If you need a website, there are many ways to get it. You can create it yourself, although if you don’t have the time or the required skills, that may not be a feasible option. Your best solution may be to hire a professional, but figuring out how to find the right one and start the process can be daunting.
To hire a web design professional, you won’t just need to find one who can do the job , but you will also need to do some prep work. This involves planning your project, knowing what you’ll need, and figuring out how much you can afford.
In this article, we’ll walk you through the process of hiring a web designer to create a custom website. We’ll talk about what you should consider in advance, how to create a plan for your site and how to manage the project. Finally, we’ll show you how to find a designer that’s right for you. Let’s get to work!
When you want to hire a designer to create your website
It’s true that creating a website has never been easier for almost anyone. With little or no help, even inexperienced people who have never touched a single line of code or a design tool can create functional and attractive sites.
This is mainly due to the many applications and platforms that They use to take care of the technical aspects of site creation for you. For example, many website builders allow you to use templates combined with a drag and drop interface to build pages and create content. Even content management systems (CMS) like WordPress are easier to use than ever, thanks to one-click installs, themes, and plugins.
Building a site yourself, however it is not always feasible. Even with all those tools at your disposal, for example, you’ll still need to learn the basics of site design and know how to use your chosen software correctly.
Even if you know exactly what you’re doing, many sites web require a considerable amount of effort and time to build. The right tools can help you along the way, but if you don’t have time to spare, that won’t matter much.
You may also need a site with reach and functionality that goes beyond what the other tools can provide. pre-existing assets, such as themes and plugins. For example, you may feel comfortable putting together a personal blog or portfolio. However, building something more complex, such as a membership system or an e-commerce store, may not be within your comfort zone.
In these cases, your best option is almost always to simply hire a professional for the job. . There are many designers available with the skills, talent, and experience to create precisely the site you need while allowing you to focus on other aspects of your business.
Hiring a designer also carries several other potential benefits. For example, they will often be able to not only design your site, but also help you create additional design elements, such as logos and other visual assets. They can even help build your brand’s visual identity, which is a great way to quickly gain traction.
How to Prepare Before Hiring a Designer
Once you’ve decided to hire a professional to create your website, you will need to start planning it. It is extremely vital that you know precisely what you want from the final result, so that the designer can make it happen. A clear plan will help you convey to them what your expectations are, what you want the end product to look like, and exactly what you’re paying them to create.
First and foremost, you’ll need to define your goals and the purpose of the site. For example, is your new site a commercial venture, such as an online store or company site, or is it more of a personal project? From there, you can start to decide what you want from your site, how it should look, what kind of content it will contain, and what functionality it will require.
The size and level of complexity of your site are just as important to determine. at this initial stage. For example, a basic but crucial question to consider is how many pages you want it to contain. The more pages you need, the greater the scale of the project.
In turn, the answers to all of these questions will help you when it comes to what is possibly the most important point of all: budget. In short, how much can you afford to spend on your site? This will not only affect who you can hire for the job, but also whether you should approach a single freelancer or contact an agency with multiple designers and developers.
These are just a few considerations. , but they are a solid start to planning your project. We previously discussed the ideal game plan for designing a site in detail, so we recommend you check out that tip as well.
Things to Consider When Working with a Designer
While planning your website is crucial, it is equally critical that you know how to manage the project once your designer has started to work. in that. This will not only ensure a smooth workflow for all parties involved, but will also help avoid miscommunication or unpleasant surprises.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the most important considerations What should you keep in mind. You’ll want to keep that in mind when hiring a designer. You will need to:
- Be clear about your goals. Once you’ve defined your goals, don’t be ambiguous about them. Clearly communicate what you want, including your overall vision for the site, and what specifically you are asking the designer to produce. This will ensure that they know what is required of them in advance, increasing the chances that you will be satisfied with the result.
- Give them all the necessary information and resources. It is also vital that your designer has the proper information and tools necessary to complete the job. What this means will naturally depend on the specific requirements of the project, but could include things like art assets, photos you want to use, content, product information, etc.
- Understand what the process entails. Even if you’re not directly involved with the site design process, it’s helpful to have a general idea of what’s involved. By understanding the general steps involved, you’ll have a much clearer picture of your project timeline and a better understanding of the work your designers are doing.
- Create a clear project roadmap. Speaking of timelines, you should also try to define a clear roadmap, including deadlines and milestones. Be sure to be realistic about your expectations, both in terms of workload and final product.
- Communicate clearly throughout the project. We’ve already discussed the importance of this, and luckily it shouldn’t be difficult to do as long as you’re using a medium that works for everyone involved. It’s best to decide in advance what your main communication channels will be, whether it’s email, phone, or an app.
