What to Ask Before You Hire a Web Developer

The conversation where it goes wrong

Most bad website projects aren't caused by bad developers. They're caused by two people who never established what they were agreeing to, discovering the gap six weeks in.

You can prevent nearly all of that with a handful of questions asked before anyone starts. None of them require you to understand the technology. They're business questions.

Ownership: who ends up holding what

Ask these first, because they're the ones that hurt years later.

• Whose name is the domain registered in? It should be yours, in an account you control, with your email address. Not the developer's account "for convenience."
• Who has the hosting account? Same answer.
• Do I own the finished site, and do I get the files? Get a plain yes, in writing.
• What happens if we part ways? The answer you want is that you can take the site to someone else. If the site only runs on their proprietary platform, you're renting, not buying - which can be fine, as long as you know that going in and know what it costs to leave.

I've seen more small businesses stuck by this than by any technical problem. Sort it out on day one, when it's an easy conversation.

Scope: what "a website" means here

• How many pages, and who writes the words? Content is the most commonly under-planned part of a project. If you're writing it, know that up front; it's real work.
• Who supplies the photos? And are they licensed, or pulled off a search results page? Using an image you don't have rights to is a real invoice waiting to arrive.
• What exactly does it need to do? Contact form, online booking, payments, a mailing list signup, a members area. Each one is a different amount of work. List them.
• Will it work properly on a phone? The answer will be yes. Ask to see two examples of their work on your own phone.

Money and timeline

• What's the total, and what triggers a change in it? You want to know what counts as "outside the scope."
• What are the ongoing costs after launch? Hosting, domain renewal, plugin or platform fees, maintenance. A site is never a one-time expense, and a developer who says otherwise is leaving something out.
• What's the payment schedule? A deposit up front is normal and reasonable.
• When is it done, and what do you need from me to hit that date? Most delays trace back to the client, usually content. Knowing your part of the deadline is on you is half the battle.

Afterward

• Who fixes it when it breaks? And what's the response time and cost? "Call me" is not a plan.
• Who keeps it updated? Websites need ongoing updates for security. If nobody is doing that, it becomes a problem in about a year.
• Can I edit my own content? Ask to be shown how, on a real site, before you sign.
• Can I speak to two past clients? Then actually call them. Ask what surprised them.

The bottom line

Ask about ownership, scope, total cost including the ongoing part, and who maintains it afterward. Get the answers in writing, in plain English.

A good developer will welcome every one of these questions, because they want the same clarity you do. If any of them produce a vague answer or a change of subject, that's your signal - and it's much cheaper to notice now than four months from now.