How to choose a website design partner

Posted on 16/09/2019

You’ve decided you need a new or refreshed website, but you don’t know where to start when it comes to choosing the right web design partner. A recommendation is always a good place to start but remember its horses for courses – a relationship that worked for a peer may not be right for you. So how do you make sure you get it right? Here are some suggestions from the Glazing Vault team.

It’s useful to think about what you want before you decide who is best delivering it. Think about what you want your website to be. Do you want it to be a brochure site, or to actively generate leads? If the latter, what experience and evidence can your shortlist of web designers demonstrate to you on previous successful lead generation sites?

Looking good

Once you know what you want it to be, you need to think about how you want your website to look. Look at your potential designer’s portfolio to see if they have done anything you like. A lot of designers also find it useful to see other sites you like, whether from your industry or another, to get an idea of the overall look and tone that appeals to you.

How do you like to work? Do you know exactly what you want and simply need a web company to do the technical bit and create your vision? Do you like to work collaboratively using your supplier’s expertise and experience with your input throughout the process, or can you take a step back and let your chosen supplier take the lead? It might help if your supplier specialises in your market and has proven experience to give you peace of mind.

Cost Vs Value

And finally, think about how much you have to spend on the project and find the right fit for your budget. It sounds obvious but looking for the cheapest supplier is never a good place to start. It’s better to think about what value you could get from the right site. For example, a site that helps you to generate leads will pay for itself more quickly than a straight-forward brochure site. But a brochure site is less expensive to create. Once you know what budget you have and what you want to achieve with that budget, you can look for a supplier who fits the brief.

Our philosophy

Glazing Vault specialises in the window and door industry and works closely with all kinds of customers to deliver what they need. We work for companies big and small supplying everything from the simpler brochure sites, to the slightly more complex lead generating sites. But whatever the size of customer and whatever the brief, we appreciate it’s a big step to take choosing a new website supplier, so try to make it as easy as possible for our clients every step of the way with our advanced management system and ongoing support once the project is completed.