To celebrate WordPress 3.0, on top of all the great services a WordPress Tune Up offers, Manifest Development is adding the activation and set-up of custom navigation menus. Before 3.0, in order to change the main navigation on your website you needed extra functionality or you would need to hire a developer to do it. Now as long as your website supports it, you can change your own navigations menus on the fly right from the WordPress admin panel. Manifest Development will make sure you theme supports these custom menus as part of the WordPress Tune Up from 2.9 to 3.0.

Interested? Get in touch or read all of the WordPress Support Services Manifest Development offers.

A few months ago I wrote a post about why every business needs a website. Among other things, potential customers will find you. Doing a website right will open you up to a whole new group of people in your area as well as across the country. And during a time where people are looking a bit harder for the best deal, having a website so people can find you is of the utmost importance. Several of my clients have seen an increase in business from either a brand new website, or a long overdue website redesign that attracted new customers.

A website is also one of the most affordable and best ways to advertise. Where you may be paying several thousands of dollars for an ad in a newspaper to run a couple of times, you can pay less than that for a website that’s online 24/7, with endless content and greater potential for reaching a big audience.

Finally, a recent study shows that online business is still thriving despite the recession. The Digerati Life even recommends starting a website to increase business and add a new revenue stream.

If you’re in need of a website or redesign, Manifest Development can help put you on the online map whether it be through a blog, informational, or e-commerce site. Contact Us today for a free quote and 10% off of your first project.

I am proud to announce a new service offered by Manifest Development- Backups through BackupMoxie. Knowing that at any point, something can happens where you can lose everything, get peace of mind in knowing that Manifest Development has you covered.

When you build complex, high profile web sites and provide full-service design and development for your clients, a good backup and recovery solution is something they will demand from you. Manifest Development’s Backup Servcie was built to provide that solution.

Teaming up with Crowd Favorite to provide the best available technology and harnessing best practices and development techniques proven through years of experience and successful projects, Manifest Development will give you exactly what you need to ensure that your site is safe and securely backed up.

Head on over to the new Backup Service Site for pricing and to sign up!

As someone who’s worked in construction & has developed websites for a long time, I know what your potential customers are looking for & I can give you a website that will help them find it. I’ve built websites for electrical contractors, construction workers, painters, and more. I want to help you.

Head on over to this page to get more details on what kind of site I can offer you, and more importantly, what a website can do for you business.  Contact me now for a Free Quote and 10% off of the first project.

Related Posts:

• Why You Need a Website
• The Difference Between Good, Fast, and Cheap
• Manifest Development Fact Sheet

Last week, Manifest Development launched a new website- The Caitlin M. Hammaren Foundation. The foundation had a pre-existing website that they wanted to convert to a content management system (CMS) to make it easier for them to update themselves. Manifest Development converted the site to WordPress and organized the site to make it easier for visitors to find information.

On top of converting the site from a static to a WordPress driven one, I wanted to make sure all of the information was presented in such a way that it would be easy for  the visitors to find. The first thing I did was reorganize the homepage to make the three most important areas more organized. That way, visitors know which areas of the site they should be visiting the most frequently.

I also added a blog to give the site a designated area for news, announcements, and user feedback. Now the foundation, run by Caitlin’s parents, can easily keep visitors informed on the events and fundraisers going on throughout the year.

Finally, in the fundraising section, we added the ability to make purchases through Paypal. Currently, the site has three products with the capacity to add more. Each product’s proceeds go to help the foundation’s cause.

I really enjoyed designing this site because it’s not the type of site I usually design. This has a singular goal: sell the product. Because of that, I wanted to make sure the users see the product as soon as they get onto the site, as well as a way to order it. I made what I call the “impact area” a large photo of LadderWrap and the order button right beside it. Right below that is the price; everything the user needs to know as soon as the page loads. From there it was adding text and pictures to capture LadderWrap’s many uses. I added a couple of photo galleries  throughout the site, as well as a contact form on every page. For payment, we decided on the popular gateway, Paypal.

All-in-all, I’m very happy with the way the site came out, as are the fine people at LadderWrap. I got to use some new techniques and build a site I don’t usually build, and they got a website that will help sell their product!

Brittain and Matt of I Love My Bike Book wanted a website to help promote the book, their tour, and add some photos of people who follow the mantra stated in the title. As with most of the solutions offered here at Manifest Development, I used WordPress to give them a quick, easy to use, and easy to update site.

