The {*}’s Guide to Hiring a Web Professional

Are you looking for a good web professional - a freelance designer/developer or consultant?** Had a bad experience with a web professional lately? Been ripped off? Every one of my new clients these days have at least a couple of horror stories. There was the $4,000 sent to the Indian company that stopped working on the project and still keeps asking for money. AND they are trying to steal his idea. No kidding. Then another client of mine who spent $75,000, out of their personal expense, for a site that probably was only worth $3,000, and never got done. Whether you starting off fresh or have been burned I'm going to outline some steps to help you tussle with the challenges of having a web site built and finding reliable and competent web professional(s).

Educate Thyself – Seven Steps to Website Intelligence

If you are going to have a good experience building your site, you'll need to educate yourself about the nature of web development and, probably, need to let go of a few misconceptions. If you've been through multiple web professionals and are still not satisfied, I'm going to ask you: what is it about you that chooses people/companies like them? Your resistance to self-educating yourself is probably the hold up. Stop resisting and start learning:

Step One
Expect bugs

Unrealistic expectations have been the bane of my existence since I got into offering technology services back in 1988. People just want their high tech thing to work. I don't blame them. However the fact is that computer technology is, maturity-wise, the emotional equivalent of a five year old. Yup. You are actually expecting the equivalent of a five year old to run your web site. You want a mature technology? One that is sure-fire going to just work? Let go of that expectation.

I'm not joking. The other day, while working on an ECommerce setup which used PayPal, PayPal’s developer site went down with a big old 500 server error. For a whole day. These kind of things are not unique. Almost daily we witness multimillion dollar bank systems go down, FaceBook pages have bad hair days, Twitter gets hacked, etc. It would be a mistake to think your hired professional(s), with a budget of well under six figures is going to be able to beat the odds of these well financed corporations with whole departments at their disposal. Anticipate and plan for bugs.

What kind of bugs you will have really depend on the nature of your site. I can throw up a basic WordPress blog in an hour and (maybe) have none. But the moment you want to have a little tweak here and there the odds of having only a few bugs to deal with plummet. This is when you need to have an experienced web professional(s) handy - someone who's very good at problem solving.

Some bugs will be quick and easy to fix. But here's the rub, some will take weeks, even, yes, maybe years to iron out (can you say MicroSoft...?). Other bugs will get ironed out... only to cause new ones. It will seem like you are working on a house of cards. This means what was working yesterday is not working today because some new feature go implemented. This is normal. Manage the process (see below).

Step Two
Avoid Deadlines - Do Target Dates Instead

Save yourself a nightmare, don't plan a site with any bells and whistles and commit to any deadlines with expensive parties and advertising roll outs. Do target dates and fallback plans instead - part of Managing the Process, below.

Step Three
Learn to Manage the Process

99.9 percent of people who buy a car have absolutely no interest in knowing about the trials and challenges that went into building their car. They just go to a car lot pick a color, maybe pay for a sun roof to be installed, buy it and drive away. This is the exact opposite way you should go about having your site built for you. 

Just like the engineers who built your car engine, somewhere around 80-90% of the work any developer/designer does for you won't be seen. A good designer might make 30 different versions of your logo and show you only three. Sound crazy? I highly recommend you think about it. Advertising agencies will throw whole staffs at designing a logo - for a week. Similarly your programmer/developer is going to spend a large portion of their time tuning the software for optimal behavior, or, simply debugging to give you the kind of efficiency we'd usually take for granted (but actually comes with blood, sweat, stress, and time).

The phrase 'Manage the process' does not mean you should micro-manage your site's development at all. Manage the Process means you are going to need to know how to realistically measure and gauge the development process of your site. Sound complicated? It's not. It really comes down to good communications between you and your web professional(s). On some level you will need to be aware of the {usually} invisible processes going on to create your gorgeous new site. A good web professional has communication methods of keeping you in the process loop (I use an online tracking program called Redmine). Do Not expect visual results (daily). Do expect to develop a sense if the process is stuttering along or swimming along - do you know what your developer has been working on for the past week? In planning your site, build a list of milestones to head for and a bug list to add to, and debug along the way. Measure the process by check-marking these lists. This is Managing the Process.

Step Four
Know that the Devil is in the Details

Web site building and design is about endless details. I really mean endless. When I build a Drupal site these days I often don't have to touch much of the programming code. I spend hours and hours simply configuring the site via it's administrative interface. The level of complexity is wholly dependent on your requirements for the site. Expect to learn how to administer your site, at least a little bit - especially if you are doing it on a tight budget. This will give you a taste of the details and why they are a necessary part of the developing process. Many clients I know started off with the nifty idea that they could sell some of their product X by having a little web site that links to PayPal... Only to find out they were not prepared to handle or pay someone to deal with the details of shipping, taxes, communication, stocking, and returns which are themelves only part of the HUGE array of details that swamp even the smallest ECommerce site.

