How do you evaluate a web design proposal?
A web design proposal should be readable in five minutes and answer four questions: what gets built, who writes the content, what happens to what you already have, and what happens after launch. Proposals that avoid any of those are usually avoiding the expensive part — and content is nearly always the part being avoided.
What should be in it
A page list. Not "a modern responsive website" — the actual pages. Home, five service pages, three area pages, about, contact. If the page list is vague, the scope is vague and so is the price.
Who writes the copy. The single most common cause of stalled website projects. If the answer is you, that is fine as long as everyone knows.
A redirect plan, for any redesign. Every existing URL earning traffic needs a decision — keep, merge or redirect. Its absence is a real gap, not a detail.
Tracking. Conversion tracking and call tracking, set up before launch rather than added later.
What happens after launch. Updates, content, who fixes a broken form.
Ownership. Domain, hosting, site files, and confirmation that the work is yours.
A timeline with your obligations in it. Most delays are content and approvals, not build time, and a proposal that does not say what it needs from you is setting up an argument later.
The warning signs
Design-only. No mention of search, structure, tracking or content. You will get a good-looking site that nobody finds.
No page count. Scope will expand or contract to fit the price, and not in your favour.
A proprietary platform. Cannot move, cannot be handed on.
No redirect plan in a redesign.
Very cheap and very fast. Something is being skipped, and it is usually content and structure.
Pressure to sign today. Legitimate providers have a pipeline and can wait a week.
Comparing two proposals
When quotes differ wildly, it is almost always one of these:
- Different page counts
- One includes copywriting and one does not
- One includes ongoing work and one is build-only
- One includes tracking and one does not
- One is a template and one is a considered build
Ask both providers the same four questions and the difference usually resolves into something comparable.
The question that reveals most
"What will this change about my enquiries, and roughly when?"
A provider who answers specifically has thought about your business. One who talks about a modern professional presence is selling appearance — which is a legitimate purchase, but a different one, and worth knowing which you are making.
What to bring to the conversation
Your current visitor and enquiry numbers, your services, and the areas you serve. Providers give more specific proposals when they have specific inputs.
Getting one read
If you have proposals in hand and want them compared by someone not selling you that particular thing, call James on 832-338-2926.
Frequently asked questions
What must a web design proposal include?
An actual page list, who writes the copy, a redirect plan for any redesign, tracking setup, what happens after launch, ownership of accounts, and a timeline including your own obligations.
What are the warning signs?
Design-only scope with no mention of search or tracking, no page count, a proprietary platform, no redirect plan in a redesign, very cheap and very fast, and pressure to sign today.
Why do quotes differ so much?
Almost always different page counts, whether copywriting is included, whether ongoing work is included, whether tracking is included, or template versus considered build.
What single question reveals most?
What will this change about my enquiries, and roughly when. A specific answer means they have thought about your business; talk of a modern professional presence is selling appearance.