HIRING GUIDE / BEFORE YOU SIGN ANYTHING
How to choose a web designer in Nashville.
Ask the ten questions below on the first call. A good designer answers each one plainly; a bad one changes the subject. Our own answer sits under every question, so you can hold us to the same test.
The questions / Ask all ten
Ten questions for the first call.
Most come from Google’s own advice on hiring an SEO, which applies just as well to whoever builds the site.
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01 Can I see sites you built that are live right now?
Why ask it. Google’s own list of questions for an SEO starts with examples of previous work. A screenshot proves nothing; a live address proves it still works.
Our answer. Every client site on our work page is live, and three have the old site’s score beside ours on the before-and-after page.
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02 What will you build it on, and who keeps it patched?
Why ask it. In 2025 the security firm Patchstack counted 11,334 newly found WordPress weaknesses. Plugins accounted for 91%, and for 46% the developer had shipped no fix when the flaw went public. A site on a theme and plugins needs someone patching it for as long as it is up.
Our answer. We don’t build on WordPress. Our pages are finished files on Cloudflare’s network, with no theme or plugins to patch, and hosting and care are part of the build.
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03 Whose name will the domain be in?
Why ask it. The domain belongs to whoever is listed as its registrant. Change that later and ICANN’s rules can lock the domain for 60 days against moving to another registrar.
Our answer. Yours. The domain is registered to you, with your email on it, from the first day.
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04 If I leave, what do I take with me?
Why ask it. Some platforms keep the site. Wix says its sites have to run on Wix’s own servers, and Squarespace’s export leaves some content behind.
Our answer. The domain, the site’s files, the Business Profile and the analytics are yours, and they go wherever you go.
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05 What access do you need to my Google accounts?
Why ask it. Google advises giving a new SEO read-only access to Search Console at first, and warns against any firm that is secretive about what it will do.
Our answer. We ask to be added as a manager on your Business Profile, never as its owner, and we put in writing what we will change before we change it.
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06 Will you show me every change you make?
Why ask it. It is on Google’s list too. A designer who won’t say what changed can’t be held to anything.
Our answer. Every change goes into a dated log for your site, and each monthly report lists what was done that month.
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07 How will we know it’s working?
Why ask it. A rankings chart can rise for searches nobody makes. Ask what gets counted, and where you can see it yourself.
Our answer. Calls, forms and visits on a private dashboard on your own site, plus a dated record of whether the AI engines recommend you.
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08 Will you guarantee page one?
Why ask it. Google’s answer is plain: “No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google.” A guarantee usually means ads sold as SEO, or a phrase nobody searches.
Our answer. No. We say what we will build and measure, and we show the measurements.
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09 How long have you done this, and have you done it here?
Why ask it. Google suggests asking how long a firm has been in business and what it has done in your city.
Our answer. Michael Blair has worked in technology since 1997 and built websites full time since 2013. We take on Middle Tennessee businesses only.
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10 Did you reach out to me first?
Why ask it. Google says to be wary of firms that email you out of the blue. Unsolicited offers to fix your ranking, or warnings that your listing is about to be taken down, are the oldest pitch in the trade.
Our answer. If an email says it is from us and you are not sure, call 629-298-8241 and ask.
What the wrong choice costs / Measured
What we found on sites built by someone else.
Not stories: our own scans of Middle Tennessee sites before we replaced them, each dated.
Franklin · WordPress · Sept. 19, 2026
A roofer Google was told to ignore
Three Stone Roofing has one of the strongest review records in its market, yet its old site had 118 of 156 addresses marked noindex. It was on page one for none of six roofing searches.
White House · WordPress · Sept. 24, 2026
A builder the AI engines were turned away from
Southern Belle Construction’s old robots.txt blocked GPTBot, PerplexityBot and OAI-SearchBot, and the main image took 18.4 seconds to appear on a phone.
Thompson’s Station · Wix · Sept. 24, 2026
A CPA with nothing a machine could read
Harmony Tax Services’ Wix site carried no structured data and no meta description, so nothing on it told Google or an AI engine what the firm was.
If you’d rather do it yourself
When doing it yourself is the right call.
For a new business with no budget, it often is. A builder site with your real name, services, towns and phone number gets you online this week, and our straight answer on building your own walks through how to do it well.
The trouble starts when the site has to do more than exist: be found by Google’s AI, be read by ChatGPT, and turn a visit into a call. That is where the platform choice starts to matter, and our comparison of Wix, Squarespace, WordPress and a hand-built site lays out what each one lets you keep.
And if the person you are about to hire found you first, by email or by phone, read the red flags of an SEO scam before you answer.
FAQ / Answers
Hiring a web designer: questions
What should I look for when hiring a website design company?
Live sites you can open on your phone, a plain answer about the platform and who will keep it patched, the domain registered in your own name, and a way of measuring results that is more than a rankings chart. Ask how long they have worked in your area and who will actually do the work.
What is the difference between a web designer and a web developer?
A designer decides how the site looks and reads; a developer writes the code that makes it work and keeps it working. For a small business the two are often one person, which is fine if that person can also explain how the site will be found. Here Michael does both, along with the SEO.
Who should own my website’s domain name?
You should. Whoever is listed as the registrant holds the domain, so it belongs in your name with your email on the account, even when your designer manages the settings. Changing the registrant later can lock the domain against moving to a new registrar for 60 days.
Should I hire a web designer or build the site myself?
Build it yourself if you are starting out and need something online this week; a plain builder site with your name, services and phone number beats having none. Hire someone once the site has to be found by Google’s AI and ChatGPT and turn visits into calls, which takes structured data, speed on a phone and pages written around real questions.
What questions does Google say to ask an SEO company?
Google’s own list includes: can you show me examples of your previous work, what results do you expect and in what timeframe, how do you measure success, what is your experience in my city, how long have you been in business, and will you share every change you make to my site.
THE TEN-QUESTION TEST
Ask us all ten on the first call.
Send the form and Michael calls you back. Before that call he scans your site and asks the engines about your business, then answers every question on this page.
