The Ultimate Cheat Sheet | Why, How & Where to Hire Web Designers in 2018

Contents:

• Do you need a web designer?
• What to look for in a designer
• Agencies vs. freelancers
• Superside web designers
• How much you should expect to pay
• Questions to ask
• Agencies
• Marketplaces

A key difference between new businesses and those in the higher echelon of web-based marketing is the design of their website. If you’re looking to take your business to the next level of competitiveness, a crucial step is to hire web designers to reshape your online presence.

Why do You need a Web Designer to Design Your Website?

1. Make first impressions of your brand count

In 2018, it’s a safe bet that your website is going to be the first impression that most of your visitors, clients, media or potential investors form of your business.

Although, there are many pre-made templates that you can pick for your website, but nothing can beat having a custom web design that is tailor made to fit your brand and business needs.

2. Let your website sell for you

Your website’s importance climbs to a whole new level when it acts as a sales channel for you. Whether you're in a service industry attracting clients through your site, an e-commerce store selling products or a content-based business that depends on advertisements, conversion rate is where it's at these days.

It's amazing how minor design changes can drastically impact your conversion rates. To enhance conversions, work with a web designer who is well-versed in conversion-oriented design principles. They will know how to get your website sales flying through the roof.

3. Keep the search engines happy

The reality is that in 2018, there is no way of getting around Google. After all, search engines are still one of the best ways to get millions of visitors to your website for free. To position yourself for success, it is imperative that your web design is SEO friendly.

Site speed, navigation, user friendliness, mobile experience, and responsiveness are some of the key SEO factors that heavily depend on the design of your site. It is best to have a designer on board who understands how to work alongside SEO guidelines.

4. Let experts do what they’re best at

Larger corporations may have both the capacity and the need to do web design in-house, but smaller businesses often find in-house web design impractical.

Hiring an outside agency or freelancer who knows what they are doing is the perfect solution that ensures you maintain creative control over the process.

What to Look for When Choosing a Web Designer to Hire?

• Aesthetic Sense & Design Style – First things first: every designer has their own style. You need a designer to match with what you envision. If you are looking for a professional, minimalist look, you don’t want someone who always works with bold colors and busy graphics. Ask for portfolios and make sure their design fits your idea.
• Technical Know-How – Think about what exactly you need from the designer. Do you expect them to be familiar with certain skills like HTML, CSS, Javascript or a particular CMS? Do you need them to help with front end development as well? Make sure to check their experience with all the skills you need before hiring.
• Understanding of Business Goals – It's important for the designer to work with you toward the bigger goals of your business. Make sure they understand what experience you are trying to give your users, what image you want your brand to have, and SEO and conversion rate optimization.
• Experience – Before you make the decision of hiring a web design agency or a web design freelancer, make sure to check their reviews or ask for references. This will really help you understand if they are the right partner for you.

Web Design Agencies vs Freelancers

Before you make the choice between a freelancer and an agency to hire web designers, think about these factors:

• Budget – How much are you willing to spend on this project?
• Time Constraints – How much time are you willing to wait?
• Creative Control – How much creative control do you wish to have over the design?

Web Design Freelancers

• Pros
  • Cheaper – It is possible to find good freelancers within a limited budget.
  • Works with your schedule – Some freelancers can agree to work with very short deadlines and turnaround times.
  • More creative control – Freelancers can work more closely with you allowing you to contribute more in terms of design decisions.
• Cons
  • Harder to find – Marketplaces are inundated with freelancers. It can be challenging to find the right one.
  • Trust factor – It's not as easy to find reviews and references for freelance web designers. You may have to just go by their portfolio.
  • Quality – Since there’s no middle man here, you are on your own when it comes to poor quality results, dissatisfaction or any other issues.

Web Design Agencies

• Pros
  • Wider range of services – A lot of specialized agencies offer marketing, web development and SEO services along with web design as a package.
  • Quality – Agencies spend a lot on keeping abreast with the latest trends, tools and best practices.
  • Reviews – It’s easy to find reviews for big agencies.
  • Customer support/Account Manager – Agencies offer some kind of support either with a customer service team or a dedicated account manager to help you with any concerns.
• Cons
  • Expensive – They are usually more expensive.
  • Overhead/Retainer costs – The additional services come at additional costs making it even more expensive.
  • Bells and Whistles – They tend to push add on services that you can easily do without.

