5 Things To Consider When Hiring A Web Designer
You're considering hiring a web designer to bring your new website to life but you're overwhelmed. What should you know before hiring a web designer? What should you do before you hire one? Should you even hire a web design agency or can you DIY your own site with a template?
We're going to give you our top 5 tips on things to consider before hiring a web designer. It doesn't matter if that web designer specializes in a specific platform like Squarespace or ShowIt. These are all things to consider when you're hiring a web designer.
We'll start with the basics and go from there.
5 Things to Consider and Ask Before Hiring a Web Designer
What does a Web Designer do?
First, let's briefly talk about what a web designer actually does.
A web designer builds and designs websites for clients. Some web designers also serve as graphic designers and create graphics for advertisements, brochures, logos, and other marketing materials.
Some web designers only design on 1-3 platforms. For example, we are Squarespace Web Designers. (We are adding ShowIt Web Design services soon, so if you want to be kept on that waitlist, click here). That means that we only design custom Squarespace websites.
There's also a difference between a web designer and web developer.
A web designer is someone who designs the look and aesthetic of your website. They'll help you choose colors and layouts. They'll design mockups and help you organize your content. A good web designer will create a solid website strategy and plan so you know exactly what to expect moving forward.
A web developer takes the web designer's plans and mockups and turns it into a functioning website. This is where they'll start building and designing your website into your actual chosen platform.
Some agencies, like ours, serve as both web designers and web developers.
What are their skills and experiences?
A web designer should have some basic skills like understanding UI (user interface) and UX (user experience). There should be some basic understanding of HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and graphic design skills. Those skills might be more advanced for various web design platforms. But more often than not, in today's world, a web designer definitely needs CSS knowledge.
Web Designers should also have experience with at least one type of web design or CMS platform: Squarespace, ShowIt, WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, Magento, etc. A trustworthy web designer will be able to recommend the best platform for you. We've turned away potential clients when Squarespace wasn't the best fit for them.
And let's talk about SEO. A good web designer will also have SEO knowledge because no website should launch without proper optimization.
If you find a Web Designer or Agency that offers several services (Website Strategy and Planning, SEO Strategy and Implementation, Web Design, Web Development, Copywriting, and Content Strategy), you need to consider yourself lucky. As one of our Instagram followers said:
“You’re a Copywriter *and* a Web Designer? You’re a beautiful unicorn in the marketing world, and your calendar needs to be booked from here until eternity.”
Well, we [humbly] agree. So if you want to hire a web designer who can serve you in multiple ways, let's chat.
Will my website be responsive?
If you’re looking for a web designer who will work well within your budget, consider hiring one who has experience designing mobile responsive websites. This means that the website will adapt its layout based on the size of the screen being used by the viewer. It’s not just a matter of making sure that the text fits on the screen; it’s also ensuring that images and graphics scale appropriately. It's making sure that buttons are used more than hyperlinks.
Why does that matter? Well, think about it. You're holding your phone in your hand, reading a webpage with a link to another site. What's easier to click with your thumb: a hyperlink or a button? A button is easier to click.
But since 59% of website users are visiting websites on a mobile device (Statista), making sure your website is mobile responsive is crucial.
Do you need a Web Design Agency or can you DIY?
There are pros and cons to both approaches. An agency typically offers more services than you need, so you might end up paying too much. On the other hand, you may find that you can do some things yourself, such as creating a logo or updating your site’s design. However, there are certain tasks that require specialized skills and knowledge, such as coding and graphic design. In these cases, you should hire a professional.
One of the reasons we love Squarespace is that it doesn't require custom coding or advanced skills to create a website. They offer plenty of basic templates you can use. But that's it. It's basic. Your site will likely look like any other DIY site.
However, there are still certain things that require coding. For example, if you want to hide your footer or top navigation on a single page, that requires custom coding. If you want to use your brand fonts, you'll have to upload them first and then apply custom coding to make sure they display correctly across your site.
In addition to this, with the introduction of Squarespace's new editor, Fluid Engine, there are so many cool, modern things you can do with your website now. If you don't have experience as a designer, you may not know exactly what to do to make your website stand out.
Bottom line: If you need a super basic website, DIY it. If you need or want your website to look custom or need more complex functionalities or design, hire a web designer.
Our favorite Squarespace and ShowIt template shops for those of you who want to tackle your web design on your own:
Best Squarespace Template Shops:
Go Live (modern Squarespace templates for a variety of small businesses, speakers, and coaches)
Big Cat Creative (Squarespace templates from one of the world’s Squarespace experts)
Squaremuse (more Squarespace templates from another Squarespace expert)
Best ShowIt Template Shops:
The Tonic Site Shop (these ShowIt website templates are so beautiful). Grab 15% off any template in their shop with code SHANNON or with this link.
Saffron Avenue (again, more gorgeous ShowIt design templates)
With Grace & Gold (beautiful ShowIt design templates for small businesses)
How much should you pay a Web Designer?
It depends on what kind of work you need done. If you just need a simple website redesign, you can probably handle it yourself. However, if you need a custom web application, you're going to pay more.
First, you need to consider how much you're able to spend. What's your budget?
Second, you need to figure out what your website goals and vision are. What do you need your website to do? Sell products? Sell services? Push new blog or video content? Host a membership site? In order for a web designer to give you an accurate quote, he or she is going to need to have an idea of what you want your website to do.
This is one of the main reasons we require a Website Plan before the Website Design & Build. With our Website Plan, you'll have a solid idea of what exactly is going on your website, what functionalities it will have, what third-party software (if any) is needed, and which platform is best for you. We also create your web design mood board with colors and font. There's quite a bit we include, but we do this so you know what your website is going to entail. When we're finished with your plan and have presented it to you, we'll also create a couple of web design quotes for you so you know exactly how much your web design services will cost. There are no hidden fees or unexpected costs at that point.
Why do we give you more than one quote? Because we want you to have options. We usually include 1 quote with EVERYTHING you want on your website. This is your "dreamy" quote. And the 2nd quote is usually lower so that if Quote 1 is out of your budget, you can choose Quote 2 which includes the "must-haves" of your website. And if you want to take your Website Plan and DIY at that point, you totally can. You're not required to hire us to implement your plan (although we would LOVE to! And there's a little discount if you decide to continue working with us)
But the bottom line is that a web designer is providing services. Sometimes those services include extra expenses. So, like most service providers, the cost of hiring a web designer boils down to time + expenses.
While everyone's pricing varies based on a number of factors (time, experience, services included), here are some averages so you know what to expect:
DIY Template: $0-$500
Freelance Web Designer: $1000-$5000+
Web Design Agency: $4000+
We currently fall in the Web Design Agency/Freelance Web Designer range.
There you have it—5 things you should consider, ask, or know before hiring a Web Designer.
If you’ve read this and realize you want to work with a Web Designer, whether that’s to create a Website Plan or design your actual site (or both!), you can apply to work together.
