The decision on whom to hire to work on your BigCommerce is one of the decisions that will have a notable effect towards the development of your online store. Bigcommerce is quite a robust and flexible solution that can become the backbone of your business growth, but to achieve all that, you need a developer who is familiar with the nuances of Bigcommerce.
As you set out to start a new store or modify an existing one, the development agency you choose will largely determine how easy or hard the process is going to be – and, in the end, how successful your business will be.
But does this mean that you will be able to identify the right developer? There are plenty of agencies out there, and most of them offer their services stating that they will benefit your business the most. It is pretty stressful when you have to make a comparison. Therefore, the essence of decision-making lies in getting the questions right before you decide.
1. What Experience Do You Have with BigCommerce?
Not all developers work with the same platforms. When it comes to hiring an agency, you would like to know that the agency is familiar with BigCommerce in particular. Question them about the number of BigCommerce projects they have completed and if they have any certifications or affiliations with BigCommerce. Having a BigCommerce developer on board who has a deep understanding of BigCommerce and its capabilities will be greatly beneficial when it comes to developing a fast, high-converting, fully optimized online store.
Look through their website and see whether they have worked on projects of the same size and within the same business as you. Even better, if the agency has done previous work in your industry, it is a clear sign that they also understand some of the potential hurdles your business will encounter.
2. Can You Share Examples of Past Projects?
One of the best ways to gauge the competency of an agency is to look at their previous works. You will need to know how their designs are, their approach to UX and if they have a responsive store.
When choosing such stores, consider how well they perform in terms of speed and functionality. Beautiful designs are always preferable, but they have to be integrated to function properly for customers' convenience. Visit their portfolio of live sites they’ve developed and try to use some of them yourself—this way, you will get an idea of what to expect if you hire this web design company.
3. What Is Your Development Process?
Each development agency is different from the other in terms of its work output. You need to know how their work process meets your business needs and production plan requirements. Provide the agency with questions regarding their process of creating an Ecommerce site on BigCommerce? What strategies do they apply regarding their time frames, how they negotiate with customers, and how they address changes to requirements or obstacles?
Make sure the agency engages you in discovery meetings to discuss your business, then build wireframes and mockups to show you the design and finish with testing before launching the site. You will also expect to know how they operate after conducting the launch and whether or not they provide maintenance services so that your store will be operating efficiently immediately after being launched.
4. How Do You Handle Customizations?
BigCommerce is very flexible and can easily be customized to meet your needs which is one of the biggest advantages of using this platform. Depending on the services you require, from custom functionalities for your BigCommerce site to specific app integrations, or a signature layout, your BigCommerce development agency must know how to customize.
If you envision certain developments or services (for instance, syncing your store with your inventory system or your CRM), ensure that they possess the technical capacity to do them. Of course, you will need to know if custom work will also impact the project's timeline or cost.
5. How Will You Optimize My Store for Speed and SEO?
An important aspect of overall success for a BigCommerce store is based on the performance of your store. Consumers today expect a site to load quickly and be easy to use – if your site is slow, your sales are going to suffer. However, SEO is crucial in the drive to pull traffic and rank higher on Google.
Find out how the agency addresses issues related to website performance and SEO. Are they designed for efficient loading time and good usability for the desktop and mobile websites? Do they know the current SEO trends for web pages including Meta tags, heading and URLs? A good development firm will make sure the designed and developed store is fast, highly performing, and search-engine friendly.
6. What Kind of Ongoing Support Do You Provide?
Your business expands over time and may require upgrades, added functions, and frequent maintenance. Inquire about the kind of support they provide after the launch of the store. Can they offer maintenance packages? Will they be present to fix problems that arise or make alterations to the store once it has gone live?
Therefore, you should consider working with a BigCommerce development agency whose level of support can be easily customized to meet your requirements.
7. Can You Provide Client Testimonials or References?
Request the client references and success stories that will verify the punctuality and cost-effectiveness of the agency.
When reviewing testimonials, make sure that the clients had similar needs or the scope of their projects. This will let you have a feel for the kind of agency that might deal with your particular project. Was the previous client satisfied with the communication, workmanship, and level of services provided after the launch?
8. What Is the Estimated Timeline and Cost?
If you choose an agency to work with, you need to know how long the project will take and how much it will cost. Request a cost estimate based on the exact requirements and modifications that are necessary. Avoid agencies that say they will complete it in a short time frame, or they are charging low rates—it takes time and financial input to get quality work.
An ideal agency would explain all the expenses that will be incurred in the project development process, design, testing, and any other extra services, such as support and SEO, required for the project. They should provide you with a rough idea along with the major checkpoints of when each part of the project is expected to be delivered.
Conclusion
Answering these basic questions will help you to find out whether the agency is competent. Do not forget that this partnership is in fact very important for establishing a high-converting eCommerce store, so invest your time into choosing the right one.
If you're looking for a reliable partner to build or enhance your online store, Makkpress Technologies can help you create a customized, high-converting eCommerce solution. Get in touch with our experts today!
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