Web Design with Superside

At Superside, we took a long look at the digital design marketplace and decided that we weren’t satisfied with either extreme. Our approach is to bring freelance talent to a unified space and create a combined portfolio overseen by the world’s best freelance designers and account managers.

Whatever your web design needs–website redesign, a custom landing page, or a fresh start with web designs and mockups–Superside will customize its approach for you.

Superside specialists are familiar with the market and take pride in staying on the cutting edge of evolving trends.

What Should You Expect to Pay to Hire Web Designers?

Web designers can charge a broad range of prices depending on the scale of work. On the lower end are freelancers that start at close to $30/hour. Web design agencies are often on the high end asking for well over $100/hour.

There are many reasons that paying more or less is right for your business, but be sure to weigh the pros and cons of freelancers vs. agencies that we outlined above before deciding.

Questions to Ask a Web Designer Before Hiring

You should ask questions before you commit to a partner. Asking the right questionscan prevent misunderstandings and ensure the candidate has the skill set you need.

We found this helpful infographic that sums it up perfectly.

Having explored some of the key elements of web design and the search for top web design talent, let’s take a moment to go over some of the well-known names in web design that can provide a good starting place for your search.

Web Design Agencies

These agencies are well established in the industry and have the depth to deliver on your requests.

WebpageFX

WebpageFX provides UX web design, UX web redesign, and rapid web design. With a focus on results-driven digital marketing, this agency offers full service solutions engineered to build revenue for their clients.

New Media

New Media provides web design, development, UX, and branding. Billing themselves as a full-service interactive agency, this Denver-based designer has experience delivering results for top national and global clients.

Hudson

Hudson offers Web design as well as UI/UX design, with an approach geared towards digital integration: causing your website to stand out and create a seamless user experience.

Blue Fountain Media

Blue Fountain Media – handles every element of a branding campaign, from the logo design to strategy and consulting.

Spinx Digital

Spinx Digital create websites for B2B and B2C enterprises, including work on mobile apps and digital strategy.

Eight25 Media

Eight25 Media is one of the top web design agencies in San Francisco, ranging from tech start-ups to educational websites.

Lounge Lizard

Lounge Lizard makes user experience a priority, dedicating a team to learn their clients’ needs and develop an end-to-end customized approach.

Dotlogics

Dotlogics makes a point of doing the research to help develop a customized strategy that they then apply to your web development needs.

Dotcomweavers

Dotcomweavers take the same creativity inherent in their name to every new project, developing custom apps and eCommerce websites.

Ruckus Marketing

Ruckus Marketing boasts an impressive portfolio, which features names like CNN and the Colbert Report who went to Ruckus for the brand development needs.

Web Design Marketplaces

In contrast to the larger and more expensive agencies suggested above, these marketplaces offer an efficient and flexible approach to finding the right freelancer for your organization.

Toptal

Toptal prides itself on curating a highly selective network of freelancers in a variety of areas, with a special emphasis on design. At Toptal you can take as long as you need to get a sense of the talent available, and start a conversation with any of them before you commit.

Design Crowd

Design Crowd, as the name suggests, goes out of its way to attract freelancers in design. With access to thousands of workers, Design Crowd’s specialization allows you to focus on the details of your project, finding exactly the right fit for your organization.

Crowdspring

Crowdspring offers a variety of packages intended to suit a variety of business needs. Their flexible pricing and client-centered approach lends itself to a speedy and satisfying customer experience.

Crew

Crew promises to match clients with a freelance designer, software developer, or studio within 24 hours.

Gigster

Gigster provides a unique smart development service to integrate AI into their development and design freelance platform.

Xplace

Xplace has facilitated well over $200 million worth of projects in the last 15 years, drawing on a well-established presence to continue to deliver.

Hexi Design

Hexi Design specializes in crafting custom logos, stationary and websites, tailoring its services specifically towards startups.

Crowdsite

Crowdsite boasts tens of thousands of designers, using creative design and brainstorming contests to generate an innovative approach.

Design Contest

Design Contest has been pioneering creative approaches to design since 2003, specializing in everything from corporate identity to clothing design.

Peopleperhour

Peopleperhour operates as its name suggests, and offers services that range from software development to web and mobile design to writing and translation services.

At Superside, we’re staying at the forefront of what’s new in web design, and we hope these key industry secrets help you make the right decision for your web design needs. Whether you require web design, convincing copy, or innovative graphics, Superside is your online creative outsourcing solution.

Now that you have everything you need, here is some inspiration for your next web design project.