| Legal Considerations |
|
|
|
|
Now for the boring yet surprisingly important legal bit: website designers have the unenviable task of trying to interpret your needs into a complex yet well functioning asset of your business, based merely on your communication with them, so it is important to remember that there is the possibility of things going wrong. To ignore this possibility would be foolish, and will only lead to more problems down the line, so it is vital that you cover the legal aspects of your website design project before any money changes hands. More often than not, your website design company will provide a contract for you to enter into with them that covers basic aspects like payment terms, rates, and some sort of basic service level agreement. You have every right to query certain terms within the contract, and if you are not happy or comfortable with them, request that they either be changed or removed from the contract. You can, of course, also request that certain new annexes or clauses are added if you feel you would like some extra protection. A basic website design contract should cover the following aspects: - The agreed amount to be paid, and the payment terms, such as when the payments are due in relation to the agreed delivery milestones - An overview of the agreed services: this should be as comprehensive as possible without getting overtly technical - A rough development and delivery schedule which, in theory, should be kept to as closely as possible. - Any after sales commitments that the company might provide. These should cover hosting and general site maintenance, site updating terms if they are going to be managing your site, or training sessions if you are going to be managing the site using a CMS, plus any support that the company will provide as and when you might require it. Once you feel you have negotiated the terms of the contract and you are happy to sign, get the company to send you two original copies by post. They should sign each copy and initial each page before sending this off to you. When you receive the copies, read over the contract one more time, then sign each copy and ensure that you initial each and every page. You then send one copy back to them and keep one for yourself. Keep it somewhere handy for your reference, as you might need to review it every now and then during the course of the website design process. Once you both have signed copies of the contract, your website design team will then send you an invoice for the first deposit of payment. Generally no development will start until the payment clears, so if you are in a hurry to get started, make sure you have all your finances in order so as not to delay the process. All that is left for you to do is take a deep breath and make the payment...go for it! Click 'Next' to move onto the next lesson - Money Matters |
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|