Why the wrong studio choice = 3-12 months lost
Picking the wrong contractor for your website isn't a "wrong color" mistake. It's 3-12 months lost to a redo, paying twice for the same work, and the lost opportunity from an unreleased product. Over 2 years in web development we've seen 30+ cases where a client came to us after a failure with another studio or freelancer.
A typical story: "We paid a freelancer on Upwork. After 6 months we got a broken WordPress with a sluggish admin. Now we're looking for a studio to redo it from scratch". Or: "The agency promised a landing page in 2 weeks. A quarter went by, no site exists, no refund". All of this could have been avoided with the right checklist at the start.
Criterion 1: Live websites, not Figma mockups
The first and most important thing — ask for links to 3-5 live websites you can open in a browser. Not Behance case studies, not Dribbble shots, not Figma previews. Real production URLs.
What to check:
- Whether the site still works 6+ months after launch (many "beautiful" sites break within a year)
- How it looks on mobile (open it from your phone)
- Loading speed (you can check via pagespeed.web.dev) — it should be 80+ on mobile
- Whether there's a case study with real result numbers (conversion, time on site, ROI)
If the studio only shows Figma mockups or old screenshots, that's a red flag. Beautiful design without implementation means nothing.
Criterion 2: Concrete result numbers
"We built a cool site" means nothing. "Conversion grew from 1.2% to 1.8% (+50%), average order value +15%, Time to Interactive <1 second" — that's concrete. A studio that doesn't measure the results of its work can't guarantee you'll see results either.
Ask: "Which business metrics improved for the client after the relaunch? What did you measure before and after?". If the studio can't answer, they have no analytics system in place, or they don't care whether they actually helped the client.
In our case studies we always list concrete numbers: Krasnikova Agency — +38% conversion, Yuriy Zimenko — Lighthouse 98/100, King Gym — 340 leads/mo.
Criterion 3: Fixed price in the contract
The biggest risk when working with a contractor is "the budget keeps growing as we go". First they name one figure, then come "the CMS is extra", "the form is separate", "SEO wasn't included". You end up with a final invoice twice the size of the one you agreed to.
A proper studio gives a fixed price in the contract — and delivers the full scope for it. If you want to add a new feature after signing, that's a separate change request with separate payment. Everything transparent.
Bad sign: "The price depends on time, we bill by the hour". That means you don't know the final budget, and stretching the hours can be profitable. At OVERCHENKO STUDIO the price is always fixed: we scope it for your project and lock it in the contract before work starts. More in the article on what drives website cost.
Criterion 4: Response time
One of the best indicators of studio quality is how fast they responded to your first inquiry. Top studios respond within 1 hour during business hours. If a studio is silent for a day or two, the work will be the same.
What to check at the start:
- Response speed to the first message (Telegram, email, form)
- Quality of the first reply — do they ask clarifying questions, or just send "let's discuss on Zoom"
- Whether they propose a concrete next step (consultation, brief, preliminary estimate)
- Whether they respond on weekends (this can be a plus or a minus: a boundary-less studio = team burnout = lower quality later)
Criterion 5: Transparent process
A good studio can clearly describe what the process looks like: how many stages, how many days each, what you'll see at each step. A bad process: "we'll do it, then show you". A good process: "Days 1-3 — brief and strategy; Days 4-10 — design with 2 revision rounds; Days 11-20 — build with proof reviews every 3 days...".
What to ask:
- What stages does your process have?
- How is each stage approved?
- How many revision rounds are included in the price?
- Do you show a staging version before launch?
- How do we communicate: project Telegram chat, Slack, email, weekly call?
Criterion 6: Tech stack
The technology your site is built on affects speed, SEO, security, and maintenance cost for years to come. What to ask:
| Stack | Pros | Cons | Who it suits |
|---|---|---|---|
| WordPress | Cheap, flexible, many plugins | Slow, security risks, SEO limits | Blogs, small sites |
| Webflow | Fast, visual editor, reliable | Monthly subscription, limited customization | Mid-size corporate websites |
| Next.js / Astro | Premium speed, PageSpeed 90+, SEO | More expensive, requires a developer | Serious brand, e-commerce, SaaS |
| Tilda / Wix | Cheapest, no developer needed | Slow, limited SEO, templated look | Idea testing, micro-business |
Red flag: a studio that can't explain why they use a particular stack, or answers "because we're used to it". The right answer: "For your task we recommend X because of A, B, C — and we rule out Y because of D".
