I personally think that the number one thing to investigate is your prospective website designers ranking in Google. My reasoning here is Business Website Designs main job is to bring in business and new customers. A business website needs to rank extremely well to an effective marketing tool. The Internet is full of website designers that market themselves as business website designers, when in fact they are nothing more than graphic artists. Business website designers need to be proficient in SEO and Internet Marketing to be in a position to offer their clients a value in their services. If they are not a SEO expert, Business Website Designers need to have a SEO expert on staff to complement their website design services. Only in this way will their customers be getting a value in their new web design.
Back to checking out the prospective website designers ranking in Google, if their own Website does not rank well, why would you think he or she has the skills to bring value to the table when it comes to designing your website? How much will it cost you additionally to market your website if your website is not Search Engine Optimized?
For example do a Google search, let’s say “Portland OR Website Designer” If I were looking for a business website designer in Portland Oregon I would consider the top 8 designers in this search.
The next way I would suggest as a way to find a good Business Website Designer for business application would be to do a SEO search. Let’s say “Portland OR SEO” and see what is rendered. Are any of the top results for Portland OR SEO not only a SEO expert but also a Web Designer? Perhaps as a cross reference are any of the results for Portland Oregon SEO the same as Portland OR Website Designer? Now we are getting somewhere if there are!
As a Business Website Designer and SEO expert I am constantly amazed at the number of Website Designers that in addition call themselves SEO experts! Reading a few books or forums does not by any stretch of the imagination make you a SEO Professional.
Many a business owner has been led down the wrong road and wasted a great deal of money not only in hiring a website designer that knows nothing of Internet Marketing, but possibly hiring a SEO expert that does not have the experience to properly manage the SEO of a website.
In closing I just want to recount that properly investigating thoroughly prior to hiring a Website Designer will save you tons of money and time as far as marketing your Business Website on the Internet.