▷ Hire a web designer: all you need to know

Although it is very common to hire the services of a web designer, many startups and SMEs have doubts when it comes to hire this type of professional. The most common questions are how to find the best professional or what steps must be taken to carry out a web project.

Next, we present you a guide so that you know the keys to take into account when hiring a web designer and thus achieve a quality result.

Index

What do you need to know before hiring a web designer?
Better to hire a freelance web designer or agency?
What to do if your website is not complete (and you need to finish it)
Yeeply is the most secure web development platform

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What do you need to know before hiring a web designer?

Whether through an agency, software house, web development platform or through a freelancer, you have to be clear about some points that will help you choose the best professional.

Knowing the general aspects of the development process will make it easier to know your needs and, therefore, find the professional capable of meeting them.

1. Project objective

That is, what do you hope to achieve with your website, what objectives do you want to achieve and what needs do you hope to cover through the development of your website.

You may want to build a project from scratch or finish an unfinished website. Although you may also need to add more than just a CTA button or form. In the latter case, you need a professional who, in addition to designing, can integrate the website with CRM, CMS or cloud hosting servers to store user data.

2. Project features

Whether you want to create or update your website, it is advisable to make a list that includes the number of pages, headers, buttons, menus or any other element you want to include.

A list of design/functionalities (UX) will help the designer to give you an estimate on the time and budget of the project.

Transmitting your graphic idea (UI) such as colors, logo, fonts, etc., will also facilitate the work and you’ll be able to achieve the objectives sooner.

3. Define the initial budget

Web development budgets can vary a lot, since it depends on the size of the web, whether it is a corporate website, Marketplace, ecommerce, or if complex functions have to be integrated, etc.

That is why it is convenient to have an indicative idea about our budget to avoid unpleasant surprises.

Here is a link that leads to a price simulator so you can start to assess how much your website can cost you and see the web design rates.

4. Define the work methodology

Initially, you must carry out an analysis or Discovery / Design Thinking phase with the teamwork and the designer of the project.

In this phase, in addition to planning the project and the budget, the tools, delivery times and which person from the team will be in contact with the client during the development will be determined.

If you follow a good work strategy, you will save mistakes, time and money.

5. Ask for success stories from the team

The ideal candidate must meet some technical requirements that we can review through the team’s portfolio, to ensure that they can satisfy the development of the project.

However, there are also other requirements that we can discover in an interview. Before hiring the designer, you will be able to discover if the candidate has other skills necessary for the project to progress properly. These skills are, for example, good communication and accessibility, which will help everything to work properly.

“Are you looking for a freelance web designer who can work remote?

Contact us!”

cross platform web app development — The advantages of hiring a web designer. Source: Pexels

Better to hire a freelance web designer or agency?

It depends!

A freelance web designer is a self-employed professional who offers his time, knowledge and experience to shape your website. He works alone, although he can sometimes associate with other professionals, for example copywriters, to improve the result.

Instead, an agency is a design company where several professionals work. They have an organized work system that allows them to carry out several projects at the same time and cover, in the same place, different needs or services such as design, SEO, content…

Both are good options, but there are characteristics to take into account when choosing the most recommended option in our case.

?You might be interested | Top 5: websites with an impressive user interface (UI)

Freelance designers, working alone, have a smaller volume of projects than an agency can take on. In general terms, a freelance designer will be able to spend more time on your website, but they may also have a waiting list.

Communication with the freelancer is direct and personalized, without intermediaries. In agencies there is usually a person in charge of communication with clients, and although they will inform us of any news, communication will not be as fluid.

The price of freelance web designers is usually less, although it all depends on their experience and reputation. Agencies usually charge more, since they have a team of professionals working. But agencies quickly offer services that can be supplemented with copywriting, SEO, etc.

Depending on the type of project, one or the other option will suit you better. Here are some tips you may need before hiring a web designer or an agency.

Freelance designers are a good option to create small and medium-sized pages, professional services, consulting, personal blogs… They can handle more ambitious projects, but the delivery time will be longer.
Agencies are perfect for working on websites for large companies that need to be ready in a short time, as they can put several of their designers on the project. They can take care of smaller pages, but you may be missing a closer and more personalized contact.

What to do if your website is not complete (and you need to finish it)

Sometimes companies and startups have problems with the development team and the website is left unfinished. It usually happens because the company is aimed at unprofessional profiles or looking for a low price. Sometimes cheap is expensive!

If you are in this situation, we leave you a list of things to take into account so that the same thing does not happen to you again.

1. What type of developer do you need?

There is nothing more common than making a mistake when choosing a profile to hire.

Often, those who want to develop an application do not know if they should hire a web designer or a developer. What is the difference?

A designer is the professional who is responsible for the appearance of your website, that is, web design. He/she creates the icons, structure and defines what type of images or photographs will appear. He works with Photoshop and other graphic design programs. When hiring a web designer, in addition to working on the aesthetic part, he will also carry out its implementation since he knows HTML, CSS or JavaScript.

Instead, a developer is a person who writes and works with code. He can enter the web, edit files and create a page from scratch. He can work with code editors and other development-related tools.

2. What skills are you looking for?

To hire the ideal professional, you must know if your website needs improvements at the front end, back end or both levels.

Front-end developers are often web designers (with more knowledge of code), in that they take care of the look and feel. Instead, the back end developers take care of the part behind the design and the functionalities like speed and different technical aspects.

If the web needs improvements both in front-end and back-end, you will need a generalist or also called full-stack professional, who will be able to create complete websites from scratch, including design, implementation and coding.

3. Do you have to contact the old developer?

When a project is halfway through, in order for a new professional to take it up again, you will need to collect certain information, which the initial designer must provide you:

Information about the Back-end and technology used
Source code
Programming language
Type of APIs
Graphic mockup and information Front-end (UI)
Wireframe/web user experience (UX) design
Url of the developed landing page, if it exists.
Github where all the information is collected

Keep reading | Web budget: how much it can cost, what to include and what not

Yeeply is the safest web development platform

At Yeeply (cross platform for web/app development) we have all kinds of designers, from freelance, agencies or software houses. We personally certify the professionals we work with.

If you want to start a web design or an app design project, we will put you in contact with the professionals you need. We will also provide you with all the information you need and give you advice. Yeeply’s pool of developers and designers is all around Europe and especially in Spain. If you need to hire a web designer in Madrid, find a web design in Valencia or Barcelona, you are in the right place!

We help all kinds of companies, both to develop their websites from scratch, and to finish websites that were left unfinished at the time. All thanks to a quality technical assistance and outsourcing service.