You’ve got two or three quotes on the table. The prices are different, the proposals look similar, and you’re not sure what you’re actually buying. Before you transfer a deposit, ask every designer these seven questions. A good one answers them clearly. A bad one gets defensive or vague - and that tells you everything.

1. Who owns the domain name?

Your domain is your address. If the designer registers it in their own account and you fall out, they can hold it hostage. The right answer is: you own it, registered in your name, on your card, in your account. The designer might manage it on your behalf, but the login credentials are yours. If they say they’ll “handle the domain for you” and cant explain how you’d get it back, walk away.

2. Who owns the code and the design files?

Once you’ve paid in full, you should own the finished website outright - the code, the design files, the lot. Ask specifically: “If I want to move to a different developer next year, will you hand over everything?” The answer should be yes, without conditions. Watch out for builders who lock your site inside a proprietary platform you can’t export from. That’s not your website - that’s a rental.

3. What does a small change cost after launch?

You will need changes. Your phone number moves. A price goes up. You add a new service. Ask now: is there an hourly rate? A monthly retainer? A minimum charge per edit? There’s no single right answer here, but there should be a clear one. “We’ll sort it out at the time” is not a policy - it’s a blank cheque you’re handing them.

4. What happens if you disappear?

Freelancers move on. Agencies close. Small studios pivot. Ask: if you stopped trading tomorrow, could I still access my site, my hosting, and my domain? A responsible designer keeps your credentials documented and accessible to you. If the honest answer is “the site would go down and you’d need to start again,” that’s a real risk you’re taking on. Price that risk into your decision.

5. Where is the site hosted, and who controls that account?

Same principle as the domain. Hosting should be in your name or on an account you can access. Ask for the hosting provider’s name, the plan type, and the renewal cost. If the designer is reselling hosting to you, thats fine - but you need to know the underlying provider and what it would cost you to migrate. “We handle all of that” is only reassuring if you also have the keys.

6. How will the site be found on Google?

A website that nobody finds is a brochure in a drawer. Ask what SEO work is included. A straight answer might be: page titles, meta descriptions, fast load times, mobile-friendly build, and a Google Search Console setup. That’s a solid baseline. What you’re listening for is specifics - not “we do SEO” as a throwaway line. For context: Walk On The Wild Side Reptiles & Aquatics in Ashford got 1,500 visits in month one, with 75% of that traffic coming directly from Google. That happened because the SEO groundwork was done properly at build time, not bolted on later.

7. What does the handover look like?

The job isn’t done when the site goes live. Ask what you receive at the end: a walkthrough of how to make basic edits, documentation, login details for every account, confirmation that analytics is set up and you can see the data. A good designer treats handover as part of the job. A bad one treats it as the moment they stop answering your messages.

What a good set of answers looks like

You own the domain. You own the code. Changes have a clear rate. Your credentials are documented. Hosting is transparent. SEO is specific and built in from the start. Handover is structured. If a designer gives you all seven of those answers without blinking, they’re worth talking to further. If they hedge on more than one, keep looking.

  • Domain registered in your name, on your card
  • Full code and file ownership on final payment
  • Post-launch change costs stated upfront
  • Your credentials documented and accessible
  • Hosting provider named, costs transparent
  • SEO specifics included, not just mentioned
  • Structured handover with a walkthrough

One more thing before you decide

Price matters, but it’s not the whole story. A cheap site that you dont own, cant edit, and nobody finds is more expensive in the long run than a fair price for something built properly. Ask the questions. Compare the answers, not just the numbers.

If you want to see how we approach this, take a look at our work - or if you’d rather just have a conversation about what your site needs to do, we’re easy to reach.