Hiring a web developer is a very important part of having a beautiful website. There are several things you should know before going into a partnership with a web developer. Today we are going to go over 10 different things you should know before hiring a web designer.
- Portfolio
- Budget
- References/Reviews
- Their Website
- Communication
- How Knowledgeable They Are
- Willingness to Teach
- Locality/Language
- Niche is Negligible.
- WordPress (WooCommerce) or Shopify only.
Web Designer Portfolio
Okay, so first off we’re going to talk about the portfolio. When hiring a developer you should always ask to see their portfolio. This will help you to see what kind of work they have done in the past and gauge what they will be able to do for you in the future. When looking at their portfolio, it is not necessary for you to see a website in your specific niche or industry. The great thing about web design is that the bones are all the same no matter what the content looks like. When looking through their portfolio you will want to look at the layout. You want to make sure that they can design a mobile-friendly website and that it’s not going to look poorly on smaller devices.
Web Design Prices/Budget
The next thing you want to look at is their pricing. Does their pricing meet your budget? Does their pricing reflect the quality? Is it a good deal? Is it too good to be true? Or does the pricing look to be too high compared to the quality? The answers to these questions will tell you a lot about what you can expect in terms of quality, expertise, professionalism, and reliability.
Web Design References and Reviews
The third thing that you want to know is their reviews and references. So when it comes to hiring a web developer, you’ll want to see either their reviews or their references. You should look for reviews when working with an actual agency, whereas you should look for references when it comes to freelance web designers. If you see a portfolio then you are good to go for seeing what they can do, and might not need to go further into requesting reviews/references.
A Web Designer’s Website
You should see their website. Their website will reflect not only their knowledge but their skill and their style. You’ll want to make sure that you are impressed with their website before hiring them to make your website. For more information on web design essentials, check out our checklist.
Communication with a Web Designer
Communication is a really big deal when it comes to any business relationship. You should make sure that the person you are hiring is willing to have open communication throughout the entirety of the business relationship and throughout the entirety of the project. You should want them to have the willingness to respond quickly and respectfully and ensure that they have multiple modes of contact so that in the event of an emergency you can reach them.
Is Your Web Designer Knowledgeable?
The next thing you want to know is how knowledgeable they are you’ll want to ask them some specific questions to gauge how well they know the subject matter in this case web design. You’ll want to ask them about the different platforms, possibly what language they are comfortable coding in such as PHP and JavaScript. You’ll also want to see if they are knowledgeable in other aspects of digital marketing that tie into web design such as search engine optimization and social media integration.
Will Your Web Developer Teach You?
The next thing is that you should hire someone who is willing to teach you. Not necessarily teach you how to code but teach you enough to have an understanding of how your website will work and the things that go into the web design, such as search engine optimization, page layout, and plug-in integration.
Is Your Web Developer Local?
Another thing that you’ll want to take into consideration when you’re hiring a web developer is their locality and their language. Having a developer who is close to you and does not have a language barrier will save you time and money. Hiring someone in another country or in another time zone can hinder communication.
Niche is Negligible
Now the next thing is niche. Having a niche developer is unnecessary. Coding is all the same no matter what industry the website is for. the bones are the same. While there are some cases where having a niche developer could be beneficial such as certain technologies that need to be integrated such as IDX for real estate or HIPAA for the health industry, the majority of the time you do not need a specialized web developer.
Web Design Platforms
The final thing we will discuss is that you should only invest in a web developer that uses WordPress, Shopify, or from scratch code. this is because most drag-and-drop builders are not beneficial for SEO, performance, and flexibility, therefore you should not invest a ton of money in someone who specializes in these drag-and-drop builders. Many of the biggest businesses use WordPress or Shopify to build their website. There are also times where you may need a from-scratch developer however the majority will only need someone who works with WordPress or Shopify.
Hopefully these ten things will help you when you’re choosing your web designer.
