Hiring someone to build your website can feel like buying a car from a language you don’t speak. Everyone promises a beautiful site. Fewer explain what you’re actually getting.
I’ve led website and digital projects for small businesses for years, and these are the six questions I’d want every owner to ask before signing anything.
1. Who will own the domain and the site? Your domain name should be registered in your name, on an account you can log in to. If the designer owns it, you don’t fully own your web address.
2. Can I make simple changes myself? Hours, prices, photos and phone numbers change. If every small change needs a developer, the site will fall out of date.
3. What does it cost every month after it launches? Hosting, security updates, backups and support all cost something. Ask for the full monthly cost in writing, and what happens if you stop paying it.
4. How will customers reach me from a phone? Most visitors are on a phone. Ask to see how the site works on one, and make sure calling you takes one tap.
5. Will it be set up to be found on Google? A site that says what you do and where you do it, in plain words, gives search engines and customers what they need. Ask how the site will be set up to show up in local searches.
6. What happens if I want to leave? Ask whether you can take your site, your content and your domain with you. A good provider is fine with that answer.
Clear answers to these six questions tell you more about a website provider than any portfolio.
Danielle Lemons is Vice President of Operations at DirecTech Connect, a Nashville provider of business phone systems, managed IT services, websites and digital marketing. More about Danielle.
