 |
||||||||||||||
|
Web Design F.A.Q. What should we look for in a Website Development firm? One of the major frustrations for clients occurs when they receive wildly varying quotes for Web design projects. One of the best ways to avoid this, and ensure the work is completed to the highest standards, is to specify accurately all aspects of the work to be completed. The old cliché of comparing apples to apples rings true. Note down the exact specifications for the project, how many pages you require, how many forms, etc. Only by doing that will you ensure that everyone is quoting the same and only then can you really see who is the best value - without compromising on quality. Having said that, we usually only establish the exact needs of our clients after several meetings and discussions. It can be very difficult for people inexperienced with the Internet to know exactly what can be done to serve best your specific needs. Beyond this, you need to consider various other factors. These may include:
As an example, our Web Team consists of a researcher, copywriter, Internet Marketer, Web designer, Internet Security Expert and Graphic Artist. A site completed by us is reviewed extensively by our experts for such critical issues as load time (how long does the site take to come up onto the screen?), browser compatibility (is the site displayed the same by different computers?), and navigational ease. Most of our sites are reviewed regularly by a focus group of up to 30 people with various levels of Internet usage skills. With these extensive skills and review, sites completed are of the highest quality. A lot of people have Web design skills now. Why shouldn't we use a graduate who has these skills? We do find that this is one of the most common scenarios we are presented with. Our answer is that design skills are only a very small part of Website development. It is no good having an attractive site if it does not attract visitors. The process we go through in designing a site is exhaustive. Firstly, there are a series of meetings with clients to establish exactly what they want and need the site to do. Once the objectives of the site are clearly fixed, we research the target market and assess their requirements for such a site. We then establish a focus group of the target market that assists in the development of the site. This group completes a series of surveys to identify issues such as load time, copy effectiveness, navigational ease, and the quality of product presentation and overall design success. In close consultation with our clients, we then move on to complete the look and 'feel' of the site. The wording of the site is completed by an experienced copywriter. The copy is developed in association with the client and our expert Internet Marketer to ensure that the site will place as high as possible in Search Engines, if this is relevant, and to ensure its relevancy. Privacy commitments are then included into the site (again, research shows that privacy is one of the biggest concerns for Internet users). Our Security Expert is brought in to try to 'crack' the site code, access databases, etc to ensure a high level of security is provided for the site. The entire site is then reviewed via a complex process whereby a vast amount of technical information is gathered and assessed by our team. Once the site passes a series of strict criteria, ranging from security issues, to navigational issues, to marketing issues, then the site is passed for hosting. Clients are involved in the development of the site as much as possible, to ensure it meets the objectives set earlier and is a site of the highest standard. How long would it take to build a site as detailed here? Once we have received all content from you, your site would be completed within approx. three weeks from the order being received. Once the site is up and running, what do I have to do to maintain it? The site needs to be marketed on an ongoing basis. Fresh information also needs to be put into the site to keep it up to date and interesting. You can do this yourself if (client company name) has the resources available in-house, or we would be delighted to be of assistance. What are the ongoing costs of having a web site? Unless you provide your own Internet connected server, all sites will require virtual hosting ans there is a monthly charge for hosting. Some sites require no further investment than hosting, while other site owners prefer to market their site more proactively, make regular updates, send email newsletters etc. Ongoing costs depend on exactly how you wish to use your web site. What are the demographics of people using the Internet? This varies greatly depending on what research you happen to review. Some data on Internet users:
46% of adult males (3.0 million) and 36% of females (2.5 million) accessed the Internet in 1999 (this is an increase of 700,000 males and 600,000 females from 1998 figures). The business community has the fastest uptake of the Internet of any group. What is a 'host'? This is the term given to the company that actually puts your Website into cyberspace. Think of the Website as a newspaper advertisement a copywriter has produced for you. You then need to place that advertisement into a newspaper for it to be effective—that's the same as your Website host. Like newspapers, there are some good hosts and some that could be a little better. The important aspects to know about your host are a) can they cope with the 'type' of site you have, b) will their system be able to cope with the number of visitors your site attracts, and c) do they provide back up service in case of problems? Can you host our web site? Yes, we host 95% of our clients web sites. We can setup the hosting and manage it for you taking all the hasle and complications away. Our hosting is fully featured, extremely reliable and very well priced. What's ecommerce? Ecommerce is simply the term given to purchasing products or services over the Internet. What's a link? A (hyper)link is a bit of text on a Web Page that, when clicked on, takes you to another Web Page or Website. What's a search engine? A search engine is a computer that reviews (and ranks in an order) the content of Websites. If a person enters 'golf' into a search engine, that person will be shown a list of sites to visit that contain the word golf. As an example, Yahoo! (the most popular search engine on the Internet) has 2,066,797 Web pages to choose from when 'golf' is searched for. What's Web surfing? Web surfing is the term given to reviewing Web pages by going from one link to another. Will the Internet continue to grow? All indications are that the Internet will continue to grow. Most day to day activities can now be completed on the Internet. An example of this is grocery shopping from the major supermarkets. Think of when the first fax machines appeared. When only a few had them not everyone needed them—but when the majority had them then others had to have them to keep in step. Increasing ease of use, reducing costs and technological advances will aid the continued growth. Is it important to get people to return to the site? If yes, how do you get them to return? It is vital to have people return to the site again and again. Research indicates that people will feel more comfortable with your company and purchase products or services only after having visited the site seven times previously. To have people return to the site we have to reward them. We have built-in some strategies to the proposed site that will aid repeat visiting. Other possibilities include:
How do people find out about Websites?
|
 |