Your website is frequently your first, and occasionally your only, chance to impress a potential customer. When it comes to influencing prospects and retaining customers on your website, a talented web developer is an essential partner.
The right questions must be asked in order to thoroughly investigate a website developer. You can tell whether a candidate truly grasps your vision by their responses. You can assess their background and skills to see if they can assist you in building a quick, useful website that provides a top-notch user experience.
Questions to ask your web developer
To find out if potential website developers are the right partner for you and your company, ask them the following 16 questions.
1. Has the web developer worked on projects with similar goals?
Ask them to repeat back to you exactly what you said you wanted from your website. Make sure they can deliver what you're looking for and that they truly understand what you need.
Keep in mind that developing for e-commerce websites differs from developing for standard brochure websites. It's a problem if a potential developer has little experience setting up an online store. The time it takes them to learn and master new skills could be greatly slowed down by their lack of practical knowledge.
2. What’s the web developer’s research process like?
To make sure the website can meet your company's needs, your developer should learn more about your enterprise.
the following inquiries about their research methodology:
- Do they fully comprehend your operation?
- Have they determined who your target market is?
- Do they comprehend the demands of your website's visitors? For instance, does your audience anticipate making purchases, downloading files, or learning about various product categories?
- Can they assist you in telling the story of your brand? Do they comprehend your brand?
- Can they operate within your brand's parameters?
Visitors will arrive at a site that is inconsistent with your image, mission, and goals if your developer doesn't understand what your business is about.
Keep in mind that designing a website for a small business is just another form of marketing. You wouldn't put your company in the hands of a marketing firm that didn't comprehend your target market.
3. How long does one web development project take to complete from start to finish?
Work with a developer who recognises the importance of meeting deadlines if one doesn't already exist. There is nothing wrong with developers taking a different amount of time to complete their tasks. However, you must make sure your developer is aware that failing to meet deadlines will have negative effects on your company.
Ask your developer to commit to a maximum price that they won't go over if they miss important deadlines if they are unable to give you a firm completion date.
4. What services does the web developer provide?
Web design is frequently bundled with other services by developers. It's crucial to be clear about the actual services they will offer. Take into account the following potential services:
- Will they produce web content?
- Will Google Analytics and Search Console be installed?
- Can they help promote the website using social media?
- Will the website work on mobile devices?
Make a list of the services you require, then assess the developer's capacity to provide them.
5. What does the web developer’s SEO strategy look like?
The goal of search engine optimisation is to code, write, and design your website to achieve the highest Google ranking possible.
Inquire about your developer's knowledge of SEO and the approach they plan to take for your website. How will they improve the search engine visibility of your website? Choose a different provider if they don't perform keyword research or use other tried-and-true technical SEO techniques.
A website should draw in potential customers, pique their curiosity, and effectively convert leads. If no one can find your website, it won't accomplish any of the three objectives.
6. Can I make edits without the web developer?
Websites shouldn't serve as historical records that record a single point in time. They must be flexible, reflecting adjustments made to the business, market, and sector.
It is not practical to pay your developer for each new page or edit. You can independently update existing pages and add new information if they enable easy access.
What platform or software will they use to build your website? Ask them to show you how to use and edit your website without their assistance. Make sure the solution picked by your developer gives you the required level of access.
7. Does the web developer have a content marketing package?
Ask prospective developers if content marketing is included in their package.
Content marketing is a powerful search engine optimisation strategy that raises customer engagement and Google rankings. If your company already has a content marketing strategy or a social media manager who handles content marketing, you might not need this service.
8. Can I contact the web developer’s other clients?
Speak to the references and previous customers of your potential developer if you want an honest, unbiased assessment of the experience. Additionally, search for favourable client testimonials on Google or Yelp to get a sense of how people feel about the developer.
9. What is the web developer’s expectation of my involvement?
How much involvement in the web design process do you want? Do you want to have final say in every choice or do you prefer to defer to experts?
Your developer must also be aware of your level of involvement. You won't achieve the outcomes you want if you don't collaborate from the beginning.
10. What does the web developer charge for a project of this scope?
Developers bill at different rates depending on the complexity of the project and their level of expertise. Set a limit on the most you're willing to spend and decide on your website budget.
Never always choose the least expensive developer you can find. Spending more up front on a job well done is preferable to paying more later to bring the quality up to your expectations.
