1. What mistakes do people make when choosing a web designer?
Most people make the mistake of buying a website based on price. They will go for the cheapest designer because they don’t know what exactly they hope to achieve with a website. They just think they need a website because their competitor has a website and they must have one too without finding out WHAT they want to use it for.
When clients come to us, we help them discover what exactly they want to do with a website and most importantly, why. The why needs to be answered first because if there’s no strong reason, the website cannot help you grow your business.
2. Why is there a need to get a professional website from a professional web designer?
If you are not running a business, you can get a website simply designed and put it on the world wide web and your reputation will be fine. But if you are serious about your business and don’t want your image tarnished by a sub-standard website, a professional website is an investment you should look into.
A website is an investment because like all marketing tools, it comes with a price. Yet it is also an investment because it is capable of paying for itself many times over when it brings you more clients and business. As an investment, the website will help you generate leads and prospects if you select a web design professional who knows how to build marketing and business sense into a website. Otherwise, your website will sit pretty on the world wide web like a brochure and you will not know why you keep paying yearly to renew your domain name and web hosting.
3. How can I be sure that you can help me?
The proof is in what our clients say. You can ask our clients and they will tell you the results they’ve achieved as a result of getting their websites designed by us as well as getting constant personalised attention and advice from us. We’ve also written up a number of case studies of the clients we have and if you want a copy, email us and we’ll be happy to email them to you.
4. Why can’t I design the website myself?
Of course you can design your own website. The problem is, DO you want to? Do you want to spend hours tweaking colours, selecting the most appropriate typography, re-sizing and optimising photographs, writing and re-writing your text, finding out how to optimise your overall website, submitting your website to search engines and directories, updating and maintaining your website, checking for links, and more when you can spend your time strategizing for your business?
Everything has a cost-benefit involved. Is designing a website the most effective use of your time and money? Remember, time is also translated into money because spending time learning how to design your own website prevents you from doing other more profitable activities.
You could be spending that time networking, meeting clients and doing more productive work instead of stomping on your PC in frustration! (Yes, many a time we ourselves go nuts deciphering CSS and HTML. Stomping on your PC is just one of the milder reactions to extreme frustration. We don’t wish that on anyone!) So get a professional web designer. Don’t sweat blood.
5. Why should small businesses choose your design services?
We’re more than just web designers, we’re here to help you sharpen your business focus. Of course, we won’t (and can’t) promise you that you will earn a gazillion dollars by doing nothing at home.
We can only help you if you are willing to help yourself. That’s our main criterion. We can help you with web-related matters and this includes everything from the writing your website text to designing of the “personality” of your website. We can advise you if you tell us what you need a website for. We can tell you what’s the most cost-effective way to go about it (after all, small businesses don’t have a million dollar marketing budget). As we are directly marketing and selling our services on the world wide web, you can be sure that we know what we are talking about. If you want to talk us, just call us up!
6. What can I expect from using your design services?
Number one, we design with marketing and business sense. Number two, we design for web usability. We design websites that are clear, easy to use and attractive. We design websites to help you stand out among your competitors and give you the results you need.
In fact, you can call us marketers who use the web as a medium to get the business results you need. It appals us that so many designers design purely for themselves without taking a step back to ask “Is this website usable? Does it fulfill the marketing objectives of my client? Can it fulfill what my client wants it to do? And how will I know whether it can fulfill those objectives?” We ask these questions before we start designing any website. We are known for asking tough questions but we do it in your best interest.
7. Any advice for small business owners looking for web designers?
First ask your friends/ family to refer a web designer they’ve used. It is a better bet than picking one randomly from the Yellow Pages. Next, go online and find the website of that particular designer. Professional designers must have their portfolio online for you to view.
From the portfolio, you will get a good idea of the style and type of design this designer is good at. Email the designer or call him to get an idea of what you’re getting in terms of pricing and services. Can the designer help you with your text if you have zero materials? Can the designer give you advice on technical matters? Finally, meet the designer face-to-face. You must know who you are dealing with. If you have a budget, name that budget. Be open and honest with your designer about what you want in a website. An experienced designer will advise you on what you need in a website.
Remember, you don’t need everything that you can get - just everything that you need.