Web Site Development Process

Web Site Development Process

PREPARING YOURSELF
Before you approach a designer, you should give some thought to the items presented below. Your forethought will result in much more enjoyable interaction with your designer, facilitate the knowledge you gain through the process, and result in a more time efficient completion of your web presence. We deeply appreciate the care and time you take to be involved in the creation of your site, before the blueprints ever hit the table.

Things you can do to facilitate the creation process:

  Spend time looking at other websites that are in the same "family" as your business.
  Observe how the sites are "laid out", how they navigate, the color schemes, the number of pages, etc.
  After looking at some other sites, note what elements or features you really like or dislike. Perhaps looking at the other pages generated some new, snazzy ideas for you? Bring them to the table!
  Gather any business materials that you might have; company photos, brochures, pamphlets of information, company logos, calendars of events, etc. and bring them to the meeting you'll have with your designer. This really helps your designer to form a feeling or theme for your site early on, so that when it comes time to develop your site, your prototype(s) may be generated more quickly.
  Be clear about your intentions and be honest about the time you'll have to devote to the project.
  Let your designer know whether this is "just for your information", or whether you're committed to moving forward now with the project. We are always willing to respect your time constraints and to cooperate with you in getting the job done. We ask for your consideration in return. We put our heart into making sure we "don't drop the ball" and thus we try to maintain vigilant contact with you. Our purpose is not to "hound" you, but to make sure that a project doesn't drag on for weeks on end. This is especially true of projects "done by committee". Please, please always let us know if your timetable changes and when we can reasonably expect your input. In this way, each of us can make the best use of our time while we wait for the project to roll forward again. We thank you heartily in advance for your kind consideration in this.
  Try to be prompt in getting materials, revisions and any other miscellaneous input to your designer when it is requested.
  If you have questions, please ask. We believe in a "wholistic" approach to creating your site. We want you to be as excited about it as we are, and knowledge is the best route to appreciation. We're happy to answer your questions, and if you give us a stumper, we'll do our best to find the answer!

Variables to effect design costs...

YOU can affect the final cost of your web site…

Is information organized?
Is the content written down?
Can it be provided electronically?
Are images together?
Do we need to scan or are they provided electronically?
Do you have maps or do they need to be created?
Does any artwork need to be produced?

HOW LONG?
The most common question we are asked is, "How long does this process take?"On average, it takes us 2 - 3 weeks from start to finish. However, the length of time ultimately depends on how quickly we can generate the final quote, how long it takes you to get us materials, and how responsive you are to our calls for input and revisions.

It also depends on how involved your project is. A $2,400 web site takes less time than a $15,000 website, and we've done both extremes and everything in between.

The design process follows this basic flow:
  Free, one-hour consultation between sales representative and customer (if more time is needed, consultation is billed at $125/hr).
  Customer quote is generated and approval is sought.
  Customer responds to proposal within one (1) week's time.
  Upon approval, customer sends 50% of quoted amount, signed copy of quote and all materials needed to build the site.
  When materials arrive, the work is scheduled within the framework of our existing workload.
  Generation of the initial design can take 1 to 3 weeks.
  Upon completion of the design, the customer is asked for approval of the initial design concept. This stage should take no longer than one (1) week.
  Customer "signs off" on the shell, and designer proceeds with rest of site creation.
  Designer contacts customer and asks for final revisions.
  Customer submits revisions to the designer.
  Designer makes all corrections and "final posts" the site.
  Customer is billed for remainder of the original quote plus alterations, account is finalized and the site is considered "live".

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