HOW TO HIRE A WEB DESIGN COMPANY

Hiring a Web design company requires careful consideration of your requirements. You must have a good sense of what you need so that Website design companies can properly assess your requirement and provide an accurate proposal.

Use this guide to help identify your Website requirements and then create a request for proposal that can be sent to Web design companies.

1. Define your Website Content Requirements

Take some time to think about the type of content you want to make available. If possible, create a basic flowchart outlining the sections and sub-sections that will be found on your Website. Try to determine the number of pages that will be published. Think about if you have the resources internally to write the content or if this will need to be outsourced. Decide if your Website will be in one or more languages.

2. Define your Website Functional Requirements

Create a list of functional requirements for your Website and share it with the Web design companies you contact. A defined list will provide the Web design company with specific project direction and allow them to create a proposal that addresses your needs.

While the following list is not exhaustive, it is a starting point for you to get your requirements down on paper:

1. Product Catalogue
2. Shopping Cart System
3. eCommerce
4. Password Protected Web Pages
5. Video Streaming
6. Audio Streaming
7. Data Collection Forms
8. Photo Gallery
9. Blog
10. Membership Directory
11. Discussion Forums
12. Search Engine
13. RSS Feeds
14. eNewsletter
15. Surveys
16. Social Network Integration (Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, etc.)
17. Content Management
18. File Sharing
19. Traffic Analytics
20. Click to Chat, Live Chat
21. Flash Content (i.e., Banners, Orientation Guides, Games)
22. Custom Database Application

3. Research Web Design Companies Online

Use a search engine such as Google and search for companies using keywords such as Web Design. Include your city name if you wish to work with local companies. Review the search result and visit Websites to get a first impression. This will go a long way - if the site is out-dated, doesn't provide easy access to information or is difficult to understand, keep looking!

4. Review Company Portfolio

It's important to review the portfolio of the company you are interested in. Their portfolio should demonstrate a wide range of Website styles, features and functionalities. You can also take a moment to see how the Websites the company has created for their clients function - do you encounter any error messages or other deficiencies on their Websites?

5. Range of Services Offered

Websites today are much more than static brochures. It's important to find a company that has a broad range of experience and understands how to design for the needs of your target audience. You more than likely will also require hosting, email, content updates and search engine optimization so make sure you find a company that can work with your current and future needs.

6. Ask for a Proposal

Prepare a statement of work that describes:

1. Your organization and its Website objectives;
2. Who your target audience is;
3. Functional requirements list (as per Step 1);
4. Sitemap/data structure overview;
5. Deadline date the Website must be completed;
6. List of Websites that you like and reasons why.

Contact Web design companies and review the specifications with them. More than likely they can provide you with a ballpark estimate before proceeding to a formal proposal. There is no sense in wasting your time or theirs if they are way off base in regard to budget.

Make sure you specify a deadline to respond and be prepared to answer any questions that come your way… questions are a good sign and should be welcomed, it means the Website design company is thinking about your requirements!

7. Put it in Writing

After you select a winning proposal, make sure you put a contract in place. At a minimum, the contract should describe the following:

1. Deliverables;
2. Milestones and deadline dates;
3. Total estimated cost
4. Milestone payments;
5. Boilerplate legal for how the contract would be adjudicated.