What should I ask a web company before I hire one?
Ask who will own the domain, site, content and accounts; exactly what's included and what costs extra later; who does the work and who checks it; how you approve changes before they go live; who handles updates, backups and security; how fast they reply; and what happens if you leave. Get the answers in writing.
Download the hiring checklist (PDF)6 pages, 437 KB, free to print. What's inside
The short version
- Ownership: the domain, site, content and accounts should be yours, in your name.
- Scope: get a written list of what’s included and how extras are priced.
- Process: know who does the work, who checks it, and how you approve changes.
- After launch: know who handles updates, backups, security and support, and how fast they reply.
- Leaving: a good company makes it easy. Ask how before you sign.
What does a good answer look like next to a red flag?
| Ask about | A good answer | A red flag |
|---|---|---|
| The domain | “Yours, in a registrar account you can sign in to” | “We’ll register the domain under our account”: you may struggle to get it back |
| What’s included | A written list, with how extras are priced | No written list: extra costs arrive after launch |
| Approving changes | Changes built on a private copy first, and you approve them | “You don’t need to see changes before they go live”: mistakes reach customers first |
| Results | “Not rankings,” plus what they’ll do and how they’ll measure it | “We guarantee page one” or “We’ll get you into ChatGPT”: nobody controls that |
| Content and AI | A person reviews AI-written content before it reaches your site | “We’ll publish 100 AI pages for you”: unchecked mass pages can harm search results |
| Leaving | They hand over the domain, files, database and logins | “The site can’t be moved”: you’re tied to them for good |
The 18 questions below explain each one.
How is this different from choosing a company?
Our answer on how to choose a web design company covers the short version: look at recent work, plain explanations and ownership. This article is the full list of questions to take into each conversation, with what a good answer sounds like. Portfolios all look good, and every proposal says “custom” and “responsive.” These questions get past that to what affects your business for years.
Who will own the domain, site and accounts?
Ask these first. They’re the hardest to fix later.
1. Whose name will the domain be registered in?
A good answer: “Yours, in a registrar account you can sign in to. We can manage it for you, but you hold it.”
If someone else controls the account, getting your domain back can be slow. ICANN’s transfer FAQs explain that moving a domain needs an authorization code, and that changing the registrant can block a transfer to another registrar for 60 days. See who should own your domain.
2. Who owns the website itself?
Ask: If we part ways, do I get a full copy of the site, its files and its database? Is any part, such as a theme, plugin, custom code or image, licensed to me only while I’m a customer?
3. Who owns the words and photos?
Text and photography you paid for should be yours to keep. Stock images are licensed, so ask whether the license stays with you.
4. Who will control my Google Business Profile, analytics and Search Console?
A good answer: “You’re the primary owner. We’re added as a manager or user.” Google’s owners and managers page says only owners can add or remove people, so the business should hold ownership. The same goes for Google Analytics, Search Console and your social pages. Our article on making sure your business owns its accounts has the full checklist.
What exactly will I get, and what costs extra?
5. What’s included?
Ask for a written list: how many pages and who writes them; how many rounds of design changes; whether search setup is included, such as titles, descriptions, redirects from your old site and Search Console; which forms, booking or payment features are included; whether hosting is included and for how long; and whether care after launch is included or separate.
6. What costs extra later?
The surprises usually arrive after launch: small edits, new pages, plugin licenses, email, renewals and emergency fixes. A good company tells you how each is priced up front, even if the answer is “we quote each one.” Our answer on what a website costs explains what drives the range.
7. How long will it take, and what slows it down?
Ask for a realistic timeline and what it depends on. The biggest delay is often waiting on content and decisions, so ask what they’ll need from you and when. Be wary of very exact promises made before they’ve seen your current site. See how long a redesign takes.
Who does the work, and how do I approve it?
8. Who will actually do the work?
Will you deal with the person you met, or will the work go to someone else? Is any of it outsourced? Who’s your contact after launch?
9. How are changes checked and approved?
This is where many relationships go wrong. Ask:
- Are changes built on a private copy of the site first? See what a staging site is.
- Will I see and approve changes before they go live?
- Can a change be undone if something’s wrong?
- Who checks the work for mistakes?
