19th May 2015

10 steps to find the best digital agency for a new website

4 cartoon business people climbing a mountain with briefcases and a flag

You’ve just seen that your competitor has got a brand-spanking-new website and your current site is just not cutting it any more. So, you take to Google to search for nearby digital agencies that promise glossy websites with a myriad of exciting functionality options. But before you fall head over heels, take a step back.

There’s lots to consider when buying a new website for your business, which stretches a lot further than just the design and costs. We thought we’d break it down for you into ten top tips, so that you’ll know exactly what you’re looking for when you go about finding your new project.

1. What’s up with your existing site?

Is your current website living up to your expectations? You need to have an idea of what’s wrong with your existing site before you go ahead and make the changed. Ask yourself questions like:

  • Is the content/imagery out of date?
  • How much business does my website generate?
  • Does my website have all the functionality it needs to be useful to customers?
  • Does my website work properly, especially on smartphones and tablets?
    • Does my website encourage users to engage with me?
    • What is my competition doing?

2. Take a look at your analytics.

Keeping up to date with what your website is doing for your business is very important. Get logged into your analytics account and familiarise yourself with traffic, bounce rates and conversions. You don’t need to go into too much detail, just think about the following;

  • Is your website bringing in sufficient traffic?
  • Are you getting the conversions you want?
  • What pages are performing best?
  • Where are your visitors coming from?

3. Check out your competition…

One good way to get an idea of what your expectations are is to take a look around at your immediate competitors. Look at their presence on the web and make a list of what areas and functions you like, what you don’t like – and most importantly – what you think you could do better.

4. What’s the purpose of your website?

If your website could only do one thing, what would that be? You need to have a clear idea of what end result you’re looking for. The agency you choose should give a helping hand in guiding you as to what functionality is available, but you need to know what your purpose is – such as:

  • Starting a conversation
  • Getting subscriptions to a newsletter
  • Asking questions
  • Buying products

5. Look into the agency.

Seriously consider the agency you’re going to use. Look for one that has experience in your field, and ask for case studies. These are all huge factors, after the website is built the support needs to be ongoing and communication is of big importance. Compare the pros and cons of agencies that you’re looking at, look at the work they’ve done in the past and see if they have experience in your specific field.

6. Consider ongoing SEO

If you’re looking into having a new website created for your business, you most likely want some better visibility online. The best way to do this effectively is to get a professional SEO and digital marketing team on your case, preferably within the same agency in which your website was built. At BritWeb, basic on-site SEO comes as part of your website package – so tasks such as redirects are covered (see below). You need to make sure your agency has the best plan for you in mind.

7. Don’t lose valuable content!

Look for an agency that offers great copy writing in house. Any of your existing content can be handed over to a copy writer and swished up into a new and improved version, as well as creating new re-purposed content. Also make sure not to lose any landing pages that bring you a lot of traffic or are converting – these are valuable pages for your new website.

8. Think about site structure…

This is a chat you need to have with an SEO specialist. Agree a site structure that is the most logical and user-friendly solution for your website, again there is no harm in asking for case studies the agency has done in the past.

9. Can you use it?

Consider the CMS (Content Management System) platform your agency is using. At BritWeb we use WordPress as it has a great interface that makes it easy for our clients to go in and edit their page content. Also make sure you will be able to have training on how to post updated, edit products and post new images – especially if your new website will have a blog.

10. Get in contact!

Now it’s time to get in contact with your agency, and get the ball rolling. If you have any questions regarding a new website, please don’t hesitate to get into contact with us! We offer comprehensive packages that will deliver all your online needs. Call 01403 261491 or get in contact with [email protected].

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If you’re ready to hear more, speak to us today and we
can look at the possibilities for your future.