Advice on How to Find a Good Website Professional

Why would anyone hire a website builder or designer when they could do it themselves? It's not easy or not every DIY site is appropriate for every business.There are times to hire a professional instead of using a template and web maker yourself.

Almost every business, whether it be a one person operation or large corporation, needs to have a presence on the web. In order to announce your service, provide needed information to the public or private client, update information or sell directly in an e-commerce setting, a website is essential. Even though millions of us are very adequate with a computer and getting around the Internet, there are just as many who have no experience with computers. This was written for the latter.

I have to inform my readers that I am not a professional IT person and have a basic knowledge about some html coding and design. I do know professionals in this profession and they are the most hard working, reliable and honest people in the field. They are beyond reproach, but occasionally a bad one slips between the cracks.

It wasn't that long ago that consumers and business clients were at the mercy of some unscrupulous webmaster.

Several friends and family members, including myself, have had negative experiences dealing with webmasters or more like web builders, in the past. They dealt with a web builder that was non responsive to emails and phone messages, or didn't clearly define just what services were covered when building the site.

Another big problem is administration of the website once it's up and running. A number of friends were almost knocked out of their business because they made the mistake in trusting the person who built their site to handle the necessary changes when needed. The only problem with that was that they didn't. The business owners were frantic because the information was old, or just plain wrong.

Years ago I had the unfortunate experience of hiring a site builder from a winning bid to build a tutor registry for me. I gave the examples of three sites that I liked the functions and looks of as a guide to build mine. Unfortunately the web site builder copied one of those sites exactly, only he changed the color schemes.

I found out when the original owner threatened me with copyright infringement and a lawsuit. It was at that time that I also found out that the 'webmaster' wasn't a real full time website builder at all, but a college student that didn't live where he stated on the bidding site nor did he take down the site after many requests. He claimed to be from the states but really lived overseas. I had to close the account with the web host. What a valuable lesson I learned!

Today, there are many bidding sites with reliable background checks and feedback forums so a client can make an informed decision. A very important. Point is to ask about any certifications such as such as Microsoft offers.

There are many others so check this link.

Consumers can also have a choice of new self building website companies that make the e-commerce and online business presence much saner and smoother running.

With website building sites such Weebly, Wix, Yahoo, Intuit, Google and so on, allow anyone who wants a website to build one and online platforms such as Face book, Twitter to spread the word about your business. We've really come a long way in 10 short years.

If you pay someone to build a website there are still some points you need to be aware of. From personal experience you need to be very vigilant about these points.

1. get reliable referrals from the website builder

2. research and check the sites given

3. make sure the content isn't stolen

4. hire a lawyer to check the contracts

Getting reliable referrals is a tricky item to confirm; its a lot like getting referrals for home remodeling, car repair or even a babysitter. It really depends on who you are dealing with and trying to determine if their referrals are real or not. We all know that friends and family members will help someone with glowing recommendations.

Researching the websites they claimed to have made is easy enough, but I have done this and to my amazement many are not real websites. In other words, when I click on any links on the site, they go nowhere or are non-functioning. You'd be surprised how many people don't thoroughly check out each site given. Don't be so quick to believe them. If they are new and need clients they can build free ones for non profits or make up a mock business. The idea is to see if they are any good at building a reliable site.

The third point is very important. The content on a website has to be real and either written by the site builder or bought and paid for to place on the site. I can't emphasis this point enough because so many of us website content writers do this for a living. We get paid to write content .There are many site builders that simply find the content they need, copy and paste it on the site. I have found so many articles of mine on websites. They don't realize that’s is stealing?

Unfortunately I had to file complaints with web hosting companies and inform site owners that my work is stolen. This could very well be a full time job. If you agree to have someone make you a website and give them carte blanch to fill the content then you as the owner must check the content. Go online yourself and Google or pay someone to check it.

The reasons to hire someone to build a site for you are varied.

• You may be extremely busy and simply do not have the time to build even the simplest of sites.
• You may have a fear of the Internet and do not trust yourself to handle it.
• If you have no experience using a computer than leave it to someone else.
• The e-commerce sites can be complicated and require too much coding and updates to handle.
• You need to tend to your brick and mortar store to make your living.

Just remember my four points when hiring someone. Get reliable referrals and speak to people about them. Check the websites out thoroughly and make sure they are real. Call any numbers and act like a customer.

Most important make sure the content on your own website is not stolen. Make them show you record if they bought it. Check online by typing in some content or hire someone to check their work out. Just make sure they don't know each other.

Last,but not least of all, be sure your lawyer has a contract in place. He or she can run a credit check, background check or criminal check. You are giving them financial and personal records so the webmaster shouldn't refuse to give you their companies information. Yes some new ones will start out as a sole proprietor so don't let that dissuade you. Hammer out responsibilities on both sides.

Even though I have used the terms website maker, website technician, webmaster, I think those terms are most known to consumers. If you stick to most of these points, you should feel secure and safe about your decision.