Looking for advice when it comes to picking a website design company? When it comes to getting your website designed and developed, you need a trusted and reputable company to task this important project to.

Going into this process with blind faith will not do you any favours if you are met with missed deadlines, no aftercare/support and a finished website that you are not 100% satisfied with. Here we give you some aspects to consider when hiring a website design company. Do they have a good track record? As with anything that you part money for, it is understandable to want to make sure your money is being well spent.

Look for the track record of the company you are thinking of choosing.

You will ideally want to see positive testimonials from former clients attesting to the skills and operations of the company. It would also be of benefit for you to see their portfolio including some examples of previous work they have completed. This will give you a better understanding of their styles of designs and layouts and allow you to ascertain if they can create bespoke websites to your needs, or if they appear to stick to a couple of templates and do not deviate into more complex and responsive designs.

Can their staff handle your needs and requests?

A website can be designed and developed by a single person, but nowadays this is not an advisable route for businesses to consider. Your website may not have a myriad of needs, but most business websites today feature mobile responsive and interactive designs while many also feature an e-commerce element such as an online shop.

An expert who can code and develop this should maintain all of their focus on the back end while layout and graphic designers focus on the aesthetics and style of your business website. In this method of thinking, your website is given expert and focused attention at each level instead of a blanket approach to its creation and implementation. The staff force of the website design company should also ideally feature a support centre to assist you with your website usage and upkeep once it goes live.

What are their support options like (if they have any)?

Continuing on from the last point, a well-rounded website design company should feature levels of support to suit your business needs. Once your website goes live, will they be available to help you should it not perform as intended or if it crashes at any point? If you are a larger company with an IT department, you may not need this assistance. Yet for many businesses, they can rely on the perceived expertise of website design companies to offer support in their instances. Websites, especially business websites, require nurturing and babysitting to reach their full and consistent potential. Consider this and look out for support packages and options to ensure that your website receives the best care and support available to it.

Will there be any aftercare involved after your new website goes live?

Think ahead to after your website goes live. When the initial sheen and ‘new toy’ factor wear off, will it be left up to you and your team to drive the results that you intend for your website to achieve?

A good website design company implements your aims and goals for your website into their planning, design and execution of the project. If one of your aims is to increase sales of a particular product, they may design specific graphics/artwork to his effect and dedicate a section of the website to the product.

Using visual mapping as part of the website design, your chosen website designer(s) could even structure the website to feature a flow for browsers that naturally brings them to the purchasing page for this particular product. A good way to measure this is by the use of key performance indicators (KPI’s) that come into effect only after your website is live.

Could they be a long-term external contractor for your business?

Providing that you have a good experience with them and you are satisfied with your newly designed website; you should ponder as to whether this website design company could be a long-term contract for you and your business. Do they offer other services that you may avail of in the future such as online marketing and SEO support? Perhaps they have an incentivised referral scheme whereby if you recommend them to other businesses/peers to use that they will reward you in some way. A good website design company is business-minded and should be open to forging links and working with businesses to build good and lasting working relationships.

At Ireland Website Design, we are proud to be able to meet all of the above points: a sprawling portfolio peppered with affirmative testimonials, a dedicated team of experts specialising in all areas of website design and beyond, support systems and packages to suit a range of business needs, extensive preparatory and follow-up website performance indicators and a reputable and receptive company willing to work with all types of business on various projects.