Need new web designer - but how to choose?

[brutondave]

Hi. I am looking to give my website a visual overhaul and due to the size and complexity of it I know this isn't going to be particularly cheap. Therefore I want to make sure I get the right help as I dont want to have to do it again.

Ideally I would like to be given some ideas and maybe some screenshots from the new designer about how they may go forward before I start paying them. Is this realistic? If not then I guess all I have to go on is their previous portfolio.

It is also important that my new designer understands well how people interact with websites as I want to make my calls to action more easily identifiable and reduce the large amount of text that currently exists. I will want to work closely with them and make suggestions but I would also want them to suggest new ways of ordering information.

I should point out that I already have a programmer who I am happy with, I just need help with layout and visual design.

Anyone?

 

[DesignerNick]

Take a look at their portfolio like you say and also speak to past clients. Don't be worried to pick up the phone and ask what they thought of the company and you can get a good idea then

In terms of designers doing mockups before getting the job, some designers will and some designers won't. I personally wouldn't give too much away before signing on the dotted line as you could just go to 50 designers and get all of their ideas without paying a penny and using them all.

 

Hi. I am looking to give my website a visual overhaul and due to the size and complexity of it I know this isn't going to be particularly cheap. Therefore I want to make sure I get the right help as I dont want to have to do it again.

Ideally I would like to be given some ideas and maybe some screenshots from the new designer about how they may go forward before I start paying them. Is this realistic? If not then I guess all I have to go on is their previous portfolio.

It is also important that my new designer understands well how people interact with websites as I want to make my calls to action more easily identifiable and reduce the large amount of text that currently exists. I will want to work closely with them and make suggestions but I would also want them to suggest new ways of ordering information.

I should point out that I already have a programmer who I am happy with, I just need help with layout and visual design.

Anyone?

First consideration is how a change of design may affect your ranking on google et al.If that is the main source of traffic.

Earl

 

[astutiumRob]

First consideration is how a change of design may affect your ranking on google et al

Change of _design_ wont make any difference (subject to the pages still validating, the host and hosting technology not having changed)

Change of content will though, as will moving "further away" from Google's ASN if changing hosts - usual comments about 301's etc go here

 

[forbes studio]

Hi,

I'm Daniel from Forbes studio.com, we are a new company that design and develop internet solutions for any kind of situations.

I could help you with that, just send me a link with your actual web site and I will have a look at it to see the best options you have.

 

[tclick]

Speaking as someone who has gone through the process many times, whatever else you do, create a clear specification and get at least 3 preferably 5 quotes.

Web designer prices vary hugely and they have very differing skills.

In the end we found the best solution was to have the site 'designed' by a designer and 'developed' by a developer.

There are many good designers who say they can develop, but it is not their core business, likewise developers, they can create great and really functional websites, but they often don't do it on usability or design.

Getting a web developer that has both a designer on board and coding developers is very rare and they tend to be at the higher end of the cost range.

(BTW I should add that there are many designers who think they are great developers and vice versa!)

The next thing you need to invest in is a good web marketing company.

There is no point in having a website if no one comes calling.

So, what we do now is

1. Spec it up
2. Put out for quotes
3. Select a Design
4. Agree timescales!!!! (often we add in a penalty clause)
5. See before you launch and test thoroughly
6. Start with a free adwords campaign and make sure your products are properly optimised
7. Develop a marketing strategy

There are many 'fails' out there who haven't been through that process and it can seem a little daunting, but you have to lead the project and not be led. (The site I am responsible for fell prey to it and it is being rebuilt)

Good luck and have fun with it.

 

Change of _design_ wont make any difference (subject to the pages still validating, the host and hosting technology not having changed)

In theory you are right,but the forum has many posts where people have changed the design and lost rankings.

Earl

 

[KM-Tiger]

So, what we do now is

1. Spec it up
2. Put out for quotes
3. Select a Design
4. Agree timescales!!!! (often we add in a penalty clause)
5. See before you launch and test thoroughly
6. Start with a free adwords campaign and make sure your products are properly optimised
7. Develop a marketing strategy

Very good advice.

It's finding the right combination of design, development and marketing. That might be in all one shop, but not necessarily.

 

[Baz Watkins]

What you have stated is perfectly realistic and logical (Screenshots - not so sure) and any designer worth his salt will converse with you at length to get the project pointing in the right direction.

Hi. I am looking to give my website a visual overhaul and due to the size and complexity of it I know this isn't going to be particularly cheap. Therefore I want to make sure I get the right help as I dont want to have to do it again.

Ideally I would like to be given some ideas and maybe some screenshots from the new designer about how they may go forward before I start paying them. Is this realistic? If not then I guess all I have to go on is their previous portfolio.

It is also important that my new designer understands well how people interact with websites as I want to make my calls to action more easily identifiable and reduce the large amount of text that currently exists. I will want to work closely with them and make suggestions but I would also want them to suggest new ways of ordering information.

I should point out that I already have a programmer who I am happy with, I just need help with layout and visual design.

Anyone?

 

[InternetMarketingPlatinum]

Change of _design_ wont make any difference (subject to the pages still validating, the host and hosting technology not having changed)

Change of content will though, as will moving "further away" from Google's ASN if changing hosts - usual comments about 301's etc go here

Not strictly true, layout and design have an affect on rankings.

 

[seoswat]

Your idea is pretty close to how i would go about doing it.

