Betting on the right people is not a gamble!

When it comes to picking a winning horse, there are lots of different variables to consider, from the distance of the course and the horse’s post position, to the jockey’s experience and even the weather. So, with the Cheltenham Festival just around the corner, we’ve been swotting up on our racing tips with the hope that they’ll help us pick a winner or two!

Which got us thinking, betting on the right horses isn’t that much different to betting on the right people when it comes to business. Whether it’s the suppliers you choose to work with, the people that you choose to employ, or the companies that you choose to work for, unless you have prior experience with the company or individual, you never really know what you’re letting yourself in for, so like with horseracing, it can be a gamble.

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Take web design for example; when entrusting somebody else with your website, whether a locally based Cheltenham web designer such as MA Design or a company overseas, your entire online reputation is in their hands – not to mention the potential thousands of pounds you may have paid them…

Luckily, there are some things you can do to scope out your web designer and make sure they are right for the job. Here are a few of them:

Check out the quality of their own website

Does their own website look professional? Is it clean and current and up to date with recent design trends? Or is it old fashioned looking, out of date and full of Google Ads? Their own website will reflect their design ability and standard of work, so if it’s the latter, it may be best to continue on in your search.

Make sure they have an understanding of SEO

SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) is all about making your website search engine friendly, and nowadays it is a huge element of good design. If a website is designed and built poorly using messy code, Google will have a hard time crawling it, which means any other SEO work that takes place will be a waste of time.

Check out their reviews

Does the designer in question have any testimonials on their website? If they do, that’s a good sign that they are proud of their work, but remember that these will have been hand-picked to show them in the best light. Check their Facebook page for reviews instead as these will give a much more valid representation of what their clients think. You could even go as far as contacting some of the people they have worked for and asking about the designer’s skills.

Try out a new developer with a small project first

If you think you’ve found the right man for the job, it’s a good idea to test out a smaller project with them before you jump in and start work on your main website. That way you can get a feel for the way that they work, check out the quality of what they produce, and see how well they respond to your requirements.