How Not to Mistake While Hiring Web Developers: Tips, Options, and More

Companies need web development services more than ever and guidance in selecting them. Basically, you should adequately implement a good web product for your business, choosing it from various solutions. To appropriately complete this task, you need to hire web developer — specialist to help you benefit from the power of technology.

This ultimate guide will assist you in web developer employment. You’ll get acknowledged with these specialists’ activity, the tech stack they work with, the pitfalls of the hiring process, tips on its proper conduct, and more essentials.

Businesses require a more substantial online presence to be more trustworthy and profitable because most customers will visit companies’ websites and draw their conclusions before purchasing. So, how to create a unique and reliable web product to attract users and increase your revenue?

For such a complex task, you need to hire a web developer to your project. Let’s take a look at this specialist’s activity. It’s an expert managing a code that defines how the website (or a web app) would operate.

Hiring web developers is in demand in today’s digital technology world, and we’ll look precisely at statistics that prove the said fact.

There are 4.88 billion Internet users worldwide, according to Datareportal source. Such an “army” has 1.88 billion websites created by many IT specialists.

Web design services are in great demand among entrepreneurs, so all the domain specialists have enough work. This way, IBISWorld showed on the example of the US that this sphere had a $40.79 billion market share in 2021. It is expected to grow to $41.81 billion in 2022.

The amount of web developers is steadily on the rise. Statista mentions that in 2020, the US had about 178,900 web development specialists and interface designers and predicts that this number will grow to 205,000 experts.

Why do you need to hire a website developer, and learn what benefits will they bring to your business? Let’s consider it.

Applying to web developer services facilitates building a user-friendly and functional website for entrepreneurs. For you to consider the advantages your business will obtain if you hire web developers, we’ll go through the most common points.

Reach a cost- and time efficiency for your commercial benefit

You should keep in mind that building a web solution might be time-consuming, especially if you haven't the technical knowledge needed to respond to the IT challenges arising and make a top-class product. In this case, you'll have to spend your time studying all the pitfalls and basics of a website or web app building.

But you can hire website developer transferring the building responsibilities to a qualified specialist and saving time for focusing on other issues. Moreover, an experienced specialist can bring into life a complex but technologically advanced solution at a reasonable price.

Obtain a unique custom web design to be distinctive

A lot of companies face a choice between custom solutions and off-the-shelf ones. Both variants have their advantages and disadvantages but keep in mind that custom products address the individual problems of each customer, solving them in the most precise way.

A well-trained web developer will build that particular product caring about a distinctive logo and design that attracts the attention of potential buyers by its distinctiveness.

Be the first to adopt the cutting-edge technologies

A web developer is a person that knows everything about modern tools, technologies, and their worthy implementation. This way, you can hire web programmer to build a modern web product fully responding to your business needs.

For instance, if you plan to build a marketplace website, the developers provide your site with an adaptive web design concerning the increasing number of purchases through mobile gadgets.

Benefit from the built-in SEO algorithms

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is vital for websites, as it helps the customers find the particular site through the search results.

The professional web developer will know all the ins and outs of integrating SEO algorithms into a website, which will be the basis of your own SEO strategy. You’ll be able to develop it with the help of keywords later, but firstly you should lay a good foundation by hiring a web developer or even a team of such specialists.

Apply to continuous maintenance and support

Cooperation with web development specialists isn’t finished after the product is built. This means if something goes wrong, you’ll always have a specialist you can rely on. With the help of a qualified web developer, your solution will be bug-free, appealing to customers, and in-time updated.

We’ve listed only the essential benefits that will prove the necessity of having a website for your business. Now it’s time to dive deeper into the essence of the web developer profession and learn more about its details.

Let’s talk more specifically about how to hire web developer, discussing the essence of their work, seniority levels, and responsibilities.

A web developer is an expert deeply engaged in building web solutions, such as websites and web apps with the help of different technologies and tools, and using the client-server model.

According to their competence level, developers are classified as junior, middle, or senior. But which one should you choose in order to acquire a high-quality end project while not overpaying and finding a web developer that will be helpful during the workflow?

