Web-design freelancers may be best bet

Henry Stimpson may be in the public relations business, but even he was having trouble getting the word out about his marketing company.

So the Wayland consultant turned to the Internet. But neither a do-it-yourself website on America Online nor Web pages built with pre-formatted templates from a hosting company fit the bill. That's when he hired Milo Caruso, an East Falmouth web designer.

Stimpsoncommunications.com has now attracted new clients, helping Stimpson expand his reach beyond New England. "It's kind of a no-brainer," he says. "If you're serious about business, it's something you need to have."

In a Web 2.0 era, whether it's promoting a small one-man shop like Stimpson's, sharing photos with friends and family, selling crafts, or exhibiting an artwork portfolio, a website provides global reach and 24/7 accessibility. But many entrepreneurs and individuals don't have the time or patience to set up their own sites -- nor do they have the resources to hire a big Web design agency. That's when independent freelancers -- who have multiplied by the thousands -- can offer affordable services.

But choosing a web designer can be confusing. Your hacker cousin might be able to throw a few pages online, but building an attractive, fast-loading, user-oriented, modern website takes an understanding of aesthetics as well as technology.

"There are designers all over the country, some of them talented and some of them not," says Sue Jenkins, author of two books on Web design and proprietor of Luckychair Web design studio in Little Rock, Ark. "It's important to sift the wheat from the chaff ."

Start your search on citywide job board listings such as Craigslist.org or art associations like the Boston Chapter of the Graphic Artists Guild, Boston.gag.org. You can post ads and ask for project bids on sites like FreelanceDesigners.com, Guru.com, or ELance.com.

You'll find a range of backgrounds, but ultimately "what you want is the complete package," says web designer Caruso. "Someone who can help you not just with the design, but also with web content and development, database creation, web hosting, maintenance, and Internet marketing and promotion."

Check for references and Web portfolios, avoiding designers who take a cookie-cutter approach or who have made pages that seem to lack functionality -- links that don't work, pages that take forever to load, navigation systems that don't make sense.

"Know what it is that you want," says Boston business marketing strategist Susanne Goldstein of the Accelerator consulting services. She recommends showing designers a list of favorite sites "like tearing out examples of a magazine to show a home decorator."

And just as it's not wise to go to a tax accountant without the proper paperwork, likewise, a web designer is dependent on a client for all the materials necessary for posting online, including text, photos, and graphics, as well as an idea of color scheme, layout, and interactivity.

"Think about whether you want animation, music, QuickTime movies, downloads, shopping cart, pop-up windows, close-ups views, downloads," says Jenkins.

Expect to pay a flat rate for the project, anywhere from $500 to $5,000, depending on the complexity of the site. Be sure your written contract covers payment schedule, final completion date, and a detailed description of the work to be done.

And once it's up, Caruso advises that you "give it a good browse, and then, more importantly, have as many eyes as possible look at the site. When you are very involved with a project, you may not be able to really notice the obvious mistakes."