limbo - 6:12 pm on Jan 9, 2009 (gmt 0)

Is it a good idea to allow the deliverables to be HTML pages or PSD and ask the contractor to specify which when giving the price, or should it always be PSD and then plan /budget for a 2nd project to convert from PSD to HTML.

A professional designer or deign studio will be able to quote for both - if you wanted to do the the technical design, then they will provide 'flats' in the format your require. Or a working and tested front end—should you need it.

I usually break quotes up into the 5 sections listed above, deleting/expanding as appropriate.

How likely is it that designers who understand concept, features, benefits and values, UX and branding, also understand the nuts and bolts of good construction of x-browser HTML/CSS and Organic SEO?

Most webdesigners sway either more toward the creative or more toward the technical. I suppose it's genetic :) - rare to find minds who excel in both the technical and the creative...

That said any self respecting professional web designer should have a working knowledge of both. The knowledge may not run as deep as a pro SEM, for example, but the fundamentals need to be understood.

So I'd say, either hire a good team, or find people with a good overall knowledge and expertise and experience in the most relevant aspect of the project.