- Be clear about the project budget. In short, everyone should know exactly what they are paid for and how much they are getting. This will help avoid situations where you are faced with unexpected additional charges in the future.
At the end of the day, it is essential that both you and the designer are on the same page when it comes to at expectations and goals. As long as you plan carefully and communicate well throughout the project, this shouldn’t be too difficult to achieve.
How to Hire a Designer to Create a Custom Website (2 Options)
By now, you should have a better understanding of when and why you should consider hiring a designer for your website. We have also discussed how to prepare for the project. All that remains is to see how to find and recruit one or more designers. There are two main pathways available to you, so we’ll look at each one separately.
1. Hire one or more freelancers
When you have a plan in place and know what you want, it’s time to start finding the right person for the job. Lots of people decide to hire freelancers to build their websites and it’s not hard to see why. There are many of them to choose from. In fact, more than 53 million Americans are self-employed.
Going for the self-employment option has some benefits. For one thing, you can look for someone who specializes in exactly the type of project you need, and get a sense of their stylistic sensibilities by looking at examples of their past work. They also tend to offer a lot of flexibility when it comes to project scope, work hours, deadlines, and budget.
If your budget isn’t that great, you can also find less experienced freelancers who will work for you. less money than an agency or more prominent competitors. That said, this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t pay them what they’re worth or suggest they work “for exposure.” It just means that you may be able to spend less and they have the opportunity to earn money while gaining more experience in the field.
However, using one or more freelancers can also have its downsides. For one, you may be limiting the potential reach of your site, especially if you can’t afford to hire multiple designers. If you hire more than one person, on the other hand, this could make the project management process more difficult, as communication can fracture between multiple parties. You may also discover that if the parameters of your project change, the designer may not have the necessary skills to handle the new requirements.
If you decide that you want to use a freelancer to design your site, there is a lots of ways to find the right one.There are plenty of sites dedicated to connecting specialized freelancers with projects that match their skills, like PeoplePerHour, Guru, and Upwork. The latter in particular is an excellent choice.
On Upwork, you can search for suitable candidates and view their profiles to learn more.
When trying to find the right candidate, it’s a good idea to carefully study each prospect’s portfolio. Are the sites you have created similar to what you have in mind? This also gives you the opportunity to see what their skills and weaknesses are, which will make it easier to understand if they would be a good fit for the job.
Similarly, you should also look for reviews and recommendations, including testimonials .
As well as giving you valuable insight into their skills, this will also give you an idea of what it’s like to work with that person. Naturally, you’ll want to look for skills like strong communication, flexibility, reliability, etc.
Once you’ve found a freelancer you’d like to approach, you can use the contact form to get in touch. However, you may not even need to do that, as Upwork will help you find suitable freelancers when you post a job. You can then use the same interface to communicate, transfer files, and even handle payments.
2. Hire a web design company
If you find that a freelancer alone cannot meet your requirements, or you simply want a more complete solution that includes additional work beyond website design, the best option is to hire an agency. .
Working directly with an agency has a number of advantages, including expanding the potential scope of your project. These types of businesses often have teams of employees who can build much larger sites with advanced features. They also tend to offer additional services, such as helping you create a visual brand for your website and business.
A design firm also provides more reliability than freelancers. For example, if you hire Freelancer X and are unexpectedly unable to continue work due to illness or other external factors, you are in trouble. However, with an agency, you can always be sure that the job will get done.
The main obstacle in using this option is, of course, the price. However, even in this regard, you have some freedom as you can scale the final cost to match your budget.
Professional Web Design Made Simple
Let’s see how this works with the DreamHost’s own design services. Our designers create a gorgeous website from the ground up to perfectly match your brand and vision, all coded with WordPress so you can manage your content moving forward. We offer three design services at different prices so you can achieve your goals at the right price.
Once you purchase a web design plan, your dedicated project manager will introduce yourself and send you an initial questionnaire that will help us learn all about your requirements and goals. website. We also collect any content and images you wish to include on the site. Our team takes care of that!
You can review the designs and offer feedback. Once the designs are approved, our team turns them into code and handles all the back-end implementation to launch your website on your preferred domain name.
Most website projects web are completed and launched in just 4 weeks! Larger or more complicated websites (such as large e-commerce stores) can sometimes take longer; Your project manager will work directly with you to establish release schedules and targets. However, rush projects are also possible, so if you’re in a rush to get your website up and running, let us know.
Custom by design
Sometimes it’s better to trust professionals to create your website. However, to ensure that you get the results you need, you must be prepared. You’ll also need to know where you can find the best designers and how to spot which ones provide services that fit your requirements.
Have a question about hiring a designer or any of our web designers? packages? Let us know by starting the conversation on the DreamHost Community Forum!
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