What to Ask Before Hiring a NZ Web Agency

You ever sign up for something and later think, if only I’d known what to ask? Happens all the time with web agencies.

People dive in excited about a shiny new site or ad campaign. Then a few months pass, money’s gone, and they’re stuck wondering what exactly happened. Or worse, why they can’t even access their own stuff.

I wrote this because nobody deserves that kind of headache. Especially small businesses pouring real savings into growing online.

Where most folks slip up

The biggest trap is chasing the lowest quote. It’s so tempting, right? Business is tight, you see a cheap offer, and you figure websites are all the same. They’re not. Paying rock bottom usually means rushed work or shortcuts that backfire later.

Another slip is hiring the agency with the slickest sales pitch or the biggest staff list. Just because a team looks impressive on paper doesn’t mean they’ll care about your project. Sometimes a smaller crew will work harder for you, simply because they actually have the time and heart.

Then there’s the classic: people don’t know what success looks like for them. They say they want more sales or more leads, but they can’t say how many or by when. If you don’t know what you’re aiming for, your agency sure won’t either. And if it all goes south, you’ll have no clue how to judge whether the work even paid off.

A sneaky mistake is forgetting about who owns what. Some agencies build your website on their own accounts or create ads under profiles they control. When you decide to leave, you might find out you don’t have the keys to your own car. That’s brutal.

Also, lots of people get so wrapped up in launching that they forget to plan for later. Websites and campaigns aren’t fire-and-forget. You’ll need updates, tweaks, someone to call when you get stuck. If you don’t sort that out upfront, it’s a lonely place to be once the invoice is paid and your agency moves on.

Smarter questions to ask before you say yes

Most people remember to ask how much and how long. That’s the easy stuff. The gold is in the questions you might not think to bring up.

Ask what exactly you’re getting for the money. Is this just a design, or are they writing content, handling SEO basics, sorting your analytics? Better to find out now than be hit with add-ons later.

Find out who’s actually going to do the work. Will it be the team you just met, or someone junior you’ve never heard of? It’s good to know whose hands are on your business.

Make them show you similar work. Not just pretty pages, but results. Did they help a store like yours get more online sales? Did another small business grow its leads? Stories like that prove they can back up the nice talk.

Talk about ownership. Make sure you walk away with full control of your website, your domains, your ad accounts. If things ever sour, you want to pack up and keep rolling without them.

Ask how they measure success and when you’ll start seeing progress. Any agency worth hiring will be upfront. They’ll tell you SEO might take a few months or that ads need tweaking over time. If they promise big wins tomorrow, that’s your cue to get out.

You should also ask how often you’ll hear from them. Will you get regular updates or just radio silence until it’s all done? You want to know you won’t be left hanging.

Don’t forget to ask what they need from you. Maybe you’ll have to provide photos or sign off on things fast. Better to be ready so your project doesn’t stall.

And because nobody likes a nasty surprise, talk about how to end the relationship. What happens if you want to cancel? Are there long commitments or fees to break free? A confident agency won’t try to trap you.

The stuff people always complain about later

Funny thing is, if you spend even ten minutes reading reviews or forum posts, you’ll see the same regrets come up again and again.

People say they had no clue what their agency was actually doing. They’d get vague emails or see bills rolling in but no clear progress. Others felt completely ghosted once the first payment cleared.

Plenty talk about being promised the moon. Agencies love to say things will skyrocket. Reality? Marketing and websites take time. When fast results didn’t show, trust broke down quick.

The saddest stories come from folks who realised too late that they didn’t own their own site or ad data. They had to start from scratch, wasting everything they’d paid for. It’s the internet version of being locked out of your own shop.

Then there are the complaints about being passed off. A charming lead meets you, sells you, then hands you to a junior or even someone overseas who barely knows your name. That’s when mistakes happen and things slip through the cracks.

Keep this close when you meet them

If you want the simplest takeaway, it’s this. Ask what’s included, who’s doing the work, how you’ll see results, who owns everything, how often you’ll talk, what they’ll need from you, and how to get out if it doesn’t work.

Pay attention not just to their answers but how they react. A good agency lights up when you ask smart questions. They want informed clients. A shady one might dodge or get defensive. That tells you all you need to know.

Last thing

Hiring a NZ web agency is a big deal for your business. It’s more than a new site or some ads. It’s your future sales, your brand, your customer’s first impression. So be picky. Ask a lot. Trust your gut.

Better to spend a bit longer finding the right partner than waste time and money fixing a mess later.

If you ever want to run your situation past someone who’s seen a few of these plays before, let me know. Happy to chat.

Common questions, straight answers