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There are some very different types of providers you can work with to create your website. For most small to medium-sized businesses, web design shops are the best route to a good site for the right price.

Web development shops or agencies offer a complete package: they've got designers who make your site look good, developers who do the html and other coding, and often offer hosting services as well. Having all the right people in the same shop makes it easy for them to coordinate with each other and address the technical troubles that arise.

An alternative is hiring freelancers: one person who can handle the entire process, or a separate designer and developer. This may be a cheaper route since there isn't much overhead. This can also complicate the project, though, as you have to manage all the communications between multiple vendors, and can also create complications if they disagree on directions or approaches to specific issues. Hiring freelancers is best if you have some in-house staff who will work on the project, but you're lacking a specific skill: for example, you've got html programmers in-house but need to hire a designer. If you hire freelancers be sure they have resources for everything you need and are fully capable of producing a quality website visually and developmentally. Most designers don't develop well and most developers don't design well. One is an art and the other a science.

Once you decide what type of designers you want to hire, submit a free request for price quotes and multiple web design companies will compete for your business.

What to look for
When it comes down to it, you need a website that does what you want it to. Talk to several web design firms to see which is the best match for your needs.

You'll want a company that's been in business for a while – at least a couple of years. This lets you know that they have some stability and experience. Look at their portfolio.

Make sure you ask about results, not just flashy designs. Ask how previous clients have seen business pick up, or how their e-commerce sites have performed. Even better, get contact information for some of their previous clients and ask them yourself!

Turn to the pros for design
A note about graphic design: lots of people can use Photoshop, many can create very professional looking pictures or artwork. This doesn't mean they should design your web site! Successful web site designs:

• are easy to understand and navigate
• represent your business well
• are relatively easy to build
• focus on information and action, not splash and sizzle

Achieving all these goals requires experience in designing for the web. Many so-called website designers claim they can provide a really attractive and structurally sound website but make sure they aren't buying a $65 template and then customizing it for you. Anyone with a slight knowledge of html can do this but you shouldn't get charged hundreds of dollars for it.