It is a standard protocol in today’s world to have a written agreement before entering any form of contract that involves the exchange of service for a fee.
The significance of this cannot be overemphasized as the content has to be unanimously agreed upon by the two parties involved before any serious work can commence.
While you might be tempted to overlook the importance of having a written agreement between you and your web development company probably because you think it’s a small project, it is equally important to have it as it helps to maintain professional conduct and avoid any future friction.
As a prospective website owner, regardless of the terms contained in the contract agreement, these are the five most important points that must be clearly spelled out before your web designer begins the project.
Project Goal:
As there are different types of website, the very first question you need to ask yourself is “why do you need a website?
After successfully convincing yourself, then you can go ahead to inform your web designer about your intention, all the necessary information you want the website to contain and the image you want your website to portray.
The aftermath of your interaction must specify clearly the type of website that you will get.
Providing adequate information saves you from the trouble of going back and forth as the developer will have successfully grasped a clear picture of what you want.
Scope of Work:
After successfully expressing yourself to the web designer about what you envision in your website, a scope of work will be provided for you.
The scope of work contains the technicalities of the design and the job limitations.
Price:
After successfully making your intentions known with regards to what you want in a website and going through the scope of work drafted by your web designer, the price of the website is the next most important point you must agree on.
In most cases, the scope of work determines the website cost.
Other independent factors that determine the cost of the website include the type of host server that will be used and the recurrent maintenance fee.
There should also be a clause specifying what should be considered additional task and how the payment will be worked out.
It is safe for the task not to be initiated until both parties agree with the project fee.
Timeline of the project:
A good web design agreement should state clearly the expected time frame to complete the project.
However, you can always fast track the task completion date by opting for the rush charge option.
Communication:
A good website development agreement will also state in clear times the communication methods and its frequency.
At every communication interval, your website developer is expected to give you progress feedback.
How well your website designer is able to handle the communication will go a long way in determining whether or not the project will be a success.
Please note, apart from the project goal which is the very first point, the other points largely depend on the mutual agreement you are able to reach with your website developer
Have a question about your web design project? Call E-Brand Promotion and our web development team will help you every step of the way from conceptualizing the idea to design and full implementation.