Step Five
Expect and Manage Feature Creep

Often conflicts erupt between clients and web professionals because there is disagreement about whether or not some feature was in the original specifications. This is a waste of time. My experience is that nobody but an IRS policy writer wants to write down each and every specification of a project. By all means DO create a blueprint of features you are looking for. Set up expectations at the beginning that this site will be an evolving entity, as it is built. Much like building a house you'll start with agreeing on the framework of the site and plan on adding the interior decoration after you get the drywall in. What is critical is managing feature creep, so it does not end up sucking your budget dry.

Step Six
Expect it to Cost You More than You Expected

Ohh! Just writing that line I can feel waves of resistance that will be coming my way…. Web site prices have come down a lot since I started doing them around 16 years ago. Back in the early 90's a bare bones static business site was going to run a small company minimum of $10k-$30k. That meant no fancy flash movies, no streaming audio, no interactive Javascript programs. If you wanted to change a little word here or a color there it cost real money. For reasons that still evade me, nowadays people seem to think they should get a good web site, with all the fancy bells and whistles, easy to change content, and ECommerce for around $1,000. Even less for a simple blog.

Sure you can get a cheap site. Do a Google search and go to page 20 of the results. You'll see plenty of samples. Most likely you are building this site to build your business presence on the web. Right now, the way web sites are starting to work with social networking, customer service and ECommerce, this site is going to shoulder the majority of your advertising and marketing responsibilities. It is going to be the cornerstone vehicle to take your business to market for several years to come. Would you buy a car to take your business to market for $1,000 or less? And feel safe it'll be dependable and get you there? Not if you have long term plans for your business.

The last word on this is to also expect that you’ll be paying your developer to learn some new things. Because technologies change so quickly, updates release bugs, bug fixes release more bugs, etc. even the most experienced professional will be seeing new things. This is a balancing act I have to perform all the time. Sure, I do shut off the timer when I hit a snag and I know I need to read up on something I expect myself to know. On the other hand there are literally thousands of add on modules for Drupal, as well as Unix libraries to deal with. And they are changing and adding new features every day. If a client specifically asks for a new, bleeding edge technology, they need to pay me for my time figuring it out and implementing it. Don’t be offended. You buy a car and want custom leather bucket seats, you’d expect to pay not only for the seats to be installed but the learning curve the installer has reading the manual with those new seats. You’d better believe it is built in to the price. This along is a reason many people opt to hire development companies instead of individuals. Web co's have a staff of talent to call on and that's why they tend to cost a lot more. This is one of the trade-offs you'll be dealing with when you choose individual over company service.

I've seen a number of sites completely fail to get off the ground because they started with a beer budget and champagne specifications. Do it the other way around and, promise, you'll be happier in the long run.

Step Seven
Expect to Beta Test
(but Don't Expect Your Professionals to do it for You for Free)

Web sites are a kind of multifaceted entity no mere mortal can debug alone. Software companies beta test. So should you. Don't expect your professionals to do this for you, unless you are willing to pay them for their time doing it. A developer's job is to develop and a designer's job is to design. They'll add a new layout or feature, test it out once and then move on to the next task you've asked them to do. Either hire your professionals to beta test (it takes a fair amount of time) or, better yet, have the new site put up on what is called a 'staging system', meaning only certain people can get access to it, ask friends and family to log in and test it out and get back to you with what's not working. Do this for at least one whole month!

How to Pick your Web Professional(s)

Now we've come to the part you likely wanted to glean (or skimmed down to) from the start of this article. You want an effective and reliable web talent to help you build your polished web site for a reasonable price. Right?

Six Search Steps for Finding Freelancers:

Where do you find these freelance web professional(s)? The trend these days, after many a dollar lost overseas, is to use local talent so you can meet in an internet café and work face to face. That being said I’ve also had a pretty nice time working all over the country using Skype for conferencing and screen sharing so you might settle for simply the same time zone.

• Step One

  
  Start off by assessing what feature sets you are looking for (see the feature set side box).

• Step Two

  
  Make an outline of what you want.

• Step Three

  
  Then start networking. Ask around on your FaceBook, LinkedIn, etc page. Look out for references from friend’s of friends.

• Step Four

  
  If this does not get you what you want, Google is your friend. Do a keyword search on your local (i.e. web designer developer Charleston). You’ll have to go a few pages in to get past the companies who spend a lot more time polishing their SEO than contractors like me have time to. Look for an online portfolio, testimonials, and contact info. A rarely updated site is not necessarily a bad thing – busy professionals might be more concerned with happy clients than updating their web site. But an updated portfolio is a good thing. Email them. See how long they take to get back to you. Ask for references and testimonials.

• Step Five

  
  Finally, if this does not garner your talent, there are a bunch of contracting sites where you’ll post your project and take bids (listed below). You’ll pay the site, which will take care of the contract and paying the professional(s).The bidding contractors often have ratings and you can review their track record. The downside of a contracting site is they put a percentage taking entity between you and your professional and that tends to lead to people with shorter term (small project based) aspirations. The upside is that professionals have to maintain some level of responsibility and positive feedback to stay on the site’s payroll. It’s a personal choice.

