You are going to have a website built and have an initial conversation with a developer or agency. How well that conversation goes: and how competitive the subsequent quote is: largely depends on your preparation. With this checklist you can check point by point what you need to have in order in advance. No hours of work, but an evening of good thinking.
The checklist
1. Determine the purpose of your website
This is the most important question of the conversation: what should the website deliver? "Looking professional" is not a goal, but a prerequisite. More concrete goals are: ten requests per month, booking appointments online, filling vacancies, selling products. The more concrete the goal, the more targeted a developer can build: and the better you can measure afterwards whether the investment is working.
2. Describe your target group
Who should the site convince? Private individuals or companies? People from the region or the whole of the Netherlands? Are they price-conscious buyers or customers who primarily look for quality? These answers determine the tone of the texts, the structure of the pages and even the technical choices. Write down two or three typical customers in advance and what they want to know before contacting them.
3. Collect sample sites
Find three to five websites that appeal to you and note what appeals to you per site: the calm appearance, the clear prices, the way projects are shown. Also include one or two sites that you don't like, stating the reason. For a developer, this is gold: it prevents you from talking about "modern" and "sleek" when you both mean something different.
4. Organize your content
Most delays in web projects are not caused by technology, but by content. Take inventory in advance of what you have:
- Texts: Do you already have texts, and who will write the missing ones? Yourself, the developer, or a copywriter?
- Photos: real photos of your team, work and location work better than stock images. Are there recent, sharp photos available or will a photographer be required?
- Logo and corporate identity: Do you have a high-resolution logo (preferably a vector file such as SVG or AI) and corporate identity colors, or does that also need to be arranged?
Be honest about this in the conversation. "Content is provided by the customer" sounds nice in a quotation, but if nothing is there, the project stagnates.
5. Determine your budget (and share it)
Many entrepreneurs keep their budget secret for fear that the price will happen to be exactly the same. Logical thinking, but it is counterproductive. With a budget range, a developer can immediately say what is and is not possible within that range, and you avoid quotes that are twice as high. Also think about recurring costs: hosting, maintenance, email and further development are in addition to the one-off construction price.
6. Arrange domain and email
Do you already have a domain name? Then check two things: is the domain in your name (and not that of a previous party), and do you have the login details of the registrar? Also think about your business email: info@jouwbedrijf.nl looks more professional than a Gmail address and is easy to arrange with the same hosting.
7. Record who decides
Who provides feedback on designs and who gets to give final approval? If those are two different people: or worse, an entire board of directors: say so up front. Nothing slows down a project like a decision that always has to be "discussed internally". One point of contact with a mandate is ideal.
Practical tip: literally take this checklist with you to the interview, with your answers behind it. A good developer appreciates that enormously: and you can immediately hear from his or her questions whether they are really thinking along or just selling a standard package.
Questions you should ask the developer
The interview is also your opportunity to test the developer. Questions you should always ask:
- What is the total price and what exactly does it include? Ask for a fixed price with a clear description of what is and is not included.
- Who actually builds my site? Do you speak to the builder himself, or to a seller who passes on the work?
- How fast does the site load? Ask for specific loading times from previous projects. Slow websites cost visitors and findability.
- Who owns the site, domain and code? The only correct answer: you. Everything must be in your name.
- What happens after launch? Who does updates and security, how much does it cost, and how quickly is the response to problems?
- Can I adjust texts and photos later? If not, what does an adjustment cost?
- Can I see references or similar projects? Preferably from your industry or with a similar purpose.
Finally
A first conversation does not have to be a sales trapeze. With your goal, target group, examples, content status, budget and decision line in order, it becomes a working conversation with a concrete result: a quotation that is correct and a schedule that is realistic.
Want to get started yourself?
Do you want to put this checklist into practice immediately? Plan one free consultation with AgentsLabs: we simply ask the questions in this article ourselves, and you will receive a fixed-price proposal within a week.