Choosing a web developer in Amsterdam: what to look for
By Yassine Seghrouchni, founderUpdated 5 min read
The short answer
The best web developer for your project starts with what the website needs to achieve, and only then looks at the technology. Look at who is on the team, who will own the code, whether your content team can manage the site themselves and what happens after go-live. A partner in Amsterdam is mainly useful if you want to meet regularly, for example at the start and for important decisions.
About this guide: written by Your Tech Club, with no ranking and no names of other agencies. How we do it ourselves is set out separately under How Your Tech Club works.
What to look for in a web developer
Whether it's a marketing site, a web application or a platform: these eight points decide whether you'll still be happy with your choice in a few years. Each point comes with a question for the first meeting.
There is a goal you can measure
A website is a means to an end. What should it deliver: enquiries, sales, fewer phone calls, a brand that comes across better?
A good web developer asks about that first and makes the goal measurable before there's a design. Then you'll also know after go-live whether it worked.
Ask in the meetingHow do you make it measurable up front whether the new site works better than the old one?Design and development sit in one team
If one party does the design and another does the build, problems arise at the handover: what looked good in the design turns out to be hard to build, or the other way round.
Ideally, work with a team where strategy, design and development sit at the same table.
Ask in the meetingWho designs and who builds, and do those people work together on our project?Your content team can carry on themselves
After launch you want to edit copy, add pages and set up campaigns without needing a developer for every change.
Ask what managing the site looks like and get a demo of the CMS before you sign, ideally with the kind of content you produce.
Ask in the meetingCan we see the CMS, and what can our people do themselves without a developer?Speed, search visibility and accessibility are part of the brief
A slow site loses visitors and ranks worse in search engines. Ask which targets the agency sets for load speed and Core Web Vitals, how it measures them and whether they are in the agreement.
The same goes for technical SEO and accessibility: you build them in from the start, not afterwards.
Ask in the meetingWhich targets for speed and accessibility do we agree, and how do we measure them after go-live?The code and the design are yours
Agree that the source code, the design and the content belong to you, and that you have access to the repository and the hosting.
Then you can expand later, switch suppliers or carry on yourself without starting over.
Ask in the meetingDo we get access to the code and the hosting, and who owns the design?The technology fits what you want to achieve
A marketing site, a web application and an online store each need something different. Don't be won over by the name of a framework, but by the explanation of why it fits your goal, your team and what running it will cost.
Ask in the meetingWhy do you choose this technology, and what does that choice mean for how we run the site?Personal data is properly secured
A website quickly ends up processing personal data: forms, accounts, orders. Ask how the agency handles security and privacy and whether it can demonstrate that, for example with an ISO 27001 certificate.
Ask in the meetingHow do you handle the personal data that comes in through the site?There is a plan for after go-live
A website needs maintenance: updates, security, small changes and improvements based on what you measure.
Ask what the agency does after launch and how you decide together what could be better.
Ask in the meetingWhat do you do after launch, and how do we decide what to improve?
Questions to ask in the first meeting
Take this list to your first meetings. A partner that suits you gives a concrete answer to every question, even if that answer is that something can't be done.
- What do you think the new site should deliver, and how do we measure that?
- Who designs and who builds our project?
- Can we see the CMS with content like ours?
- Which targets for speed and accessibility do we agree?
- Why this technology, and what does it cost to run?
- Do we get access to the code, the repository and the hosting?
- How do you secure the personal data that comes in through the site?
- Which of your live sites can we look at?
- What happens after launch, and who is our point of contact?
Freelancer, web agency or technology partner?
A freelancer is a good choice for a well-defined job, if you stay in charge yourself and know exactly what you want. When design, build, integrations and support come together, you need more than one person: someone has to keep an eye on the whole, also when someone is ill or on holiday.
A web agency builds websites. A technology partner takes a broader view: what should the site deliver, which processes depend on it, and what needs to happen after go-live. Which one you need depends on how big a role the site plays in your organisation.
How Your Tech Club builds websites
This part is about us. The points above apply to any partner, including us: feel free to hold us to them.
Your Tech Club is based on Duivendrechtsekade in Amsterdam. We build custom websites and web applications with strategy, design and development in one team, and we start with what the site needs to deliver.
Examples include the interactive custom website for Loogman and the financial lease website for GIJBA, where visitors compare cars and request a quote.
After go-live we handle support and further development if you want us to. The code is yours.
- ISO 9001 and ISO 27001, certified by Kiwa
- 500 projects delivered
- 4.8 from 127 reviews
- 90% returning clients
- Office on Duivendrechtsekade in Amsterdam
- Founded by Joey van Vliet and Yassine Seghrouchni
Frequently asked questions
What does it cost to have a website built in Amsterdam?
That depends on what the site needs to do: a marketing site, a web application with accounts or an online store with integrations. Ask for a price based on a worked-out scope, and also ask what support and hosting cost after go-live.
Do I need a web developer in Amsterdam, or can it be done remotely?
Either works. A partner nearby makes it easier to sit down together at the start, for important decisions and during testing. What matters more is that you have a regular point of contact and that the way you work together is clearly agreed.
Freelancer or web agency?
A freelancer suits a well-defined job where you stay in charge yourself. An agency suits a project where design, build, integrations and support come together and someone has to keep an eye on the whole.
Which CMS is best?
The CMS your content team enjoys working with and that fits what the site needs to do. Ask for a demo with your own kind of content, and ask what you can do yourself and what needs a developer.
What is a custom website?
A website designed and built for your goal and your brand, rather than an adapted standard theme. It pays off when your site needs to do something specific, such as a configurator, a comparison or an integration with your own systems.
Who owns the code of my website?
That depends on your contract. Agree in advance that the source code, the design and the content are yours and that you have access to the repository and the hosting.
What needs to happen after launch?
Updates, security, monitoring and improvements based on what you measure. Agree who does that and how you decide together what could be better.