• Step Six

  
  Lastly, there is always Craigslist. Be warned, while CL is great place to sell your old stuff, it is the free ‘pick-up’ bar of the internet. There are good people on there (me :) ), and a lot of two-legged cockroaches and it takes a TON of sifting through it to separate the good from the bad.

The Interview Steps - Dos and Don’ts:

So now you’ve narrowed it a choice of candidate professionals. You are ready to interview and here’s what you should do:

Do: Assess how professional they are at communicating. Do they log what they do? There are loads of ways they may do this – I use Redmine but there is BaseCamp, Trac, and even good ol’ Google Docs. How do they keep track of time? Do they give you a detailed project plan? Did they read through your outline thoroughly [did you write a thorough outline]?

Do: Look at testimonials. Check out references. Call them up. Check them out. Ask about continuity and communication. Good professionals are good at cultivating both testimonials and references on an ongoing basis.

Do: Like the person(s). Plan on having them be an intimate part your business for at least a year - which is about what it takes to make sure your site is sailing smoothly.

Don't: Rely on one developer/designer to assess another. Professionally I won't do it. The problem is you might get good advice and you might get bad advice. How are you going to know the difference? Ultimately what you need to know is what kind of experience you, as a client, will have and that is the place for past client's to shed light, not the (potential) competition.

Do: Assess their skill set. Perhaps the hardest part of this interview process will be evaluating if your developer has the skill and knowledge you need to be effective. A designer is easier – you are looking for common taste and follow through. But hunting for a good developer is a lot like hunting for a good car mechanic, and is here is where reputation has the largest role to play which’ll take you right back to your networking and the references.

Don’t: Expect your developer to know absolutely everything (see Educate Thyself, above). Ask them which parts of the features you are asking for are new to them and which are old. 

Do: Expect your designer to know CSS. That is the de facto standard of web layout and design these days. It is really buggy and has a high learning curve and many designers don’t yet have a handle on it. If you are willing to work out an arrangement where they charge less as they learn it and you trust them, go for it.

Do: Ask at the outset how you'll work out difficult spots.

• Ask how you'll be treated/charged for asking for more features.
• Ask how you'll be charged for minor changes AND how they will handle explaining if they don't see a change as minor. 
• Agree on a how you’ll fix up miscommunications. Personally I try my best to keep everything in my tracker. When I goof up I don’t charge for the fix. When my client goofs up I expect them to pay me for my time.

Finally! The Next to Last Step: Go on a Date!

Most new clients I meet already have a web site up and it usually needs work. I highly recommend to all my new clients that we have a ‘date’ or small project that will give us a sense of each other and build some trust.

Once you’ve had your date and liked what you got, it is time to make the commitment.

How to Tame and Treat Your Web Professional(s)

Do: Seriously consider signing a contract and terms agreements. Yes, I hate this too. Trust me though. It does have it merits. It will help protect you should you ever (God forbid) reach an impasse in communications and want to go your separate ways.

Do: Pay an hourly rate. If you won't do this then you've not taken to heart what I've written above, in the education section, and there is nothing here for you. Sorry. Flat rates serve neither client nor professional. Sooner or later, due to the unpredictable nature of development, they’ll have their back up against a wall and you’ll both end up feeling resentful and frustrated.

Do: Pay them a middle class wage. It'll make them more likely to stick around and finish your site. Pay a student's rate and, well, they are likely to be off partying or surfing when the server goes down. Rates vary a lot. I usually assume that about 50% of my time on any given client is going to be unpaid. I don’t charge for meetings, or quickie questions. This means that I rarely bill more than 30 hrs a week - although I put in ALOT more time than 30 hrs a week. My rates reflect this. Other professionals charge for meetings, travel time, etc. They bill more hours so their rate is less. Manage the Process and you’ll know you are getting your dollar’s worth.

Do: Once you have made your choice, and committed, give your professional complete faith in their skills.

How to Know when You are Getting Bamboozled

So you've hired your professional(s), paid out a bit of cash, and seen some progress on your site. Inevitably there have been some bugs and corrections along the way. But then things just don't seem to be going along as you think they should. How do you decide if you are getting professional service? It comes down to consistent communication loops. Here are the warning signs:

• Watch out if you don't have a clue what your professional's are doing for more than a week.
• You should have had an estimate made for different features of your site. Does your professional keep you up to date on where you stand in the estimated time? Do you know when you are about to go over budget?
• Does your professional welcome questions? Are they willing to train and inform you?

If you find yourself saying 'no' to all three then you need to be wary. Without good communication there is no way you can Manage the Process. On the other hand if you have a sense of all these things and your inbox is overflowing with information you can be confident that you are getting professional treatment.

That's it! Please feel free to add comments below. Good luck!