10 questions to ask a nonprofit web design firm before hiring.

Before signing a contract with a web design firm, nonprofit search committees must look beyond aesthetic portfolio screenshots. A website can look stunning on surface level while possessing fundamental flaws under the hood: fragile plugins, missing accessibility markup, or zero integration with your donor database.

Use these 10 vetting questions during agency interviews to uncover their true technical depth and avoid costly mid-project surprises.

"A good agency tells you what you want to hear. A great technical partner tells you what your database and your donors actually need."

The Top 5 Critical Questions to Ask

1. "Will our team 100% own the code, design, and domain?"

Red Flag: Any agency that hosts your site on proprietary internal software where you cannot export your database or migrate hosts if you part ways.

2. "How do you guarantee WCAG 2.2 Level AA accessibility?"

Red Flag: "We install an automated accessibility overlay widget." Insist on code-level compliance tested via screen readers and keyboard navigation.

3. "How do you handle duplicate records in our donor CRM?"

Red Flag: "We just send an email with form submissions." A qualified developer uses API endpoints and duplicate detection algorithms.

4. "What is your process for 301 redirects to protect our SEO rankings?"

Red Flag: A firm that doesn't audit your existing URLs before launching a redesign, which can destroy years of Google search rankings overnight.

5. "Who will be writing the code on our project?"

Red Flag: Meeting senior executives during sales calls only to have your project handed off to offshore contractors or junior interns.