Every web design company has their own design and development process, usage of social platforms, etc., and how they interact with clients. There has been far too much emphasis with comparing social media to a company’s web design capabilities in regards to how often their social channels are updated. Yes, I agree this is silly. But read on.

Time is a precious and limited commodity. Does Envisager Studio use social media? Yes, we do. We use social media to post company updates, blog posts, tips and other relevant content when time allows. But we choose to focus on the needs of our clients versus concerning ourselves with whether or not we posted a daily Facebook status or Tweet when there seems to be less time to spare.

I recently came across a web article that was offering non-profit website design information to nonprofit organizations regarding how to choose a web design company. One of their recommendations that sounded really odd to me and irrelevant was (and I’m paraphrasing), remove a web design firm from your bid list if they haven’t updated their Facebook page or tweeted in over 6 months.

Now, when did social platforms become the CEO, Founder, Web Design team, or the decision maker for our businesses? We lived, worked, acquired clients, created products, built websites, completed projects and more before the era of social media and we will continue to do so should they cease to exist. We, the people are the reasons why social platforms exist, not the other way around. We need to keep the purpose and usage of social media platforms in perspective. At Envisager Studio, our clients matter a great deal to us. They deserve and get our undivided attention.

Unless you’re one of the big brands with nearly an unlimited budget for hiring employees to perform all sorts of tasks, making such a callus recommendation as noted above is not only misleading, but incorrect because some web design companies actually choose not to use Facebook or Twitter for their own reasons, whether they find other platforms more useful or whatever.

As a small business owner your time is limited. You have many tasks to complete within any given day and a limited staff to assist you. In your search for a web design company, the below are just a few recommendations we feel will be helpful to you.

Prepare the Necessary Information

Before you start calling all the web design companies you may already know, it’s a good idea to compile some important information. Most web design firms will ask you some similar initial questions, so you might as well be prepared. Here is a list of the questions you should be ready to answer up front.

Get A Referral

You can ask a friend or colleague for their web design company’s contact information if you admire their website design and features.

Select A Small Number Of Web Design Firms To Contact

There are thousands of web design firms in the United States and almost all of us have websites. You may feel overwhelmed when you start your search, so this is what we recommend you do to find the firms that will be a good fit and pick which ones to talk to.

Choose The Best Web Design Firm For Your Project

After careful review of your notes (you did jot down notes during the phone consults, right?) from your phone consults with each firm, it’s time to select the best web design firm for your project. The qualities that made one firm stand out from another will be different, so make sure you’re comparing apples to apples.

Look at the quality of the websites in their online work portfolio. You can even call some of their clients for their experience in working with that web design firm.

A firm that you really like may be a little pricey, but perhaps they were including additional services. Or you like a firm but you feel you may have a different designer each time you talk to them because of the size of the firm. In any case, make sure you’re looking at each firm on a level playing field.

Envisager Studio is a small business working for small businesses. Give us a call at (858) 874-6528 or get an online web design quote. We would love to help you build something great!

Hazel Burgess

Hazel Burgess
FOUNDER/SEO DIRECTOR

Hazel is the Founder & SEO Director at Envisager Studio, a premier website design agency specializing in WordPress website design, development and internet marketing. In her spare time, she writes about search engine optimization, website design, and internet marketing.