The number of companies offering professional web design services is astounding and can be quite overwhelming. Narrow it down by going straight to the heart of the matter – the portfolio. A gallery of sites created by the web design company should showcase its best work. Close scrutiny of the portfolio will give you an impression of the quality, style and content of sites created by the web designer as well as its market potential. Web sites should feature good design components, simple, user-friendly navigation and good search engine optimization. Your web design company should fulfill all these requirements.

It is strongly recommended that you test the sites in its portfolio to determine the suitability of the web designer and web design company to meet your business and marketing needs. You can use some of the below methods to "test" a web design company's portfolio.