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The qualities of a good webmaster seem obvious to most of us. Sleepless service, innate clairvoyance, artistic genious, technical legerdomain, unbending loyalty and (most of all) cheap, cheap, CHEAP—not that we expect too much of them.
More often than not, people come to me with stories of troubles with their previous webmaster. Confidentially, this does not instill confidence in you as a client. Admittedly, there are good webmasters and bad webmasters. Yet, many clients become too easily discouraged, even with good webmasters. Here are a few points that might help salvage a relationship worth saving.
Never forget, every contractual relationship requires two people to succeed. That's PEOPLE, not machines, pictures or even contracts. And each PERSON has individual needs, desires and aspirations. It's their mutual goals that bring them together, but they are still individuals. Hopefully, you have a handle on what your needs and such are. Now let's consider what person on the other end needs and desires, the webmaster.
Communication
It's the first and last principle in working with anyone successfully.
Are you easily contacted by phone? Do you answer voice mail? Inability to contact you can delay development and sometimes force decisions without your input.
Do you check your e-mail frequently and respond quickly? No matter how good you are, there really is no substitute for e-mail.
Have you written out your project requirements? Know what pages you want? Webmasters generally are not good at dictation.
Are your requirements well thought out and submitted BEFORE development? Can you blame a webmaster for grumbling at having to start all over?
Have you drafted the text for the pages in the site? This is one of the biggest show stoppers. You can understand how frustrating the "hurry up and wait" game is.
Are you providing photos? Sure, the webmaster can look through his library of models for pictures remotely related to your site. But the truth is the real thing is better, and only you can provide it.
Consideration
I've never met a perfect webmaster, but I know a few really good ones. You've got to allow for human frailty. Look for their strengths and build on them. After all, the webmaster is bound by your employ to overlook your problems. Don't get carried away with "the customer is always right." You might be wrong sometimes too.
Individual Worth
Prostition. That's how it feels to many webmasters. The value of the service diminishes after it is performed. The client often has a sudden attack of "the grass is always greener," or "having is not nearly so satisfying as wanting."
Consider the hours and hours of brain twisting it took to design your site's concept. Consider the thousands of lines of code that were programmed into it, most of which you have no comprehension. Consider the years of training or experience it took for your webmaster to reach this point of expertise.
Sadly, it sometimes takes one to know one. It's difficult to understand the stature of a webmaster without actually becoming one. After all the techno-babble has died away and all the pixel-pushing and scrutinizing are over, you just have to stand back and look at the person and appreciate them for what they are, however shallow or unfathomable.
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