If you’re in the market for a new website, or you’re looking to redesign your current site, you’re probably wondering how to choose your web design agency. After all, the company you choose will be responsible for designing and developing your site, which gives the first impression a customer will have about your brand and business. It’s a big decision!
So how do you pick which company to go with? Below we’re sharing 4 tips on to help you choose your web design agency and 5 questions to ask potential new web design partners.
4 Tips to Help You Choose Your Web Design Agency
1. Make a List of Your Website Needs & Website Goals
Before you begin searching for web design agencies, you need to have an idea of what you want your website to do and the features it MUST have to help you achieve your goals. After all, your website is a business and marketing tool – not just a pretty design.
Examples of things you might want your website to do:
- Generate leads for your business;
- Sync with your CRM, like Salesforce, HubSpot, or any other major CRM software;
- Integrate with your marketing automation tool, like Pardot, Marketo, or HubSpot;
- Link with your email marketing platform, like Constant Contact, MailChimp, or Emma;
- Collect payments or donations, including subscription-based (recurring) payments/donations;
- Allow users to fill out forms directly on your site and submit to your team;
Examples of features your website might need to help you achieve the above:
- User-friendly navigation, search-engine optimized content, and conversion-optimized pages;
- Ecommerce functionality;
- Online forms that are secure (and HIPPA compliant if you’re in the healthcare industry)
Your website is an extension of your business and should help you achieve your goals – no matter what they are. Having a list of your goals, needs, and nice-to-haves will help you and the web design companies you interview ensure your site is actually customized for you.
2. Search and Review Nationwide & Local Web Design Agency Partners
Now that you have your list ready, start searching for potential web design agency partners. Search for agencies in your local area and nationwide, especially if you want a partner that is experienced in a certain industry like dental or legal.
Apps like Zoom and Google Meet have made it easier to collaborate and communicate with people across the state or across the country. Even if you end up choosing a web design agency near you, it’s worth seeing what is out there so you can assess experience, portfolios, services offered, and agency culture.
3. Review Experience, Agency Culture, and Portfolios
There are three really important things to look for in a great web design partner: experience, agency culture, and portfolio. These three items can give you insight into how your project will be managed, if it will meet your goals and standards, and if they’ll be a good overall fit as your web design agency.
Experience
When it comes to experience, you’re looking for 2 things:
- How long have they been an agency? Are they established or a startup?
- Do they have experience developing websites for your industry, websites that get results, websites that you like, and/or websites that have the features you need for yours?
Your agency partner should have processes in place to make the design and development process simple and easy, support for your website after it’s live, ongoing marketing services to help grow your business, and a team of knowledgeable experts to help ensure your website meets your goals and needs.
Portfolio
A web design agency’s portfolio is the next best way to assess skills and capabilities. Just make sure you’re looking for more than good-looking websites. A pretty website that isn’t easy to use will never outperform a decent website that is simple to navigate.
Portfolios will give insight into creativity, industry experience, complex coding abilities, and more. Here are a few things to look for when reviewing portfolios:
- Do they develop mobile-friendly websites?
- Do they follow the latest web design trends?
- Are all the website similar – same structure, navigation, imagery, etc.?
- Have any of their websites won awards?
If you like the work that an agency does, but they don’t have your industry in their portfolio, ask them what they would do for your company. While you want to work with someone who has your industry experience, you ultimately need to love the work they do.
Average Size of their Customer
It’s a good idea to get a sense of the average size of customer an agency works with. If you are the smallest customer they generally work with. They might not have much experience working at that scale and you can feel underserved, unimportant, or ignored.
If you are the largest customer they have worked with. Then they might not be used to working at the scale you need. At certain scales. A different knowledge set is necessary. It is not as simple as doing the same tasks you would do for a medium size company just at 2 or 4 times the level.
Agency Culture
An agency’s culture will tell you a lot about their personality and working style. Ideally, you want to find an agency that matches your own company’s personality so that you can easily collaborate and work together throughout the web design process.
You can scope out agency culture by:
- Checking them out on social – Do you see a lot of smiling faces in their Instagram feeds?
- Reviewing team pages – Do they showcase their team’s talent and expertise?
- Community involvement – Are they involved in their local community?
When you meet with your potential web design partners, you’ll also get a feel for their culture as well. Do they make you feel welcome? Do they listen to your ideas? Are they excited about your project?
Agency culture is an important factor when choosing your web design agency. You’re going to be spending a lot of time together so make sure your web design partner really fits your company and personality.
Does the agency have an in-house marketing team
Will you need ongoing marketing from an agency? Does the agency have a in-house marketing team or do they hire another company for online lead generation?
Does the agency integrate tools like a CRM to enhance marketing efforts? Getting visitors to the website is only half the battle. Getting those visitors to become a customer is the other half.
Even if you will not utilize ongoing marketing. Working with an agency that has a marketing department brings a certain level of knowledge into the company that a pure web design agency might not have or keep up to date with.
4. Read Testimonials & Online Reviews
In addition to their portfolio, read testimonials and online reviews of the web design agencies you’re considering for your new website. The reviews are a good way to see how happy clients are with their websites, the level of customer service they received while working together, and if they mention certain team members by name.
Choose Your Web Design Agency Carefully
Choosing your web design agency isn’t a quick decision. Take your time (or as much as your timeline allows) to vet web design firms for your company and project. Your website is the first impression a potential customer will have your brand and business – it’s worth the research to find a web partner that will help you achieve your online goals.