Looking at portfolios is good but your website will no doubt be totally different to those past clients and possibly targeting a totally new set of people.

With that being said i would rather you create milestones for your new developer. So they can create some initial designs for a small fee from your side (so at least you can see if this fits in line)

Then if everything looks fine you can then proceed but i would keep the milestone payments going so each time a milestone is hit, you pay the money on completion.

That way you can be sure your going to get the site you want for the price you want

 

[InternetMarketingPlatinum]

Look at the capability of the web design company. Will their solution be scalable, do you need it to be scalable?

 

[brutondave]

Thanks very much for the advice so far. This is definately going to help me make the right choices and conserve my limited funds. Very glad I asked!

 

[robbydesigns]

How to choose a new Designer? I'd advise you Google for a designer in your area or close, next step take a good look at the whole of his/her website, if it's done well you should get a feel for his/her style and a glimpse of the personality. Once you've whittled it down to a few follow them on Twitter for a couple days and see if you like who the person is - though most Web Designers only tweet about free icons all day there are a few of us who have a personality ;-)

So, now you've had a good look around, whittled it down and feel you could get on with the Designer, contact two or three and tell them about your project, the chances are one will be too busy or doesn't offer the service you're looking for in which case you still have two to choose from and now you go with your gut instinct.

Tip: Google the designer's name / url and see what people are saying about him/her.
Finally don't go price alone, there are a lot of cowboys charging big money and a few - like me - good Designers charging low rates to feed the kids.

Spec Work: Asking a Designer to show you his ideas before you pay up front is not going to work, you'll either get the 'spec work' lecture or he/she will do a rush mock up, after all, how hard would you work for free?


Good luck, hope it goes well.

 

[blendwd]

Hi bruntondave,

In regards to choosing a web designer I would recommend you find one that will give you a draft during the process. Do not pay a penny until you have at least seen what you will be getting. Too many times have clients mentioned how they have been messed about by other designers when they have not received what they were promised because the designer felt they knew best.

Good luck in finding someone that meets your needs.

 

[InternetMarketingPlatinum]

Hi bruntondave,

In regards to choosing a web designer I would recommend you find one that will give you a draft during the process. Do not pay a penny until you have at least seen what you will be getting. Too many times have clients mentioned how they have been messed about by other designers when they have not received what they were promised because the designer felt they knew best.

Good luck in finding someone that meets your needs.

Interesting process. Can I help what does your first draft consist of, is it a complete jpeg mockup or just wireframing? Would you go to the efforts of creating a fully layered PSD without any guarantee of payment?

 

[blendwd]

Interesting process. Can I help what does your first draft consist of, is it a complete jpeg mockup or just wireframing? Would you go to the efforts of creating a fully layered PSD without any guarantee of payment?

Of course, personally we design a png mockup of at least a homepage to give a feel of how the site will look like. Then give the client options to change what parts they feel is needed. Only then would we ask for a deposit. Then a final draft will be presented and then coded when given the Ok.

 

[AndyOwl]

We have used Branches Internet many times in the past - based in Clitheroe in Lancashire, UK, and I would recommend them for layout and design. We don't have any link to them apart from as a customer.

 

[Timothius]

is your website a collection of HTML pages or based on a web-application like wordpress or joomla etc?

the answer to this affects the answer you are looking for

 

[LetisKo]

Obviously, you need to look into his work that he have done so far. You could have idea about the person if he is able to handle the things according to you.

 

[Digital Ark]

Most good web designers should be more than happy to provide examples and ideas. It is also wise to get a designer who understands business as opposed to being a pure designer (you don't want a web site that looks nice but does not convert).

You may also wish to consider a web designer who will work with you long term on a pay monthly basis. This takes away the concern that everything has to be perfect first time round. The world changes and your website will probably need to evolve.

Good luck.

Simon

 

[InternetMarketingPlatinum]

Most good web designers should be more than happy to provide examples and ideas. It is also wise to get a designer who understands business as opposed to being a pure designer (you don't want a web site that looks nice but does not convert).

You may also wish to consider a web designer who will work with you long term on a pay monthly basis. This takes away the concern that everything has to be perfect first time round. The world changes and your website will probably need to evolve.

Good luck.

Simon

Very good point about pay monthly. We're finding that more and more of our clients are opting for this model. This provides assurance that we aren't just adding pages to profit on a per page web design model. This helps to prevent any conflict of interest between web design, usability, SEO and any other aspect of the online strategy.

We initially tried to take an impartial stance by stating that we are SEO and conversion experts and we would only ever provide recommendations for extra pages and on page suggestions but we have found this to be impractical and restrictive. We still provide that model to larger clients but for SMEs we tend to provide an all-in-one marketing package where we take over the website, email marketing and bolton what is needed inline with the strategy that we help our clients to define. This prevents any missed milestones from their existing web developers who fail to implement our changes in time. That is not to say that we don't still work with existing developers...we do! Just not the ones that let us down, delay a strategy which is being impemented and, ultimately, adversely affect results.

Afterall, if I was baking a cake and an ingredient was missing or wasn't thrown into the mix in time then I would be less than pleased.

 

[altwebdesign]

You should call me, if you've found someone already no worries, but check me out www.altwebdesignuk.com and feel free to drop me a call

 

[brutondave]

Thanks for all the helpful advice. I have used all this to find someone who I think (hope) is going to do what I need. Much appreciated.

 

[ankit123]

Hiiii I am ankit sharma from india...Need new web deginer...

thank u