The rise of out sourced web designers and independent consultants through sites such as eLance and Odesk have opened the market up further. This has tended to make web design almost a commodity and many businesses are treating as this. UK businesses need to recheck their perspective! It is no longer enough to simply have a web presence. You must remember what a website actually is. For many people it is the first contact a prospect has with your business and they can visit your competitor in seconds. If you were looking for a new TV and on your local street were 2 consumer electronic stores; one which was perfectly laid out with a great selection of TV’s all in one place and helpful assistants whilst the other was a little shabby, with a few gaps on their shelves and a bit confusing in its layout – which would you trust and choose? It is the same with your website!
Remember your website is your 24/7 representative, your PR agent, your business card – essentially it is more important than your premises, marketing literature and sales pitch –so you must invest in it and be sure it is 100% So here are a few tips when choosing a web designer or web design company:
· Company Understanding: This is number 1. Whilst you may not have all of the skill to develop a website you need to be a major part of the process. This is your web site based on your business! You are the master of your business and its vision. Your web designer must show a keen interest in your story, vision and plans for the future. This means you are building a valuable brand and not just a website.
· Market Understanding: Your web designer must also do his/her homework! I would expect and decent web design company worth their salt to look at the market you compete in and how the competition are positioning themselves to ensure the pitch is right and prospects choose you other your rival.
· Business and Marketing Understanding: Whilst little Timmy can design a nice site from his bedroom on the cheap, what does this 14 year old know about marketing and business for that matter? Marketing does not work well in isolation, your marketing, sales pitch and outlook all needs to be linear to give a powerful, unified stance and not mixed messages which can put doubt into the mind of your potential customer. Your web designer might be exceptionally well skill and able to produce awesome 3D graphics but if people visit the site and don’t really get your business or see too many ideas jammed together they will think “nice site” but leave for your competitors. Your website has a purpose, this could be to sell, get people to call you, to inform or to capture opinions – it really doesn’t matter but it does matter if the whole site does not inspire the visitor to do what you want them to do. One of our customer sell high tech computer equipment. Before the worked with Igneous Marketing they had a flash site with every technical detail you could ever wish to see about the product they sold. They also had the price clearly marked. What they didn’t have was the customers. They had a great deal of traffic but people would simply use their site to learn about the products and then use the price and knowledge gained from the site to negotiate with the company’s competitors. Their site was a great sales tool.....unfortunately it was for the competition!
· Commitment: This is another big point. Many of these independent web designers are essentially “box shifters” which sell websites then move on. So what happens if you need a few edits or changes to keep up with changes in your market? Where are they? Are they interested in helping or will they focus on the next big pay day by designing a new site for another business? You need to see your web designer as a partner for the long term. The closer you get, the more they will understand about your business and be able to tweak your site to be a true representation of your business.
Your website is crucial to your business and it’s future. A good website is never static, in fact one of Google’s new search engine ranking criteria is how often the site is updated and added to. You need to select a web designer that is committed to your business and understands your business, your market, your struggles, your successes and your rivals. A good web designer needs to see the bigger picture and have great business and marketing skills, not just the ability to create flashing images!
If you want a full, no obligation critique of your current site why not contact Igneous Marketing. We are offering a full analysis of your site for free as a loyal reader of our blog. Click here and get in touch!
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