Website Development FAQ

Every website we do is handcrafted to meet the needs of is owners; this means that giving you a sample price isn’t possible as we don’t know what you want to achieve. We base our proposals on the conversations we have with you which determine what it is you need and how we can best help you.

We work exclusively with WordPress and if your website is already in this format then we may be able to help you by giving it a makeover. However, not all WordPress websites are created equal and there may things about your site that mean it would be difficult. To properly assess your request you will need to give us administrative access to your dashboard so that we can take a look. Send us a message with your website address and we’ll arrange to have a quick chat with you.

Email is a very specialised service which often requires in-depth knowledge and understanding to set up correctly and to everyone’s satisfaction. Our expertise is around building great looking and highly effective websites which is why we have partnered with other providers who can sort out your email accounts for you. Our recommended hosting provider has an excellent email service.

We advise all our clients to avoid the risk that goes along with having a single point of failure. What this means is that if your website, your domain name and email are all held by the same provider you run the risk of losing everything if something goes wrong; which is why we suggest that your domain has its own online home that simply points to your website hosting.
If you already have a hosting account then it is likely your domain name will already be held somewhere and we just need access to the control panel to make the changes that tell it where your new website is now located.
If you don’t yet have a domain name then we can advise you where to go to get the best deals. Once it’s set up just send us the account access details and we’ll be able to make the necessary changes so it points to your website.

Many of our clients already have their own domain and hosting accounts. I’m happy to work with whomever you chose, provided they can facilitate the minimum requirements for running WordPress. Unfortunately we aren’t able to provide a maintenance package for websites hosted on platforms we don’t recommend.

Check out our Hosting Options for more information.

What a fab question to be asked and we’d have to say it’s because we have been in the business for many years – Linda has been hanging around online since the web began and Steve has a background of programming some of the most expensive banking systems ever used. We’ve been working as a team with WordPress since 2008 and we spend a lot of time building and developing our skills and knowledge to benefit our clients.

We don’t do graphic design in-house as we’d rather concentrate our efforts on making sure our clients get the best out of their websites. We are happy to recommend a number of different graphic designers whose work we love and have implemented.

Our usual timescale is around 6 weeks from the acceptance of our proposal to the finished article going live. However it does depend on how much of the content and imagery is ready before we begin, getting your approval at the various stages. In our experience it is usually the content that holds things up so the faster you can create this the better. Of course, if you don’t want to create it yourself we offer a content writing service that will speed things up.

WordPress is a content management system which is installed on your website and is accessed via the web. It currently powers over 25% of the world’s websites and is well supported, updated regularly to prevent security breaches, robust and very, very easy to use.

Like every business we need to pay for things and your site will probably take at least six weeks to be launched. You can read more about this in our Terms & Conditions.

Whilst we can advise on using WordPress.com, in fact Linda uses it herself for her personal blog, Woman on the Edge of Reality .We don’t use it on behalf of clients but can help you set things up correctly.

There are many great images to be found through Google and the other search engines BUT you need to remember that these are protected by copyright and you can’t use them without asking or paying for them. If we use images like this then we could be putting your business at risk when the owner comes calling for their money.
You can use stock photography sites, our favourite is Dreamstime.com, and sometimes they will make the perfect image for your site available free of charge. Or you can buy them. The problem is that lots of other sites might be using the same pictures. The best way to get something that makes your website stand out is to commission a photographer to take the photographs for you and we are happy to recommend people you can use whose work we know and love.

WordPress and its plugins are updated on a regular basis to help prevent security breaches and limit the risk to your business if the website fails.
In most cases you can press the update button without worry, but do backup your website first, just in case something goes wrong.
If you aren’t into doing it yourself or are worried something terrible will happen then don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. For a reasonable monthly cost you can sit back and let us do all the heavy lifting and security for you.

Now that you’ve got a brand new shiny website you’re going to want to keep it updated with lots of juicy content that the search engines love.
We can provide you with one-one training online or in face-to-face meetings, depending on where you are. Just email us and we’ll let you know how much it costs and what to do next.

You can find them here. Please read them carefully.

Of course they can and as the web develops it become ever easier to do so.
You probably already know someone who has done and got something that looks pretty good. But . and it’s a big but, does it do what it’s supposed to such as generating leads that turn into business, hit the spot on the search engines and do the business with your current customers and clients.
Your website is your virtual shop front and you want it to be a profitable part of your marketing activity. Why then would you leave it to someone that doesn’t understand the psychology of the web, what the search engines are looking for and how visitors navigate around a site and make buying decisions.
Ultimately though, it’s your call – if you want to pay for a website that’s the online equivalent of a salesman sitting in the corner with his feet up that’s fine; If you want a high performance lead machine though you’ll need to speak to us.