Where to find high quality (affordable) web designers?

[alexhoug]

Hi everyone,

I am looking for find high quality web designers that are affordable. I am open to many options.

There are several things I have looked into.

1. I have looked for designers via CSS galleries, but I don't really know how to get in touch with designers or find them. Rand recently talked about this in a webinar, but if anyone has specific insights on how to find people this way, please let me know.

2. I have also looked into website design contests from sites such as:

DesignCrowd.com

99designs.com

CrowdSpring.com

DesignContest.com

I haven't used these services and I was wondering if anyone has experience with design contests.

3. I have looked into the option of hiring a freelancer on oDesk or a similar freelancer site. I don't really know the cost, how to find a good designer, how to avoid inexperienced but cheap designers and all the other such roadblocks that come along with freelancers.

If anyone could provide insight into this, it would be greatly appreciated.

[BeTheBoss]

Spec work is terrible and undervalues the industry. I say you get what you pay for. http://www.no-spec.com/

[mosaicpro]

I think it's about what you want to get and for how much.

It all starts from there.

For example:

budged : 1k  - for a 8-10 page website with no complex features you should be able to find good designers.

budged : 300  - for a 8-10 page website with no complex features you should be able to find poor designers that could still do the job.

It's also about luck to find a quality and reliable designer. (depends on background, location, etc)

Hope it helps.

[alexhoug]

Around $500 for now. The project I am working on is a family one so I didn't charge them nearly as much as I normally would.

[kchandler]

I've always had a great experience with 99designs but you want to make sure you give a lot of requirements and inspiration if you want to get exactly what your looking for. I've only used them for logo work though so i can't give much feedback for other types of projects. What are your price points?

[firstconversion]

Probably best to say where you are based, then get personal recommendations from that area and meet the designer in person.

I can give you great designers in London and I know Luke Jones is a great UK based designer and also contributes to SEOmoz a lot, so maybe get hold of him via DM www.seomoz.org/users/profile/139920

You could try here as well http://www.seomoz.org/marketplace/resumes/service/2 <- people who have tagged themselves with design (altho its a bit spammy)

[alexhoug]

Any insight on the design contests? They seem interesting.

[alexhoug]

Very good points, I will take everything you said into consideration when going into this web development project.

[alexhoug]

Email sent

[alexhoug]

I have had some experience doing this, like when shooting a video, I find an intern at a local TV station who has access to nice equipment and have them shoot some video for me, it worked out great!

I like the reminder!

[alexhoug]

This is so true and what makes this designer recruitment process even harder. Finding that balance and even someone that is near my area that is good.

[Loganshark]

One quick opinion:

We have used a number of developers from eLance.com and have always been satisfied. As with any design project, the more information you are able to provide (in terms of what you want), the happier you will be with the finished product. Most designers will have a portfolio with samples of their previous work.

Prices will vary depending on the scope of the project, time frame, and how experienced/qualified the designer. You can get an idea of what people are paying for different projects by searching the job listings that other people have posted, and how much they are offering.

In our experience, eLance and similar sites are best when you know exactly what you want and the scope of the work is relatively small. Often times those developers are in different parts of the world and communication can be difficult (time zones, language barriers). For large, detail-intense projects, you might do better to find someone local or at least within the U.S. It might end up costing a bit more, but like Steve mentioned "you get what you pay for" and if you end up with a website that you don't like, the money you saved won't matter.

[Aaronetics]

email me!

shewhodesigns@gmail.com

I have an intensive design background, but am fully aware of and skilled in SEO and SEM.

[kchandler]

You could always check for colleges around your location that offer interns/co-ops for college credit. Normally there is good design talent with relatively affordable prices.

[SteveOllington]

High quality and affordable don't always go hand in hand. The whole thing of "You get what you pay for" is usually the case so I'd be careful if it's too cheap. Even if the designs are awesome, maybe their customer service is bad.

Anyway, I'd get a real live person who you can meet with if I were you, instead of a random off a website that you only deal with via email. Design is way too subjective to not have face-to-face meetings in my opinion.

I know some great web designers but they're here in the UK, and not so cheap... but then if they were cheap maybe they wouldn't be so great