You don't need a license to call yourself a web designer. There's no certification required, no governing body, no minimum standard. Anyone with a laptop and a Squarespace account can hang out a shingle. Most of them mean well. Some of them will cost you real money.
Here's how to evaluate who you're dealing with before you commit.
Red Flags
Their own website looks bad
No process, just a price
If someone quotes you a number without asking what you need, how you work, who your customers are, and what success looks like, they're not building you a website. They're installing a template and billing you for it. A real process involves discovery, content structure, approvals, and defined deliverables.
Subscription-only pricing
Some web designers don't actually build you a website, they rent you one. A monthly fee forever, and if you stop paying, the site disappears. This model exists because it's profitable for the designer, not because it's good for you. You should own your website outright. Domain, hosting, code, content. All of it.
Portfolio doesn't exist or is all the same
A portfolio of ten sites that all look identical is a red flag. It means they have one template and one way of working. A portfolio that doesn't exist, can't be shared, or is constantly "being updated", also a red flag.
They won't give you access to your own site
Your website credentials are yours. Your hosting account is yours. Your domain is yours. Any designer who resists giving you admin access to your own site, or who insists on holding your domain, has a business model that depends on your dependency. Walk away.
Green Flags
They explain their process upfront
Good designers tell you exactly what's going to happen, in what order, and what they need from you at each stage. The process should be in writing before you sign anything.
Transparent pricing with defined scope
You should know what you're getting, what's not included, and what will cost extra if you add it later. No surprises on the invoice.
You own everything when the project is done
Code, content, images, hosting credentials, domain. If it's your business, it's your stuff. Period.
They push back on bad ideas
They understand SEO basics
Not deep technical SEO, just the fundamentals. Title tags, meta descriptions, page speed, mobile responsiveness, proper heading structure. If a designer has never heard of Core Web Vitals or doesn't know what a meta description is, your site will be invisible on Google.
Six Questions to Ask Before You Sign
- "Can you walk me through your process?"
- "Who will own the domain and hosting account?"
- "What happens if I want to switch designers after the site launches?"
- "Can I see three recent client sites, including their mobile view?"
- "What's your plan for making this rank on Google?"
- "What's not included in this quote?"
If any of these questions make a designer uncomfortable, you have your answer.
What We Do
We'll tell you the same things we'd tell anyone: check our site, read our process, look at the work we've done. Ask us the questions above and see how we answer them.
We're a boutique studio based in Arnprior, Ontario. We don't use templates. You own everything we build. Our process is documented. And if we think you're about to make a mistake, we'll say so.
If that sounds like what you're looking for, let's talk. Or read more about how we work on the services page.