Many people end up hiring either a friend or relative to get their web site done. Maybe it will be free, maybe you will get a discount. Either way, if your friend is a professional, it can be a great deal. If they are not (and sometimes even if they are), it may end up being more hassle than it is worth.

There is some blurry line out there that distinguishes professionals from amateurs. Not only is this line blurry, but it's somewhat different for each person. I might consider someone an amateur, but you might consider them a professional.

The position of that line is based primarily on two things: Level of skills and level of conduct. Someone can be much stronger in one than another and still be considered a professional by many.

Let's talk about two mythical web designers. Joe and Suzy Web design web pages for people. They gets paid for it. They makes a living from it. So far, we don't know enough about Joe and Suzy to decide if we would consider them professionals.

Joe is a people person. He's great at communicating. He is able to figure out exactly what a customer's wants and needs are, and the customer knows that he understands. Joe's actual design skills, while not great, are competent.

Suzy, on the other hand, is a fantastic designer. She feels more at home working on the computer than she does interacting with customers. While she is uncomfortable meeting with clients, she knows that it is necessary, and still acts very polite and tries to communicate well with clients.

Who is the more professional? If you were just looking at portfolios, you might say Suzy. If you were to meet with both designers, you might say Joe. But if both of them have an appropriate amount of skills in both areas, they're both professionals. The difference of opinion generally comes in what is an appropriate amount of skills.

If you're lucky, you get one person who's great in both. Or one design firm that both Suzy and Joe work at.

Of course, running a good business enters into the equation also, but unless specific details are known by the client, that does not necessarily have an effect on perceived professionalism.

Tim is the owner and senior web designer at T&S Web Design. His company has developed and maintained website for dozens of small businesses and organizations. Tim also maintains a blog with free website advice for small business owners, GetASiteOnline.com.

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