On this page
Choosing a web designer is hard to judge from the outside. Portfolios all look good, every proposal promises results, and you often don’t find out what you actually bought until something breaks or you try to leave.
The good news is that a few direct questions reveal most of what you need to know. Here’s what to ask, what a solid proposal looks like, and the warning signs worth walking away from.
Start with what you need, not who you like
Before you talk to anyone, write down a few things:
- What the website needs to do: bring in calls, take bookings, sell products, answer the same questions you get every day
- Which pages you think you need
- Whether you have text and photos ready, or need help with them
- Who on your team will update the site after launch
You don’t need a full spec. But a designer can only give you a useful proposal if they know what you’re trying to achieve. Our website planning checklist covers this in more detail, and what drives website cost explains how those answers shape the quote.
Questions to ask every designer
About their work
- Can I see sites you’ve built for businesses like mine? Look at them on your phone, not just their screenshots. Are they fast? Is it easy to find the phone number and hours?
- Can I talk to a past client? A designer with happy clients will usually be glad to connect you.
- Who will actually do the work? Some firms sell the project and pass it to someone else. That’s not necessarily bad, but you should know who you’ll be working with.
A good-looking portfolio only tells you half the story. We explain how to judge the other half, the build quality underneath, in why design and development both matter.
About the process
- What do you need from me, and when? Waiting on text and photos often stalls projects. Our post on website project bottlenecks covers the usual culprits.
- How do revisions work? A clear process (for example, a set number of review rounds at defined stages) is better than vague promises.
- How will we communicate? Email, calls, a project tool? How quickly can you expect a reply?
- What happens at launch? Who checks forms, redirects, mobile layouts and search settings before the site goes live?
- Do you use AI tools, and how? Many designers now do. The useful answer explains what a person still reviews and fact-checks. Here’s how we use AI, as one example of the kind of answer to expect.
About the platform
- Which platform do you recommend, and why? A good answer is tied to your needs, not to what the designer always uses. See our comparison of Wix, Squarespace, WordPress and custom sites.
- Will I be able to make simple edits myself? If yes, ask to see what that looks like.
- If we part ways, can I take the site with me? On some platforms the answer is no, or only partly. That can be acceptable, but you should hear it before you sign.
About after launch
- Who handles updates, backups and security? Websites need ongoing care, especially on WordPress. A website care plan is one way to make sure it actually happens.
- What does support look like? Is it included for a period, billed per request, or a monthly plan?
- What happens if the site breaks or gets hacked?
Ownership and access: get this in writing
This is the area where small businesses most often get burned, and it’s easy to prevent. Make sure:
- Your domain is registered in your name, using an email address you control. The designer can have access, but you should be the owner.
- You have admin access to the website itself, not just an editor login.
- Hosting is either in your name or clearly documented, with a written plan for handing it over if you leave. Our guide to choosing web hosting explains what to look for in a host.
- You own or have accounts for Google Business Profile, Google Search Console, Google Analytics, your booking tool and your email platform. Designers can be added as users; they shouldn’t be the only owners.
- The contract says who owns the design and content once the project is paid for.
If a designer resists any of this, treat it as a serious warning.
What a good proposal includes
A useful proposal is specific enough that two people could read it and agree on what’s being built. Look for:
- A summary of your goals, in their words, so you know they listened.
- A list of pages and features, including any outside tools such as booking or e-commerce.
- Who provides what: text, photos, logo, product data, account access.
- The platform and hosting, with a short reason for the choice.
- The process, with stages and review points.
- What’s included for search: page titles, descriptions, headings, redirects from an old site if you have one, and basic structured data.
- Accessibility and mobile: how they make sure the site works on phones and for people using assistive technology.
- What happens after launch: training, support and maintenance options.
- Clear pricing, with one-time costs separated from ongoing ones.
- Ownership terms, as described above.
If you’re redesigning an existing site, the proposal should also explain how they’ll protect your current search rankings. We wrote about that in how to redesign without losing your Google rankings, and our website redesign service follows the same approach.
