Often inexperienced developers strive to get a client at any cost. As a result, both the studio and you in the process of work get a lot of problems that could have been avoided if you discussed the plan of action first. Such problems, for example, include: delays in the development schedule; unplanned budget increases; the end product does not meet your primary expectations.
Professional developers should immediately describe the main stages of website development, draw up a technical assignment (TOR) and design a project map.
If you have not yet come to an understanding of what type of site is needed for your project, then beware of a situation where the studio is trying to sell a more expensive site than your business requires. For example, in the field of making something to order (for example, sofas, mirrors, interior design), it is not always advisable to create an online store. It may be quite enough to develop a business card site with contact forms and examples of work.
It also happens the other way around, if you have a wide range of products, you should not expect customers to start calling you simply by seeing arbitrary products in the photo gallery of a business card site. Indeed, in such cases, the assortment must be presented properly.
There is a very simple way to determine the format of the desired site. Type in the name of your product / service with the word "buy" in Google search. Open the first 5 sites and study their format and structure. In 80% of cases, you will need similar solutions.