Fundamentals – Things to ask…

When you’re choosing somebody to partner with to develop a website, it can be tough to know the right questions to ask. If you’re not fluent in technology, -how do you know what your priorities should be?

We’ve prepared a short list of some useful questions that might help you separate out the bad eggs.

• If I challenged you to create a website for $xxx, what would you do?
• What does your average client spend with you in a year? per project?
• What is the quickest development time you have had for a site of this size?
• What is the longest development time you have had for a site of this size?
• Do you have a past track record of success with this particular demographic?
• What programming languages do you prefer? Why?
• Which language would you recommend for this project? Why?
• Do any other sites or projects come to mind that are similar to the way you imagine this site?
• What is the best Google page rank you have achieved for a site you have built?
• Are you going to be using ready-made pieces, or building from scratch?
• How much of the programming you develop for my site, am I free to leave with, if I am displeased with your service?
• Is your firm capable of doing more than just developing a website? -Can you help build an audience?
• What techniques have you used in the past to build traffic for a website?
• What is your opinion of having a client handle copy writing, photography, and other web production?
• If I was to handle some facets of the production process, how would you be available to assist me?
• How do you currently handle most of your clients’ hosting?
• Can you help me to transfer my existing site to a new server until my development is complete?
• Will you handle email setups, domain transfers, SSL, and other features of my hosting for me?
• Explain a time when your current hosting solution was inadequate for one of your clients, and you were able to quickly create a new solution.
• In what ways do you provide support to customers as an ongoing process?
• Can you explain an instance when you progressively addressed an industry in a way that was technologically advanced?
• Can you illustrate a time when you advised your client against excessive technology when it was inappropriate for their needs?
• Are you aware of any current web services or open source software that would be adequate for this task?
• Can you explain how a custom built solution would better suit my needs than other alternatives?
• Are focus groups included in the process that you are proposing to us?
• In what ways would the target audience for this website influence your decisions in building this website?
• Can you describe how you have empowered your clients to send their message to a wider audience through email?
• What experience do you have with data collection?
• How does your system collect and display the results of data collection?
• What things have you learned through the years to make website launches more successful?
• What thoughts do you have about how to make complex interfaces easy to understand?