They needed something that could be done quickly and affordably. Using the Stylez WordPress theme from Theme Forest I made some simple customizations, installed a few key plugins, integrated Facebook and Twitter, and added the pages. Full development time took under 10 hours and spanned a week from start to finish. Brittain and Matt are very happy with the site, regularly using the blog and photo gallery.

This website is part of Manifest Development’s WordPress Quick Site Series. If you’re interested in a WordPress Quick Site for $540.00, You can contact me here.

There were several main functions to this large site (50+ pages), the important ones being converting the graphically intense site into a web-friendly design, the ability to upload sermon podcasts, and make the entire site easy to update. Without delving too much into the technical details, I made sure each function of the site was scalable while still providing the visual enhancements Lena created. I mocked it up with a single webpage, and then converted that to a fairly in-depth WordPress theme. I created custom pages for calendars, news/blog, and the sermons. With the help of Podpress, Google Calendar, Nextgen Gallery, and several other plugins, I was able to create an easily updateable site for  the church that anyone involved can update.

A big challenge was organizing the information in such a way that was easy for their end users to navigate. With the mind map they provided and the use of drop down menus, a sitemap, and search, I think we made it pretty easy for users to find what they are looking for.

All-in-all, Holy Shepherd and I are very happy with the way the site came out. A lot of work went into it from the church, Lena, and myself, and I think it really shows!

These are the three sides of the project triangle- Good, Fast, and Cheap- and these three sides are things that every client wants. But, there are trade-offs to each one, and many people outside the development world don’t see that. The catch is you can only pick two.

Let’s start with some definitions:

• Good: Your project is done and done right. Maybe it took a little longer or was a little more expensive, but those costs will pay off in the long run because you now have a flexible piece of software that is easier to update and upgrade later. If you’re wondering why there is a cost difference in project bids for the same project, it’s probably because one developer will do it, and the more expensive developer will do it right.
• Fast: Your project is done to meet a tight deadline. It could mean some corners are cut to make the deadline, or (more likely if the developer is as OCD as me) longer hours are put in to make sure your deadline is met. Again, it might be a little more expensive, but you have a solid project in a very timely fashion.
• Cheap: Let’s say cost-effective here. Either the developer doesn’t feel he should be charging pro rates (usually if he is just starting out), or a generous developer is giving you a discount. It could also mean that he is taking some liberties here to cut down on time, and for you, cost. Maybe it won’t work exactly as you’d like, but it works just fine and you got a price on it.

Now let’s look at why only two of the three can be picked:

Good and Fast

Good and Fast means it’s not going to be cheap. Your project is made the priority, which means others are put on hold or not accepted, longer hours are put in, and the costs add up. The developer needs to offset those costs. Bottom line: You will have a project that’s done right in a timely fashion, but it probably cost you a lot more than if it was just “Good” or just “Fast.”

Good and Cheap

Good and Cheap means it isn’t going to fast. Just like the developer putting off projects for a higher paying one that has opted for “good and fast,” good and cheap means when the developer has a free moment, he will take the time needed to make it good while keeping costs down. But keep in mind, it may be several months before getting around to it, and he may stop and start based on how much work is rolling in. Bottom Line: You will have a great project, but what you didn’t spend in money, you spent in time.

Fast and Cheap

Fast and Cheap means it isn’t going to be good. Remember in both my definition of “fast” and of “cheap” I mention the developer may cut corners to help you out. Here, he definitely will. You need to meet that tight deadline on a tight budget, and the developer will get it done, but the proper planning won’t go into it, and a lot of corners will be cut. Bottom Line: You’re going to get a final product, but it will be bad. It will be the bare minimum, and future work on it will be a nightmare.

If I had to choose one of the three, as a developer, I would choose Good and Fast. I don’t like doing sub par work and attaching my name to it, especially when I know I can do better. As a client, I would probably pick Good and Cheap, but that’s assuming there is no deadline. Ideally, you should pick one to get something worthwhile that won’t cost you an arm and a leg. If that’s the case, no matter what side of the fence I’m on, I’d pick Good. A good website or project will speak volumes for what you stand for and how you want to be seen. Remember, especially with websites, these projects are an extension of your store front. If it’s not good, your users will know.

Bottom Line: Spending a little more to get a quality product isn’t a bad thing, especially for your business. In the long run, the quality will far outweigh the cost, whether it be due to the mileage you get out of it, the reduced cost in bug fixes, or the less time it takes to update or upgrade.

With a Profile Site You will get:

• A home page
• 4 informational pages
• A contact page
• A custom banner with your logo
• Minor customizations to template
• 15% off of a Manifest Development Hosting Solution

A site like the could cost between $600-850. So start the year off right with a Profile Site. Contact me for more information.