Web design company for businesses in the United States

WordPress suits a team that publishes often and wants to edit most of the site itself. Its plugin choice gives you options for extending the site, but someone needs to keep it updated. A custom Next.js site is faster and more secure, and it can still include an editor for the content your team needs to change.

A hosted builder such as Wix, Squarespace or Webflow suits a small site that an owner wants to run alone. It gives you less control over the code and speed, though, and moving away later can mean rebuilding. Think about who will maintain the pages as well as who will make the first version.

The right choice starts with your working habits. We ask how your team uses and updates content before recommending WordPress or a custom Next.js build. That gives you a platform decision grounded in the work you expect to do after launch, instead of choosing a tool before you have settled who will use it.

Agree an accessibility target in the brief. Guidance on ADA Title III says the goods and services that businesses open to the public offer on the web are covered, and identifies WCAG as helpful guidance. For state and local government sites, the ADA Title II rule requires WCAG 2.1 Level AA. We set the appropriate WCAG target in the brief and use it to guide the page designs, so the requirements are part of the work from the start.

Bring what you have and make a note of anything still to gather.

• Your logo in SVG, AI or EPS format, plus brand colours and fonts, or a note that these still need creating.
• A ranked list of the services or products you want the home page and navigation to feature.
• Your main goal, such as quote requests or job applications, and who handles each kind of enquiry.
• Real photos of your team, premises and completed work; arrange a photo shoot ahead if needed.
• A folder of case studies, permitted client logos, testimonials, certifications and memberships.
• Login details for your domain, hosting, email, analytics and Search Console, or the name of the person who holds them.

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  Copying every old or competitor page

  Start with the service pages visitors need. A shorter site is easier to scan and keep current.

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  Reviewing designs only on a large screen

  Check every page on a phone before approving it, since many company-site visitors arrive that way.

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  Leaving search setup until after launch

  Check that an indexing block from development has not been left in place, as it can keep a new site out of search results.

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  Putting accounts in an agency’s name

  Hold the domain and hosting accounts in your business and grant access to the people doing the work.