Junior/trainee specialists may have 0-1 year of experience. As a rule, they are familiar with only one language or framework and can complete a limited number of tasks frequently requiring the help of their senior colleagues.

Middle experts with their 2-4 years of working have experience on several completed projects being able to work alone or in a team. Moreover, they are skillful in several spheres of SDLC and can also transfer their experience to junior developers.

Senior developers may also provide numerous alternate solutions to a problem and explain the advantages of each in precise terminology. They can accurately predict the effects of adopting each design after years of hands-on experience (typically 5+ years).

The technical lead developer has more than 8 years of working experience in different software development domains. Thanks to it, such a specialist can confirm particular business value using the appropriate info and assure potential clients to use the company’s services.

Keep in mind that you can't measure the talent of web programmers for hire by years. Despite their lack of experience, some junior developers may have all of the skills required for a project. You can solve such an issue the following way: ask your colleague with a rich tech background to assist you in hiring a web developer to fully measure the required skill set.

So, what qualifications and skills in common are searched by hiring managers in web developer candidates?

• Focus on creating unique, complex designs and working together to solve technical issues
• Proven expertise in creating and building websites for a wide range of products and companies.
• Expertise in using content management solutions (e.g., WordPress and Drupal)
• Experience in using APIs, CSS, HTML, JS, PHP, and other web development tools
• Proficiency in working with Linux or Windows environments

To successfully delegate powers, you need to know more about the kinds of web developers for hire, their activities on each level, skills, qualifications, and more. Let’s further get acknowledged with all these points.

Front-end web developers (or client-side ones) are the experts occupied with building the website’s UI the users will interact with. The main target these specialists strive to achieve is to let the customers flawlessly obtain and look through the web content you would like them to offer.

To gain such results, web devs should write clean and high-quality code. What instruments do they need to perform their tasks? It depends on the seniority level. The fundamental tech stack a web developer for hire should be skilled in is the following:

Moreover, according to Statista’s data, the most widespread technologies web developers’ work needs are HTML/CSS and JavaScript. Let’s say a word about each one.

• JavaScript. It's used to make your website interactive, such as when you search for something on Google or simply click to modify the page.
• Cascading Style Sheets or CSS improve the site’s presentation and layout. It’s commonly used by web developers to build a site with the help of HTML.
• HyperText Markup Language or HTML is required to build both static and interactive web pages in cooperation with CSS.

The higher the seniority level is, the more languages the front-end developer may know. For example, the senior front-end web developers can be acknowledged with tech stacks like LAMP and MEAN. Their components are shown in the below illustration.

Back-end web developers (also known as server-side web devs) create logical website components. They are also responsible for servers and back-end logic, databases, and APIs — the parts invisible for users but essential for the website’s proper functioning.

The tech stack back-end developers need may include the following parts:

• Java — the programming language used in building web products and native apps
• PHP — a language easily combined with databases like MySQL, Oracle, or PostgreSQL and responsible for managing databases, dynamic content, and so on
• Python — another programming language easy to learn and use. Frameworks created on it can function on any website needed
• SQL database assists devs in handling large piles of data, collecting and storing it for your target audience
• .NET/Angular — frameworks widely used in website and web app development

Full-stack web developers. Full-stack web development entails the creation of both the front end and the back end. A full-stack web programmer for hire should possess web design, web programming, database management, and website debugging, being capable of creating both client and server-side web applications, as well as database administration. Full-stack web developers are also skilled at redesigning, building, and speeding up the whole design and development phase of a website.

In addition, full-stack web engineers are responsible for researching technologies such as blockchain, or multi-cloud, depending on the projects.

There are a lot of questions you should answer while hiring web developers. We’ve enlightened the most common issues you should be aware of.

It would be hard for your future developers to advise concerning your project if they don’t know its aims and peculiarities. That’s why you should be fully prepared.

First off, define the type of project you hire website developers for:

• A simple web project means you create a website from scratch or upgrade the existing one, adding advanced functionality (e.g., CTA/subscription buttons, contact forms, etc.).
• A medium project may cover various web solutions such as online marketplaces, dynamic or static web applications, and other products requiring third-party services integration.
• Large-scale projects need complex features, integrations with cloud stores to save all the necessary data, and so on.

