Choosing a Web Developer in Zoetermeer: 8 Questions to Ask

You’re choosing a web developer in Zoetermeer. You want more than a pretty site. You want something that performs, is secure, and leaves you in control. This guide lists 8 questions to compare agencies and freelancers, with concrete signals to watch for.

These questions cut through vague proposals. They focus on ownership, pricing model, who actually builds, and what happens after launch. Along the way you’ll find examples, indicative cost ranges, and practical checks.

Why these 8 questions matter

Picking on reputation or price only often causes rework. Performance and SEO are not optional extras — they affect real outcomes. A developer should know Core Web Vitals and how to measure them; that’s now a basic requirement. See guidance on Core Web Vitals at https://web.dev/articles/vitals.

Accessibility and search engine fundamentals matter too. Google offers a concise checklist to evaluate content and technical setup: https://developers.google.com/search/docs/essentials. Use those docs when assessing proposals.

The 8 questions (and how to use the answers)

1) Who owns the code and hosting accounts?

Ask who holds the Git repo, the domain, and the hosting credentials. If you want ownership, make it part of the contract: a push to your repo and admin access on delivery. Red flag: the supplier refuses repo transfer or keeps exclusive control over hosting.

2) Fixed price or hourly billing?

Fixed price is clear for well-defined scope. Hourly billing suits exploratory or ongoing work. Always ask for an estimate in hours and a change-control process. Indicative ranges: a simple brochure site €2,000–€6,000, custom web app €10,000–€50,000 (can vary widely).

3) Who actually builds it?

Get names and roles: lead developer, frontend, backend, QA. Freelancers often cover everything themselves. Agencies have capacity but more moving parts. Freelancer = single point of contact; agency = redundancy and broader skill set.

4) What about support after launch?

Ask about response times, ticket handling, and security updates. Do you want 24–48 hour turnaround on small fixes, or a monthly retainer? Make support levels explicit and ask what falls outside the retainer.

5) Can they show real cases and explain what they did?

Look at the portfolio and ask for a technical walk-through. Which parts did they build, and what measurable improvements were achieved? Screenshots aren’t proof; a short case explanation is. Review their published work and request specifics via their portfolio page: portfolio.

6) How do they handle performance and SEO?

A developer should explain how they measure and improve LCP, CLS and INP and what tools they use (Lighthouse, Web Vitals). Ask them to point to a past improvement and show before/after data. Reference: https://web.dev/articles/vitals and Google’s search basics at https://developers.google.com/search/docs/essentials.

7) What about accessibility and legal requirements?

Ask whether they develop against WCAG 2.1/2.2 and what checks they run. Keyboard navigation, color contrast and semantic markup are basic items. See the WCAG recommendations: https://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG22/.

8) Security, backups and update routines

Ask about deployments, backups, and hardening. For WordPress projects, ask for backup frequency and hardening steps. A vague answer here is a reason to push for more detail.

Quick comparison checklist

• Get the contract and read ownership clauses.
• Confirm you’ll receive Git access on delivery.
• Compare what’s in scope: content, SEO setup, analytics.
• Ask who your day-to-day contact is and what the backup plan is.
• Request SLA-style commitments for support and response times.
• Ask for a technical walkthrough of one case with measurable outcomes.
• Ask them to list three concrete performance fixes they would apply to your site.

Note: fixed-price projects aren’t always best. For iterative work, hourly with a clear roadmap might be smarter. Still, set budget caps.

Practical signals in meetings

• If they can’t describe how they improved LCP or CLS on a prior project, probe deeper.
• If they avoid giving repo access, insist on a reasoned explanation.
• Ask who will pick up the project if your contact is unavailable.

Next step

If you want a local developer to review scope and give a quote, get the same brief to multiple candidates and compare proposals. See which services a senior-led team like DevCru provides on our services page: services. Ready for a no-nonsense price indication? Request an estimate here: quote.