What to Do Before You Meet a Web Designer
A first meeting goes much better when you've thought about a few things beforehand. Not because you need to know anything technical — you don't — but because the answers you give shape what you end up paying for.
Half an hour with this list before you talk to anyone will save you a lot more than half an hour.
Work out what you want it to do
This is the question that decides everything, and most people arrive without an answer.
There's a real difference between:
- "We want to look credible when someone Googles us" — a small, fast, clean site. Cheap and quick
- "We want the phone to ring more" — the site matters less than your Google listing, your reviews, and possibly ads
- "We want to sell online" — a shop, and the real work is the products, not the website
- "We want to stop answering the same questions" — clear service pages and a good FAQ
- "We need to look right when a bigger customer checks us out" — capability, accreditations, track record
- "We're struggling to hire" — a careers section that shows what it's actually like to work there
Each is a different job at a different price. Turning up with "we need a website" means you'll be sold whatever that person usually sells.
Decide who's in the room, and who decides
If more than one person has a say, sort this out before the meeting rather than during it.
Who makes the final call? Not who has opinions — who signs off. If that isn't clear, the project will stall at the first disagreement and you'll pay for the delay.
Who's the day-to-day contact? One person, ideally someone who can answer questions without convening a meeting. Builds go quickest when the designer has one number to ring.
Who needs to see it before it goes live? Find out now whether that's two people or seven. Seven is fine — it just needs to be planned for, and it will affect the timeline and the price.
The most expensive delays on a website build are almost never technical. They're waiting for someone to come back from holiday.
Look at five websites you like
Not web design websites. Businesses like yours, or businesses you admire.
Write down what you liked about each — the layout, how clear it was, the photos, how easy it was to find the phone number. Send those links to whoever you're talking to.
Then find two you don't like and note why. That's often more useful. "I hate sites where you can't find the price" tells someone more than any brief.
Gather what you already have
Most people have more than they think. Have a look for:
- Your logo — the original file if you can find it, not a screenshot
- Photos — your work, your premises, your team, your vans
- Any text you've written — a Facebook about section, a brochure, a capability statement, a tender submission
- Your domain details — do you own one, and do you know where it's registered and how to log in
- Existing accounts — Google Business Profile, social pages, old website login
- Certifications and memberships — safety accreditations, trade bodies, insurance details you're happy to publish
The single biggest cause of delay on a website build is waiting for the customer to find these. Having them ready can genuinely take weeks off the timeline.
If a previous agency built your last site, find out what you actually have access to before you meet anyone. Who holds the domain, who has the logins, and who owns the design files. Sometimes the answer is uncomfortable, and it's better to discover it now.
List the systems it needs to work with
This is the question that separates a €1,500 quote from a €5,000 one, and people rarely raise it early.
Does the website need to connect to anything you already use? A booking system, an EPOS or till system, stock control, accounts software, a CRM, a supplier feed, an email marketing tool?
Write down what you use and what you'd want it to do. "Our stock levels should show on the site" and "enquiries should land in our CRM" are entirely reasonable asks — they're just not free, and finding out about them halfway through is how projects go over budget.
If nothing needs connecting, say that too. It's good news and it should be reflected in the price.
Know your numbers
Two you should have in your head before the meeting:
What you can spend on the build. Say it out loud, early. People worry that naming a budget means they'll be charged all of it. What actually happens is you avoid two weeks of conversation about something you were never going to buy.
What you can spend each month. This one catches people out. Almost every website has ongoing costs, and a lot of people only think about the build. Know what you're comfortable with monthly, because over five years it's a bigger number than the build ever is.
Decide who's writing it
The words are usually the bottleneck. Before you meet anyone, decide honestly:
- Someone internal will write it. Grand — but name them and block out their time, or it'll be the thing holding everything up in six weeks
- They'll write it. Expect to pay for it, and expect to give them an hour of your time to talk it through
- Nobody knows. Say that. It's a normal answer and it's better than agreeing to write it and then not
Same question for photos. If you don't have good ones, that's a cost or a job, and better to know now.
The questions to ask them
Take these with you.
On price
- What's the total, in writing, including everything?
- What are the ongoing costs, and exactly what do they include?
- What happens if we need something that wasn't in the quote?
- Is there a minimum term?
On ownership 5. Who owns the domain? Is it registered in our name? 6. Who owns the website and the content? 7. If we leave, what do we take with us, and is there a charge?
On the work 8. How many pages, and what happens if we want another? 9. How long will it take, and what do you need from us to hit that? 10. How many rounds of changes do we get? 11. Who will actually be doing the work — you, or someone else?
On afterwards 12. Who do we contact when something breaks, and how quickly do you respond? 13. Can we update it ourselves? Will you show us how? 14. What happens if you're away, or if you stop trading?
Question 11 matters with agencies — the person selling to you is often not the person building it, and that's worth knowing rather than discovering.
Question 14 matters with a one-person operation. It's a fair question and anyone decent will have an answer ready.
Answers that should worry you
"It depends, we'd need to scope it out." Sometimes fair. But if you can't get even a range after describing your business, that's a sales tactic.
"We'll register the domain for you." Fine, as long as it's in your name or transfers to you free on request. Get that in writing. A domain held hostage is the oldest trick in this industry.
"Don't worry about the technical side." You shouldn't have to understand it, but a good answer explains it in plain terms rather than waving it away. Being talked down to now is a preview of the next three years.
"We'll get you to number one on Google." Nobody can promise this. Anyone who does is either lying or doesn't know what they're talking about.
No mention of your Google Business Profile. For any business people search for locally, this does more than the website. If it hasn't come up at all, they're not thinking about your business — they're thinking about their product.
A monthly fee with no itemised list of what's in it. A monthly fee is perfectly fair when you can see what's in it. What isn't fair is "hosting and maintenance" with no detail, because you've no way of judging whether you're paying for work or for someone forwarding a hosting bill. Ask what specifically happens each month, and ask for it in writing.
Things you don't need to know
To be clear, none of this is expected of you:
- What platform it should be built on
- Anything about hosting, DNS, or SSL
- What the site should look like
- Any technical terminology whatsoever
If someone makes you feel foolish for not knowing these, that's information about them, not about you. A good web designer translates. That's a large part of the job.
One last thought
Trust how the conversation feels. You're not just buying a website — you're picking someone you'll be dealing with for years, usually at a point when something's gone wrong and you need it fixed today.
If they listen more than they talk, explain things without making you feel small, and tell you plainly what things cost, that's worth more than a slicker portfolio.
Getting ready to have this conversation? The first one with me is free and there's no obligation. Bring the list — I'll answer all fourteen.