Westhill Communications

Q: What's your name and position in the company?
A: Terry Hermon, Director

Q: Describe your company in 5 words.
A: A little mountain opposite East

Q: What's your business philosophy?
A: Work hard, make it look effortless, have fun, be creative, get results.

Q: Describe your office environment.
A: Three floors of competition over who can make the best tea. Other than that, communicative, creative, professional.

Q: Describe how your team interact and work together.
A: The majority of us have been working together for years, so although it sounds cheesy, we really are like family – with all the respectful banter and bickering that goes with it. Because we don’t have account handlers, we all take much more ownership for the work we’re producing, and daily catch-up meetings ensure we all know at what stage each project is, and that we’re always sharing ideas as we go.

Q: How do you get the majority of your business?
A: Through client recommendations.

Q: If a client was trying to decide between a shortlist of web design companies, how would you recommend they go about selecting the right one for them?
A: If you want something these days, you usually start by searching for it on the web, so it’s really important that every aspect of your web presence – the way it looks, the words you use, and the way that it functions – is truly reflective of your company. Choosing the right one, for me, comes down to all the usual things, like going through their portfolio and considering price, but the main thing is going with who you feel comfortable with. You’re building something that’s going to tell the world who you are. You need to make sure the company that’s helping you do that understand you and will be able to work with you daily to make it happen.

Q: Where do you see the web design industry in the future?
A: There are so many ways to access websites now – through computers, smartphones, tablets etc – that it’s hard to predict what hardware we’ll be designing for, let alone how people will be interacting with it. However, as the boom in social media has shown, people will always want to engage with and share what interests them as much as possible. The key change for the web in the past decade has been that it’s not just for the techies, it’s for all, and that will only get bigger.

Q: What computers do you have use in your offices, PCs or Macs?
A: Both PC and Mac

Q: How was your company name chosen?
A: The company was formed by two ex-journalists – John Westwell and Steve Hill – who combined their talents, and their surnames, and called the company Westhill.

Q: If you were to give your clients one tip on how to get the most from their website what would it be?
A: Engage with your end users. Get feedback. Try to stand back from it and look on as if an outsider. Understand your competition. Research your industry.