How do specific and vague proposals compare?
When proposals land side by side, the differences are often in the wording. Use this as a quick check:
| Topic | Specific (good sign) | Vague (ask more) |
|---|---|---|
| Scope | Named pages and features | ”A beautiful, modern website” |
| Content | Who writes, who photographs, by when | Not mentioned |
| Platform | Named, with a reason tied to your needs | Not mentioned, or the same for every client |
| Search | Titles, headings, redirects, structured data | ”SEO optimized” with no detail |
| Revisions | Defined review rounds at set stages | ”Unlimited revisions” |
| After launch | Training, support and care options | Nothing after the launch date |
| Ownership | Domain, accounts and files belong to you | Not mentioned |
A vague line isn’t always a deal-breaker. It’s a prompt to ask, and the way a designer answers tells you a lot.
Red flags
- Guaranteed rankings. No one can guarantee a position in Google. Anyone who does is either misunderstanding search or misleading you.
- No questions about your business. If they quote before asking what you do and who your customers are, the quote isn’t based on your needs.
- Pressure to sign quickly, with discounts that expire in days.
- Vague scope. “A beautiful, modern website” is not a scope.
- They keep the domain or the logins.
- No mention of mobile, speed or accessibility.
- A portfolio of only mockups, with no live sites you can visit.
- Every client gets the same platform, regardless of what the business needs.
Local or remote?
You don’t need a designer down the street to get a good website. But someone who knows the area understands things that matter here: visitors searching on phones with patchy signal near trailheads, the difference between serving Uptown and the Village of Oak Creek, and how sharply busy seasons shape demand. Whoever you choose, make sure they ask about your customers, not just your color preferences.
How to choose a web designer, step by step
Define what you need
Write down what the site must do, the pages you expect and who will update it. You're ready when you can explain the project in a few sentences.
Shortlist and check live work
Pick a few designers and open their live client sites on your phone. Keep the ones whose sites load quickly and make phone numbers, hours and booking easy to find.
Ask the same questions of each
Cover their work, process, platform choice and what happens after launch. Note who answers clearly and who asks good questions about your business.
Request written proposals
Ask each finalist for a proposal listing pages, features, content responsibilities, platform, process, costs and ownership terms.
Compare proposals side by side
Read them against the same checklist and look for what's missing, not just the price. Ask about anything vague.
Talk to a past client
Ask your top choice to connect you with a client whose site you've seen. Ask how the project ran and how support works now.
Sign with ownership in writing
Make sure the contract states that your business owns the domain, accounts, design and content once paid. Then schedule the kickoff.
Frequently asked questions
Can I switch web designers if a project isn't working out?
Usually, yes, but how smoothly it goes depends on what you own. If the domain, hosting and accounts are in your name and you have admin access, a new designer can pick up where the last one stopped. If the old designer holds those, recovering them comes first. Check what your contract says about unfinished work and files before you make the switch.
Should my web designer register my domain for me?
They can help, but the domain should be registered in your business's name using an email address you control. The designer can be given access to manage it. If a designer registers it in their own name, moving to someone else later can become complicated, and in the worst case you could lose the address your customers know.
Is it a red flag if a designer guarantees first-page rankings?
Yes. No one controls Google's rankings, so a guarantee means the designer either misunderstands search or is overselling. A trustworthy designer will explain what they do to give your site a fair chance: clear page titles and headings, fast mobile pages, useful content, correct technical setup and careful redirects if you're replacing an old site.
How many designers should I talk to before choosing one?
There's no magic number, but talking to more than one gives you a basis for comparison. The goal is to see how different designers interpret the same project. If every proposal you receive is vague, the problem may be the brief, so it helps to share a short written summary of your goals, pages and content before you ask.
What should I ask about maintenance before I sign?
Ask who handles software updates, backups and security, whether support is included for a period or billed separately, and what happens if the site breaks or gets hacked. On self-hosted WordPress this matters most, because plugins and themes need regular updates. Our website maintenance checklist shows what ongoing care involves.
Share this article:
