What to ask a website designer
Thinking of working with a web designer for your author website? I understand that the prospect can be a bit daunting. Your website is such a personal thing, and choosing someone to build a visual representation of you, your books and your career often feels like a tricky task.
As with any situation where you are choosing to work with someone, the most important thing is not to be afraid to ask questions! Most designers will be more than happy to chat you through their processes, and take some time to answer your queries before booking you in.
If you can, I think it’s really important to speak to someone on the phone before booking with them – there’s really nothing like a proper discussion to help you get a feel for someone’s personality, and how they work, and whether or not their style fits with yours.
I highly recommend taking them up on a free consultation call. I know writers are mostly introverts who HATE talking on the phone, but it’s the designer’s job to make this chat as pleasant as possible for you, so do go for it and let them do most of the talking!
And if a web designer doesn’t offer to chat to you before signing you up, then I’d be pretty suspicious…
So, once you’re on the call, here are the questions you should ask…
1) Do you have a portfolio I can look at?
Past work is obviously a very helpful indicator of what your web designer is likely to be able to achieve, but more importantly, gives you a really good idea of that designer’s style. Take a look through the sites they’ve already built and ask yourself if you’d be happy if your site ended up with a similar feel.
Although designers should be flexible enough to meet the needs of a variety of different authors (all of whom will no doubt have different styles/genres/material to work with), you will find that many designers have a certain ‘look’ or specialism, and you want to ensure this aligns with you.
It’s also worth asking to see testimonials from real clients, and – if you want to be even more thorough – you can always ask to speak to a past client directly.
2) Do you have experience designing websites for people in my industry?
I know I’m biased here but really, specialism is everything. Websites differ greatly depending on their purpose – a website for a clothing store is going to have very different requirements from a website for a novelist.
You want to find a web designer who has experience working with authors and knows exactly what’s needed on an author website. Most web designers will specialize in a certain sector – some are very niche (like me!) and others are more broad – for example, some might specialize in female entrepreneurs. But it really does make all the difference if you work with someone who knows your industry and knows exactly what you need – it can save you so much time.
3) What’s your website build process like?
This is a good question to ask as the answer can provide a real insight into what it will be like to work with that particular designer. They should have a tried and tested process and give you a clear idea of the timeframe involved to complete the project.
Their answer here will reveal how organized they are, how smooth and efficient their processes are, whether or not they have official contracts that offer you protection… - all these things will really impact the experience of working with that designer.
An organized designer will make your life so much easier. They’ll be able to guide you through the process and help you out when necessary, and you’ll feel safe in their hands. They’ll also take all the stress out of what can (sometimes!) be quite a stressful process.
4) When’s your next available design date?
A lot of people who enquire with me are surprised when I tell them I’m booked up (currently!) three months in advance. But a good designer will be! If you speak to someone and they tell you they can start working on your site straight away, I’d proceed with caution. They might have had a cancellation but they might also just not be very good – find out which!
And on the flipside this is something to bear in mind before you start looking for a designer – don’t expect a decent one to be available straight away. As with most things it pays to plan early – start looking for a designer at least a month before you want to start working on the projects (and if you’re a debut novelist, at least three months before your book is published).
5) How many round of edits are included?
This is a big one. What if the designer builds your site and you hate it? Are you allowed to ask them to redesign it?
Most designers will allow 2 or 3 round of edits. I allow as many rounds as needed so long as they are within the timeframe of the project, which is set out in my contract. Different designers handle this differently, but it’s important that you are comfortable and know that you are allowed to request changes if you’d like, without being charged extra.
6) What happens after the site launches?
Again, different designers work differently. With my packages, I train all my clients in using Squarespace so that at the end of the design process they are able to update their websites themselves.
However, some clients don’t want to do this – and that’s fine too. I’m happy to make changes to their sites for them in the future at an hourly rate.
It’s also worth checking with designers how many of their projects launch on time! You really want to work with someone who has a perfect record of hitting their deadlines – or as near to perfect as possible.