However, defining a project’s type is not enough to hire website programmer successfully. You also need to think out the list of business challenges they need to solve. Whether you want to develop a product from the ground up or apply to a technology unknown by your in-house team, extending it by an expert with the required skills. The web developers should know all these circumstances in advance, as well as the list of the upcoming product’s functionality. Don’t forget to mention if you want to protect your project idea and need a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) signing.

Having defined all the project’s peculiarities, find a web developer you need. What type of web developer do you require according to the project type? Would the tasks be easy enough to be solved by junior or middle specialists, or your project is complex and needs the assistance of senior devs? Check the tech stack they are skilled in.

If it’s a web development team, don’t forget to verify their expertise. Open LinkedIn, Clutch, Behance, or Dribbble to look through the company profile and analyze the feedback the previous clients have left. Find the company’s site and check their portfolio. If everything viewed matches your ideas, you can contact the team, decide on the essential business points you need, and sign an NDA.

Before signing, you should also determine soft skills your devs need for successful project completion. The offline or online interview will be the best way to check it out.

This point is necessary especially, if you’ve decided on outsourcing web developer hiring. You may select one of the functional models that fit your project the best.

Project-based. According to this business approach, the web development team is in charge of everything. The project-based model is ideal for completing a small web development project since it has a set workload and deadlines.

Dedicated team. This business model is best suited if you need to add complicated features to your website but don't have the time or budget to hire in-house experts. The workflow control may be performed independently or delegated to a web development team.

The extended team/outstaff model is the best choice to handle large projects without exceeding a budget. For an outstaffing option use, you’ll need to have an in-house PM and even hire a CTO, as monitoring all the working processes performed falls on your shoulders.

Web development service vendors and separate experts may be found in a variety of places, including outsourcing company rankings, freelancing portals, and job boards. Each option has its own set of advantages and disadvantages. So, you must first determine which developer alternative is ideal for you: a freelancer, an in-house staff, or an outsource development team.

Freelancers are self-employed coders working on ad hoc ground. They may efficiently perform small jobs (e.g., building a landing page, rapid app upgrade, or PayPal payment implementation).

The issues occur when freelance specialists are required to develop a complex web solution from scratch. You will have to keep things under control because separately hired freelancers don't interact with one another. Furthermore, if you demand ongoing collaboration, freelancers may not be the best option; for example, they may abandon your project without further notice.

Where to hire web developers for freelance tasks performance? The following platforms are the most common to look through:

• Fiverr
• Upwork
• Toptal

Hiring a website developer locally or a team of in-house employees is the best option if you have years of work ahead of you and want to keep everything under control.

However, dealing with an in-house team means certain additional costs, such as office rent, staff salaries, sick leaves, etc. The cost of in-house devs' services may be accordingly quite expensive (especially for US or Canada residents).

To begin, you must not only hire a developer for your organization but also interview and train additional specialists (UI/UX designer, QA, and DevOps), all of which take time.

Where to hire a web developer for an in-house team? The following resources will help you:

• LinkedIn
• Dice
• Glassdoor
• Indeed

Outsourcing software development means transferring it to an IT service provider residing in another region. For example, if you live in the United States and need to outsource software development to Ukraine, Poland, or Germany, you should contact an outsourcing software development vendor. They understand how to find web developers both motivated and productive in their project work.

Why hire a web developer in an outsourcing company? Such cooperation is quite beneficial. Let’s review the most common set of advantages you may obtain interacting with outsourcing vendor:

Affordable prices. Employ a team to create a profitable solution with reasonable development expenses, having chosen one of the outsourcing destinations with fair wages.

Workload running. You can manage the scope of work, as well as other resources required for each job. Assign just the charges necessary to perform a task when you outsource.

A global pool of outsourced IT specialists may assist you if you need to deal with new fields or if you want more flexible and quick solutions while your in-house personnel expands.

Customer satisfaction. An outsourced team can assist you in building a bug-free solution that entirely solves clients' pain points, making them happier.

