We're building a corporate site, should we show examples to the agency and how misleading are portfolios?

Take screenshots of the example sites before heading into the agency meeting. Put a red box around the specific button style or navigation flow you like and add a note. If you make it clear you only want that specific functionality rather than the whole site cloned, you'll keep them from doubling the quote.

Most portfolios are just smoke and mirrors. An agency we talked to last year showcased websites for massive holding companies, and we later found out they had only designed a single-page campaign banner for them. Verify whether they were subcontractors or if they actually delivered the project from start to finish before signing any contract.

Clarify these three points in your brief: 1) Specify that you're looking for a clean, professional corporate design language. 2) Note that you're only using the example sites as a reference for catalog hierarchy. 3) Unless the site requires custom-coded functionality, protect your budget by requesting a standard WordPress setup.

definitely check the speed of their portfolio sites on mobile. most sites agencies show off look great on desktop but crawl to a halt on a phone. 85k tl isnt pocket change dont end up regretting it.

Does that 85.000 TL budget include foreign language translations like English and German for your product catalog and data entry for the technical drawing PDFs? Or is the agency just setting up the infrastructure and leaving content entry to your staff?

We agreed on 70.000 TL last fall for our 20-person foundry facility. We gave the agency 3 global competitor sites, but only asked them to model the technical document download system. Because we set clear boundaries, they didn't ask for any extra fees, and it was delivered in 6 weeks.

don't hesitate at all, showing examples actually makes the agency's job easier because it's impossible for designers to read your mind. just tell them "we really liked this but we need a simpler, faster-loading version of it," and that way they can't inflate the quote.

When we had our first website built, we showed them an Italian manufacturer's site we really liked and asked for the exact same thing. The agency crammed the page with heavy 3D graphics, delivery was delayed by 4 months, and even the engineers at the factory couldn't find any products. On our second try, we just asked for a clean layout, and it was such a breeze.

I'm a small business, let me explain from my side. If it's your first time, start small; scaling comes later.

In legacy systems, the most expensive thing is unknown dependencies. Good luck with that.

To get into the details: If it's your first time, start small; scaling comes later.

The discussion got scattered, let me summarize. Ask who prepared the quote and who will actually do the work.

Proven by experience.

I agree. Everything goes well for the first three months; problems arise in the fourth.

That's all, sorry if I went on too long.

We got stuck at the same point for a while. Start with a small trial; don't commit to everything at once.

When making decisions, write down the worst-case scenario too, not just the best. I'm also curious if anyone does it differently.

i completely aree then most time waste accumulates in tasks waiting for approval.

everything goes well for the first three months; problems arise in the fourth.. but i'm also curios if anyone does it differently.

don't miss this: Trying to do this alone is the most expensive way.

taking notes for two weeks yields better results than a six-month estimate. i'm also curious if anyone does it differently.

I agree. Solutions that work at a small scale collapse when you grow; I learned this late.

I'm also curious if anyone does it differently.

I dont think this advice fits everyone. Most time waste accumulates in tasks waiting for approval.

If you post the result here, it will help others too.

My perspective changed after experiencing that. Ask who prepared the quote and who will actually do the work.

If acceptance criteria aren't written when the work is done is open to debate. I'm also curious if anyone does it differently.