Picking A Local Web Designer in 2023

It's 2023, and you need a custom website as a part of your marketing strategy.

Most businesses know this, and may even already have a website. But a large majority of businesses do not track results from their website. Even worse, most don't even get a single lead per month from their website and yet they continue to pay ongoing fees for a domain and monthly hosting because they don't know what else to do.

Well, the question then, for you is what made you pick the web designer you ultimately went with? (Busyness, convenience, cost?) And how do you fix the problem or prevent choosing another inexperienced web designer next time?

Was It Because It Was a Cheap Website?

Usually in a scenario like that, you or they may have simply gone with a cheap, advertised price you saw online somewhere. Or you simply let a company like GoDaddy upsell you on their "Easy-to Use, Revolutionary, Drag-and-Drop" blah, blah, blah.

The real issue is that small web companies that do cheap websites, and these bigger companies offering quick and easy websites, set you up, they don't educate businesses on what a website should do for their business or what you should be putting on your website, and then they disappear forever or until you call to cancel. Then you've wasted another year's time and marketing budget and are even more jaded against a real web design company like ours, PURE Design Studio, who don't do "cheap and easy" but do specialize in, "affordable and effective".

Was It Because It Was Convenient?

Here's another scenario I've seen almost weekly in my 12+ years doing web design, SEO and marketing here in Hernando, Pasco and Hillsborough. I see this in talking to hundreds of local businesses. I overhear it happening at chamber meetings, in BNI meeting and from almost every business who I end up doing a website for.

Ultimately, someone walks in your place of business at an opportune time, or you meet a nice sales guy at a networking meeting and everything sounds good, safe, it's a "no-brainer" because again, you know you should have a website for your business. BUT when it comes time to decide if this is the company you want to go with, you're too busy to do the research on what makes a quality website or to really examine the web designer's site and portfolio and look up how they rank in search engines and online listings!

Would you hire a construction company to build your custom home if in all of their homes, the roof is leaking after just 1 year? Or if the home they themselves live in is not up to code or dilapidated?

And yet most web designers have cookie cutter, template websites with clip art and generic images and their sites aren't even on the first page, let alone first 3 spots, of search results.

I lose business every day to good website salesmen, and yet businesses everywhere continue to be frustrated and have to start over every year when they realize they are not getting the results they are paying for with their current web designer or online marketing company. 

So let's finally get to it - how do you pick the right web designer?

Here are TWO SIMPLE, BUT HUGE, WAYS to identify inexperienced web designers and help you pick the right one next time. We certainly hope you give us the chance to earn your business.

1. Set aside time to look at the designers website and their portfolio.

Most web designers will have one or two decent looking sites on their website homepage but usually that portfolio page is an eye sore. They should have at least 5-10 great looking examples that look modern. Every designer will probably have some "uglies" because some customers just like ugly sites, :) simple as that., but there should be more good than bad.

Judge their site and yours will NOT be judged.

Is their site appealing?

Does it catch your eye? Is it modern now? Will it still look modern in 5 years?

Is their mobile site similar to their desktop site and does it work well?

Is it unique?

It should be! Appealing and unique (without being weird) are what make a website memorable and keep a customer on it and moving through it.

Is their site easy to use?

Meaning, is it laid out well or does it look busy with too much text? Is the navigation clear and easy to access? Can you find what you are searching for quickly? Can you contact them from anywhere on the site? (at least buttons if not a simple form)

2. SOOOOO Important - Where do they rank?

If you want customers to find you through your website you need SEO services and you need a web designer or a dedicated SEO company that can OUTRANK YOUR COMPETITION. PERIOD. Otherwise, you may as well delete your website and keep your money.

Test this for yourself and see.

Whatever city you are in right now or are searching for a web designer in, try searching these terms in Google and see what companies pop up in results. Those result essentially prove the web designer knows what they are doing and that they are more likely to be able to do it for your business as well. This is not a guarantee of that though. (i.e. they paid someone else for SEO - more common than you think)

WEB DESIGNER QUALITY AND SEO STRESS TEST

• Web design company (optional - add "in your city" or "near me" to these terms. i.e. "Web Design Company in Spring Hill")
• SEO company
• SEO services near me
• Web Designer
• Website Company

And you can do this for other industries and keywords as well...

THAT'S IT! Those two things alone will eliminate 90% of web designers and marketing companies who have no business selling SEO services or bulding websites in 2019 because ultimately they are wasting your hard-earned marketing budget even if they have the nicest face and best of intentions! It comes down to results.

We hope you choose wisely and wish you the best of luck in this competitive, online marketplace!