Jakarta has no shortage of web design companies and freelancers, and their offers can look alike: a number of pages, a price and a delivery time. The differences usually show up later, when you want to change a page, move hosting or find out why the site is slow. These ten questions bring them out before you sign.

Ownership

1. Whose name are the domain, hosting and code in?
The domain should be registered to your company, and you should be able to log in to the hosting account. If the studio owns them, leaving later can mean losing your address or paying to get it back.

2. Can my team edit the site without calling you?
Ask to see the admin before you sign. Changing a text, a photo or a price should take minutes, with no developer involved.

Process

3. What happens in each stage, and what do you need from me?
A good studio can explain its process in a few steps and tell you what you need to prepare. If the answer is vague, the timeline will be too.

4. How many rounds of revisions are included?
Agree on the number, and on what counts as a revision and what counts as new work, before the design starts.

5. When will it be live, and what could delay it?
For a company profile of up to eight pages, three to four weeks is realistic. Most delays come from content arriving late, so ask what they need from you, and when.

Quality

6. Can I see live sites you built, and talk to one of those clients?
Screenshots can be polished. Open the live sites on your phone, try the menus and forms, and ask how the studio was to work with after launch.

7. How do you handle speed and SEO basics?
Every site should launch with its own page titles and descriptions, a clear heading structure, compressed images, a sitemap and Search Console set up. Be careful with anyone who promises page one of Google within a week.

8. Is the design truly custom, or a template?
Templates aren’t bad, but you should know which one you are paying for. A purchased theme with your logo on it should not cost the same as a design made for your brand.

After launch

9. What happens after launch, and what does it cost?
Updates, backups, security and small changes all need someone. Ask what is included, for how long, and what monthly support costs after that.

10. How do I reach you, and how fast do you reply?
In Indonesia that usually means WhatsApp. Ask who answers, in which hours, and whether you talk to the people who built the site or to a ticket queue.

The cheapest quote often turns out the most expensive when you try to leave.

Red flags

The domain is registered in the studio’s name.
No written scope: no page list, revision count or timeline.
No access to the admin or hosting, even after you have paid.
A price far below everyone else, with no explanation of what is left out.
Guaranteed rankings or traffic numbers.

How we answer them

We’re a studio in East Jakarta, working with brands across Indonesia and abroad. Our Custom Website package is a custom design of up to eight pages. It includes a domain, hosting and email from day one, an SEO foundation and analytics, training with a video guide, and a month of free maintenance, live in three to four weeks. You can see our work and read how we run a project. Then ask us all ten questions.