December 25th, 2007 — outsource-yes or no
Any company who goes online looking for web design companies quickly realizes that there are many local companies as well as many global companies available. Many companies wonder whether they should hire a local web design company or outsource overseas in order to find web design services. Is very rare in business to get a straightforward answer, so businesses will want to sit up and listen: the best way to ensure quality is to hire a domestic web design company. While many overseas Web design companies deliver good quality, there are many advantages to hiring a web design company based in the same country where you are located:
1) Domestic web design companies are governed by domestic laws, labor practices, and standards. When you hire overseas, you may simply have less say about what goes on at a company. When you hire domestically, you know that all company employees are protected by labor laws, and therefore get adequate pay as well as basic standards of living — if they don’t, there are places where they can seek help and redress. Similarly, when you hire domestically, you know that there are laws that protect you. In case of nondelivery, you can complain to your Better Business Bureau, or hire a lawyer. This is often not the case when you hire overseas. It is also important to remember that domestic web design companies live up to certain standards in order to exist. You simply do not have that same assurance with overseas companies, where the standards might be higher or lower.
2) Domestic web design companies understand your local audience. If your audience is largely North American, you will want to hire professionals who understand that market. In many cases, domestic web design company simply understand that market better, since they work with that market every day and live in that community as well.
3) It is much easier to check out on your local or domestic web design company. If you hire domestically or locally, it becomes much easier for you to check in on the progress of how your web site is doing. While calling overseas may require scheduling calls in the middle of the night or in the early morning, domestically you can probably call during business hours to find out how things are going. With less problems in communication and fewer language issues, it should be easier for you to get simple answers to your questions.
4) It is often cheaper to hire domestically or locally. If you hire a domestic or local web design company, you know what you are paying up front because you will be paying in your domestic currency. While overseas prices may be attractive, the British pound, for example, is generally worth much more, so you may experience sticker shock when you see the conversion rate of the currency. Similarly, some overseas companies charge additional fees, taxes, or costs that drive the price of creating a web site up dramatically. In addition, there may be tax implications for hiring overseas, which can complicate your tax return and cost you more in taxes.
November 30th, 2007 — web design myths
Myth #1: You have to be a huge company with an enormous budget to hire a web design company.
The Truth: The truth is, even tiny one-person businesses and businesses who haven’t even started yet often hire a web design company — often on shoestring budgets. In today’s competitive market, having a well-designed web site can often mean the difference between business success and business failure. With the majority of businesses failing in their first year of operations, many business owners are realizing that having a good web site can bring in extra customers from outside their geographic area. Quite simply, a good web site that gets real results is a must for business success. While there are many programs that teach you how to develop your own web site, a professional web site is simply not the same as a personal web site. Even if you know enough HTML to place your photos on the Web, a web design company can actually help produce the type of professional, quality web site that can ensure more profitability. Many business owners look at it this way: a well-designed web site that brings in more customers often pays for itself. Plus, many web site design companies, including Ciplex, have a variety of packages and services available. From whole service packages that take you from idea to completed web sites, to simple services that allow you to tweak your web site for a small fee, you can spend a little or a lot with a web design company to get great results.
Myth #2: Hiring a web design company means hiring someone to design your web site
The Truth: While it’s true that web site companies design beautiful web sites, this is truly not the only reason why someone would hire a web design company. Web design companies also provide a number of other useful services, including refreshing and updating an existing site, making your web site more visible on search engines, marketing your web sites, and much more. Essentially, if you need help with your online presence in any way or wish to make more money online, a web design company should be your first line of attack.
Myth #3: You should hire a web company by price, or by portfolio
The Truth: Both methods are incorrect. While portfolios can show you how attractively a web design firm can put together web sites, they do not tell you much about how a web site performs. Ideally, you will want to speak to a potential web site company in order to find out how effective their web sites are and how the sites have transformed online performance for business. You’ll want to find out what results a company’s web sites actually get. You’ll also want to avoid choosing your web design company by price. Some very inexpensive web site design companies simply don’t have the staff, expertise, or knowledge to make your web site really work. Some large and very expensive web site design companies don’t necessarily deliver the quality that you would expect for that amount. In order to find a web site design company, there is simply one thing you must do: you must compare several companies and speak with former clients to find out how satisfied these companies were with their experience. Did their sale actually increase as a result of the web site design services they received? Were they satisfied with the service they received for the price?