Building a website

Many of our clients have never hired a Web designer before or if they have their experience has not always been a good one.

1. Planning & Strategy

We start the process by having you fill out a Web site Planner Workbook. This book gathers information about your company, services, audience, purpose, site goals and more. This web design planner will also give you a full outlook of how you see your web site, and how we find out your objectives and goals for your project. We will give you as much time as you need to review the planner and answer all of the questions asked. We use this information to help us deliver an accurate quote. This will also help us in the future if you decide to accept our proposal.

2. Web Design Proposal

After you have finished with the Web site Planner Workbook, we will gather the information and draw up a proposal for your approval. This process may take approximately a couple of days, depending on how involved your site requirements are and your business model. We will submit our proposal to you and if possible we will be glad to give your company a full presentation in person or over the phone as you may require.

3. Agreements / Deposits

If our proposal of web design and development is accepted, we will require half the quotation price as a deposit. Along with an invoice, we will send you a contract. The contract will state the project amount, terms and agreement, and other miscellaneous items.

4. Domain Name & Registration Hosting

If you have chosen a domain name to register for your web site, we will register it at this time and we will create a hosting account. If you already have a domain name we will point it to the right server and if you already have a hosting account we will evaluate its compatibility and advise you on whether it is necessary to upgrade it.

5. Collecting your materials

Now it is time to start collecting material for your web site. This includes, but is not limited to, brochures, business cards, and photos of your business. If you're selling products, we will probably need photos, product descriptions, etc.. The more information and material you provide us the quicker your project will be completed and the better the overall result. All the material should be of the highest possible quality and in the original file formats. Logos and other line art should be in .ai, .eps or similar formats.

6. Mockup Sites and Sample Layout

We will put together some mock web sites and designs for your company to critique and discuss. If you have requested a logo design, this usually comes before anything else. At this point we're trying to narrow down exactly what you're looking for in terms of web design and layout. Your feedback is essential in the web design process and it is welcome at any time.

7. Working with materials

Resising photos, photo optimisation, colour sampling (for those who want to match a corporate colour to their site design), product weight and pictures and similar tasks are all done during this phase of the web design process.

8. Establishing Project Design / Look & Feel

Based on your feedback from the mockup web site(s) and your planner, a design is established and used for your web site.

9. Site subject matter

Starting with your home page, we will start building your website and adding the necessary components. After this is completed and approved we will move on and start placing content into your web site. Because our web sites are fully dynamic, we will insert the main content and create "containers" for future or extra content as needed.

10. Scripting

We have access to a number of extra scripts that may be useful or necessary for your site.

11. Web site Completion and Debugging

After you have reviewed the web site and everything is in correct order, we will start by reviewing the web site ourselves. We will check web site load time, browser testing, resolution testing and the overall optimal performance of your site.

12. Site goes live

Your web site is published for the world to see! You can now start advertising your web site, tell friends, business acquaintances and publish print material with your web site address.

13. Site Optimisation & Online Marketing

Your site is optimised so that we can correctly market your web site. We will use the keywords and descriptions of your site that you have given us in your planner plus other terms we find related to your business. We will then start by submitting your web site to selected search engines and directories and do any other web site promotion services that you requested.