Criterion 7: Guarantees and what they cover
What should be in the contract:
- Code guarantee: 30-90 days of free bug fixes for issues found after launch
- Deadline SLA: what happens if the studio misses the deadline (usually a partial refund of the prepayment)
- Code and access handover: you must get ALL access (hosting, domain, repository, CMS, analytics) into your own ownership
- Copyright: it's clearly stated that the site belongs to you, not the studio
- Backups: whether the studio makes backups during development (ask — can they send them to your Google Drive)
Criterion 8: Post-launch support
A website isn't "done and forgotten". After launch you need to: fix bugs that show up with real users, update content, add new sections, monitor analytics, react to Google changes. A studio with no post-launch = you become your own IT department.
Best practice: 30 days of free support after launch for minor edits. Beyond that — either a monthly retainer for regular tasks or pay-as-you-go for one-offs. At OVERCHENKO STUDIO support depends on the package: Basic — 1 week, Professional — 14 days, Maximum — 1 month free.
Criterion 9: Type of specialization
There are three types of contractors:
- Generalist freelancer: does everything alone — design, code, SEO. Cheapest, but risky. Not suitable when the site is critical to your sales.
- Small studio (2-10 people): specialized in design and development, focused on quality and custom projects. The best balance for small and mid-size business.
- Large agency (20+ people): scale, project management, marketing alongside the website. Worth it for enterprise, where process matters more than speed.
OVERCHENKO STUDIO is a small premium studio focused on Awwwards-tier design and a modern stack (Next.js, GSAP, Three.js). We don't take on more than 4-5 projects in parallel — this lets us give every client top quality.
Criterion 10: Real reviews
Don't trust testimonials on the studio's own site — they're almost always hand-picked. Check reviews on independent platforms:
- Clutch.co — the most reputable B2B platform for agencies; reviews are verified via your email/LinkedIn
- Google Business Profile — Google reviews under the studio's real profile
- LinkedIn recommendations from clients you can actually verify
- Behance / Dribbble comments on specific pieces of work
- Direct contact with 2-3 previous clients of the studio — a good studio isn't afraid to share contacts
10 red flags — when to run
- "We'll do it in 3 days" (no brief, no spec — that's a template)
- "We won't show live sites" (only Figma) — either the sites are broken or they don't exist
- "Sign the contract, we'll discuss details later" — details must come BEFORE signing
- "We don't give access to the code / admin" — that locks you to the studio forever
- "Pay 100% upfront" — the standard is 30-50% at the start, the rest staged
- "We don't have a contract, just pay the invoice" — criminally dangerous
- "7-day guarantee on the site" — not serious, should be 30+ days
- "We'll do it for free, you pay if you like it" — recognize this and pay no one
- "Hosting only with us, you can't migrate" — that's vendor lock-in, run
- The studio asks no questions about your business — they don't care whether you get results
What to ask the studio on the first call
10-question checklist
- Show 3-5 live websites you've built in the last year.
- Which business metrics improved for your clients after the relaunch?
- Is the price fixed in the contract? What's covered by the upfront payment, what — by the post-payment?
- What does the process look like: stages, deadlines, approvals?
- Which stack would you recommend for my project? Why this one?
- How many revisions are included in the base price? What's billed separately?
- What happens if you miss the deadline? Guarantee?
- How many days of post-launch support? What does it include?
- Do I get all access (repository, hosting, CMS)? Can I move the project to another studio?
- How many projects do you run in parallel? Who on the team will be on mine?
A serious studio will answer all 10 without hesitation. If they dodge even one — that's a signal to keep looking.
Bottom line
Choosing a web studio isn't about "finding the cheapest" — it's about "finding one that shows live results, guarantees the deadline and gives a transparent price". The 10 criteria in this checklist will help filter out 80% of doubtful options in the first 30 minutes of conversation.
If you're looking for a studio for your project — message us. In a 30-minute consultation we'll answer all 10 questions and tell you honestly whether we're a fit as a contractor. If we're not, we'll recommend colleagues who close your task better.