Hire a Web Design Agency By Following These 6 Simple Steps
Whether you’re looking to build a website from scratch or need to give your current website a new look, web design is an intricate task. That’s why businesses like yours look to hire a web design agency.
If you’re in the midst of deciding if hiring a web design agency is right for you, we’ve got all the information you need to help you make that decision.
We’ll cover:
Why should I hire a website designer?
Hiring a web design agency is a big move, so how do you know it’s the right move for you? Here are a few reasons why you’ll want to hire a website designer and invest the time to creating a better website for your business:
1. You need a website that sets a good impression of your brand
Imagine someone came up to you and handed you a business card that had a hard-to-look-at design and words jumbled everywhere. You’d probably think to yourself, “Yeah, this doesn’t seem legit. I’m not going to contact them.”
It’s the same thing with your website. If someone comes to your website and it’s messy, difficult to navigate, or not aesthetically pleasing, they’re likely to think the same about you.
In fact, 75% of users judge a company’s credibility by it’s web design. So an unattractive design paired with a poor user experience can leave a negative impression of your business and make you less trustworthy.
Your website is a virtual representation of your business, and it should have all the qualities of a well-put-together storefront. That includes:
- Being clean and organized
- Having an aesthetically pleasing design
- Being easy to navigate
- Providing answers to questions
- Offering contact options
- Showing off products and services
- Informing users about your brand
- Being a reflection of your brand
2. You need expertise to build the best website
When you hire a professional web designer, you can rest assured that your website is in the best hands. Web design agencies know how to design sites that encourage users to shop, buy, and book.
You don’t want to risk leaving your website’s design to someone that has poor design skills because 94% of people reject or mistrust websites that have an outdated or poor design.
There is a high expectation from your audience that your website will be clean, modern, and functional. You can better meet that expectation by hiring a professional web design company.
3. You gain access to resources you didn’t have prior
Web design agencies have tons of resources that allow them to make amazing websites for their clients. They utilize paid software that allows them to craft custom website elements, come up with amazing color schemes, and have access to custom fonts for your site.
Not only that, but as an agency, they also have access to various training programs that teach them different and new web design techniques, which keeps you ahead of competitor websites.
Web design agencies also feature a team of web designers that they can brainstorm with, bounce ideas off of, and get advice from when it comes to their designs.
Having those resources is valuable for ensuring you get a revenue-driving website.
4. They have the time to put into designing your website right
Here’s the reality: You have a lot on your plate to take care of — not just designing a website. So, when you’re already crunched for time and have limited experience with designing a website, it can result in a poorly executed and rushed website design if you decide to do it yourself.
Great results don’t happen overnight and rushing a project can lead to lower quality results.
One of the biggest benefits of hiring a web design agency is they do have the time to design and develop your website. They can spend the time focusing on the intricate details and getting everything right, so you get the best website for your business.
How to hire a web designer in 6 steps
So, you think hiring a web designer is the right move for you? Follow these six steps for hiring a web designer to ensure you find the right one:
1. Start with a Google search to find agencies
Google’s goal is to provide the best possible results for users. That means you can start your hunt for the perfect web design agency by performing a Google search that includes everything you’re looking for.
For example, if you’re looking for a custom website built with a specific CMS, you should use that in your search query.
The more detailed your search, the more likely you’ll be to find exactly what you’re looking for. When you use a search query like “WordPress web design agencies,” you’ll likely get results that offer a list of the best WordPress web design agencies.
💡 Action item: Start searching on Google for the type of web design agency you want to hire and check out some of the top ranking pages to see what agencies are best. You can start creating a shortlist of options.
2. Look at each web design agency’s reviews
Once you have a shortlist of web design agencies you might want to hire, you’ll want to start vetting them. That means sifting through reviews to see what others’ experiences are like with that agency.
Spend some time researching the different agencies and seeing what people say about them. Keep in mind that every agency will likely have negative reviews. The important part is looking at how many negative reviews they have and why they got those reviews.
If an agency has an abundance of negative reviews and people all say the same things, it’s likely going to become a problem for you, too. Generally, you want to avoid web design agencies that have an abundance of negative reviews (though having some negative reviews is normal — no one’s perfect!)
