Hiring a Landing Page Designer? Ask These Questions Before You Pay a Deposit

Owen had interviewed four people and was starting to feel like they all said the same thing.

He ran a solar installation company in Phoenix. Business was good, but his ads were sending people to a page he'd built himself one weekend, and he suspected it wasn't pulling its weight. So he went looking for a landing page designer.

Every portfolio was beautiful. Every designer said "conversion-focused." Every quote came with a smile. And Owen, who could size a solar array in his sleep, had no idea how to tell who was actually good at this.

If you're in Owen's position, here's what he eventually learned to ask, and what the answers reveal.

First, know what you're hiring for

A landing page designer isn't quite the same as a website designer. A website has to serve lots of visitors with lots of needs. A landing page has one job: persuade one kind of visitor to take one action.

That means a good landing page designer thinks about words, order and psychology as much as colours and fonts. A page can be gorgeous and still lose visitors. A page can be fairly plain and still bring in customers.

So before you look at a single portfolio, write down your goal in one sentence. Owen's was: "Get homeowners in Phoenix to book a free solar assessment." Any designer worth hiring will ask you something like that in the first conversation.

Question 1: "What do you need to know about my business before you start?"

This is the most revealing question. Weak answers sound like "Send me your logo and colours." Strong answers sound like a short interview:

• Who is your ideal customer, and what are they worried about?
• What ad or campaign will send people to this page?
• What makes you different from the three companies bidding against you?
• What happens after someone fills in the form?

The designer who asks about your customers before your colours is usually the one who understands what a landing page is for.

Question 2: "Who writes the words?"

Words do much of the persuading on a landing page. Some designers write the copy themselves, some work with a writer, and some expect you to provide everything.

None of those is wrong, but you need to know. If you're expected to write it, be honest with yourself about whether you will, and whether you'll write it well. Owen realised he'd have described panel efficiency for three paragraphs while his customers mostly wanted to know about their power bills.

Question 3: "How will it look and work on a phone?"

Plenty of ad traffic arrives on phones. Ask to see past work on your own phone, not on a big desktop screen in a presentation.

Check whether the main button is visible without scrolling, whether text is readable without zooming, and whether forms are easy to fill in with one thumb. Then check how quickly the pages load on mobile data. A landing page designer who treats mobile as an afterthought is a red flag.

Question 4: "What's included, and what happens after launch?"

A low quote sometimes looks low because important things are missing. Ask directly:

• Is the page built and hosted, or just designed as an image?
• Will the form actually send leads to my email or CRM?
• Is basic tracking set up so I can see if the page is working?
• How many rounds of changes are included?
• Who do I call if something breaks next month?
• Do I own the page and its content when we're done?

Clear answers mean a clear process. Vague answers often mean surprises later.

Red flags when hiring a landing page designer

Owen collected a few warning signs during his search. Watch for:

1. Guaranteed results. Nobody honest can promise a specific number of leads. Too much depends on your offer, your ads and your market.
2. Portfolio of only pretty pictures. If they can't explain why a page was laid out the way it was, they may be decorating rather than designing.
3. No questions about your business. If they're ready to quote before they understand what you sell, they're selling a template.
4. Templates passed off as custom. Templates can be fine, but you should know what you're paying for.
5. Disappearing acts. Slow, vague replies before you've paid rarely get faster afterwards.

Freelancer, agency or studio?

A solo freelancer can be excellent and personal, though availability can be limited. A large agency brings a full team and usually a larger bill. A small studio often sits in between, with designers, writers and developers working together on small business projects.

There's no single right answer. The best choice is the one that asks the best questions and explains its thinking clearly. If you want to see how we approach it, our landing page design service lays out what's included.

Find a designer who starts with your customer

Owen eventually hired the person who asked him the most uncomfortable questions about his customers' worries, and who spent more time on the headline than on the colour of the sky in the hero photo. That's usually a good sign.

At Web Design Studios, we design landing pages, websites and online stores for small businesses, starting with who you're trying to reach and what you need them to do. You can compare what each package includes before you ever book a call.

👉 Compare our landing page packages and see exactly what's included →

Owen's new page is running now. He says it finally sounds like him on a good day.