Who should build your website? A guide to choosing a developer

Choose a developer around the work your website needs to do. A multilingual catalogue with payments and stock updates calls for a broader skills check than a service page with an enquiry form.

Freelancer, studio or agency

A freelancer can own a small project or handle a specific part of it. Agree on cover for periods when they are unavailable. Ask a studio who will handle design, development and testing. Ask an agency which tasks its own team delivers and who manages subcontractors.

Company size tells you little on its own. Request a working project with similar requirements and an explanation of the developer's contribution.

Compare like for like

• Send each candidate the same brief covering users, pages, languages, forms, integrations and content.
• Request separate estimates for planning, design, development, content entry, testing and launch.
• Include recurring costs for hosting, licences, subscriptions, updates and support.
• Agree on acceptance criteria and how additional work will be priced.

Plan the handover

Register the domain, hosting and business accounts in the owner's name. The handover checklist should include source files, access, a backup, editor instructions and agreed support terms. Test complete journeys: a visitor submits an enquiry, a staff member receives it and an editor updates a page.

Marketing MIX's service page bases pricing on project scope. This article's old price bands have been removed; a shared brief is the basis for a useful quote comparison.

Related resources and services

• Creating sites from scratch

Sources

• Marketing MIX: website development