How to choose a web designer (and the red flags to avoid)

Hiring the wrong person to build your website is expensive, slow, and stressful, and you often don't find out until you're deep in it. Here's how to choose well, what to ask, and the warning signs that should make you walk.

Look at their actual work

Portfolio first. Do their sites look good, load fast, and work on a phone? Better yet, are the sites they built still live and running well? Anyone can show a pretty mockup; a real, working site out in the world is the proof that counts. If they can't point to live work, be careful.

Check they communicate like a human

You'll be working closely with this person. If they're slow to reply, vague, or talk in jargon to sound clever, that's how the whole project will feel. You want someone who explains things plainly, answers straight, and clearly gets your business. How they talk before you hire is a preview of the whole job.

Ask what you'll own

This is a big one. Make sure you'll own your website and your domain outright at the end, with no lock-in. Some setups keep you trapped, you can't leave without losing your site, or you're renting it forever. Always ask: do I own this, and what happens if we part ways?

Get the price and scope in writing

You want a clear, fixed price and a clear scope before work starts, so you're not blindsided by surprise invoices or "that's extra". Vague pricing and hourly open-endedness are where budgets blow up. Clarity up front protects you both.

The red flags

Walk away from: no real portfolio, prices that seem too cheap to be real, anyone who won't let you own your site, pushy pressure to sign now, communication that's already bad before you've paid, and promises to "get you to number one on Google" (nobody can guarantee that). Any one of these is a reason to pause.

Trust the vibe, a bit

Beyond the checklist, notice whether they actually listen and whether you'd enjoy working with them. A good build is a collaboration. If someone makes you feel dumb for asking questions now, it won't get better later.

Where I stand on all this

Questions worth asking up front

Before you commit, ask: Can I see live sites you've built? Will I own my site and domain outright? What's included in the price, and what counts as extra? What happens if I want to leave? How do you handle changes after launch? Do you set up SEO? Good answers are clear and confident. Vague, defensive or evasive answers tell you plenty on their own.

Beware guarantees that sound too good

Anyone promising to get you to "number one on Google" is either naive or dishonest, nobody controls Google's rankings, and it doesn't work that way. Same with wildly cheap prices that seem impossible; there's usually a catch hiding in lock-in, recurring fees, or corners cut. Honest professionals under-promise and over-deliver, not the reverse.

Match the person to the project

A huge, complex build might genuinely need an agency's scale. A small-to-medium business site is often better served by a skilled independent, direct access, lower cost, real care. There's no universally "best" choice, only the right fit for your project's size and your budget. Be honest with yourself about which you actually are before you start shopping.

Trust how it feels early on

Beyond the checklist, pay attention to the experience of talking to them before any money changes hands. Do they listen? Do they explain things without making you feel stupid? Are they responsive? A website is a collaboration, and how someone communicates before you hire is the clearest preview you'll get of what working with them is actually like.

For what it's worth, I keep prices public and fixed, you own everything with no lock-in, I answer straight, and my work is live and linkable. That's the standard you should hold anyone to, me included. If that's what you're after, let's have a chat.