In the February edition, I offered some important tips to keep in mind on how to make a successful website. The article covered items such as speed, content, and ease of use. However, in all likelihood you won’t be the one doing any of the actual design work. So, how do you go about choosing the right person or company to create this successful, fast, easy to use website with great content?

Web designers come with a wide variety of prices and abilities - from the student willing to burn the midnight oil to large, expensive firms. Below are a few tips to help you choose a web designer who will meet your needs.

If you visit Yahoo.com you can search for a design company and be presented with a list of designers from all over the country, if not the world. If you are familiar with Internet searching, you could limit the search to Maryland designers, but you will still get everyone from the 15-year old novice to the multi-million dollar B-to-B. It is always better to find someone in your immediate proximity. When selecting someone in your area, you eliminate long distance phone charges and can meet the person during the design process.

Here are some additional tips:

1. Look at your local phone directory for a local designer.
2. If you know anyone who has a site, ask them who they used.
3. Find a local website that is similar to what you want and look for a "designed by" link.
4. Attend a trade show where you are able to meet face to face with designers. Collect names and business cards and talk to the designers.

REVIEW THE WORK

Start reviewing the design company’s online portfolio of websites that they have recently worked on. Most companies will have a list of links to these sites on their web page.

NARROW YOUR SELECTIONS

Start crossing off names on your list or highlight the ones that stand out. Keep in mind your budget and review any general pricing information listed on design company websites.

Seek feedback from the design company’s former clients. Check the designer’s local Better Business Bureau, ask around, check contact information. Make an effort to ensure that you will be dealing with an established and reputable designer or firm.

For instance, do they offer training, technical support, maintenance, custom graphics, search engine registration, other site promotion? Do they have the skills and experience necessary to develop the type of site you need? What type of time frame can you expect for a project of your size? Are their fees competitive? When the project is finished, who will own the rights to the site and graphics?

Find your competitors’ websites - these are the sites you will want to emulate or improve on. Try to determine what makes them effective (or ineffective), what you like or dislike about their sites. Keep a list of these websites that you can give to the designer. This will give you a common reference when discussing how you want your site to look and function.

Narrow your list down to at least the top five, or better yet, the top three choices. The trick to choosing the top three is the amount of review and research you have done up until now. That time will be well spent when you decide to start talking to potential designers. It will be much easier to look through three proposals than 10. Make arrangements to discuss your project or request an estimate.

When you begin receiving information and proposals from each designer judge how closely it matches your expectations. Make sure that any pricing information is not just an overall figure. It is always best to see how it is broken down for particular tasks. This way if changes need to be made for budget reasons, then you won’t have to request additional information. Also, keep in mind that presentation is everything, a clean, clear, easily understood proposal is another example of that company’s quality of work. A poor proposal could equal a poorly represented website.

MAKE THE CHOICE

Depending on the quality of the responses you receive and the impressions you get from the references, you should now have a good feeling for who you want to work with. Trust your instincts now. Don’t make a judgement based on price alone. If you like the most expensive group much more than the others, contact them and see if you can negotiate a way to get the costs more in line with what you can afford.

FOLLOW-UP

Now for the final step: debriefing the losing firms in a timely manner. Let them know why they weren’t chosen and thank them for their efforts. It’s not fun to do, but it is classy. Even though they didn’t get your business, the feedback will help offset the expenses they incurred preparing the response for your project and they will sincerely appreciate it.

If you take your time, follow these steps and trust your instincts you’ll greatly increase your chances of having success on the web.