Why you should take the Website Quality Challenge Test
Finding a Web Designer who can give you a competitive price for a new starter website is one thing.
But can they also give you a good quality website to go with it? Well, that can be a little more tricky.
Let us guide you through some of the items which you should be considering to help you source that good quality starter website you deserve for your charity, voluntary group, or small business.
1. Look at the Web Designer's own website
This may sound simple advice but taking time to look at the quality of the web designer's own website can tell you a lot. Does their own website convey a feeling of good quality to you? If a website designer can't spend the time in getting their own website looking good then you really should consider whether they would have the time, skills, and commitment in getting yours to look right either. |
2. Does the Web Designer hold an appropriate IT qualification?
Although not essential, it may cut down your own risk if you try and find a web designer who possesses an appropriate IT or computing qualification that is appropriate to the type of work you are asking them to do for you. It is quite easy for people to profess to be something which they aren't. Don't be afraid to ask the web designer to show you their qualification certificate. It is not uncommon now for web designers to hold degree level certificates. |
3. Ask to see some of the Web Designer's previous work
How long has the Web Designer been operating for? Ask to see some examples of previous websites which they have built for people. This will give you a good yardstick to judge from.
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4. Get your website written to W3C standards of coding
Be aware if a web designer doesn't mention at all, or totally ignores to inform you, that a website should be written to accord with clean and proper coding standards.
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W3C is a consortium committed to raising standards of websites on the World Wide Web. A website designer who states that they will validate your website to W3C standards is a step in the right direction.
Once the website designer creates your website, they will eventually add a W3C logo (similar to the one shown below) to each web page that they validate.
If you click on the logo it will perform an online validation of that particular web page and will prove to you whether the website designer has taken their time to create an interoperable website for you which is written to proper coding standards.
Click on the Logo below to perform
an online validation of this web page
NB: If the website designer doesn't build websites to proper coding standards then there could be a real possibility that your website may experience problems when it is launched onto the Internet. For example, your web page may not display properly in a range of browsers, your web page may encounter accessibility issues, and so on.
Why not perform your own validation of some websites online by using the W3C Validator tool yourself? Infact, why not perform your own online validation of a web designer's own website to see if it is written to proper coding standards before you choose to go with a particular website designer.
Simply click on the validator link below - |
Once the validator page has opened simply type in the web address of any website you wish to check online. For example, type in
www.smartdrive-som.co.uk
and click the 'check' button. The results which are returned will be the proof you need as to whether a particular web page has been written to proper coding standards. Web pages written to proper coding standards will pass the validation test. Web pages not written to proper coding standards will fail the validation test. |
5. Beware of things that are too fancy
A website designer may offer you all sorts of things on a website to secure your business. But be aware of the pitfalls. If what you are after is simply a starter website, do you really need your website to have things on it which you may not necessarily need?
For example, a website designer may offer you a website which contains lots of flash generated images to it. Flash can look good on a website but it can also come with certain problems.
For example, flash may not display correctly in peoples' web browsers resulting in a big gaping space on your web page where your flash banner would have normally been displayed. This can be a real turn off for customers and could mean they will close down your website and probably not return.
Flash images can also take a long time to load up on a customer's monitor screen, especially if they are using an older dial up modem connection. Again, this can cause the customer to simply 'switch off' your website.
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6. Make sure the basics work
A good website designer will make sure that the 'basics' work on websites they design.
NB: Why not test some of these items for yourself on a website which they have already designed for someone else.
We consider the basic items that a website designer must build into your website are:
- the website must be tested on the more popular range of web browsers which people use to make sure it displays properly e.g. Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Opera, and Netscape. Not everyone uses Internet Explorer as their browser and if your website does not display properly in other browsers then those people which use other web browsers may simply just shut down your website. The website should also be tested on a range of different screen resolution sizes.
- the font size on a website must be able to be adjusted by the user. Some users like to increase the size of the text on a web page to a larger size to make it easier for them to read a web page if they have eyesight problems. The web designer must ensure that the text on websites which they design can be easily adjusted if the user decides to go to page > text size > larger (or smaller), through their browser window functions.
- the website must load up quickly even when slower connection speeds are in use. If it doesn't then one reason for this is that the designer may not know how to optimise the images properly so that web pages load up quickly. Websites that take a long time to load up may cause your user to simply shut the website down.
- all the navigation links on the website must work. Again, this is an essential part of a web designer's job and they must ensure that all navigation links on the website work properly.
- the website must be structured properly and, generally speaking, if a user can find the information they want on your website within just 3 clicks of the mouse then that's a good thing as it shows your information is easy to find.
- the website should be designed with colour coordination in mind and to reflect the intended target audience of your core business.
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7. Consider asking for references
You may want to consider asking for references from previous customers. The web designer should not have any problems in providing you with previous customer contacts if you want them. But you will still need to decide if the references are totally genuine. Consider who the previous customer is - are they a reputable organisation who are giving you the reference? We recommend asking for two references.
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8. Always read the Web Designer's Terms and Conditions
Last but not least, always read the web designer's own terms and conditions as these will dictate the terms which will be applied to your website order. Look for terms and conditions that are easy to understand and which try not to 'pull the wool over your eyes'. There should be no hidden surprises. After all, you want to choose a web designer where you can develop a trusting working relationship together built upon an open and honest rapport.
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