Web Consultant: When and Why Should You Hire This Powerful Asset For Business Growth

88% of digital consumers are less likely to return to a website after a bad experience.

This bad experience often comes down to factors that were overlooked or dismissed as irrelevant in the website development/design process.

If you are one of those businesses and struggle with creating a high-performing website that retains visitors and drives actions, then you are in the right place.

Web consultant services are rarely considered by decision-makers and other stakeholders when there's a new digital presence in the making. Most likely because they believe they know everything there is to know about making a quality website.

However, the role of these specialists is to point out the hidden flaws and long-term solutions that can easily evade the untrained eye. And that can prove to be all the difference between losing your customers and retaining them.

In this article, we will define the role of a web consultant and talk about the business benefits these experts can bring.

What Is A Web Consultant?

A web consultant is an expert who provides businesses with professional advice on how to establish an online presence and drive successful results for their companies via the web.

These professionals have extensive knowledge in all major areas of web design and development and can give you guidance that goes beyond creating a nice-looking website.

They can also look at your business purpose and goals and advise on the best solutions, strategies, tools and talent to meet your requirements.

Web Design Consultant vs. Web Designer And Web Development Consultant vs. Web Developer

These are completely different professions handling different aspects of the web design and development process. Let us tell you why.

Web design and development consultants are professional advisors who help businesses manage their entire web design and development projects.

Their goal is to spot their clients’ problems and challenges or how they allocate their time and effort during the process.

Then, through in-depth research and client interviews, these experts try to find the best possible solutions and spot unexplored opportunities to execute their clients’ projects effectively.

These can include different tactics, from gathering the right requirements and selecting the right platforms to placing the best resources in the process.

The job of web design and development consultants is to solve organizational problems with business success in mind.

So, when developing strategies, they will consider various aspects, like the clients’:

• Business models
• Needs and goals
• Audience
• Competition

While a web consultant approaches projects with a problem-solving attitude to suggest and recommend, web designers and developers are responsible for the actual execution of the project, making sure they meet the client's requirements and the projects’ specifications.

They are not concerned with strategies or post-launch success and goal achievement, but rather with the launch day and the website’s look and feel. So, their job often ends once the website is pushed live.

A web consultant, on the other hand, will be there to monitor your project from start to finish by also helping you measure success.

These experts want to see your product succeed. So, they will be there post-launch to provide additional strategies, if necessary, to ensure the long-term success of their guidance, the achievement of your goals and the positive return on investment (ROI).

What Are The Most Popular Website Consulting Services?

A web design consultant can offer you professional guidance in the following areas:

• Web strategy: They help organizations create long-term strategic business plans that will help them develop an online presence and achieve specific goals. From identifying the right audience to executing the actual design and development process and deciding where to spend their resources, their expertise will ensure the desired project outcomes.
• Design and development: A web consultant has the expertise to create advanced strategies based on your unique business needs so that you can build a website that is as visually appealing as it is functional and easy to use. Their job is to help you develop a high-performing marketing tool for your business that will generate measurable results in conversions and sales.
• User experience: They assist in creating outstanding interfaces that provide meaningful and relevant experiences to users and generate results. This involves incorporating tactics and best practices throughout the whole design process, including aspects of navigation, functionality and even branding.
• Web traffic: A web development consultant can also help clients drive quality traffic to their websites and lower bounce rates. Using analytics, these experts can identify where your most valuable users are coming from and what new channels you can leverage to further increase the volume of visitors.
• Web optimization and performance: These professionals can help your business use the right tools and proven tactics to improve your website performance. This includes various advanced strategies like SEO, content development and security, which are important in generating higher traffic, increasing conversions and revenue.

5 Reasons To Hire A Web Consultant

From cost reduction to website personalization, these are the top five reasons why your business should invest in a web consultant:

Reason #1: Cost Savings

Some businesses operate on a tight budget and cannot hire some of the best website developers and designers on the market to execute their projects.

Hiring entry-level employees and training them can also be more expensive than working with a web development consultant.

For the price of a single expert, consultants will help you in different aspects that go beyond the look and feel of your website.

They will help you define the right audience, leverage the best solutions, design with branding and consistency in mind, as well as assist you with strategies for business growth that will drive higher traffic and conversions.

This will result in cost reduction but also accelerate project delivery.

Reason #2: Unbiased Perspective

Unlike business owners and their employees who are often not able to spot the right issues and lack objectivity, a web design consultant approaches every project with an “out-of-the-box” point of view.

These experts can not only have a fresh take on your company, but they are also able to look at it from the perspective of a customer.

They are uniquely positioned to spot challenges and highlight competitive advantages that can help companies achieve their long-term goals and drive measurable results.

Reason #3: Advanced Analytics

While web design and development are complex fields that very much depend on big data analysis, web consultants have access to cutting-edge tools and technologies that can help them evaluate your online performance and develop winning strategies.

With key insights at hand, you can fast forward the development process, personalize user experience and perform more efficient testing.

