Ownership
- Whose name is the domain registered in? It should be yours, or your business's. If a designer registers it in their own name, you do not really own your web address.
- Who owns the design and content once it is paid for? You should be able to take the site and its content elsewhere if you ever need to.
- Will I have my own login? You should have an administrator account, even if you never use it.
Hosting and security
- Where will the site be hosted, and who manages the server? "Cheap shared hosting that nobody looks at" is a common answer. Ask who you call when it goes down.
- How are updates handled? WordPress, plugins and themes release security fixes regularly. Ask who applies them, how often, and whether anyone checks the site afterwards.
- How often is the site backed up, and have you ever restored one? A backup nobody has tested is a hope, not a plan.
- How will contact form emails be sent? Forms sent straight from a web server often end up in spam. A proper delivery service fixes that.
The work itself
- Can I see sites you have built that are still live? Ask for working sites, not just screenshots, and ideally some that are a few years old.
- Who will write the words? Copy is the most common reason projects stall. Agree early whether you are writing it, they are, or you are sharing it.
- What happens to my current pages and their Google rankings? If you are replacing a site, ask how old addresses will be redirected. See website redesign.
- Will I be able to update it myself, and will you show me how?
- What happens if we part ways? A good answer is short: you get everything, and they help you move.
One more: ask what the price includes and what it does not. Hosting, care, copywriting, photography and changes after launch are where surprises usually hide. We quote per project, in writing, with those spelled out.