10 questions to ask when looking for a professional web designer or developer

As part of Newism’s “Building a Better Website” presentation at the 2008 Rapid Solutions conference, we provided the attendees with a list of ten questions to ask web designers and developers before they considered them for a project.

This list is in no way exhaustive, but it should definitely give small business owners a good indication of the professionalism of your potential new developer. If you have any questions or feedback about the list please leave a comment below.

Do you build standards compliant websites?

A standards compliant website is one that is built to an industry specification. If a developer is not adhering to these standards it’s likely that they are either resistant to change or are very early in their careers. Non-standard websites can effect your bottom line as they are harder to index by search engines such as Google, can increase your monthly bandwidth costs, and most importantly, are very difficult and expensive to maintain.

There may also be government regulations in your locality such as those dealing with website accessibility that may affect your website.

Some of the most basic web standards include:
- Using CSS to separate content and structure.
- Making sure the web site validates using a valid Doctype.
- Following the WAI to ensure all of your visitors get the most our of your site.
Do you support all major web browsers?

There are dozens of web browsers that are available (including mobile devices such as phones), but the vast majority of users will use either Internet Explorer, Firefox or Safari. Each of these browsers will display your website slightly different from the next, so it’s important that your developer optimises your website to provide a similar experience across all of the major browsers.
What SEO services do you offer?

Even though good SEO occurs naturally when sites are standards compliant, there are a large range of SEO techniques available to your web developer. Your developer’s SEO knowledge may be enough to get you on the first or second page of Google, but if being at the top of the results is a priority for your site, then you’ll need to know if the developer has the skill to achieve your goals. Alternatively there are a number of companies who specialise in SEO and search marketing who may be able to help you.

The golden rule is that if a company guarantees that your site will rank highest on Google, it’s probably best to shop around at that point. This is an impossible promise to make, and chances are they will use a variety of underhanded tactics. If your site is discovered using these so called “black hat” techniques, it could lead to search engines banning you from their indexes entirely.
Do you provide after sales support?

After your website is developed there are likely to be updates you would like to make, or new ideas you are keen to implement. Depending on whether or not your site is CMS based, you will need the support of your developer. Ask your developer what warranty period they provide (if any), whether they provide training, and what their ongoing maintenance charges are.
What qualifications do your staff have?

The skill level of the staff who’ll be working on your site will obviously have an effect on the your final product. A good web development company will have experienced, university trained, or industry accredited staff.
Do you include hosting and domain registration?

If you are starting out fresh with a new site it’s likely you will require a new domain name and a place for your website to be hosted. Some web companies offer these services – others don’t.
Where are your developers located?

Web design companies can be located “remotely” which means they have an online presence but do not have a traditional office or shop-front. This is not necessarily to their detriment, as you should still be able contact them directly via the phone, email or instant messaging to get a reply quickly.
Will you outsource any work?

Web development companies regularly outsource to other web companies or freelancers. If this is an issue for you, you should discuss it with your developer. In the large majority of cases this will have no impact on the final product, as a professional developer would not risk their reputation with less than perfect work.
What platform do you build your sites on?

There are a myriad of software and CMS options available to your web developer, so choosing the right platform can sometimes be difficult and time consuming. When hiring a web developer it’s a good idea to ask them how long they’ve been using their chosen system, whether they have any certifications, and what industry support is available.

Another term that you may have heard of is ‘open source software’. Open source software is free and available under a number of different licenses. There are many pros and cons of open source software vs. commercial software, and the decision on which type to use will depend on your project requirements. For more information about the pros and cons of open source software, visit this excellent and informative resource.
What secondary services do you offer?

It’s important to know whether a web developer has the skills and resources to take your website to it’s full potential. Some valuable secondary services may include:
- Consulting
- Email marketing
- Social marketing
- Product work-shopping & development
- Training

15/09/08 2:02pm — We’ve updated the explanation for each question and have included Newism’s take on the answers for clarity.

28/09/08 10:42am — Removed the sell.

Comments

The following 12 people were compelled to have their say. We encourage you to do the same.

Jason Hudnutt said on Monday 15th September, 4:35pm: 1

Nice post! Great reading. ust wanted to point out that there are a few typos. I.E form instead of from, twice.
Leevi Graham said on Monday 15th September, 5:57pm: 2

Thanks for the feedback Jason.

We think that small businesses will really appreciate the help.

The typos you mentioned have also been fixed.
Amanda said on Wednesday 17th September, 3:50pm: 3

Nice article Wayde with some great pointers..
Ryan said on Saturday 20th September, 6:29am: 4

Really great post guys. However I am turned off by the company plug with each question. Just my personal opinion though. I think we should be posting great content like this for the sake of contributing great content on topics where there is a void of such or to help people be more informed, without using it to push our own endeavors. But again that’s just my personal opinion, and I really do think you have some great ideas here.
Karsten said on Saturday 20th September, 6:45am: 5

Most of the people who pay for our services have no clue what all the questions mean, don’t ask for it or even want to be bothered with it.
Wayde Christie said on Saturday 20th September, 9:46am: 6

@Ryan said –

Really great post guys. However I am turned off by the company plug with each question.

Thanks for the feedback Ryan, and I completely understand. You’ll notice that the first sentence in the post mentions that this was written for attendees of a conference we just exhibited at. So in most cases, this post is the only point of contact we’ll have with those attendees, and since we went to the conference to generate business, we felt it necessary to promote our services here.

Rest assured, we’ll ditch the sell in a week or so ;)

@Karsten – That certainly is the case a lot of the time, but in context we found the opposite to be true. Many of the attendees of the conference that this post was written for expressed frustration with their current developer, particularly in terms of SEO.

It’s my opinion that any piece of information that empowers a client to choose a better developer over a lesser one, will ultimately improve the web as a whole, and more importantly will increase the client’s business.
John Hancock said on Friday 26th June, 8:59pm: 7

While I agree with many points, 5) What qualifications do your staff have? is a strange inclusion. For those of us who’ve been in the industry a while (and remember BBS’s, telnet, Compuserve, US Robotics), we’ve simply been in no place to have access to courses (they didn’t exist), and wouldn’t take 3-4 years off ‘staying at the cutting edge of web development’ for a piece of paper.

Instead, my understanding is that while a degree can equate to a ‘base understanding and classically trained education’, it can never compensate for exposure to business needs and a track record of success in providing solutions. In Australia our industry is tiny, the number of our professional peers is limited and the industry groups often meaningless. Shouldn’t we instead be judged for the sites we deliver?

Perhaps this could be updated for 2009?
Wayde Christie said on Friday 26th June, 9:14pm: 8

@John â€“ I understand what you’re saying, and I myself have no university degree to speak of (just 12 years experience).

The point is meant to read that a good web company will have staff that are either “experienced, or university trained, or industry accredited”.

Appreciate your input though John â€“ cheers :)
Nirro said on Friday 30th April, 4:24pm: 9

Nice Post, Thank you for sharing
Nancy Paul said on Friday 18th February, 12:01am: 10

Good information for web development given by you. this is very helpful for visitors.
ronen shavit said on Monday 21st March, 8:30am: 11

great info, surly the seo question is getting more and more important.
web design studio said on Wednesday 18th May, 2:51pm: 12

it can never compensate for exposure to business needs and a track record of success in providing solutions. In Australia our industry is tiny, the number of our professional peers is limited and the industry groups often meaningless. Shouldnâ€™t we instead be judged for the sites we deliver?