Outsource offers three main cooperation models you may use while performing a web developer hire online. These are:

Dedicated team approach

It’s a good option for complex and large-scale projects. It means the customer hires the dedicated offshore developers, and they join the client's team as its full members, sticking to the client company’s corporate culture with all the flow activity monitored by the customer. The outsourcing vendor assists them in organizational issues.

The services are offered at an affordable price; moreover, the ded teams found during web development hiring can be scaled up and down. You can fully manage the dedicated devs’ staff and communicate with them in the most comfortable way.

Time and materials approach

According to the Time and Material cooperation model, the vendor may offer a rough estimate of the scope and start a project without having an exact amount of work in hand.

If any change requests come up during the current sprint, the software development team will address them in the next one. Moreover, they establish a list of the changes offered by clients, document them, and estimate how long each modification will take.

A fixed-price contract

It’s a one-time payment that includes a defined scope of work, comprehensive estimates, well-defined requirements, and stringent deadlines. When needs, specifications, and rates are highly predictable, the Fixed Price model is the best option; otherwise, the cost will be anything but constant.

How to find a web developer for outsourcing jobs and where to do it? The following resources can help you:

• Clutch
• LinkedIn
• GoodFirms

When you look for a website or web app developer for hire, you should always check their hard and soft skills to understand that they are suitable candidates. The best way to do it is a job interview — quite a tricky process requiring a deep understanding of tech moments and people’s behavior. We’ll tell you how to facilitate it.

The strong advantage of outsourcing firms over in-house teams and freelancers is that they already have pre-assembled project teams, and you shouldn’t spend a lot of time and money looking for an experienced web specialist.

There’s a couple of steps you should go through choosing a software development company, which will assist you in hiring web experts.

Analyze the previous clients’ recommendations

In case the chosen company isn't a brand-new one, you'll most likely find feedback from previous (or current) consumers and observe if negative or favorable feedback predominates. After that, you'll be able to decide whether the option to hire web developer online or turn to a well-established IT company is the greatest fit for you.

Check the company’s expertise

To find web developer or to hire a team, you'll need to choose a professional IT provider with a comprehensive portfolio of successfully deployed applications and websites. Many software development organizations also have open source projects on GitHub, which you may see how competent they are. If a corporation has everything indicated in its development experience, you may hire them and confidently proceed forward.

Consider a social aspect

You must feel at ease while working with a certain organization; otherwise, the human aspect shouldn't be omitted. Depending on whether you want to work with a freelancer or an outsourcing company, you should contact the project manager or a web developer directly. It is critical to ensure that your communication is seamless and simple. But the final decision is undeniably yours.

To save time needed for conducting analysis, you can directly call the vendor’s representatives and inquire about their expertise, portfolio projects, and hourly wages. Ask if they have any questions for you and provide them with data about the future project. To get a first impression of your possible IT partner, you'll need 20-30 minutes on the initial call.

Nevertheless, if you want to hire a website programmer after an interview, let's go through the crucial factors to remember.

You can collaborate with a competent organization to put together a team for you and interview each candidate individually if you need it. Furthermore, if you have a strong technological knowledge, you may conduct a video interview to assess the candidates' hard abilities before sending comprehensive technical questions for a tech task. If you lack technical expertise, you may require the assistance of your in-house experts or hire an outside technical adviser.

The below guide for examining web developer hard skills is given on the example of AngularJS developer post.

Hard skills contain the tech knowledge required for a candidate to be successful at work. Formal education or training programs, such as short-term training classes, online courses, and on-the-job training, are typically used to acquire hard skills often stated in job descriptions.

You can ask standard questions to confirm the applicants' soft skills even if you aren't a computer geek. Such skills are just as vital as hard ones, therefore you should concentrate on them too. Keep in mind that a competent web developer must be able to communicate well and cooperate well with other teammates.

The below guide for examining web developer soft skills is given on the example of AngularJS developer post.

Soft skills refer to a performer's capacity to deal with stress, work as part of a team, interact with customers, and so on. Sociability, time management, creativity, and conflict management are great examples of the soft skills the web developer should necessarily have.

