship with clients?
13. Do you provide maintenance after delivery?