5 MORE Misconceptions About Working With A Pro Web Designer
So, you feel like it's time to hire some help to create, revamp or refresh your small business website?
Working with a web designer is a great option for those who aren't interested in DIYing their business website, or need the skills of a professional (like me 😉) to feel confident that everything is done just right!
Before you hire the right one for you, it's worth gaining some context on what you should and shouldn't expect from a web designer. Here are some common misconceptions to consider:
1. All web designers are the same
Nope! This isn't the case at all. As with every other profession, web designers have a variety of different educations, skillsets, specialisms, and experience across different industries. Outside of technical skills, web designing is an incredibly creative process as well, and different designers will have different creative styles. These are all things to consider and weigh when choosing the right designer for you!
2. The more expensive, the better - right?
As with so many other products and services, cost isn't a good indicator of quality when it comes to hiring a web designer. The cost of a website might increase if it's being custom coded (more time and skill is involved here) but otherwise, it's less about how high the cost of a designer is and more about how their style, expertise and skillset fits you and your business.
3. Building a website doesn't take long/takes too long
There is no easy answer to this one - the truth is that the time it takes to create a website depends completely on the capabilities you need and your web designer's process. Some desginers may have a long timeline so that they can complete their other work at the same time, while others only work on one website at a time, meaning you're likely to have a shorter timeline. Find a designer you like and enquire about their process - then you can decide what kind of timeline suits you best!
4. Web designers and developers are the same thing
A web designer focuses on the design and strategy involved in your website - this is the front facing part of your site that your clients and customers will see. A web developer does all the coding on the back end of your website - this is the 'behind the scenes' part containing all of the information that makes your front facing website look and work as you like. Some designers can do some coding and vice versa, but for the most part, designing and coding are separate jobs.
However, web builder platforms like Squarespace and WIX make it easy for web designers to build without the need for a developer, as all of the important coding is included!
5. An agency/team is required to build a website
Unless custom coding for something is needed, a web designer and web builder of choice is all you need to get your business online - no team required! Web builders provide all sorts of shop and subcription models for different business models, as well as a number of plugins that you can subcribe to to provide things like online courses and other online products.
