Your business is your livelihood and thus you need to take extreme care and caution when making everyday business decisions. The chances are you will fail with something’s just as much as you succeed. Even the richest businessman in the world made mistakes when they started out and they continue to make mistakes to this day. But what sets them apart from others is that they are quick learners and they use their failures to perfect their success.

If you play with fire you get burned and so would you stick your hand in a fire for the second time after you felt the pain and got burned from the first? I use this example because dealing with people and businesses no matter what country you are in but especially in Thailand then you are going to get burned from time to time no matter how hard to try to avoid the flames.

Conducting business in Thailand

Doing business in Thailand is a tricky affair. Thai’s are culturally different from Westerners and while I have seen huge changes and improvements over the last 10 or so years with the younger generation especially, you still can’t get the same level of service that you just might get at home. Services may be cheaper, but like most things that are cheap there are usually consequences.

I once employed a Thai web designer who was very skilled in his job. His graphic work was exceptional as were his programming skills with a variety of complex web codes. In the first few weeks I gave him certain jobs to do on websites we were building. For example, if I needed a special banner designed with merged images I would send him the images and he would get the job done to perfection.

After a few weeks had passed and we had new websites to build I thought I would test his initiative and design skills further. I gave him a web project to build a site for a new client who needed a property website design to sell Thai Real Estate. I told my designer to go ahead and show me what you can do but make sure the site uses a combination of green and gold colours because this is important for the client.

A few days later he was ready to present me with the first draft. He had designed the website using red and black as the two primary colours. I asked him why has he designed the site with those colours only for him to reply “because I like them”. I said it is not what you like, it is what the customer likes only to be looked upon with a dumb-founded face. First important lesson learned for this young Thai office worker.

This is the problem you will face when doing business in Thailand. The Thai’s at times just don’t listen to your needs which is why you have to be careful when departing with your hard earned cash for not just a new website design but any type of product or service.

There are times when the customers needs are just not practical. For example, if you want a search engine friendly website designed yet ask and request for certain features that will have a negative impact on your site then it is just not practical to implement these into the design. This is where we are different, we will always tell you if we can’t do what you have asked or if we can but by doing so it will not be a good idea for your website.

Who you are working with to build your website is key

So picking the right team or person to design your website in Thailand is key to the success of your site and your business. You need to use the services of a company who want to help you achieve what you want to achieve with your website design but at the same time advise you with their knowledge on what is and is not a good idea.

Bartering is not a good idea – Too good to be true

If you are looking for a website designer to build you a business website at a set cost and if you are one of those people who like to barter for a product or service then you and your business will suffer as a result. If you choose a website designer because they say they can design you a site at half the price of another 5 web design agencies in Thailand that have quoted close to the same amount then expect to have a poorly designed and poorly coded website that will do your business more harm than good.

Would you walk into a Mercedes, Porsche or BMW garage and ask to buy a brand new convertible car for the price of a Ford or a Nissan and try to barter with them? I could just imagine the look on the sales persons face.

Would you walk into Tesco’s, Foodland or Big C, pick up a bottle of imported Bordeaux or Connac, walk to the counter and expect to pay for these products at the same cost as a bottle of Sangsom or Regency? I could just imagine the sales cashier’s face too.

You should not pay over the odds for a website design but at the same time you should not expect a group of skilled individuals to work day and sometimes nights to professionally design your website with the utmost care and attention to detail at a bargain price. It just does not work like that. But if you have a set budget then you should tell your designer because this way they can work with you to get your site completed professionally but within your practical budget.

So pick your designer in Thailand wisely and remember if something is too good to be true then it probably is – That is unless you are working with PattayaMedia.com who will take your website one step further.