Over 70% of small businesses have a website, and half of the companies that don’t have a website plan to create one soon. If you want to compete in this hyper-competitive business era, you need a website.
However, having a website isn’t enough. It should be well-designed and responsive, and it should offer a memorable experience to the users. In fact, 88% of users won’t return to a website after a bad experience. Working with a startup web development company is the best option if you want a robust website for your business.
Consider the following factors before choosing a web development company for your startup.
Your Startup Web Development Requirements and Budget
The first step in finding any offshore company is to define your requirements. Answer questions like:
- What type of website do you need? — ECommerce, publishing, SaaS
- What features do you need on your website? — Account registration, lead generation forms, pages
- What type of website design do you need? — Minimalist, illustrative, single-page, typography
- When do you want your website to go live?
Additionally, decide on a budget. Depending on your requirements and the developer’s location and rates, a website development project can cost anywhere between $12,000 and $150,000.
Company’s Expertise and Experience
Once you know what you need and how much you can spend, you can look for website development companies. There are two things to consider when evaluating a web developer:
- Expertise: First, the developer should have the needed technical proficiency to work on large-scale web development projects. Website development comprises browsers, programming languages, frameworks, protocols, APIs, data formats, servers, and more. Ensure that the company you choose is fully-equipped to work on your website.
- Experience: Next, the developer should have industry-specific experience — experience in developing websites in the same niche. For example, if you’re an eCommerce business, find a web developer with experience in developing eCommerce sites.
Company’s Rates and Pricing Structure
After shortlisting companies with the desired expertise and experience, evaluate their rates and pricing structure. Most offshore development companies charge per project, and the rates oscillate between $12,000 and $150,000, as discussed. Some development companies may charge on a per-hour basis. However, higher rates don’t essentially mean better quality. The company’s location plays a vital role in determining the pricing structure. For instance, the average hourly web development rate is $100-350 in the USA, $50-170 in Europe, and $18-80 in India.
Communication and Transparency
Outsourcing your website development to someone else is like giving your baby to a babysitter. There needs to be clear communication to check the status of development and provide your input or feedback. Simultaneously, the development process should be transparent, allowing you to monitor everything closely and hold the company accountable if they make mistakes. Hence, look for a web development company that offers seamless communication and transparency.
Post-Development Support
Last, find a company that offers post-development support. Building and launching is only the first step. You’ll need to upgrade and maintain your website to ensure maximum uptime, fast loading speeds, and optimum user experience. Therefore, it’s essential to work with an offshore development company that provides post-development support. Most companies will charge a nominal fee for it.
Conclusion
Developing a website for your business is one of the biggest decisions. A business website is crucial in today’s age, and it should be of the highest quality in terms of design, content, and responsiveness. Therefore, you must choose the right web development company.
You can use the five factors discussed above as a reference point to search and evaluate web development companies.
