How to choose a web designer

So you’re looking for someone to design a new website for you — what do you need to look for? Here’s the Leeming Design guide to choosing a good web designer.

Portfolio of web design work examples

Make sure you take a good look at the work they’ve produced previously.

• Is there plenty of it?
• Is it varied with a range of eCommerce, brochure sites, and news/blog sites?

The ability to produce all these types of website demonstrates a good level of competence and shows they probably know what they’re doing.

An eye for design

Do your chosen web designer’s work examples all look the same?… Ok, different logo and text but is the layout always the same?

Sometime designers can get stuck for ideas and just churn out the same thing over and over again with features that they like… But are those features really what you need?

It’s a really obvious tactic — but take a look at what your competitors have done with their websites and ask your designer if they can implement some of the best features that they’re using.

Grammar and punctuation

Can your web designer spot spelling mistakes?

We all make them from time to time and they reflect really badly on you. Even Americanisations — using the letter Z in words like ‘organize’, and knowing the difference between there, their, and they’re could be the difference between a website visitor perceiving you as a professional — or not!

Technical knowledge for SEO

Does your web designer make any effort to get your site noticed on search engines? After all, having a fancy new website is one thing but attracting visitors is another.

Take a look at the websites in your chosen designer’s portfolio — then do a Google search on some of the keywords you’d expect them to rank on?

Are they easy to find?

SEO is a difficult skill to master and even basic mistakes are really easy to make. It’s something you should place great emphasis upon when discussing your new website design.