How to Choose a Web Design Company: 12 Questions to Ask
The best way to choose a web design company is to judge what happens around the design: who will own the domain, hosting and code, how your existing Google rankings will be protected during the switch, how the site will be tested for speed and accessibility, and who supports it after launch. A good portfolio tells you a firm can make attractive pages. The answers to the twelve questions below tell you whether the site will actually bring in calls and inquiries, and whether you can leave if the relationship ends.
This guide is written for owners of local service businesses in Downers Grove, Joliet, Naperville and the rest of the Chicago suburbs who are comparing two or three quotes and want a fair way to tell them apart.
What most "how to choose a web designer" guides miss
Most hiring checklists focus on the design process: portfolio, timeline, communication style, which platform the firm builds on. Those matter. But the problems that do the most lasting damage after a website project are rarely about design. They tend to be:
The questions below are ordered to catch those problems before you sign.
Ownership and access
1. Domain, hosting and file ownership
Ask: Who will own the domain, hosting account and site files?
This is the first question for a reason. Your domain should be registered in your business's name, in an account you control, with your email as the owner contact. The same goes for hosting, Google Analytics, Google Search Console and your Google Business Profile. A designer can have admin access to all of these without owning them.
Ask directly: "If we stop working together, what do I keep, and how do I take it with me?" A trustworthy firm will answer plainly. Be careful with proprietary builders that can't export your site; you may be renting your website rather than owning it.
2. The platform, and why
Ask: What platform will you build on, and why that one for us?
WordPress, Shopify, Squarespace, Webflow and custom-coded sites all have a place. The right answer depends on who will edit the site, how often, and what it needs to do (booking, online ordering, product catalogs, a client portal). Be wary of a firm that uses one platform for everyone regardless of fit, and ask for a short demo of how your team would change a headline, swap a photo or add a page.
Protecting what you already have
3. Protecting your current rankings
Ask: How will you keep our current search rankings during the redesign?
If your current site gets any traffic from Google, a redesign can either keep it or wreck it. The firm should be able to describe a migration plan: export every current URL, decide which pages stay, merge or retire, and set up permanent (301) redirects from each old address to its closest new page. They should also re-submit your sitemap and watch Search Console for errors in the weeks after launch.
If the answer is vague ("Google will figure it out"), keep looking. Rankings can still fluctuate after any redesign, so nobody honest will promise zero change. But a written redirect map is the difference between a short dip and starting over.
4. Content written for local search
Ask: Who writes the content, and is it written for local search?
Many projects stall waiting on copy. Find out whether the firm writes it, edits yours, or expects you to supply everything. For a local business, each main service should have its own page that explains what you do, where you do it and what it costs or how pricing works. One "Services" page with a bulleted list rarely ranks.
Avoid any plan that creates dozens of near-identical pages with only the town name swapped. Google tends to ignore those, and they can drag down the rest of the site. Our [local SEO checklist](/blog/local-seo-checklist-small-business) covers what a strong local page includes.
Performance and accessibility
5. Mobile speed, with proof
Ask: How fast will the site load on a phone, and how will you prove it?
Speed is not just a technical nicety. In a 2020 study Google commissioned from Deloitte and 55, covering 37 brand sites and more than 30 million sessions, a 0.1-second improvement in mobile speed was associated with an 8.4% lift in retail conversions and a 21.6% increase in lead-generation visitors reaching the form page (web.dev, "Milliseconds Make Millions," 2020).
Ask the firm what targets it builds to. A solid answer references Google's Core Web Vitals, which define a "good" experience as Largest Contentful Paint within 2.5 seconds, Interaction to Next Paint under 200 milliseconds and Cumulative Layout Shift under 0.1, measured at the 75th percentile of visits (web.dev, Core Web Vitals). Ask to see real test results from a site they launched recently, on mobile.
6. Accessibility
Ask: How do you handle accessibility?
Website accessibility is a legal risk for small businesses, not just large brands. UsableNet's 2025 year-end report counted 5,114 digital accessibility lawsuits filed in the U.S. in 2025, and companies with under $25 million in annual revenue accounted for 64% of them (UsableNet, 2025 Year-End Digital Accessibility Lawsuit Report). The same report found that accessibility widgets and overlays did not slow litigation; it tracked roughly 95 to 155 suits a month against companies using them.
A good answer names a standard (WCAG 2.1 or 2.2, level AA), describes how the firm tests (keyboard navigation, screen reader checks, color contrast, form labels and image alt text), and doesn't rely on a plug-in alone. No designer can guarantee you'll never receive a demand letter, but building to a standard and documenting it puts you in a much better position.