11. Does the web developer outsource projects or complete them in-house?
Beyond design and e-commerce, web developers frequently provide a variety of services, such as content and social media marketing packages. However, some developers hire outside companies to perform services because they lack the expertise or personnel to do it properly themselves.
There's nothing wrong with a developer contracting out work; you can still achieve top-notch outcomes. Be aware though, poor communication between your developer and their subcontractors could result in project delays and additional costs.
When working with a web developer who subcontracts work, look into their partners' credentials as well.
12. What assets must I provide to the web developer?
You must at the very least offer your company's branding assets and guidelines, such as logo files, fonts, and colour schemes. Decide with your developer who will supply the website with additional content, photos, brand images, and graphics.
These website components may be created or provided by some web developers and agencies, but you'll see this work reflected in your bill.
13. What is the project timeline?
Timelines for projects frequently change due to work changes or mid-project course changes. Keep in mind that a website will cost more to develop the longer it takes. The launch date will also be pushed back as a result of ongoing delays. Additionally, you won't be bringing in new clients online without a functioning website.
Decide on the important milestones a developer must reach before you sign a contract with them. Next, decide on the launch date and milestone timelines. In order to communicate freely and easily throughout the project, set up communication tools or establish a communication framework with the developer before the project begins.
14. Does the web developer offer custom and template websites?
You might be given the option of a custom or template website by your web developer.
- Website templates. Website templates are inexpensive. They frequently contain extra, cumbersome code because they are intended to be generic, which can slow down page load times. You run the risk of your site not functioning if one or more plug-ins fail if a template needs multiple plug-ins to function. Additionally, visitors may notice the cookie-cutter feel of many template websites.
- specific websites. Custom websites, on the other hand, are created specifically for you and should only contain the code that is required. Talented web designers create unique websites with clear, effective coding, which improves performance. Custom websites, however, are more expensive and take longer to build.
Whichever route you take, make sure your web developer is capable of building both custom and template websites.
15. How many design revisions does the web developer allow?
It is a developer's responsibility to translate your input into a design. Frequently, their first draught won't exactly match yours. Nobody is at fault; communicating these concepts is challenging.
A predetermined number of revisions are frequently permitted during the approval process by web developers and design firms. Make sure you and the other party agree on the number of revisions to which you are entitled as well as the price before you sign a contract.
16. Does the web developer charge by milestone, hourly, or a fixed fee?
A reasonable initial quote could become an eye-wateringly large invoice without a firm fee agreement if the project is handled poorly.
- hourly pricing. Working with someone who bills by the hour gives you more freedom. Hourly changes, on the other hand, raise the possibility of cost overruns, especially if you change your mind frequently.
- set costs. Working with a web developer who has a set fee can help you stay within your spending limit and guarantee a quick turn-around. To ensure they meet their time and budget goals, the developer may spend less time on some aspects of your website because they are keeping an eye on the clock. They might have planned for a different project to begin immediately after yours.
- billing based on achievement. A good middle ground between hourly and fixed fees is milestone billing. With the project's scope, you can be a little more flexible while still being mindful of your budget.
The pros and cons of hiring a web developer
Beautiful websites are made by web designers, and they truly benefit your company. However, whenever you delegate work to another individual or business, there are risks involved. The benefits and drawbacks of working with a web developer are discussed below.
Pros
The experts are the developers, not you. Web designers may have years of experience building engaging, high-quality websites that users enjoy.
Developers work more quickly. A developer could finish your website in a few weeks or months as opposed to the time it would take you to learn website development on your own, not to mention the complementary skills of copywriting and SEO.
Tech issues are dealt with by developers. Web developers can quickly identify and resolve any issues that may arise with your site, as they do with almost every website. Less downtime equals fewer chances lost to convert visitors.
You can pay attention to managing your company. You can spend your time more effectively building the business from concept to launch and beyond than you can building your website.
Cons
Costlier are developers. Drag-and-drop WYSIWYG editors can assist you in designing and developing your own websites at a fraction of the cost of a web developer. Even if you have no prior experience building websites, you can still use the best website building platforms.
For a developer, you are merely one client. You might not even be the most important client for your web developer. The fact that you need something completed quickly does not automatically make you the developer's top priority. For them to make relatively minor changes to your website, you might have to wait days or even weeks.
Your developer might cease operations. If your website developer closes shop, it might be challenging to get your website files back. As you attempt to rebuild, your website might experience lengthy downtime.
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