4 Red Flags to Watch for When Hiring a Website Design Agency

1. The agency was the cheapest

As the saying goes, you get what you pay for! Opting for the cheapest web design agency is like buying a car with three wheels. Sure, it’s a bargain, but good luck getting anywhere with it.

Here’s what typically happens when you go for the lowest bidder:

• Design Dilemmas: Your site looks like it was made on GeoCities, with no consideration for UX.
• Functionality Fiascos: Missing or broken features frustrate users and increase bounce rates.
• Support Slip-Ups: The agency suddenly doesn’t call back when things inevitably go wrong.

The money you saved will likely be spent (and then some) on fixing these issues. We’ve been down this road a million times with clients who first chose the cheap option but realized it was driving people away from the site. Choose a professional agency like e9digital  from the start to ensure your website looks great and works smoothly, saving you from expensive headaches. Plus, we’ll never ghost you!

2. The agency chose an accessibility overlay

According to the American Disabilities Act, websites must be accessible to people with disabilities. This applies to state and local governments, and all businesses open to the public. If you operate a business, your website must be accessible, or you risk getting sued. But more than that, it’s just the right thing to do.

But here’s the rub: many website design agencies promise to be accessible, yet they cheat by using accessibility overlays, which use JavaScript to modify the front-end code of a website without altering the underlying source code. Website design agencies claim that overlays claim to make your site accessible with just a click. 

It’s like saying that wearing a pair of $300 running shoes will make you run a six-minute mile with zero training. If you haven’t run in 5 years, no pair of shoes will magically solve your problem. When a website is designed without accessibility in mind, no overlay will fix it.

An overlay isn’t a $300 pair of running shoes; it’s like trying to run a mile in Doc Martens. Here’s why they’re problematic:

• False Security: Gives the impression that your site is fully accessible when it’s not.
• User Experience Issues: Overlays make navigation more difficult.
• Legal Risks: Overlays don’t protect you from lawsuits related to accessibility compliance.

Overlays aren’t the answer to following website accessibility guidelines. Instead, choose an agency that builds accessibility into the website design. e9digital ensures your site is accessible from the ground up, avoiding costly legal troubles and providing a better user experience.

3. The agency forgot to budget for ongoing maintenance

Building a website isn’t a one-and-done deal. It’s more like owning a car that needs regular oil changes, tire rotations, and occasional repairs. Forgetting to budget for ongoing maintenance is a common pitfall that can lead to serious issues down the road. Of course, just like a car dealership, a bad website design agency may just conveniently “forget to mention” maintenance costs to make it seem like you’re getting a good deal, only to mention them down the road once they’ve already started on the design.

To get a sense of how much to budget for maintenance, if you have an e-commerce website with 1,000 items, your maintenance can cost up to $30,000 a year. For more simple sites, like small businesses with only 16 pages of content, can expect maintenance costs of up to $1200 a year.

So yeah, you need to factor those costs in. While those numbers can widely vary, they are significant.

Costs to consider include:

• Security Updates: Protecting your site from hackers and malware.
• Performance Optimization: Ensuring your site loads quickly and runs smoothly.
• Content Updates: Keeping your information current and relevant.
• ADA Compliance: Reworking the design as ADA standards change.

Without regular maintenance, your shiny new website quickly becomes outdated, slow, and vulnerable, pushing your clients to click on your competitors instead. A professional agency like e9digital offers affordable, ongoing

4. The agency went with the wrong CMS platform

Choosing the wrong platform for your website is like picking a tricycle for a cross-country road trip. Sure, it might be cute and fun initially, but it won’t get you far.

A content management system (CMS) is a software platform that enables users to create, manage, and modify digital content on websites without requiring extensive technical skills. However, the capabilities of each one are drastically different as each platform varies to meet the various needs of businesses.

Let’s compare two popular platforms: Squarespace and WordPress.

• Squarespace:
  • 1.7% of all websites run on Squarespace.
  • Pros: Easy to use, great for simple sites.
  • Cons: Limited customization that’s not ideal for complex business needs.
• WordPress:
  • 42.5% of all websites run on WordPress
  • Pros: Highly customizable, perfect for e-commerce and services, scalable as your business grows.
  • Cons: Requires more setup and maintenance.

A bad agency may suggest Squarespace because it’s easier to create a “pretty” website, but it may lack the functionality your business needs long-term. WordPress is often the better choice for businesses looking to expand and offers complex functionalities that can scale with your company. 

However, it can be challenging to set up and maintain without professional help–that’s where e9digital comes in.  We create robust and scalable WordPress sites tailored to your needs and can teach you how to update within the platform on your own.