How do you know you’ve found a developer you can trust?

It’s not always personal. When you’re looking for someone to build your website, there are all kinds of factors involved, and not everyone will be a good fit. However, there are some definite red flags that you should be aware of before you sign a contract. So without further ado, here are our top signs you should walk away from a web developer before you get in too deep.

• How established are they? This doesn’t break down along business/freelancer lines: there are many unreliable start-up businesses just as there are many long-term, professional freelancers. What’s important here is that web development is their primary source of income. If it isn’t, it will be hard for them to keep you as a priority.
• Do they use pre-existing themes? This isn’t a deal breaker: depending on your needs, this theme could suit you just fine. But take a look at the other sites they’ve built: Do they all use the same theme? If so, it could be a sign that this is the only theme your developer knows how to use. That doesn’t speak well about their competency.
• What does their functionality look like? Do they know how to custom code functionality, or do they rely on 3rd parties for all their complicated plugins? Does every single thing just link off-site? If they use nothing but embedded 3rd party software, they may just be hacking things together to get by.
• How is their business structured? It’s fine to have a remote office, but if they seem uncomfortable letting you know, what does that say about your relationship? Are they nervous about telling you if they use contractors? Are they forthcoming in their answers to your inquiries? If you sense that they feel guarded or insecure about how they run their business internally, it does not bode well for how they plan to run their business with you.
• If they’re a team, do they work well together? If they give you an indication that they’re a team working from one place, will they actually assemble their team to meet with you? Do you get a good vibe from them? Are they a cohesive unit, or dissatisfied, unhappy, and fractured? How do the members of the company relate to each other.

Transparency is the bottom line

We’re proud of the choices we make as a business, which is why we aren’t afraid to share them. If someone hides their choices from you, they may not be doing anything wrong, but it shows that they are embarrassed by their decisions and worried about how they will be perceived for making them. You don’t want to trust these people with your site.

If they’re not confident in their own decision, you should not have confidence in them.