Nowadays, a business website forms a core part of the identity, strategy and operations of any business. If you don’t think so, then perhaps you should stop reading now. For the other 7 billion of us, here are five steps to getting the best website design possible for your business:

1. Understand your objectives

It’s simple enough…know what you want to do with your website before you even get started! Are you selling products online? Generating leads for your sales team? Or simply showing off your portfolio? Figure this out before you even contact a web design agency.

2. Do some research

Don’t walk into a meeting with a potential website design agency without having done atleast some background research. Who are they? What work have they done in the past? Who are some of their clients? Also, make sure you have done some research on competitors and take with a list of websites that you like (or ones that might be similar).

3. Choose wisely

You’ll notice that the about point starts off with the assumption that you are meeting with your website design specialist. I make this assumption because from my perspective, this is a must! It’s not a “maybe”, or a “I’ll think about it”, or optional…it’s a MUST. The reason being, you can tell so much more about a business, or the people that work there, once you have met face to face…Now, once you have met, you must ensure that you choose the right agency to get the best website design possible.

So,here are a couple criteria I would look for:

• Like minded individuals who buy into your vision
• Quality products already delivered
• Client recommendations
• Willingness to negotiate the cost
• Not the cheapest in the market – you get what you pay for!

4. Participate and collaborate

Don’t expect to be spoon fed. Get involved, participate and share ideas with your developer. Give them every opportunity to understand your vision and also provide them with as much information as is humanly possible. This is meant to be a creative process… so get creative! To get the best website design, you need to give your best effort and pool your resources and ideas wherever possible!

5. Open your hands

Don’t veto every decision or idea that is put forward, even when you think you know better…afterall you hired someone as an expert…let them provide you with their expertise! Let go and trust that you are getting the best possible product (this will be the case if you handled steps 1 -3 properly).

Any other suggestions? Let us know in the comments below…