Web design, logos, graphics, and ecommerce: 5 Questions to ask before hiring a web design firm.

Before you finalize a purchase or a contract with your web design firm, it is best to make things clear and ensure that you are getting what you pay for. Web design can be a tricky endeavor, one that can directly affect your business. Like all important decisions in life, you must be careful in checking out all the details first and how they fulfill your business needs before finalizing your decision.

1. How long have they been in the Web Design business?

Upstart freelancers and small firms can offer you lower

rates compared to well established web design companies. The risk though, is that they may not have the required experience to effectively build the web design to cater to your various needs. Web design is a very complex field, one that has a very steep learning curve and is regularly evolving. It would also depend on what you want the designer to do with your site. If it's a basic and simple model , inexperienced designers would be able to do the job but an experienced hand would still be the better option in the long run.
Usually web design for small businesses start as a short-term project. However, since web design is an ongoing venture and one that will evolve as your business expands, a firm that has in-depth knowledge on how to prepare your site for future developments will be better equipped to help you start a potential game changer for your business.

2. Can they show you some of their recent works and clients?

Portfolios or past projects can give you an idea on what

they can do for you and will give you an idea on which features from their past projects you'd like to be included in your design. It will also give you an impression of whether or not they are the right people to build your website. It will also allow you to determine the quality of their work. Web design firms with years of experience in the field are a reliable option for long-term web development.

3. Will they charge you everything upfront or will they have additional charges later on in the development stages?

Making sure that everything is black and white and that you don't have to pay extra for something after the start of the project will protect you from hidden charges. Getting a fixed price for the whole project and being given a reasonable time table is what you should ask for from your design firm. Other elements like web hosting and support should also be included in the design.

4. Can they provide you with a Content Management System or CMS?

When you get your website, it is important that you have

access to make updates and certain changes to the contents of the site. Whenever you need to update your products or release new articles about your company, having a CMS in place will allow you or your staff to make the changes yourself without having to call your web design company or a freelancer to make the changes for you for a certain fee. This eliminates unnecessary costs for you. Websites with industry standard content management systems are the best. Some CMS sites that are free and popularly used are Wordpress, Joomla!, and Drupal.

5. How good is their customer support service?

It is important to have a web design company that offers practical and reliable customer support. Running and maintaining a website can be complicated with many elements like web hosting, domain name, eCommerce, and content management training. Having an ongoing support system in place from your web design firm will save you from a lot of frustration as well as extra charges from hiring freelancers to do the job for you instead.