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We got a product and during the launch we need a good, well designed website with product features etc.

Now we wrote all the features and prepared some scenarios for product showcase, videos, presentations etc. but stuck in some problems:

  • We don't have a designer
  • We suck at presenting content
  • We don't have time to think and fiddle about details in the page as development keeps us quite busy (but we do understand that marketing is crucial!)

Basically we want someone / company who is experienced on developing product websites, presenting content, preparing good quality product tours.

We don't have a lot resources but we are planning to spend about $1500-5000 to such a project. I've tried to find potential candidates for such a task via Google and some outsourcing websites, so far couldn't even come close.

Where can I find such a company / person, who can actually listen us, understand our product, come up with ideas and then implement it in the website? Or do you have any direct recommendations?

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6 Answers

up vote 2 down vote accepted

I would try haystack.com I'm not affiliated in any way but it's run by the 37 signal crew.

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I looked at it but it's not easy to spot one company our of 1000 and know that they are good with designing product tours and stuff. – the dictator Jan 21 '10 at 10:23
I just found one though, I'll look a little bit more and send some emails. – the dictator Jan 21 '10 at 11:05
up vote 3 down vote

Answer: any web design agency can help.

Problem with answering this question is almost like answering "where do I find the perfect mate" - there are so many variables that are subjective and only matter to you.

That said, a good thing to do is an internal assessment - what type of image do you want to portray? What do you sell? Atoms or bits? (hard goods or digital goods) Are you B2B or B2C? B2B: to Fortune 500, small / medium business, or SOHO? B2C: what demographic? what region?

Do a deep scan of your competition - what do they look like? What do you like about their site? their message? their product? What don't you like?

Take the top 3 sites in this set that you like and try to boil down what you like about them, and then find out who created them. Sometimes you can see their logo at the bottom of the page, sometimes a search on google "companyname design" can uncover this.

Take these ideas and your goals and then put them on (digital) paper. Document your findings so you can distribute it to potential firms (and you have a record of your ideas). A good list resource can be found here and here.

You may find that a Web design agency will not do branding, content and product marketing development for 5k. But, armed with a good list, you should be able to find a firm that will deliver you a great solution for the right cost.

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up vote 1 down vote

Good suggestions above but I think referrals are always the best way to go. Do you know of companies who've had similar projects where they've used an outside resource? It is so tough to evaluate and trust and hire firms that a personal referral is always the best way to go in my book, when possible. Realizing that's not always possible but I'd always try that first.

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up vote 1 down vote

I would suggest you please try and use 123triad.com or GarronT who provides free mock-up service. I know these 2 companies however try for other few companies who provide free mock-up.

  1. http://www.123triad.com/free_mockup.php
  2. http://garrontrbts-websitedesign.com/get-a-free-quote.php

Free mock-up will give you baseline what they can provide and how the product will be showcased w/o any investment. Only you need to feel up the form.

I hope this helps. Thanks.

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up vote 0 down vote

At the risk of self-promotion (frowned upon here) I can probably arrange something within your budget. Feel free to e-mail me (ekochman at optimalupgrades dot com) with details, and I can put together some samples of work along similar lines and a price estimate.

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up vote 0 down vote

You can also consider going with a content writing service that gets to know your product, craft your message, and then can suggest what type of presentation would best suit your product.

An example of such a company would be Sam @ contagious energy. (disclosure: no business relationship with her) She is highly regarded around the joomla community & has been given high ratings for this sort of work.

If dealing with the content is the issue, then getting your USP & pitch down is what companies like hers does.

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