The world is moving online, and to keep up with them, most businesses are stepping on the virtual platform. If your business is still limited to brick and mortar structure and relying on foot traffic, it’s high time to consider moving online.
The initial step to making an online presence is designing a website.
If you are new in the market, choosing the right website designing and development company can be a little overwhelming.
You can start by performing some research work to list out the best web designing companies or Best web designing agency.
Once you shortlist the top website design agencies, you must choose the one that understands your business and represents it in the best digital possible way.
If you find yourself on the fence, here are some factors that will help you make a wise decision.
Identify Your Requirements
Every business, regardless of its niche, has its own set of requirements, and that’s why it is crucial that you make a brief of what you expect your online presence to be. List down all the thoughts or expectations you have for the final look & feel, functionality, and website goals. If the agency you are interviewing has a good experience, they will think ahead and suggest better options. Additionally, to understand the business better, they will present you with a questionnaire of your website.
A prototype will be presented, and further discussion will be done to deliver a design that truly represents the idea that you have in mind related to your website.
Compare Quotations
Compare the quotation you received from each company you shortlisted. We suggest you not go for the cheapest option, but make sure that you are factoring in each company’s unique talent or expertise. After comparing the price, also compare the set of services they offer, such as:
- The versions of the initial design provided to choose from;
- The number of revisions carried out by the client;
- The type of content management system (CMS) they work on;
- What other services, like SEO, PPC, or SMM do they offer?
Review Company’s Website
Before picking a website designing company:
- Check what kind of website they have created for themselves.
- Test the same on several devices, like desktop, laptop, and mobile.
- Check the responsive and what type of browsing experience it is delivering on each one of them.
- Check the loading speed, how smooth it is to navigate through its menu buttons.
If your answer to all the above questions is “great,” then you move a step forward to finding the ideal web design company.
Check Out The Portfolio
After figuring out what they have created for themselves, it’s time to check what they have created for their clients. The best way to identify that is to check their portfolio. It will show the level of skills and professionalism each agency has. While going through the portfolio or case studies, don’t get mesmerized by the beautiful UI only. There are multiple other elements that need to be considered, like:
The expertise: Take a look at the startups and companies the agency has made designs for. If the designs vary according to the industry type, it indicates that the agency uses a flexible approach. See how the agency has resolved clients’ issues and because the same way they will work for you.
UX design: To check the agency’s UX design capabilities, check what features they have added to the websites in their profile. Here are some points to consider:
- Landing page experience
- The clarity of the website’s goal
- Navigation flow
Everything on the website, from start to finish, must be clear and intuitive.
Success stories: Customers tend to leave reviews on the website about their experience with the agency. Satisfied and happy reviews are the best indicators, representing the agency’s professionalism and quality. They become more reliable if they are on unbiased sites. Go for an agency that offers the best experience to their clients.
Stalk On Social Media
The succeeding step is to check the social media platforms of the agency you have shortlisted. Go to the Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn pages. These will help you see the informal as well as the business-oriented side of the agency.
Additionally, it will represent how perfectly they use each platform to raise brand awareness, promote, connect with prospects, and build trust.
Social networking sites contribute a significant amount to a brand’s reach and can bring plenty of traffic. By analyzing the different social networks, you can determine clients’ engagement level and trust in an agency.
The Workflow
It is crucial to find out a company’s workflow. It will help you get a clear idea about the approach they use. Plus, it is always good to know what designers will do for your website and by when. This thing will set your expectations right and assure timely delivery of the project. A refined workflow used by the best web designing companies is as follows:
- Project discovery
- Ideation, Information Architecture & Prototyping
- User Interface Design
- Testing and evaluation
The agency following such workflow can be the one.
Assign A Test Task
You may end up having a couple of agencies on your list. In such a scenario, nothing will speak louder than a test task. Assign a test task to the agencies and see how well they accomplish it. This will also portray their approach and quality of work, helping you land on a conclusion that works well for your business.
Bottom Line
Choosing the right web design company is not a single-day task, so do not rush. Before approaching a web design company, conduct thorough research and check the portfolio of each company. It’s always a good idea to go for an agency that specializes in your field. Also, read the privacy policy to get a fair idea of how they will charge. Moreover, before signing the contract, ensure that whatever services you have requested are mentioned in it.
We hope that this article helps you hire an agency that can deliver you the online presence you always desired.
If you have any questions or queries, please feel free to ask in the comments section.
