How to Choose the Right Web Developer

What is Responsive Web Development and Why is it Important? 

Responsive web development is an approach to web design which ensures that websites look excellent no matter what device they are being viewed on. It uses particular HTML, CSS and JavaScript code to ensure content is correctly presented to users based on their browser size. Web developers can use responsive coding techniques to ensure your website looks good across devices, including PCs, laptops, tablets and mobile phones. This helps you maximise your site's visibility and improve its usability for users visiting from any device.

What Questions Do You Need To Ask the Web Developer Before Hiring?

To simplify this part, I have broken the headings down by explaining the questions and why the questions are required:

How Long Will the Website Take to Build?

Knowing the timeline for your web development project is crucial to choosing the right developer. Ask how long they expect it will take them to build the website you need and inquire about any potential delays during the development process. When asking this question, get a specific estimate based on the number of pages and features in your project's scope.

How Much Experience Do You Have? 

It's important to find out how much experience a developer has with the technologies you need for your project. Experienced developers should be able to provide references or examples of previous work that demonstrate their skillset and knowledge. You should also ask about the languages, platforms, and frameworks they specialise in so you can make sure it aligns with your specific project requirements.

For example, if you want a WordPress platform, you must ensure this is clear from the outset. The reason is that web developers will offer different options, but they will likely want to build on a platform that they are familiar with. Getting this right from the start and ensuring the developer has experience on your desired platform will save aggravation in the long run.

Can I See Examples of Your Work? 

A reputable web designer should be able to provide examples of recent projects or websites they've created. This will help you better understand their skill level, design style, and level of expertise. Quality developers should also have a website or portfolio with various examples of websites they've developed, allowing you to compare your options and make an informed decision quickly.

To take this gambit even further, if you are working with a digital marketing agency, consider asking them for traffic reports and conversion metrics to demonstrate their credibility with SEO and/or content creation. If they are a reputable agency, they should provide this information monthly to clients to show tangible progress towards strategic business goals. 

Although separate from web development, consider the broader use of the website and the business objectives. If hiring an agency for a holistic digital marketing package, ask them to show you the money. Unfortunately, talk is cheap, so get them to back up with metrics. 

This leads nicely to the next question to ask the web developer.

Do You Offer SEO Services?

In short, most web developers will offer SEO services, but not always. The organisation should choose the website platform with the SEO agency in mind because they will likely use it weekly. The question is important because it could be an issue if the developer that builds the website needs to do the SEO. Ensure all stakeholders and users are on the same song sheet here, and this point goes back to clearly defining the scope.

You may choose a different company for web design and another for SEO because of cost factors, which is why it is covered in the next question.

What are Your Rates and Fees? 

Ask potential web designers about their rates and fees. Ensure you get a detailed explanation of what is included and excluded in the price, such as website hosting, domain registration, content creation, graphic design, and SEO. Most developers also charge additional fees for maintenance of site health and SEO and support after the website is completed, so be sure to ask about those as well.

Another factor here is to consider that cheaper is not always better. So many people out there can build a website, and not all are reputable or very good. If you want the website to be excellent and the web designers are of the requisite calibre, you get what you pay for.

What Kinds of Responsive Design Solutions Do You Offer? 

As discussed earlier in the article responsive web design is creating websites that can adapt and resize depending on what type of device it's being viewed on. Ask your potential web developers about their different responsive design solutions to ensure your website looks optimal on various devices. Ask which platforms or frameworks their responsive designs work across, like mobile phones and tablets, desktop computers, and browsers.

What are Your Areas of Expertise?

As you consider possible web developers for hire, look for someone with expertise in a specific area or platform. You can get an idea of their familiarity with certain technologies by asking for their portfolio of finished projects. A strong portfolio backed up by work experience will demonstrate the developer's capabilities and give you an understanding of what they can do for your website.

You can always take this further and contact their past clients to discuss what they liked about the web designer and what they could have done better. You are only being thorough and should be because, in the current UK financial climate, wasting money is not a viable option.

What is your Quality Assurance Process?

Make sure you get this in writing because you want the web developers to fix snags and bugs as part of their final commissioning process. A simple example would be a contact form that does not work due to not being tested. Imagine your frustration when you find this and understand how many potential customers have been lost. Only pay once you are happy that all snagging has been completed and you are happy that the website has been delivered to the project brief.

Where will the Server be Located?

The server location impacts the rate of your website loading time, which is important to know. The geographical distance between your server and the user affects the speed of delivery for web pages. Having a server close to the customers you're trying to reach ensures that they quickly and easily get the information they are looking for quickly and easily. This can have a significant impact on user satisfaction and is a crucial factor when it comes to SEO rankings. Every millisecond counts, as Google now ranks sites based on page loading time and factors like content quality and relevance.

Is User Training Part of the Package?

When you ask this question if the web developer says no, then you should call their bluff and say no deal. Training for users should be included in the web design package. Moreover, you can also request a user guide or operational manual if required, although these documents may increase the project's cost.

Summary

I appreciate that there are many points to be considered when choosing a web developer for your project. This article goes into a reasonable amount of depth so that you can get this critical part of your digital marketing strategy off to a good start. By following this guide, you can clearly define your project's scope and interrogate the web developers to ensure that they are suitable for your project and your business. 

If you need advice on your digital marketing strategy or a new website for your organisation, Make Space Marketing is one of the leading web development companies in the UK. We provide quality digital marketing services at competitive prices, and we have a vast amount of success from developing websites that make our clients happy.



Contact us.