How to choose a web designer or developer (without regret)

Search "web design companies" or "web developer near me" and you will get hundreds of options that all promise the same thing. Here is how to tell them apart.

Look at live sites, not screenshots

Open their portfolio sites on your phone. Are they fast? Readable? Do they still work? Screenshots hide everything that matters.

Ask who does the work

Agencies, freelancers, and studios can all be great. What matters is knowing who will design, write, and build your site, and whether you can talk to that person directly.

Ask about words

Most websites fail on copy, not design. Does the team write and edit, or will you be handed a template full of placeholder text a week before launch?

Ask about search, including AI search

How will people find the site? Ask about technical SEO, structured data, page speed, and how they approach visibility in Google AI Overviews and ChatGPT. Vague answers are an answer.

Ask what happens after launch

Can you edit content yourself? Who owns the domain, hosting, and code? What does ongoing support cost?

Watch for red flags

Guaranteed first-page rankings. No written scope. Pressure to decide fast. Refusal to share past clients.

A good fit feels like this

They ask more about your goals than your color preferences. They tell you when something is not worth the money. They explain things without jargon. That is the standard we hold ourselves to at Beal Street Media.