Start with the commercial job the provider has to solve
For a law firm, the website has to make regulated professional services easy to understand without sounding generic, and it must route prospective clients to the right enquiry path.
Write that objective into the brief before requesting proposals. It gives every shortlisted provider the same starting point and makes vague feature lists easier to challenge.
Compare the proposal line by line
| Compare | Ask before signing |
|---|---|
| Practice-area structure | Will each priority legal service have a clear, useful page rather than being buried on one generic Services page? |
| Trust | How will qualifications, team information, process and contact details be presented clearly? |
| Enquiries | Will different services use suitable calls to action rather than one generic contact form? |
| SEO migration | If the firm already ranks, who protects useful URLs and redirects during the rebuild? |
| Accessibility | How will mobile, legibility, forms and keyboard use be checked? |
| Content | Who writes, reviews and uploads legal-service copy? |
The sector-specific issue your shortlist should understand
A solicitor website should make it obvious which matters the firm handles, who a prospective client may speak to and what happens after an enquiry. The agency should also understand that claims about outcomes or expertise need careful client approval.
Ask the provider to explain how this changes its recommended scope. A useful answer should affect the actual pages, campaigns, content, tracking or workflow being proposed.
Ask for proof that matches the work you are buying
Ask to see professional-services websites or similarly trust-sensitive builds, then inspect the live sites rather than relying only on screenshots.
Proof should help you evaluate capability, not pressure you into a decision. Where client data cannot be shared, a provider can still demonstrate its process, live owned properties, sample deliverables or anonymised implementation detail without inventing results.
Agree ownership and access before work begins
Clarify which accounts, domains, platforms, analytics properties, creative files and source data belong to your business. You should also know what remains accessible if you change supplier later. Ownership is easiest to agree before the first invoice is paid.
Make reporting answer a buying question
Ask what the provider will report and which decisions those numbers will change. A useful report should connect activity to the objective in the brief, whether that is qualified enquiries, bookings, quote requests, purchases, visibility for priority commercial pages or another defined outcome.
Watch for this red flag
Choose the provider that can explain what is not needed yet
A strong proposal does not have to be the biggest one. The provider should be able to separate essential first-stage work from items that can wait until there is evidence to justify them. That is often a better sign of commercial judgement than a long feature list.
Put Kydos into your shortlist
Compare the published Kydos scope against the providers you are already speaking to, then request a focused quote if the fit looks right.
See Kydos Manchester Web DesignFrequently asked questions
What should I compare between website design providers?
Compare the exact deliverables, responsibility split, approval process, ownership, reporting, support and the commercial outcome the provider is expected to improve.
Should I choose a specialist agency for solicitors and law firms?
Specialist experience can help, but it is not enough on its own. Check whether the provider understands your buying journey, can implement the required work and communicates the scope clearly.
Should I ask for a proposal before hiring?
Yes. Give shortlisted providers the same brief so you can compare assumptions, exclusions, deliverables and commercial terms on a like-for-like basis.
What is a warning sign when comparing agencies?
A proposal that leads with animation and colour but cannot explain practice-area architecture, enquiry routing or migration risk.
What proof should I ask to see?
Ask to see professional-services websites or similarly trust-sensitive builds, then inspect the live sites rather than relying only on screenshots.
How can I compare Kydos with another provider?
Use Kydos' published service and pricing pages as one benchmark, then compare the other proposal against the same questions on scope, implementation, ownership and support.