The short answer
Before you pay any deposit, get five things in writing: the full price and what it leaves out, the delivery date and what you must supply, who owns the site and the domain, how payment is split, and what happens after launch. Then open two or three sites the designer has built and check they are live and work on your phone. A designer who will not put these in writing is telling you how the project will go.
About the price
- Is this price fixed, and what would make it change? A good answer is a written quote with the number you will pay. "It depends" after you have described the job means the bill is still open.
- What is not included? Ask for the list of what is left out, not only what is in. Logo design, writing the words, product photos, payments and hosting are the usual surprises.
- What will I pay every month or every year after launch? Domain renewal, hosting and upkeep come back. A quote that leaves them out is not the full price. See domain and hosting costs in Kenya.
About ownership
- Whose name will the domain be registered in? It should be yours or your business's. A domain registered in the designer's name can be held back if you fall out, and your website address goes with it.
- Do I own the site and its code when it is done? You should, once it is paid for. Ask what you get if you leave: the files, the logins, or nothing.
About time and work
- When will it be live, and what do you need from me by when? Most delays are content arriving late. A good designer tells you the date and the deadline for your words and photos. See how long a website takes.
- How many rounds of changes are included? Get a number. "Unlimited revisions" usually means no one has agreed when the work is finished.
- Will I see the site before it goes live? A preview link you can open on your own phone is better than screenshots.
About payment and after launch
- How is payment split? A deposit to start and the rest on launch is common. Paying everything up front leaves you with no leverage if the work stalls.
- What happens after launch if something breaks? Ask how long small fixes are free and what support costs after that.
Before you ask any of them
Open the designer's past work yourself. Check that the sites are live, load quickly on your phone and still belong to real businesses. A portfolio of screenshots with no working links proves less than one site you can use.
Our own answers
| Question | Anza Studios |
|---|---|
| Fixed price | Yes. A fixed quote within 48 hours of the first call, and that is the number you pay. |
| What is not included | Listed for every package on our pricing page |
| Ownership | You own the site, the code and the domain |
| Payment | 50% to start, 50% on launch, by M-Pesa, bank transfer or card |
| Revisions | Two rounds on the Business package, three on Commerce |
| Preview | A live preview link in the first week |
| After launch | 30 days of free small edits, then an optional care plan from Sh 4,500 a month |
Our work is on the work page, with links to the live sites.