Measurement and results
7. Measuring results
Ask: How will we know if the website is working?
"It looks great" isn't a measurement. Before launch, the firm should set up Google Analytics 4, connect Google Search Console, and track the actions that matter to you: phone taps, form submissions, booking clicks, direction requests. Ask what a monthly or quarterly report would show, and whether you'll see search queries and pages, not just traffic totals.
8. Google Business Profile alignment
Ask: How will the site connect to our Google Business Profile?
For most local businesses, the map listing produces as many calls as the website. Your site should use the same business name, address and phone number as your Google Business Profile, link to it, and have a page that matches the primary category you show on Google. Ask how the firm handles that alignment, especially if you serve several suburbs from one office.
Process and people
9. Who does the work
Ask: Who will actually do the work, and who is my contact?
Some firms sell the project with a senior person and hand it to a junior designer or an outside contractor. That's not automatically bad, but you should know. Ask who designs, who builds, who writes, and who answers your email after launch. Ask what happens if that person leaves.
10. What the quote includes
Ask: What exactly is included in the quote, and what counts as a change?
Get the scope in writing: number of page templates, number of total pages, rounds of revisions, who supplies photos, whether copywriting is included, integrations (booking, CRM, payments), and launch tasks like redirects and analytics setup. Ask how extra requests are priced. Two quotes that look far apart are often covering very different amounts of work.
11. A recent client reference
Ask: Can I talk to a recent client with a business like mine?
Portfolios show the finished design. A reference tells you how the project went. Ask the client whether the site launched on time, whether inquiries changed, and whether the firm still answers when something breaks. A local reference in a similar industry (a Joliet contractor, a Downers Grove dental office) is worth more than a famous logo on a slide.
After launch
12. Support after launch
Ask: What happens after the site goes live?
Websites need software updates, security patches, backups, and someone watching for broken forms and indexing problems. Ask what ongoing support costs, what response time you can expect, and whether you're required to sign a maintenance plan. You should be free to manage the site yourself or hire someone else later.
Red flags in a web design quote
A simple way to compare quotes
Put each finalist's answers side by side on four lines: ownership (do you own everything?), migration (is there a redirect plan?), performance and accessibility (are there stated targets and a testing method?) and support (who helps after launch, at what cost?). The firm with the strongest answers on those four lines is usually the better choice, even if its design mockup isn't the flashiest.
If you're in DuPage or Will County and want a second opinion on a quote you already have, we're glad to look at it. You can read how we approach builds on our [website development service page](/services/web-development), see local details on our [Downers Grove web development](/downers-grove-web-development), [Joliet web development](/joliet-web-development) and [Naperville web development](/naperville-web-development) pages, or, if search is your main concern, compare budgets in our [SEO pricing guide for Naperville and the suburbs](/blog/seo-cost-naperville-chicago-suburbs).
Ready to talk through your project? [Contact Sonder Blvd Media](/contact) for a straightforward conversation about what your site needs and what it doesn't.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I hire a local web design company or a remote one?
Either can work. A local firm in or near Downers Grove, Joliet or Naperville is easier to meet in person and usually understands the suburbs you serve, which helps with local search content. What matters most is how the firm answers the ownership, migration and support questions above.
How long does it take to build a small business website?
Many small business sites take about four to eight weeks from kickoff to launch. Timelines stretch when content, photos or approvals are late, or when the project includes e-commerce, booking or custom integrations. Ask for a written schedule with the dates you're responsible for.
Will a new website hurt my Google rankings?
It can if URLs change without redirects or important content is removed. A careful migration plan with 301 redirects, an updated sitemap and post-launch monitoring in Search Console keeps most of what you've earned. Some short-term movement is normal after any redesign.
Do I need to own my domain name?
Yes. Your domain should be registered in your business's name in an account you control. Give your web designer access, not ownership, so you can move your site or change providers without losing your address or email.
Is an accessibility plug-in enough to make my website compliant?
Usually not on its own. Overlays and widgets can help with some display settings, but they don't fix problems in the underlying code, such as unlabeled forms or buttons that can't be reached by keyboard. UsableNet's 2025 data shows businesses using these tools continued to be sued.
What should be included in a website quote?
At minimum: the number of pages and templates, revision rounds, who provides copy and photos, integrations, analytics and Search Console setup, redirects for any existing pages, and what post-launch support costs. If something important isn't listed, assume it isn't included and ask.