When you look for an answer on how to hire web developers and what to pay, consider a variety of factors due to which the charges for web developer services might differ.

Tech stack. The more advanced talents you seek, the higher the web development expenses are. You may employ full-stack engineers who balance server and UI technologies and are applicable in general since these professionals work with front-end and back-end development. Most developers, on the other hand, work on either the front end (user side) or the back end (server side).

All front developers should be familiar with HTML5 and CSS, but the other JavaScript frameworks they handle are different. They should focus on at least one of them: Angular, React, and so forth. To sum up, years of experience and perfected frameworks both have a role in determining how much the web dev services may cost.

Seniority level. Another factor to consider when performing a web developer hire and considering charges is the experience of the professional you want to engage. It is typical to classify them into three categories: junior, medium, and senior. Though experience has always been the undisputed benefit, it is preferable to recruit developers for the jobs they must complete and compensate them accordingly.

Every project includes duties that are both easy and complex, standard and sophisticated. The mixed team composition has shown to be helpful in managing your workforce and web development costs because everyone is responsible for tasks that they are capable of.

Specialists’ location. The budget of the project is also determined by the location of your developers. The organization may either hire in-house developers or outsource web development to benefit from it. Many businesses have sought the assistance of software development outsourcing services due to a talent and labour scarcity in their local marketplaces. They have recognized a variety of outsourcing benefits, including unique skills, enhanced efficiency, a large pool of workers, flexibility, and a reduction in service costs.

The hourly wages of web developers across the most popular outsourcing destinations are the following:

Ukraine should be highlighted as one of the top areas for outsourcing IT development owing to its favorable quality-price ratio, thriving technological environment, which includes a huge pool of tech experts, and absence of communication difficulties. If you decide to hire web app developer or a website one, you should know that Ukrainian hourly rates for developer services are the most affordable in Eastern Europe.

Cleveroad is an experienced IT company rendering web development services from Ukraine, Eastern Europe. We've been helping startups and organizations of all kinds in acquiring cutting-edge technology for 10+ years.

Our specialists work with companies and organizations all around the world to develop solutions that address problems for their target audiences, improve workflow efficiency, and aid in the acquisition of competitive advantages. We’ve gathered profound experience in industries such as healthcare, logistics, retail, education, fintech, media, travel and marketplaces.

We build web applications with tried-and-true languages and frameworks, store data in safe databases, and scale apps with microservices. Our web development services include (but are not limited to) building of:

• PWAs for multiple operating systems characterized by offline availability, simple installation on any home screen, and native app-like functionality (e.g., push notifications, last loading, full-screen UX, etc.).
• Single-page applications (SPAs) which are quick, responsive, and cross-browser compatible, with no page reloads or excessive wait times.
• Responsive apps providing a better mobile experience while saving time and money when it comes to building the iOS or Android version of the app.
• Software re-architecting, cloud migration, adding new functionality, converting the old-fashioned interface to a clean UI, and so on.

To prove our competence in web solutions development, we would share one of our cases: TMS — Transport Management System.

Our customer offers warehousing and long-distance freight transportation (mostly for drop-shipping), as well as a last-mile delivery service for a variety of marketplaces. So, creation of a turnkey transportation management system for the organization to automate fleet management, delivery, and all other phases of the supply chain, was vitally required.

For these purposes, we developed a versatile and highly configurable solution that includes automatic route planning with manual modifying capability and a control module. Such a solution is also helpful for drivers to travel through the bespoke routes.

Our other work in a web development sphere is a micro investment platform for the Middle East market.

The solution intends to eliminate conventional obstacles like minimum brokerage account sizes and operate as a mediator between individual traders and financial institutions. The app must appeal to a new target demographic, one that is primarily interested in micro-investing, and provide a handy automated solution for managing personal funds.

There is a bunch of reasons to hire web developers for your project: they can flawlessly implement new technologies and tools in your project making it competitive and modern. Web developers can also offer a professional view of how to build cost-efficient products.

How to employ such a specialist and succeed? First off, you should thoroughly plan your future project, concerning its peculiarities and place of web developer in it. Then, find a reliable software development vendor and trust them to gain success.