Generally, you want to focus on agencies that have tons of positive reviews, as well as reviews that share helpful insights into how the company treats its clients and the work they do.
💡 Action item: Go on third-party websites like Clutch and look at reviews for your selected web design companies. You can also browse additional web design companies to see if there’s one that is a good fit that you didn’t find previously and vet them.
3. Take detailed notes
As you research different web design agencies, you’ll want to take notes of things like:
- How long they’ve been in business: Ensure that the web design agency you hire has been in business for a couple years. A more experienced agency will produce the results you’re looking for with your website.
- Do they do design in-house or outsource it: Some marketing agencies will subcontract parts of your web design. It’s important to know this information because, if an agency does subcontract work to someone else, it could increase the risk of quality issues or communication consistency issues.
- How many employees they have: You want to partner with an agency that will have enough people to work on designing your website.
- If they’ve won any web design awards: Although awards aren’t everything, they do count for something — and it’s a huge benefit to find a web design agency that has won their fair share of web design awards.
- What services they offer: Make sure the web design agency you’re interested in offers all the web design services you’re looking for — like 508 compliance, ecommerce design, or CMS integration. Make sure your agency provides exactly what you need before moving forward with them.
- How much their services cost: One of the most important things to determine is how much you’re willing to spend on a website, and then take note of how much each agency charges. The sentiment holds true that you typically get what you pay for — if a web design agency is charging dirt cheap for a design, you probably won’t be happy with the results.
- If their website is well-designed: The best web design agencies practice what they preach, so if an agency doesn’t have a beautiful website, they probably can’t create one.
- Ask for references of work: If you want to see what your selected agency has done for businesses like yours, ask them for case studies showcasing the work they did. You want to see case studies that show they drive results with newly designed websites.
Taking note of these aspects will help you identify the front runners for redesigning your website.
🚨 Need help keeping track of all these agencies as you research? Download our free marketing agency research template to help you keep track!
4. Prune your list of web design agencies
After you’ve compiled a list of potential web design agencies for hiring, it’s time to prune your list.
It’s helpful to highlight agencies that make it past your first round of screening, and cross off ones that don’t. You should start by removing agencies outside your budget, so you don’t overspend on your website’s design.
Next, look at the reviews and eliminate any from the list that fall short.
You’ll then want to take a look at their portfolio to determine whether or not you like their style. Have they worked with clients in your industry? Are their designs unique and original?
You can continue working down your list of notes until you find a web design agency that offers everything you need, fits your budget, and has earned recognition from previous clients.
💡 Action item: If you still have a long list of agencies (even after pruning a few out of your price range or poorly reviewed), create a pros and cons list for each agency. It can help you narrow your focus down further to create a shortlist of contenders.
5. Contact the web design agencies you’re thinking about hiring
When you’re down to your last few options, start reaching out to these agencies. You’ll never be able to determine if a web design agency is right for you if you don’t get in touch with them and learn more about what they offer.
You can contact a web design agency to get a quote or request a proposal to help get the ball rolling. They’ll likely want to meet with you, whether in person or virtual, to provide in-depth details about what you can expect from their web design agency.
💡 Action item: Come up with a list of questions to ask each agency as you meet with them. Not only can this help you get answers to your most burning questions, but it can also help you further determine if an agency is a good fit for you.
6. Determine which agency is the best fit for you
Once you’ve met with all of the agencies of interest, you can start comparing your notes and determining which agency is the best fit for your web design project.
Look at pricing, deliverables, and turnaround time to determine who’s going to deliver the best website for your business.
Freelance vs. agency vs. in-house web designer: Which is best?
One of biggest challenges businesses like yours face is determining whether you should do web design in-house, hire a freelancer, or partner with an agency. So, how do you determine which one is the right move for your business?
