One of our recent clients told us that they had been the victims of fraud twice in a row at the hands of people posing as web designers. The first was a man who asked for a deposit and then disappeared, the second was a man who was unable to complete the work due to a complete lack of technical skill.
The following are some red flags that could mean you need to seek out a better designer:
- They don't have a website or the website is "under construction."
- They are not active in the web development community.
- They don't use social media.
- They have no address or use a PO Box.
- They ask for 55% to 100% of contract fee upfront.
- They offer prices that sound too good to be true.
- They don't accept credit cards, they demand cash or PayPal.
- Check their code. Does it use the <font> tag? if so, they're amateurs.
- Ask what program they'll use to code your site. This is a trick question. If the answer is anything other than "by hand," they're a hack.