In a creative role, have you ever been in a situation where somebody puts you on the spot to create...
Which creative web agency should you choose? This is the hard part. There are some key questions you should ask before hiring a creative web agency. We decided to break them down for you:
1. Will you be able to come and visit us to understand our brand?
This is a fair question to ask. You're hiring an agency who has probably never worked with you before, so their knowledge about your company or goals will be limited.
We like to see what personality and ideals your business has. This way we can create graphic designs, web designs, etc that will genuinely reflect your brand.
We will also meet with employees, and you, to ensure we are on the same page about what you want to achieve.
2. What input can I have during the design process?
Just because you might not have any animation experience, for example, doesn't mean you should be the silent client.
The best creative web agency will want to get their clients involved. After all, you've got an idea and the creative agency is there to bring it to life. The only way for it to be ultimately successful is by working together.
We like to have regular meetings with our clients to update them with our progress, and we encourage them to share illustrations, feedback or ideas that they may have.
3. Who is my point of contact?
We understand some people are apprehensive about working with an agency because they can't see what work they're doing. At the end of the day, you're paying another company to do an important task. You're relying on them to do a good job and complete it before the deadline.
Before hiring a creative web agency, you must ask who your point of contact is. This means when the design project has started, you have a person you can talk to directly about what's happening. That person is responsible for keeping you up-to-date on progress and can answer any questions you have. This is essential for keeping you in
the loop.
4. How long will the project take to finish?
You've likely got a deadline to meet before you hire an agency, so it's essential that you ask how long it will take for them to complete the project.
A professional and experienced agency will be able to foresee roughly how long it will take for the project to be completed. They will also take into account the time that they need to get feedback from you to ensure that you're happy with the project progress and to see if any edits or changes need to be done.
But most importantly, a professional company will be able to give you a realistic and achievable deadline, and will be able to regularly update you on the progress of the project so you can keep track of it.
5. How much will it cost?
This is perhaps one of the biggest questions you need to ask straight away. If you've got a budget, you'll be limited on how much you can spend. You don't want to discover any hidden costs further down the path. Any creative web agencies who fail to give you a proposal with an agreed cost before they start any agreed amount of design work is bad news.
It's in your best interest to know how much your design project will cost, right from the beginning. This means that both you and the agency are on the same page, and you're not being chased for more money later on.
6. What would you recommend to improve my project?
It's beneficial to ask a creative agency what they recommend in order for your project to reach its full potential.
For example, pretend your original plan was to create an animated video that teaches adults and children about red squirrels because you want to improve awareness and encourage conservation. We could also recommend creating teaching materials like illustrated signs for people to read, or other online resources that people could use and share to spread the message. This way, your message is amplified and heard by more people.
We did something similar for Yorkshire Wildlife Park, where we created an animated video about Big Bugs.
7. What experience do you have working on projects like mine?
When you've got a specific goal for your creative project, then you need an agency who has worked on similar projects before. This gives you the confidence that you're working with a reliable company.
