Choosing who builds your website is mostly a question of trust, and quotes rarely tell you much. Two proposals with similar prices can mean very different things once the work starts. The questions below are the ones that surface those differences early, while you can still walk away.
Ownership: the four questions that matter most
This is where the worst surprises live, and it is the easiest section to skip because everyone is being friendly at the start of a project.
- Will the domain be registered in my name? It should be. If the agency registers it under their own account, you are dependent on them to keep it.
- Who controls the hosting account? You should have your own login, or at minimum the right to be given one on request.
- Do I own the finished site, including the files? Get this in writing, along with what happens if you part ways.
- Can the site be moved to another host? Some setups are portable. Some are not. Better to know now.
A straightforward supplier answers all four without hesitation.
Scope: what is actually included
Most disagreements later are really disagreements about scope now. Ask specifically:
- How many pages does the quote cover, and what does an extra page cost?
- Who writes the text — you, or them? This is the single most common gap.
- Are photos included, or do you supply them? Are stock images licensed?
- How many rounds of revisions, and what counts as a revision?
- Is the site set up so search engines can index it properly?
Timeline: how long, and what will delay it
Ask for a realistic timeline and, more usefully, ask what typically causes delays. An honest answer is almost always "waiting for content from the client" — which tells you the project depends on your input as much as theirs. If a supplier promises a fast turnaround without mentioning what they need from you, that estimate is unlikely to hold.
After launch: the question most people forget
A website is not finished when it goes live. Ask what happens next:
- Who updates text and images later — and at what cost?
- Who is responsible if the site goes down?
- Are backups taken, how often, and has a restore ever been tested?
- Is there a support arrangement, and what response can you expect?
A site nobody maintains quietly degrades: contact details go stale, plugins age, and a small problem becomes an outage.
Evidence: ask to see the work, not the portfolio
Portfolios show the best day of a project. More useful questions: can I see a site you built two years ago that is still running? Can I speak to that client? Does the site load quickly on a phone right now? Open one of their live sites on your own phone while you are in the meeting — that single test tells you more than a slide deck.
Cost: understand the shape, not just the number
Ask what is one-off and what recurs. A website has a build cost, then ongoing costs for the domain and hosting that continue regardless of who built it. Ask what happens at renewal, and whether ongoing maintenance is billed hourly, monthly, or not offered at all. A cheap build with no maintenance path can cost more over three years than a well-scoped one.
Where Gotka Technologies fits
Gotka Technologies has provided hosting and digital services in Malaysia since 2004, and we are happy to answer every question above directly. Web design covers the design and build; the site is hosted on our own cloud hosting from RM17.80/month on LiteSpeed servers with free SSL and daily backups, and domains from RM10/year are registered in your name.
If you already have a site with another provider and want to move it, migration is free and our team handles the transfer.
What is the most important question to ask a web design company?
Who owns the domain, the hosting account and the website files when the project is finished. Everything else can be renegotiated, but if the domain is registered under someone else's name or the site cannot be moved, you have very little leverage later. Ask it early, and ask for the answer in writing rather than as a verbal reassurance.
Should the web designer register my domain for me?
They can handle the registration as a convenience, but it should be registered in your name, with you as the legal owner and administrative contact. That way you keep control if you ever change provider. Ask to be shown the registration details once it is done, and make sure the renewal notices reach an email address you personally control.
How many revisions should be included in a website project?
There is no standard number, which is exactly why you should ask. What matters more is the definition: some suppliers count a batch of feedback as one revision, others count each individual change. Agree what a revision means and how many are included before work starts, and you avoid the most common source of friction near the end of a project.
Who should write the content for my website?
Whoever knows the business best usually writes the first draft, and that is often you. Many quotes assume the client supplies the text, and projects stall for weeks when that assumption is never stated. Ask directly whether writing is included. If it is not and you do not have time to write, agree on that separately rather than discovering the gap mid-project.
What should happen to my website after it launches?
Someone needs to keep it updated, backed up and online. Ask who updates content later and what it costs, whether backups are taken and tested, and who to contact if the site goes down. A site with no maintenance arrangement tends to drift out of date, and the first sign of trouble is often a customer telling you the site is broken.
How do I check a web design company is any good?
Ask to see sites they built two years ago that are still running, not just recent showcase pieces. Open one on your phone during the meeting and see how quickly it loads and how it handles a small screen. If you can, speak to a past client about what happened after launch — responsiveness once the invoice is paid says more than the portfolio does.