Like going on a blind date, selecting the most appropriate web designer may be an experience fraught with false expectation. Contrary to a huge company, a small company normally has a tight budget--particularly in regards to advertising and marketing --to employ a huge web design bureau to serve their internet advertising and marketing requirements. With the knowledge that a cheap-looking site isn't the ideal way to represent your company --or you don't have unlimited money to throw web designers around the off-chance which you will receive something which resembles what you need --there exist great little design studios and expert freelance web designers with decent prices, luckily. Below are a few ideas about how best to pick the perfect one to meet your business requirements.
Identify the Fake Web Designers
Have a look at their portfolio! Do they look professional? Is the manner of the designer something you'd love to have in your site? Are they rational, simple to use, and supply what is required to help clients attain their (and also the customers') goals? That means that a lot of business development has gone into them.
Web Designers vs Web Programmers
There are many web designers who are actually programmers who know little, if at all, about design. They use templates that are created by other professional designers. Unfortunately, templates aren't customized to your unique business. Moreover, with advances in software applications, it is easier than ever to create and build a website. These software can help anyone build a website without knowing a thing. However, there is a distinct difference between creating and designing one. Design, be it web or print, is about communication. Without the necessary design knowledge how could the programmers do an effective job communicating with your prospective customers?
How Can Good Design Help Your Business
Design is about you--what you know, what you see, and what you have to say. Behind every design is a vision, a purpose, a reason to be. Web design is not about decoration but communication; about making your words and vision visible, giving it form and body for all the world to see. While the sales copy of your website remains vital for the effective selling of your products or services, the use of typography, color, graphics and layout help lead your prospects read and navigate your website. This makes your page a pleasure to read and increases their overall user-experience. A professional, well-designed website has been proven to increase sales!
Web Design Process
The web design process is also a matter of planning, what to include and what to exclude, good design, appealing text, how to sell, what business plan to follow, and more. Like any other marketing medium, it requires a lot of work by individuals who understand what visitors and the search engines like to see: properly organized text. Combining a nice layout with SEO isn't easy, make sure the designer understands both the human and search components. The result is pages that perform well for visitors and rank high for specific keywords. No doubt, there are many who can turn out professional websites, but few who will volunteer to spend dozens of hours consulting with a client, designing a clear and unconfusing website, and sweating over ad copy, pictures and all the major and minor details -- in essence, creating a online marketing vehicle.
Online Marketing
The number one mistake that most first time web site owners make is that they don't know what to do with their site after it's designed. It is very possible to have a beautiful site designed for you and no one ever sees it. A website is merely another means of marketing your products or services. With hundreds, if not thousands, of websites sprouting out everyday, competition is fierce. Having a"presence" for your business has virtually become an understatement. A good designer will not only help you create a professional looking site, they will also ensure that your site gets a good ranking with the search engines so that your site can be easily found online. Make sure that your designer will optimize your site for the search engines and submit it to the major search engines. Your website need to rank reasonably well in search engines. Moreover, small business should seriously look into harnessing the power of the social media and sound web marketing design to increase the exposure of your services and products to extend your reach.
Is a Website Just a website
In the online world, traffic and targeted prospects is the life blood for you website. A pretty website becomes a white elephant if no customer visits it. Does the web designer practice what he preaches? How much traffic is his website receiving? For more info click website design
Offline Marketing
Small businesses exist in numbers far larger than big corporations. It is ever more important for your business to stand out from your competition with a professional, consistent image--your corporate identity, namely from your web design, company logo, to the offline marketing collateral such as business card and flyer designs etc.. Having the same company to design both your online and offline marketing collateral have significant advantages of consistency and cost.
Word of Mouth and Testimonials
Word of mouth is a good indication of someone who knows his stuff. If he comes strongly recommended by trusted friends or family members, chances are he's created design solutions that work for their business quite well. Ask them whether it was a good experience or not. Most designers will have testimonials from previous clients on their website. It's a good idea to see what his customers are saying about his services. Follow the web links and try contacting some of them. You should have a feel after talking to one or two. This also ensures the testimonials are not fake ones that were simply"composed".
Chemistry is Key
You are going to have to share aspects of your business, from visions to operations to preferences to competition, with this person. So it's important that you feel comfortable enough with him to be honest about your business details and goals, as well as ask as many questions about his advise as you need to. Does the designer seem friendly and are they willing to answer all of your questions? Does he respond promptly to your emails and/or phone calls? A good designer will keep in touch with you every few days, at least. You don't want to get down to the final days of creating the site only to find out you don't like it! Look out for his modus operandi during the first meeting. He should be asking you extensive, detailed questions about your requirements and goals, in order to analyze your needs. Someone who is more interested in telling you the different design packages he can offer you is probably more concerned about making a quick buck.
Website Maintenance
A common issue with most small business is a lack of technical skills. What happens if you want to update the content after the project has been completed? Can you update it yourself without any HTML knowledge?
Content Management System
Would your website be built on a content management platform such as Wordpress or Joomla? This will allow you to update, edit and add pages on your own without going back to the web designer. Thus saving time and cost.
Engage your Customers via Blogs
If you are marketing your business on the web and you don't have a blog, you will always be beaten down by your competition. A Blog platform allows you to do things no one else in your market can do with static websites. This means you don't just have a web site, you have a search engine magnet and an interactive community builder that will drive targeted, willing-to-buy visitors to your site.
Price
This is an important factor for any small business to consider. Although there is no clear-cut rule as to what an"average" cost for web design is. Typically, you get what you pay for. You're paying for this particular his experience, time and expertise. Be sensible about your financial plan. You might not have all of the bells and whistles like animation and special effects. It is more important to make a successful site which has a fantastic position in the search engine and also you which you're extremely pleased with the appearance and work of than to spare a few bucks. If you receive a fantastic website, your website will have the ability to grow along with your organization and also, hopefully, that is for a lengthy time! The educated, experienced web designer will execute your suggestions and improve them, seeing possible pitfalls and making suggestions across the way--and he will allow you to comprehend the process and provide you the advantage of his expertise and comprehension of the Web, so you come away not just with a site, but with the improved comprehension of the Web and internet enterprise. In summary, he will work together and succeed.