Check out this comparison chart to see how these three options differ:
| Factor | In-house | Freelance | Web design agency |
| Cost | High (salaries, benefits, training costs) | Moderate (typicall project-based cost) | Varies (Depends on if it’s a one-time project or monthly/ongoing) |
| Experience | Varies (depends on who you hire) | Limited (one person with experience vs. multiple) | High (teams of experts in one place) |
| Scalability | Limited | Limited | High |
| Control | High | Moderate | Moderate/High (some agencies will let you be more involved) |
| Specialization | General skill set | Specialized skills | Diverse skills |
When you’re looking at a list of web design agencies, you may find that some of them don’t have experience doing redesign in your specific niche. But does that mean you count them out completely? Not yet. Look through their portfolio and see if they have experience with similar businesses in your industry. So, for example, if an agency has doesn’t have experience with electricians, but has experience with other home services sectors like HVAC or landscaping, they could still be a good fit for you. Additionally, you can ask them about their approach to how they get to know your industry and business. If they indicate that they’re thorough in the research process, they’ll likely be able to deliver a good campaign for your business, even if they don’t have experience in your specific niche. Once your design is completed, your web design agency will launch your website. But, what happens after that? Most web design companies will ensure that everything is running smoothly after the launch. They’ll make sure that there aren’t any glaring issues or errors with the design. For added security and comfort, consider investing in website maintenance services to ensure your website is monitored and taken care of by your design team for the future. There’s no straight answer for how long a website design takes because it’s dependent on multiple factors. On average, though, it takes about 12 weeks to build a custom website. Some of the factors that influence the timeline completion include: Yes! Maintaining your website is crucial to ensure it remains functional, helpful, and useful to your audience. Here’s the thing — just because you launched a new website doesn’t mean it’s perfect from there on out. You’re going to continually modify and expand your website. Things can break, plug-ins can go haywire, and crashes happen. To limit the impact of these things, website maintenance is crucial. If you hire a web design agency, check to see what website maintenance plans they offer. Most agencies will offer maintenance plans to ensure your website’s functionality, security, and user-friendliness maintains a high standard. This is a question that many businesses have when thinking about hiring a web design agency to handle their website’s new look. Since the company is the one creating the design and implementing it, but it’s your unique branding and logos, you may feel confused about who really owns it. The simple answer: Check your contract. When you hire a web design company, it should be listed in the contract as to who has ownership over the components of your website design. Here are a few different types of ownership you’ll see: Technical capabilities are a big part of the web design process. Some core components to look at include: You want to ask a potential web design company about these aspects to make sure they’re a good fit for your project. You can ask questions like: The answer depends upon the agency you’re working with, as well as how involved you want to be. Some agencies will fully take the reins and ask for little input from you. They may ask you for feedback to finalize the design, but that might be the extent of it. So, you will have little involvement with companies that operate that way. Other agencies, like WebFX, let you choose how involved you want to be with your web design. If you want to be really hands-on, you can opt to be a part of the process as the design unfolds. Want to leave it in the hands of the designers? You can do that, too. Your level of input and involvement will depend upon the agency you hire and how they operate with the design process. Every page that tells you how to find a web design agency tells you the basics — look at reviews, pricing, portfolio etc. But, let’s go beyond the basics. What else is important to consider when looking to hire a web design firm? Here are some things to keep in mind: Before hiring a web design agency, you may be wondering what things look like after you hire an agency. It’s important to establish a good working relationship with your agency to ensure smooth sailing across the board. Here are some tips on how you can effectively partner with your agency:FAQ about hiring a web design agency
What if a web design agency doesn't understand my industry?
What happens after my web design agency launches my website?
How long does it take to get a website design?
Do I need to maintain my website after my web design company launches it?
Do I have full rights to my website's design after it's launched?
What technical capabilities should my web design firm have?
How much input do I need to provide during the design process?
What are some key things to look for in a web design agency that most businesses miss?
How do I work with a web design agency after I hire them?
Hire a web design agency today
If you’ve decided that hiring a web design agency is the way to go, congratulations!
We encourage you to take the time to do your research to find a web design agency that fits your budget and your needs. Whether you choose to do your strategy in-house or invest in services from an agency, website redesign services are a great investment to boost your revenue and grow your bottom line.
If you’re looking for one of the top web design agencies that can turn you site into a revenue driver, look no further than WebFX.
With our custom website design services, we’ll build a unique website tailored to help your business drive more traffic, leads, and sales.
We’re just a phone call away, so if you’re ready to hire a Harrisburg web design agency, give us a call at 888-601-5359! You can also fill out a contact form online and we’ll be in touch with you soon!