Hire a web designer when the main problem is how the website looks, reads and guides a visitor. Hire a web developer when it must also apply rules or process something, such as an order, payment, booking, login or admin task. For a small business website, one capable person often does both.
A web designer shapes the experience a visitor sees. That includes layout, typography, colour, imagery and the hierarchy that tells somebody what to notice first. The work also covers the user journey: which page answers which question, where a button appears and how the route towards a call, enquiry or purchase stays clear.
Good design is not decoration added at the end. It makes a business understandable. On a phone, it decides whether opening information is obvious, whether the text is comfortable to read and whether the next step feels natural. For a straightforward brochure site, solving those problems may be the whole project.
Typical design questions
What belongs on the first screen? Which words explain the offer? What should the visitor do next? How should the site feel like this particular business rather than a stock template?
A developer turns the agreed design into working code. For a simple site, that means pages that load quickly, adapt to different screens, use a clear structure and send forms to the right destination. The code also needs sensible security and accessibility, because a page is not finished if customers cannot use it reliably.
The role becomes more visible when the website has logic. An ordering system must handle collection, delivery and chosen times. A booking or quote form must collect the right details. Payments need a checkout and a route to the owner's account. Logins need to recognise users, while an admin screen has to let the business change information without exposing private controls.
This is why development is not simply “putting the design online”. It covers what happens after the tap: how information is checked, where it goes, what is stored and what the business can do with it.
Typical development questions
What rule applies here? Where should this information go? Who is allowed to see it? What must the owner be able to change? What happens when a payment, booking or order is cancelled?
Job titles are used loosely. Some designers write front-end code; some developers have a strong eye for layout and typography; some people offer both services under “web design” because that is the phrase customers already know.
On a small business project, one person often plans the structure, writes or improves the words, designs the interface and develops the finished site. That can keep decisions joined up. On a larger or more specialised project, separate designers and developers may make sense. The label matters less than confirming who is responsible for each part and seeing relevant finished work.
| Question | Design-led work | Development-led work |
|---|---|---|
| Typical job | Structure, layout, type, colour, imagery and visitor journey | Logic, data, forms, orders, bookings, payments and admin controls |
| What you get | A clear interface and visual system for the pages | Working code that carries out the required process |
| When it is enough | The site explains, reassures and creates an enquiry | The site must process or manage something after the visitor acts |
| What it usually costs here | £249 for one page; £399 to £1,345 for business packages | Bookings from £250; shops £645 to £1,535; ordering app £1,045 |
| Who to hire | A designer, or one person who handles both disciplines | A developer, or a joined-up design and development team |
Answer these in order. Several “yes” answers can point to a project that needs both design and development, not a choice between them.
Full agency
An agency can bring separate specialists for strategy, design, development and ongoing marketing. That can suit a project that needs several disciplines working in parallel. Ask who will actually do the work, who your day-to-day contact is and what happens when the site is handed over.
Freelancer or small studio
A single practitioner gives you a direct relationship with the person making the site. Check that their experience covers the parts your project needs, and be clear about scope, ownership, timescale and support after launch.
Website builder
A builder can be reasonable when the requirement is a small set of standard pages and you are comfortable choosing, writing and maintaining them yourself. If the business process does not fit the available blocks, the apparent shortcut can become the limit.
Cheviot Web Studio is run by one person in Kelso. I handle the strategy, copy, design and build, so the person discussing the business problem is also responsible for the finished code. There is no account manager between the client and the work.
That approach covers simple business websites as well as working applications, including the commission-free ordering system running at Adam's Kitchen and the booking-request dashboard for Tomek Turlej Tattoo.
Look at the work, then the label
A useful portfolio should show whether somebody can make the pages clear and whether the functional parts work for a real business.
Not automatically. Price follows the scope rather than the title. A one-page site is published at £249, while business website packages run from £399 to £1,345. Development features add work: booking systems start at £250, online shops at £645 and the restaurant ordering application at £1,045.
Yes, particularly on a small business project where the design and working features need to support the same clear goal. The important evidence is the finished work, not the number of job titles. Cheviot Web Studio is one person who handles strategy, words, design and development directly.
Usually not for the main job. If the website only needs to explain your services, show your work and provide contact routes, strong design and clear content may be enough. Development becomes important when the site must process data, payments, orders, bookings or owner controls.
A full-stack developer works on both the parts a visitor sees and the systems behind them. That can include the page interface, the logic that processes a form or order, the data it stores and the admin screen the business uses. It describes technical range, not a particular package or price.
Choose on the quality of the work, ownership terms, scope and how clearly the person communicates. Hiring locally adds the option of meeting and gives useful knowledge of the area. Online work can also be effective: most of a project can happen by phone, WhatsApp and email, even for a local studio.
Describe the job in a few lines. I will tell you whether it needs design, development or both, then provide a fixed price.