How to find a good web designer

Have you ever visited a company's website and enjoyed the experience? The animation, design, colors, and usability seduced you. You remember the brand and even signed up for the newsletter.

The appearance of a website influences the visitor. In fact, they may stay longer to explore the offers and navigate from one page to another. They will hold a positive impression of the brand and may even share their experience with others. Creating a website requires both technical skills, a creative sense, and interpersonal skills.

So how do you find a good web designer? What criteria should you rely on during the search? Here are some guidelines to consider.

Qualities of a good web designer

One of the first things to know is how to recognize the qualities of a good web designer. Here are some pointers that can guide you.

Having excellent computer knowledge

Computer knowledge is essential to understand web language like HTML, for example. The knowledge is as much technical about software as about the interaction between the web and software.

Consistency in work

Throughout the process, the web designer will integrate a logical and continuous work method. Their consistency will allow fluidity in tasks and also to identify and fix elements that are not working correctly, for example.

Having good stress tolerance

Projects move quickly, deadlines are tight, and there are many requests for modifications or changes. Not to mention that the designer may work on several projects simultaneously. Thus, having good stress tolerance helps to stay on track with different projects and ensure the delivery of a quality project.

Important for a web designer: having a strong sense of aesthetics

Finding something beautiful is subjective. However, in the web world, it is necessary to have a strong sense of aesthetics to create designs that will make the company stand out among all possible offers on the Internet. It is necessary to have an eye to recognize what will appeal or not to the target and the company.

Continuous training in web design

What is their education? Are they following training to be up to date with the latest trends? Like in fashion, web design trends constantly evolve every year. It is necessary for the web designer to regularly undergo training to stay updated. This can be as simple as watching training videos online, for example.

Soft skills, technical skills, and business acumen

A good freelancer will be able to master both the creative side and the rational side. They will be able to handle criticisms and feedback from the client. They can also give feedback and guide the client professionally. Additionally, having a teaching demeanor can be very useful to explain concepts to the client. This is both soft skills and technical skills.

Business acumen is also important to know where to focus energy and to manage the project. It keeps the project evolving in the right direction. Having business acumen helps maintain a good business relationship with clients.

In short, no one is perfect. However, you could identify in candidates the qualities and skills that you judge as most important to you. This way, you could choose the candidate that best suits your needs.

Finding good web designers

While considering the characteristics of a good candidate, you can search the Internet to find web designers. You could analyze different profiles and services offered. Through the research, examples might inspire you for the design of your site. You could also see different types of site functionality and mention it to the web designer.

Check the portfolio of web designers

Once you have done your research and found potential collaborators, further your research by reviewing their portfolios. Look at the projects and see if the sites have been very successful, for example, by reading client comments. Test the sites yourself to understand their effectiveness, usability, and style. The verification stage may take time, but it will be beneficial for making decisions.

You could also know what type of projects the web designer has completed in the past, the type of company, if their artistic creation suits you, etc.

Are you looking for a web designer?

Contact potential web designers

Not sure if you want to work with an agency or a freelance designer? Take a few minutes to contact them by phone and explain your project. This way, an initial contact will have been made, and later on, you can arrange meetings to make a choice.

Get to know the designer

As you seek to determine if a professional relationship is possible between both of you, ask them questions to get to know them better. It is recommended to meet the person if you intend to establish a long-term relationship with them. Here are some pointers:

Ask them about the latest trends;
How do they work? What is their process?
How do they view deadlines?;
Do they handle small or large projects?
What are their rates?
Talk about their projects;
When are they available to start?;
How long have they been doing this?;
What is their education and background?;
Ask more technical questions to see if they have a teaching side.

Define your web design project

Define your goals to present them to the web designer. Having a clear idea of what you want will help you make better choices and save time.

What do you want to promote?
Do you want a transactional site?
What is your budget?
Do you want to work with a freelance or an agency?

Of course, finding the right person requires upfront work to establish your goals. It is also possible that parameters will be determined with the designer to adapt to their skills.

Ask your circle

You can ask people in your circle if anyone has recommendations for a web designer. It is likely that you may know someone who could lend a hand.

Ultimately, if you do a great job in your prep work, it will be beneficial throughout the process, and the results are more likely to be met. Also, note that a freelancer may be inclined to take on projects of smaller scale. However, they can also bring in specialists for larger projects.

For more information, you can check out our articles on the website.

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About the author

Sotheary Chan

Blogger at helloDarwin

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