In addition to that, by using premium tools, a web consultant is also able to measure your traffic and collect key info on:

• The number of website visitors
• The average sessions per page
• The bounce rates
• The best-performing pages

With this data, you can identify the best tactics and approaches that boost your website performance and make further improvements.

Reason #4: Extensive Knowledge

By virtue of serving different clients and industries, web design and development consultants have extensive knowledge in many areas.

They are always on top of the industry trends and have unique insights into the different types of audiences and the major challenges and opportunities in your market.

These experts have a deep grasp of the best practices and proven tactics that work for specific sectors, which is instrumental in employing highly effective techniques that drive success online.

Reason #5: Personalization

Considering that today’s digital world is so competitive, personalization can be the key to success.

Website personalization refers to the action of creating customized experiences for visitors, tailored to their unique needs.

While most businesses are dependent on the best practices they find on the web, they tend to offer a single broad experience that might not appeal to most of their users.

This most often happens because they are not able to, or rather, they don’t know how to personalize their customer experiences.

Data supports this fact and a recent report shows that the ability to deliver customized experiences remained basic in 2020, where 35% of organizations on a global level claimed that they are not capable of delivering personalization.

This is where a web development consultant can come in quite handy.

These experts will take the time to study your target group and discover their needs, wants and pain points.

This will allow them to create strategies that will benefit businesses in many ways including:

• Greater brand equity
• Relevant offers
• Increased customer loyalty
• Shorter sales cycles
• Stronger lead nurturing
• More conversions

When Should Companies Invest In Website Consulting Services?

Not every organization can make use of a web consultant. And there are certain ways to tell whether you are a good candidate for this type of service or not.

Normally, businesses that struggle with specific website problems will need external assistance, even though they have skilled web designers and developers in-house.

Here are some of the most common issues that may affect the success of a website:

• Low search engine rankings
• Bad performing content
• Poor SEO
• High bounce rates
• Low visitor time-on-site
• No or low conversions
• No fresh traffic
• No returning visitors
• Slow loading pages
• Glitches and error messages

Besides, businesses who are just starting out and lack a website strategy or a budget for web design and development can benefit from the services of a web design consultant.

This is important because nearly 20% of small businesses fail within the first year. And, having a well-established online presence can help keep these businesses alive.

These experts can assist small businesses in many ways, from defining the right audience to determining their product-market fit.

Organizations might also want to consider website consulting services when:

• They want external help with a website audit
• They need help with research and strategy
• They don’t have the expertise to fuel their decisions

How Much Do Web Design And Development Consultants Charge For Their Project?

The most common pricing structure among web design and development consultants is the hourly rate.

There are a few major factors that will influence the price:

• The consultants’ level of experience
• The scope of services they offer
• Their location
• Their access to cutting-edge tools

For website consulting services, you can expect to pay between $100 and $200 per hour.

However, hiring a top-notch consultant with extensive experience may cost you up to $300 per hour.

How To Choose The Best Web Consultant For Your Business

Selecting the best web consultant for your project can seem like a daunting process because there are too many options on the market.

However, these steps can help:

• Understand your needs: Whether you need to build a website from scratch or redesign it, having a proper strategy can make all the difference in the long term. However, for a web consultant to help you with an action plan, you need to know what part of your efforts needs improvement. Or, if your website is not showing any results and you are not able to identify the real issues, then your partner will perform a website audit and provide the kind of solutions you need.
• Check the quality of their work: Previous work in the form of portfolios and case studies will tell you about the kind of projects these experts have worked on, their industry experience and the type of companies they partner with. However, these forms of past work matter because they showcase whether web design and development consultants can deliver successful website projects and drive measurable results.
• See what other clients say: The reviews of previous clients will help you understand what type of collaboration you can expect with each web development consultant. They will reveal key info on their communication and collaboration skills, creativity, innovation, the type of results they can deliver and more.
• Learn about their tools and processes: Web design and development consultants have their delivery processes. For your partner to develop the best strategies possible, make sure they take a unique approach based on your specific business needs. In addition, ask about what tools they have access to since gathering key analytics can be the key to developing relevant tactics that can ensure the project’s success.
• Look for credentials: While credentials like awards and certifications should not be a decisive factor, they can demonstrate the qualities of each web consultant. These will show you that these experts have done quality work and that they are capable of delivering successful projects.

Takeaways On Web Design And Development Consultants

A web consultant is an expert who can help you execute a successful web design and development project with professional guidance and advanced strategies.

These professionals may cost you about $100-$200 per hour, on average.

You should invest in website consulting services when:

• You have an in-house team but don’t see the desired results
• You want external help with a website audit
• You need help with research and strategy
• You don’t have the expertise to fuel your decisions

The key reasons why you should partner with a consultant are:

• Cost savings
• Unbiased perspective
• Advanced analytics
• Extensive knowledge
• Personalization

To choose the best web design consultant for your business, follow these steps:

• Understand your needs
• Check the quality of their work
• See what other clients say
• Learn about their tools and processes
• Look for credentials