10. How do you use AI?
Plenty of web companies use AI tools now, and that’s fine in itself. Ask who reviews AI-written content and code before it reaches your site, and whether you approve it. Google’s spam policies name “scaled content abuse,” which includes using generative AI “to generate many pages without adding value for users.” Mass-produced, unchecked pages are a real risk to your search results.
11. How fast do you reply, and how do I reach you?
Ask for a normal reply time, how to report something urgent like the site being down, and what happens outside business hours.
How will you handle my content and search?
12. Who writes the words, and how do you make pages useful?
- Will you write the content, or will I? If you write it, how do you learn about my business?
- Will pages answer the questions my customers actually ask, with the answer up front?
- How do you check facts like hours, service areas and licenses before anything goes live?
13. How will you protect what my current site already does well?
If your current site gets search traffic, a redesign can lose it. Ask whether they’ll list your existing pages, map old addresses to new ones and set up permanent redirects. Our article on redesigning without losing what works explains the process.
Who looks after the site after launch?
14. Who handles updates, backups and security?
A website isn’t finished at launch. Ask how often updates are done and whether they’re tested first; how often backups are taken, where they’re kept and whether a restore has been tested; what happens if the site is hacked; and who watches for the site going down. Our website care checklist shows what good care covers, and our answer on what website maintenance includes explains how it differs from hosting.
15. Where will the site be hosted, and can I move it?
You should know where your site lives and be able to move it whenever you choose.
What results will you promise?
16. What do you guarantee?
A good answer: “Not rankings.” Google says there’s no way to request or pay for a better local ranking, and nobody controls what search engines or AI tools show. Be cautious with anyone guaranteeing first-page rankings, a set number of leads, or placement in ChatGPT or Google’s AI answers. A good company tells you what it will do, how it will measure progress, and what’s outside anyone’s control.
17. Can I talk to a current client?
Ask for one whose business is like yours. Ask them about communication, and about what happened when something went wrong.
What happens if I want to leave?
18. How does the handover work?
This question tells you the most. Ask: will you hand over the domain, site files, database and all logins? Is there a notice period or a fee? How long does a handover take? Will you help the next company get set up? A company that’s confident in its work makes leaving easy.
Is there a one-page checklist?
Print this and take it into every conversation:
- Domain registered in my business’s name, in an account I control
- A full copy of the site if I leave
- I own the content and the photos I paid for
- I’m primary owner of my Google profile and other accounts
- Written list of what’s included and what costs extra
- Realistic timeline, and what they need from me
- I know who does the work and who checks it
- Changes are tested first, and I approve before they go live
- Clear answer on how AI is used and reviewed
- Normal reply time, and how to report an emergency
- Updates, backups and security covered, in writing
- No guaranteed rankings or AI placement
- A reference I can call
- A clear, fair way to leave
How does E-3 handle this?
Ask us the same questions. Here are our answers so you can hold us to them:
- Ownership. Your domain and accounts stay in your name. If we set something up, it’s under your business, with E-3 added as a user.
- Who does the work. E-3 is a small studio. Larry Davis has built websites since 1999, and you’ll know who’s working on your site.
- How AI fits in. Today, people at E-3 make the changes, and updates and bigger changes are tested on a staging copy first. AI-assisted edits, checked by a person and approved by you, are coming soon.
- Replies. Usually within one business day.
- Care. Our website care service covers uptime monitoring, updates tested on a staging copy first, daily backups and security alerts.
- Cost. We quote after a short call, in writing. Our website cost estimator helps you think about scope first.
- Results. We won’t promise rankings or AI placement. We’ll say what we’ll do and how we’ll measure it.
Related questions
Common questions
- What's the biggest red flag when hiring a web company?
- A company that registers your domain or Google Business Profile in its own name and won't put it in yours. Close behind: guaranteed rankings or AI placement, and vague answers about what happens if you leave.
- Should I pick the cheapest quote?
- Compare what's included, not just the total. Two quotes can cover very different amounts of work, care after launch and support. Ask each company to list what you get and what costs extra later.
- Is it a problem if a web company uses AI?
- Not by itself. Ask how it's used, who checks the work before it goes live, and whether you approve changes. AI-written pages that nobody reviews are a risk to accuracy and to your search results.
Rather talk it through?
Call our team, or send a note and we’ll reply within one business day. No pressure and no jargon.