Croydon has no shortage of web designers, but most are reselling the same WordPress templates. Here's how to tell the difference and find someone who'll actually move the needle for your business.
Walk down North End or through Boxpark and you'll see dozens of businesses doing brilliant work. Great food, great services, real expertise. Then you visit their websites and it's a different story. Slow load times, dated designs, and cookie-cutter layouts that could belong to any business in any town.
It's not their fault. Most web design agencies in Croydon sell the same thing: a WordPress theme with your logo and colours dropped in. It works, technically. But it doesn't set you apart, it doesn't load quickly, and it doesn't do much to turn visitors into customers.
If you're looking for a web designer in Croydon, here's what to actually look for.
This is the single biggest differentiator. Ask any agency what their sites score on Google Lighthouse. If they don't know what that means, that tells you everything.
Lighthouse measures four things Google cares about: performance, accessibility, best practices, and SEO. Most WordPress sites in Croydon score somewhere between 30 and 60 out of 100. A well-built modern site should score 90 or above.
Why does this matter? Because Google uses these scores to decide where you rank in search results. A faster site ranks higher. A higher-ranking site gets more visitors. More visitors means more customers. It's that simple.
This sounds obvious, but most people skip it. If a web design agency's own site is slow, cluttered, or looks like it was built five years ago, what do you think they'll build for you?
Open their site on your phone. Does it load quickly? Is the text easy to read? Can you find what you're looking for without scrolling endlessly? Their website is their best portfolio piece. If it doesn't impress you, move on.
Web design pricing in Croydon ranges from a few hundred pounds to tens of thousands. The cheap end is almost always a template. Someone installs WordPress, picks a theme, swaps in your content, and calls it done. It takes them a few hours.
A bespoke website is different. It's designed from scratch around your business. The layout, typography, colours, and user experience are all tailored to your customers and what you need the site to do. It's hand-coded for speed and built to last.
Neither approach is wrong, but they're completely different products at completely different price points. Make sure you know which one you're getting.
Testimonials are nice, but numbers are better. A good web designer should be able to show you measurable improvements from their work. Things like:
If an agency can only show you pretty screenshots but no data, they might be good at design but not at building sites that perform.
A website isn't a one-off purchase. It needs hosting, security updates, performance monitoring, and occasional content changes. Ask any agency you're considering: what happens after launch?
Some agencies hand you the files and wish you luck. Others lock you into expensive hosting contracts with hidden fees. The best ones offer transparent monthly packages that cover hosting, maintenance, and support at a fair price.
Make sure you own the code and the domain. You should never be in a position where you can't leave.
Croydon is growing. The town centre regeneration, Boxpark, new housing developments. There are more businesses here than ever, and more of them are competing for the same local customers.
Your website is how most of those customers will find you first. Not through a flyer, not through a recommendation (though those help), but through a Google search. "Best coffee shop in Croydon." "Accountant near me." "Yoga classes South London."
If your website is slow, outdated, or looks the same as every competitor, you're invisible. If it's fast, professional, and clearly communicates what makes you different, you win.
We're biased, obviously. But if we were advising any small business in Croydon looking for a new website, we'd say this:
Want to see how your current site stacks up? Run a free audit and get your Lighthouse scores in 30 seconds.
We build fast, beautiful websites for small businesses. Let's talk about yours.