Have you ever found yourself endlessly scrolling through Netflix for hours on end, unable to find the right genre or make a final decision? Gone are the days of chucking on a DVD - now, it’s thousands upon thousands of TV shows and films at our fingertips. The choice is, quite literally, endless.
There’s no way of knowing if you're going to be a fan of the show before immersing yourself into the experience. This can stem decision paralysis, and you finally reach for your phone to once again... scroll.
Finding a web design and development agency feels like it's heading in the same direction. With such an abundance of agencies offering a myriad of specialities, services and software, decision paralysis creeps in amongst those looking for digital services.
Projects have the potential to arrive at a complete standstill.
There’s many routes to explore in an attempt to "firm up" your choice - a bit like watching a TV show’s trailer. You start to read client reviews for that particular web agency, or have a look at their design and development case studies in detail to see if their work matches up with what you're looking to achieve.
On top of this, there’s figuring out what the best technology is going to be for your site and therefore which agency would be the best choice to support. This might be the classic eCommerce conundrum between Shopify and WooCommerce, or deciding between content management systems (CMSs) such as WordPress and Laravel. Perhaps there is a particular style of design that you're looking for, or lots of legacy systems and processes that need consolidating.
These design and development variables can be important drivers when getting in touch with a specific web agency, alongside a bunch of other considerations such as;
Amongst many others.
When contemplating the next TV show to get into, you will find subtleties between how they tell their unique story. Many brand aficionados claim that all the stories and narratives we feast our eyes and ears upon can be likened to one of seven different plots.
Much like this ideology, different web agencies might take one of several different approaches towards your project. Many web agencies facilitate similar projects and maintain very similar digital platforms, systems, hosting environments and apps, however, they will often use different design/development techniques and tools that are aligned to their agency specialisms. These will ultimately shape the direction of your project. This might be variations in code language, how they approach the discovery process or how they manage the project and communicate with the client.
When considering the sheer amount of choice, much like TV shows, it can be a bit of a minefield.
When I think about choosing the right TV show, I’m a big fan of gratifying historical dramas such as ‘The Last Kingdom’. However, some of my best-loved TV series have been when I've refined my search and gone quite "off-piste" from this genre - for example ‘You’, ‘The Good Place’ and many others. But what does that tell us?
The vast amount of time you spend actually searching for anything these days, including a seemingly perfect web design & development agency, will be better utilised taking some action. But how can you "try before you buy"?
Jump on a Zoom call, meet up for a coffee and a "good fit" meeting, ask the questions that are most important for you. See if you can get a demo of a similar website's CMS setup. Share some of your challenges, and see how they respond.
With so many similarities in the agency space, it often boils down to a "good-fit". The age old adage "people buy from people" is apt in the context. If you can form a positive relationship, with a mutual respect for each other, and believe in the agencies ability to solve your challenges, this can be a huge turning point in the decision making process. A strong foundation will lead to a better outcome for all involved.
It's quite remarkable how much peace of mind can be achieved when starting out with an agency in this way, as well as the degree of transparency that you will receive from those in the industry who specialise in these things.
Much like that next Netflix show, without watching the first episode or two, there’s no foolproof way of predicting if it’s going to be a ‘binge in a week’ or a ‘not for me’ scenario. A referral from a trusted pal, or a rave review online could be enough to peak your interest, however, an element of open-mindedness has to come into play and the relationship is a great place to start.
Assuming the agency is a good fit, they have experience on similar projects, can work to your budgets, have capacity and you get on, your search to find someone to support your next project should become much easier.
Once you’ve discovered the perfect pairing, you can dim the lights, grab your favourite snacks, and embark on your exciting digital journey.
After all, building a website should feel like the ultimate Netflix session – exciting, interactive and immersive.
If you would like a no-obligation chat with a member of our team to discuss your next project - please don’t hesitate to reach out here.
If you want to showcase your offering, convert more leads, provide resources, or all of the above, we can build a website that separates you from the competition.
