Questions a Good Developer Should Ask You

What do you want your site to do? This is a vital issue that absolutely must be discussed before any work is done on your web site. If a web developer doesn't bring this up, you're liable to end up with a site that has no real purpose and little potential for a decent return on your investment.

Does your company have existing design guidelines? A web site should fit seamlessly into and enhance an organization's identity. If a designer does not request information about your corporate image and does not ask to look at your other marketing pieces, you might end up wasting a lot of money.

What are your future ideas for the web site? Plans will almost always change, but you can save a lot of time and money by anticipating the future. This will allow your web developer to build a more scalable site that will adapt more easily to future enhancements.

What is your target market or audience? A site geared toward price-conscious consumers will undoubtedly be prepared differently than a site oriented toward wealthy individuals looking to donate to a good cause. If your developer isn't aware of the type of people you're trying to reach, you might as well be donating money yourself.

What kinds of sites do you like/dislike? Sometimes it's difficult to convey the type of site you want, but examples of sites with a similar look or functionality can help. This information can be a great frame of reference for your developer to work with.

Exactly how many pages do you want? The number of pages that make up your site will definitely be a factor in the duration and cost of your project, but the difference between a five-page site and an eight-page site is minimal. (Eight hundred pages, however, is a different story.) Avoid at all costs any developer that offers web site "packages" based on the number of pages -- for example, a five-page site for $800, or ten pages for $1,200. You need a developer that's as flexible as you are, and packages like that are not a good sign of one.