So, you’ve been working with a web designer for a couple of weeks now. They’ve given you a great bargain on a cms, but there’s something not quite right. The design looks very novice. Like it’s meant to entertain visitors above 70 years old(And even they find it boring). They also ignore a lot of your technical related questions, or you believe the answers aren’t satisfactory.

Well, it looks like you’ve went and gotten a non-web designer to build your website. Is this a print company you went to see? In some way a friend, or neighbour? Someone who has a full-time job doing something completely un-related, but dabbles in web design in their spare time?

Well, here’s the bad news….It’s your fault! What????, I hear you say.

Put it this way. Web design is a very brutal trade to master correctly. It takes years of ui design preparation, examination, coding, improving, and most of all, acquiring the new technologies as they arrive. You’re more than likely in the group of people who clearly don’t understand the complexities of web design. Hence the reason you’ve asked a printer (un-related business) or someone else with minimal web design and development experience.

Now, If I was one day decide I wanted an extension on my house. I’d look around and see a lot of nice extensions that I like. Maybe using the internet, or a few company brochures. What if I just said, hey, I like this one, and instead of going to a professional building/design company, I asked my neighbour Carl (He’s a surveyor or something, and knows about building houses).

Well, welcome to the planet of web design. The only difference is there are no regulators and just about anyone can pass themselves off as a web designer. Yes, even printers. They’re quite blameworthy of the linking print and web design together. Offering packages such as “E-commerce $299. Now, firstly, this is laughable. No professional web designer, ever, would even attempt to sell e-commerce for ?299. E-commerce is a lot of work and takes loads of time to plan, design, code & implement. Not to mention any additional SEO work if you require overtaking any competitors in the SERPS. What you’re buying here is nothing but junk. Not only that, but you’re buying the same looking junk as every other no-budget harry.

So, what can you do? Here are some no-bull tips in helping you find a good web designer.

. A web designer’s full time employment, is a web designer. Not a printer, accountant or games designer. But a WEB DESIGNER. Sometimes it might be changed slightly like web interface designer, or digital designer. But their job is a full time web designer, nothing else.
. At no time hire someone to design and develop a website, whose job title is “Web Master”. This is nothing to do with web design and development. They look after site content/members.
. You’re not going to get a good website for a few hundred quid. Forget it! A good website will cost you no less than ?1500. And that’s just the brass tacks.
. A good e-commerce website will cost you no less than ?10,000 and monthly fees for SEO if required. Do you really think amazon is build using cubecart or oscommerce? Think again.
. Good designers don’t use templates for your main website. You’d look the same as 1000 other sites. Good designers know you need to stand out and have your own presence.
. A good web designer will have loads of examples of their work. Ask to see them. Make sure there is plenty of LIVE sites and examples.
. Ask to see the website visitor statistics. The part your interested in is, “Unique Visitors Per Month”. Not hits or any other form of confusing banter.

I’d say the list above should keep you safe. Maybe you’ve already been through the above, and have learned your lesson. You don’t get anything for nothing. I wish I could phone my local BMW dealing and ask for an M3 for ?299, but it’s never going to happen.

Ian Jamieson is a professional designer for web design ayrshire glasgow. For more resources and work examples, see COGO Creative web designers