Posted: Jun 01, 2008
We are often approached by potential clients who have had a bad experience with a prior web designer or developer. Quite often, this costs our client extra as we have to spend time to clean up another developer’s “mess”. Sometimes, it seems to be just a case of poor communication.
With that in mind, we’d like to offer this checklist of questions to ask yourself (or your future web designer/developer) before you take the plunge into your next project.
It’s all too common for a client to be impressed by a pretty website design on a web designer’s portfolio and not ask certain questions before signing an agreement or paying for a website. A pretty portfolio is not enough – and quite often can be misleading.
Take a good hard look at the designer’s own website. It doesn’t have to be your favorite color – or even look like the best website in the world. But the underlying code had better be up to modern standards. A quick way is to see how many errors are found when the site is checked against the World Wide Web Consortium’s Markup Validation Service. Simply cut and paste the URL of your web designer’s website into the form on their page. Here’s what to watch for:
Flash is a great technology, but it is highly overused, quite often to the hurt of clients who have paid extra money to implement it on their sites. Examples of this would be splash screen introductions (a proven deterrent to usability) and excessive use for things like navigation and crucial content.
Search engines still are unable to read flash encoding, so any content that is displayed via Flash (text, navigation, contact information) can not be read by search engines and, as such, will not be indexed. This will cost you traffic at the expense of clever animation. It isn’t worth it.
At Brevard Web Hosting, we believe in using Flash, when requested, only as an enhancement for imagery and design – not to encapsulate quality content or site navigation.
Although we occasionally will do hourly billing at the request of our client (usually for monthly site maintenance), we generally advise that clients accept a flat rate. It’s in their best interest to do so. Here’s why.
Technologies are always changing. While general skills (such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript) are constantly being improved, the thousands of scripts and platforms that make up the whole of your website are also being changed – usually for the better. It is a rare month when we have absolutely no problems integrating a new version of a server-side script for even a simple contact form. We constantly discover that A doesn’t like to play with B – and have to spend extra time to hammer it into place (so to speak). In other words, we are always learning. Do you want to pay for your web designer’s education? Probably not.
So, you might get a bill that’s larger than expected. What are you going to do when your web designer sends you a bill for an additional $500, but tells you the website is 80% done? Go elsewhere and start all over?
Worse, if your web designer is not spending that extra time to learn all the new stuff that comes out every week, then it likely means he is building you a website with a very old-school approach that will not work on newer browsers. It could also mean that his or her approach may pose a security risk to your content.
Cookie cutter designs are just the tip of the iceberg for poor web designers. A template can never accurately represent your business. At Brevard Web Hosting, we refuse to use templates – even if you already bought one you like – because it can’t possibly do your website justice in the long run. While it arguably could save us a bit of time upfront, we prefer to save time elsewhere and let your website speak directly for you.
Additionally, your web designer should be a complementary part of your team – helping you to become successful. For Brevard Web Hosting, that means the very first thing we want to do is visit you at your place of business, in your surroundings, to brainstorm with you on how to make you more successful via the web. Having you come to us would never be the same. Sure, it’s time-consuming and sometimes cost us a wasted trip, but for those who do become our clients, it’s the first step in forming a bond that goes beyond the project at hand.
While you may not realize it, many web designers, even those with pretty portfolios and beautiful websites are hiding something from you. Their code. Were you to look at it, you would see a hodge-podge of technologies, scripts, and hacks to make your website work.
While you may not care if your website looks nice, there are a few things you might want to know before hiring him or her. In other words, what are the advantages to you, the client, by insisting on the use of web standards?
If you feel you can digest a small chunk of technical wisdom, try skimming through Wikipedia’s article on Web Design. It’s a very brief overview of a few terms and ideas which might help you better find the right person to develop your business website.
If you have more time, or particularly if you are responsible for coordinating a large web design project, I highly recommend the book Web Design and Marketing Solutions by longtime business web designer Kevin Potts. It is not a “code book” but a step-by-step breakdown of all the key elements a business website should include and what modern sites do to address those elements correctly. There is a description, table of contents, and a great sample chapter at the link above.
