So, now that we covered the importance of hiring a quality and experienced Website Designer in Riverview, FL, how should you go about hiring the right one. Here are some things to look for.
1. Look at their websites. Do they look nice? Do they look nice on you cell phone and tablets? Check their website as well as their customers. Once thing to check is to look and see if their own site is built using a template. Think about it this way – if they do not have the pride to make a custom website for their own business, do you think they will take pride in making an awesome working website for YOUR Business.
2. How long have they been in business? Experience Matters. Also stability matters. Someone who is a rookie in this business may not have the skills or knowledge to make sure the proper elements are in place for your success on the internet.
3. Look at how their websites share on Social Media. Remember people will share your website on facebook, etc and your website needs to look professional when it is shared. There are key things that we include on EVERY site to make sure of this.
4. Look at their website on your mobile phone. Look at their customer’s websites on a mobile phone. Can you click on the map and phone and does it integrate on your phone to call them?
5. Does the web designer work in multiple platforms, or are they only working in WordPress. Or Joomla. Or Drupal. If you are looking to sell products online, do that have sites in multiple eCommerce platforms? Lots of people can argue about what the BEST website CMS platform is, but in reality, there is no one size fits all. Businesses are unique and their needs are unique. A Web Designer must be able to work in many platforms. If they only work on one platform such as WordPress, which is a red flag that they have limited coding and development skills.
6. If all this checks out, then ask about how they do business. Do they demand half up front or payment in full? That is another red flag. They should get a small deposit up front – that way you and the web designer both have skin in the game. Upon completion of the mockup or design phase, then they charge a portion and depending on the size of the project either get milestone payments with the final payment due at the completion of the site when it goes live.
7. Once your website is complete, do they include all the source files? Many websites have plugins that are purchased or stock photos, etc. Also all the design files from photoshop etc. You need to OWN all of these. And have the files and licenses. These should be provided to the customer so that in the case of a change in web designers, for whatever reason, the new designer can take over and not have to recreate everything.
8. Does the Web Designer force you to use their hosting plan? That is also a red flag. Your website should be able to hosted at a place of your choice. If they offer hosting, do you have the main cpanel account info? You should. No matter how much you trust a web guy – you need to make sure you have this info.
9. Do they charge a Monthly maintenance fee? Is it required? What does it cover? We offer a few different maintenance plans. It makes sense if you are going to be changing and updating things every few weeks. The reality is that with the thousands of websites that we have, very few update their info on a regular basis so we tell them not to do it. For many of our customers, most of the changes add up to about 1 hour a year. So we will never force a maintenance plan or fees.
10. Are you forced into a contract after the site is built? Another red flag. If you have a site built, you should OWN it. All of it. Once it is paid for, it should be yours. Period. All to often we get a call from a customer who wants to move to us and have us fix their broken web site. Turns out they signed a contract that says that have to stay with their inexperienced guy for 2 or 3 years and he owns the site. And that is after they paid a small fortune for it! Once we build a site, the customer owns it. They can host with Tampa PC Web Design or they can host elsewhere. Period.
In summary – there are a lot of things to think about. We may not be the cheapest. But we are ALWAYS the most affordable. If you are unsure, simply give us a call. We are no hassle and no pressure. We would love to have you as a customer.