Getting a website built: the checklist before you commit

01Before the inquiry: clarify four things

You get the best offers when your inquiry is specific. Four points are worth answering for yourself beforehand, and none of them takes longer than an evening:

• Goal: what should the site achieve? Bring inquiries, sell, inform, convince applicants? One main goal is enough, but it should be clear.
• Content: texts, images, logo. What exists, what needs to be created, and who delivers it? Missing content is the most common reason projects drag on.
• Budget range: you do not have to name an exact figure, but a range. It decides which solutions are even on the table and saves both sides time.
• Maintenance: who updates the site later, you or the provider? The answer determines how the site should be built.

02The most important questions for the provider

• Do domain and code belong to me after the project? Both should run under your name, not the provider’s.
• What does ongoing maintenance cost, what is included, and what costs extra?
• What happens if I want to leave? A clean handover of accounts, data and code must be possible without starting from zero.
• How fast does the site load, and is accessibility part of the plan? Both are measurable, ask for concrete values or examples.

A reputable provider answers these questions without dodging. Hesitation on the ownership question is the clearest warning sign I know.

03Red flags

• The website is rental only: you pay monthly, but in the end nothing belongs to you.
• No references, or none you can visit live.
• Guaranteed top spots on Google: nobody can guarantee that, not even the best.
• Hidden running costs that only show up in the fine print or after the first year.
• Pressure to sign quickly, for example with discounts that supposedly expire.

None of these points alone proves a bad offer. Several of them together almost always do.

04How to recognise a good proposal

A useful proposal lists the work items individually instead of one flat rate: concept, design, implementation, setup, content. It also names what is not included, for example texts or photos. And it separates one-time from running costs, so you can compare the total over three years instead of just the starting price. Exactly this three-year comparison exposes most supposed bargains.

05Realistic expectations

Getting a website built takes more than money, so plan in some of your own time as well. Expect a few weeks from inquiry to launch and set aside hours for texts, image selection, feedback rounds and approvals. The projects that drag on almost never hang on the technology, they hang on missing content and open decisions.

Full transparency: I build websites for clients myself. This checklist still applies to every offer, explicitly including mine. Feel free to ask me exactly these questions.