Many of those looking for a web designer have no idea what to ask to determine the person’s competence for the job or their ability to complete the project on time. You can vet potential designers to determine who has the expertise you need and understands your requirements by asking the right questions. Here are five questions you should ask your web designer before hiring them.
Where Can I See Examples of Your Website Work?
This question gives you several pieces of information. First, if the person only has digital portfolios on their laptop and no living websites to show off, they don’t have enough experience to be allowed to alter your website. Second, you can visit the websites they’ve already set up to see if that’s the type of style and breadth of functionality you want. Third, you can ask them about pricing based on the sites you like so that you know what they actually do for that amount of money; this is more valuable than asking them for a price quote on your particular project.
What Is Your Process for Handling Feedback and Changes?
Ask the web designer how you would be able to give them feedback on an initial design and the formal process for requesting changes. If they expect to be able to give you a website without your team being able to make corrections or modest changes, you don’t want to work with them.
Who Will Be Doing the Work?
The person interviewing on behalf of a web design firm may not be a web designer. Ask who will be doing the work. If you’re interviewing the project lead, also ask who will be designing the site and testing the code.
How Do You Handle Final Changes?
Ask the web designer how much time they allocate for last minute changes and fixes. Some web designers quote the project with the expectation that there will be a few hours of bug fixes and last minute tweaks. Others will charge extra for every call or email asking for a change.
If your revised website is an ecommerce directory, ask about how you’d handle adding new product pages to the site. Do you have to pay the web designer to come in every time, or is there a process for adding new pages yourself while still integrating it with your inventory management system and financial software?
How Long Will My Project Take?
Once they’ve seen your site and you’ve been able to provide a high level description of what you want, ask for a projected time frame. Will they be able to make the changes or build the new site in days, weeks or months? If you have a hard deadline, can they do the work faster if you pay them to assign more talent to the project or make your project their top priority? If not, you will need to interview others to see if they can meet your timeframe or you need to revise your scope of work.
All these questions will allow you to narrow down on a good web designer for your project. They will also tell you if you’re dealing with an actual web designer in the first place. So, don’t cut corners and take the time to vet potential web designers correctly if you don’t want to end with any unpleasant surprises.
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