There are some important decisions to be made when choosing a web design company to create a new online home for you, or update your current online business presence. You can make better decisions with the more information you have, and the more that you know. Depending on a lot of factors, you may choose your neighbour’s 7 year old kid, or the large web design agency in the centre of town with the huge, plush office.
A few brief tips:
- Choose the goals for your website before going ahead with the design.
- Research the web design businesses you’ve listed.
- Check their own website
- Is it easy to navigate?
- Can you find what you want easily, and within 3 clicks of the homepage?
- Is the layout, graphic style and text clear and easy to read/view?
- Are there any unsightly distractions?
- The colour theme should work as a whole, although this is a preference that can be very personal.
- Contact the web design companies you have shortlisted.
- Are they easy to get hold of on the phone, or by email?
- Is their telephone manner helpful?
- Do they try to push something on you that you don’t want or need, or are they responsive to your requirements?
- What lead time do they give you on starting and finishing the project?
- Call the references, and get their thoughts (good or bad) on the company.
With so many different companies out there, ranging from 1 man bands and freelancers who work from home, to bigger organisations that may charge you significantly more, how do you choose the right one for your business website? Cheaper is not the only qualifying criteria here, as cheaper is not always better, but we want to make sure we’re getting the most bang for our buck.
Clarity is the key. You are starting in the right place if you begin by making a decision about how your website should contribute to, and help, your business growth. Having a website for it’s own sake is next to worthless. Even if you feel that you don’t have the time, you can save yourself thousands if you define your website’s goals from the off. Do you want the website to generate leads, or to disseminate information to your clients or employees? How will you track and measure success? Will you use it to sell services or products online? If you nail this down you can remove a lot of headaches from the equation in the future.
When choosing a web design company, a lot of people like to go on recommendation, which is never a bad thing right? You can minimise the chance of something going wrong if you know someone who has had a good experience with a certain company. However – make sure the company you are choosing is right for your business, and for you. We want to ensure we’re comparing like for like, and your associate’s businesses could be very different from yours. And not everybody likes everybody else. This is a huge part of doing business that is often overlooked. You’re spending your money with this person or company, so you need to feel very comfortable with them. You want to feel that the company will give your project the same attention you would, and that you can trust them.
Need help with your business website design? Call us today, we’re happy to help you with your questions.
Lloyd Roberts | 123 Web Design Bournemouth
123 Bournemouth Web Design
http://www.123webdesignbournemouth.co.uk
Tags: companies, how to select, recommendations, web design