Over the years, a couple of my best clients have gone with the cheapest website design solution—whether it’s the cousin, the friend, or a referral from a business acquaintance who knows how to create websites.
Most of these “solutions” have a common theme. The web designer is great at first and begins to set up their website—but then a combination of four problematic things begins to happen.
Signs of A Bad Web Designer
- The site doesn’t look like the client wants it to. Then, they are frustrated because the web person isn’t getting it.
- It doesn’t work right and the web designer can’t make it work.
- The client can’t get in touch with them anymore.
- The web person just doesn’t respond to emails or phone calls.
This is just the tip of the iceberg.
Choosing The Right Designer For You
Your website is the most vital piece of marketing you can have for your business. When your website is improperly designed and/or managed—you run the risk of losing thousands of dollars, many potential customers, and your online reputation. Avoid these risks by NOT choosing a web designer to create or update your website based solely or mostly on a low price.
Choose an experienced, well-rounded team of marketers, developers, designers, coders, and strategists that are more like an extension of your business. They care about the success of your website. A more experienced team may cost more than your cheapest solution but ensures that your target audience is taken care of and keep your risk/cost low in the long-run. [And] when your audience is happy—everyone is happy.
Ideally, your target audience should:
- Arrive at your website for a specific reason.
- Get the answers to their questions regarding your product or service within a reasonable amount of time.
- Know exactly where to go if they require more information, and [finally]…
- Feel that the website has provided them with some overall value, and a good experience (so they keep coming back).
In the past, this is the point where I step in. A customer sends me an email to ask if I can help and take over their WordPress website project. So I say, “yes” and swoop in to save the day. I end up solving many of the problems, alleviating any frustration, and making my customer very happy. In many cases, the client actually ended up paying just as much for the project as they would have if they had hired me to begin with.
While I am more than happy to do this for people, it is much easier to be a part of the project from the beginning.
If you’re looking for more information on what to look for when deciding on who to choose to design or update your website, download Smack Happy Design’s quick and helpful reference guide on
What Not To Do While Searching For Your Website Design Partner:
