You've thought about it and you're ready to go. You're ready to give your business an online presence. You want your own website. That's great but unless you are doing it yourself, you would be shopping for a website designer. Some people would design their own websites but most people prefer to save themselves the time and money and hand the job over to the professionals.
But how do you choose a great website designer from the countless website designers in this world? How do you determine who is good and who is passable?
The below may help you decide.
View the web designer's website.
Ask to see the designer's own website. Yes, one would expect a designer to first and foremost design a great website for himself but you would be surprised that some 'web designers' may not even have his/her own website!Once you get to their website, how do you like their website? Is it designed in the kind of style you want? Overall, a web designer's website should give you a good indication of what you are getting, in terms of style and design.
Check out their previous work.
Next up is their web design portfolio. By this I mean work that is done for a client and is live on the web. Get the website designer to show you his or her portfolio. Great designers will often prove it with a good work portfolio which in many cases are online for you to view anyway.
Look at their experience.
It is practical and makes sense because the longer they have been in the business, the more they understand the Internet and its character and the better they can design for it. In the web design business (as with any technology-related business), things move really fast. A good web designer should be able to show you that he has been around long enough to understand how the web works and how he or she should design for this medium.
Ask about website usability.
It is possible to design a gorgeous website without any idea of making it usable or even user-friendly. Designing a website for usability means the designer is able to focus on users' needs, making it easy for users to navigate around the website and achieve what they came to do. It's not about satisfying the website owner or the web designer's ego. An effective web designer combines both form and function when designing a website so it sets out to do what it is supposed to do. After all, your purpose for having a website is to gain attention for your business, sell your products and services and give your competitor a run for their money, right?
Ask about future support for your website.
Ask if your web designer is willing to support your web needs in the future. It is myth that once you get a website done, it is finished. With web technology growing by leaps and bounds, getting a website is just the beginning of the story. You need to plan for future growth and your web designer should be able to design with the future in mind. What happens if you want to add a forum to your website? Or a membership-only site? Can it be done? What about having a content management system? How about extra programming, e-commerce capability and other add-ons? Granted, not every web designer can support programming but he or she should let you know that if you need it, they can get it done for you or else find someone who can do it for you.
Nic Sim is the owner and founder of http://www.redboxstudio.com ? a web design firm dedicated to helping solo professionals and small businesses go online affordably and successfully with its easy to use, no-fuss Redbox DIY Website.
Visit http://www.redboxstudio.com for more details.
express cleaning service Arlington Heights ..FACT: 30 to 60% of visitors tend to drop off... Read More
CSS or Cascading Style Sheets has opened up tremendous possibilities... Read More
Do you know why the majority of people use the... Read More
What are websites? Are they sales tools for vendors and... Read More
Are you looking to create the perfect website? A complete... Read More
Remember the famous line from the movie Field of Dreams,... Read More
What colors do you have at your website?Can they make... Read More
My mother used to take me along when she visited... Read More
Content is king. Without content your website is an empty... Read More
If you are going to have a web presence for... Read More
STEP 1:Do your homeworkPlan and think about your content. Think... Read More
Not too long ago while looking for businesses that do... Read More
It seems more and more webmasters are using CSS for... Read More
Website design is a very competitive area and there is... Read More
Countdown to Armageddon - at least you'd think so judging... Read More
If you are familiar with my work, then you have... Read More
How many times have you clicked on a website only... Read More
You may not bother with html validation or writing simple... Read More
Read the title of this article over a couple of... Read More
Here's a really simple way... any novice can create a... Read More
One of the biggest problems with Web sites is that... Read More
We can't emphasize enough the importance of including keyword-rich content... Read More
There are lots of websites out there that do little... Read More
Whenever singer John Mayer sings his romantic song, "Your Body... Read More
The way you design your web site affects your visitors'... Read More
tidy up service Arlington Heights ..A professionally presented business website is a powerful and essential... Read More
1. Assemble a web site development plan that is integrated... Read More
Imagine spinning someone around so profoundly and for so long... Read More
1. Lack of overall strategy and clear definition of success:Most... Read More
Argh, where's the contact button?! Believe it or not, some... Read More
Audio can provide an added dimension to your site. It... Read More
Web Design is a very subjective process. Your idea of... Read More
As a graphic designer, you are sitting on a gold... Read More
A successful website is something that everyone venturing into the... Read More
Most people will agree there is nothing more annoying than... Read More
Surfing the internet is basically an information-fest! From intellectual discussions... Read More
You're all ready to get started creating your web presence... Read More
I hate to imagine that in your web development project... Read More
Your web site has been up for a few months... Read More
In cascading style sheets you can specify how your web... Read More
The great debate: how much copy you should have on... Read More
Favorite icon appears to the left of your link in... Read More
In this article we will be looking at why you... Read More
Are you serious about get this website done fast and... Read More
Sooner or later every small or medium business owner realizes... Read More
Are you looking for somebody to build you a website,... Read More
If you've a website that is not generating a lot... Read More
These days, it seems that everyone has a website. Unfortunately,... Read More
The HTML editor is usually a webpage design software that... Read More
Have you ever thought about the real stories behind all... Read More
Web Design |