Seeking a website design agency? Here’s what Rumi suggests.

Here are three interesting facts for you to mull over:

1. The web design services market is valued at $40.8 billion in the U.S.
2. The total number of web designers and developers in the U.S. will reach over 205,000 by 2030.
3. The employment rate of web designers and developers is estimated to grow by 8% from 2019 to 2029 which is faster than the average of all other jobs.  

You reading this article proves you know the importance of website designers. However, you want help. What are things you should keep in mind while hiring a website design agency?

Thus, you search on the internet. However, you find the same information everywhere in different words. You roll your eyes and sigh.

How about we spruce things up? In the next five minutes, learn what Rumi would suggest you keep in mind while seeking a website design agency.

 

1. Check social proof — case studies and testimonials

 

“The world’s flattery and hypocrisy is a sweet morsel:eat less of it, for it is full of fire. Its fire is hidden while its taste is manifest, but its smoke becomes visible in the end.”

– Rumi

 

Look out for:

Testimonials

Check for client testimonials on multiple platforms:

• The agency’s website
• Third-party websites
• Google reviews

Checking on multiple platforms makes sure you’re not deciding based on paid or crafted reviews which might be present on the agency website.

Customer data

Check for:

• The number of clients they’re working with. (Join over 10,000 happy customers).
• Big names in their clientele (We have worked with brands such as Amazon, Trello, and Buffer).
• Specific statistics from the big clientele (Serving Amazon for 10+ years).

Case studies

Check for:

• The step-by-step process the agency took for the project.
• The way they handled issues that crept up.
• The kind of results they provided. 

 

2. Learn the art of managing a vendor agency

 

“It’s your road, and yours alone. Others may walk it with you, but no one can walk it for you.”

– Rumi

 

Follow these steps to manage a vendor agency without much hassle:

Set up project expectations

Set up these expectations when you sign the contract. Here’s how. 

Identify your long-term business goals (what you want to achieve in the next five years). Break that long-term goal down into short-term goals (what do you want to achieve in a year, in a month, and in a week).

Figure out where you need the vendor agency’s help. Communicate the same with the agency.

The process prevents the wastage of time and resources. Furthermore, you can evaluate the vendor’s performance without much hassle.  

Establish Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to track vendor performance

The KPIs vary as per the business needs. However, the general KPIs you can track are:

• Cost management. Measure the KPI by analyzing order costs, discounted pricing, and profits retained, among others.
• Quality management. Measure the KPI by analyzing order accuracy, warranties, staff expertise, and conformance to requirements, among others.  
• Delivery management. Measure the KPI by analyzing on-time delivery and response time to emergencies and issues with orders, among others. 
• Relationship management. Measure the KPI by analyzing the vendor’s flexibility, commitment, and innovation, among others.
• Customer satisfaction. Measure the KPI by analyzing how happy your customers are with the service or product, the customer care service, and receiving answers to their questions, among others. 

 Measure vendor risks to avoid those risks

Analyze and communicate any issues you find with the vendor agency. A meeting every two weeks would suffice.

Create a list of questionnaires to assess the risks associated with vendors. Here are some of the questions you can ask:

• What is your on-time delivery percentage?
• What is your strategy to continue business if a pandemic occurs?
• What are the security practices you have in place to prevent a breach?  
• What is your liability insurance plan? 
• What are your internal and client communication processes?

Furthermore, measure these aspects surrounding vendor management:

• Operational
• Financial 
• Fraud and theft 
• IT disruption or failure

 

3. Choose specialists over generalists

 

“Don’t turn your head.
Keep looking at the bandaged place.
That’s where
the Light enters you.”

― Rumi

 

Why? Ask yourself three questions to decide:

Do you need to identify the problem or implement a solution?

If you’re not sure what the problem is, a generalist can be your best friend. Can’t figure out why there are no leads? The generalist can spot the issue of low website traffic. 

However, that’s not the case when you’re searching for a website design agency.

You searching for such a service means you know the problem. Perhaps you have identified a non-responsive website and want to develop a responsive one. You might want to revamp the UX design of the website. You might need a different landing page.

For all those needs, a specialist is your best friend.

Do you want a specific skill to solve your problem?

If you don’t have a company blog, that’s a problem a generalist can solve. Why? A generalist writer can adapt their writing style and tone as per your brand voice. Furthermore, they can research and write quality blogs for you as well.

However, if you have gone a step further and know the solution as well, that’s when you need a specialist. The solution you need might be developing an app, creating a landing page, or dynamic versions of the website homepage.

Those are skills a generalist cannot master in a short span of time. That’s why we suggest going for a specialist.

Do you want to control each step of the process? 

If you want to micromanage, a generalist is better as they can mold their processes to suit yours.

However, that shouldn’t be your goal. 

A website design agency comes with professionals who have both the skillset and years of experience. They know what they’re doing and how to tackle each difficulty they come across.

Thus, go for a specialist and invest your time in more important aspects of your business such as acquiring clients and hiring the right team members.

Read More: The benefits of hiring a creative design agency

 

Rumi’s suggestions on seeking a website design agency — a recap

50% of customers believe website design is crucial to the overall brand of a business. Thus, it’s essential to hire the best possible website design agency for your needs.

I hope the post has offered you enough information to make your task easier. Furthermore, who doesn’t want to read the timeless verses of Rumi while doing so, right?