It is very important to find a good web designer. As a business owner, there is no way that you will be able to teach yourself how to design an effective website. You can however use any site builder on the market, but this will most often leave you with a very unprofessional image. Since you are hiring a professional, does this mean that you don't have to know anything about the web design process? The answer is no, not if you want to ensure that your website will be a professional representation of your company and that it will be built in such a way that later search engine optimization will be possible.
Below are 5 essential tips to help you find a web designer that will deliver a quality product that will keep your business image professional.
#1 No Entirely Flash Sites
If a web designer suggests building your site entirely in flash, walk away. Web sites made entirely in flash are a horrible idea and will do little to position you as a credible company. Besides the image concerns, flash sites cannot be opened by every user. These sites also will seriously harm any search engine optimization (the science of getting your website found on Google or other search engines) that you may try in the future.
Please keep in mind that flash is not all bad. Flash elements do work well as part of HTML coded sites, as they add appealing elements and style. Remember to run from a web designer that suggests this entirely flash route.
#2 No Flash Navigation
Flash navigation makes it very hard for search engines to fully access your site and crawl each page. Therefore, your web designer should stay away from flash or image navigations. If necessary, make sure that they place text links to each page at the bottom of your site.
#3 Proper Use of Page Titles, Meta Descriptions, and Meta Tags
Make sure that your designer utilizes Page Titles and Meta Descriptions. Each page should have a distinctive title that lets both Google and a potential client clearly understand the content of that page. Keep it clear, direct and try to utilize your keyword phrases. The same should be done for the meta descriptions of each page.
#4 Content is Key
If your web designer tries to talk you into a site with very little content, be prepared to argue. It is true that your site should look appealing, but your site should always provide viewers with relevant and well written content. This content should be rich in the keywords that you've chosen. First and foremost, your site content should be written for the end user, and secondly it should be crafted for the search engines.
#5 Own your 0wn Domain Name
Make sure that you own your own domain name and know who is hosting your site. If you lose track of your designer down the line, renewing your hosting and domain could be a major problem if you're not sure where it's hosted.
