The Process of Creating a Website

1. Receive initial enquiry
2. Talk to client to find out what they want
3. Send quote to client
4. Client advises what parts of the quote they wish
   • This is the official start of the project
5. Ask for 25% deposit
6. Create initial designs
7. Agree with client on design, make any amendments until the client is happy
   • Receive deposit before continuing past this point
8. Code up the initial page and show to client so they can check the design matches the web reality
9. Make any changes required now – once we move on from this stage making changes to the design becomes very difficult
10. Ask for content from client:
    • Pictures
    • Any and all writing
    • Details which need to be included (prices etc)
11. Populate the whole website
    • There may be back and forth with the client at this point to make sure content is correct.
12. Add details such as shops (if required)
13. Test
    • In different browsers
    • With functions such as javascript turned off
14. Demonstrate on style:Cymru website
15. Send invoice
    • Receive full payment / agree payment plan before continuing
16. Upload to correct domain name
    • Install any additions onto the website eg:
      • forms
      • forums
      • blog
17. Demonstrate anything the client has to use
    • CMS
    • Management pages
18. Email after a month to check everything is OK, and if the client wants any changes or help with anything

As the above demonstrates, the creation of a website is not as simple as some people think, not even as simple as some clients would like it to be. I have highlighted a couple of things in the above list:

• Purple lines are when payment is required from the client
• Blue lines are when feedback, discussion or other information are required from the client

This shows how much dependency a website designer has on their client. In my experience, the number one cause for a website to take a long time to be completed is because we have been waiting on the client for more information on what they want to happen next. As an example, a website I started in February of 2010 is still on point 11, as I am still waiting for more content from the client.

I hope this quick overview has helped to show exactly what steps a designer must go through to create a website. As I said, the above are the general steps which style:Cymru use and try to keep to. No process is perfect, and sometimes we adapt the general plan to fit the individual sites.

Have I missed any steps which would be useful? Comment to let me know!

What do they do?

The first thing you should ask any prospective designer is what do they actually do? Website Design is actually a multi-discipline area, and you want to be sure that anyone you hire can actually do everything you want.

I’ve summarised the different aspects of Website Design (or Development) below:

• Website Designer – makes the overall design as well as how it all links up
• Website Programmer – takes the design and makes it into a working website
• Graphic Designer – will make all the graphics and logos required, as well as choose a colour scheme
• Copywriter – writes the content (or “copy”) for your website
• Internet Marketeer - advises and helps with having search engines find your site, and increase visitor traffic

It’s worth noting here that an Internet Marketeer will have some cross-over with a Copywriter, as your “copy” is what search engines and visitors alike will see and directly affects how well marketed your site is.

The good news is that you can find people who will do most if not all of the above. If they don’t do them all then they may be able to recommend someone in an area they lack. Just make sure that you are clear what your designer can and can’t do for you.

Ask them Questions

Here are some suggested questions you should ask a Website Designer before hiring them. These questions should give a good overview of how they work and if they would be compatible with you.

• How devoted to your project will they be? How much work do they already have?

You want a designer who can devote time to your project, not someone who will make your project a low priority. It shouldn’t matter what other clients they have, if they have the time to take you on as a client, they should prioritise you fairly. If they are up-front with you and say that they don’t have time right now, but could take you on later this is a good sign too – it shows honesty and a desire to treat you fairly.

• What do they know about Internet Marketing and SEO?

While this ties in with the What do they do point, it’s worth asking. Ideally, they should be able to advise you on the best way to have a well targeted site. The most beautiful site in the world wont help you much if no-one can find it.

• Will they maintain your site when it’s finished?

Not all designers will do this, so it’s worth asking. You also need to know how much any services they offer like this will be, as they will not be covered in the original quote for creating the site. If you choose to maintain it yourself, ask if they offer a simple Content Management System (CMS) which will make it easier for you to keep the site up to date. Ask how much this will cost you as well.

• Who owns the site when it’s finished?

You want to own your site, and the copyright to it and any graphics which were made specifically for you. The designer should not retain ownership. The only exception is if stock graphics are used, in which case the original artist / photographer will retain copyright.

• How much will you be consulted during the project?

Will you be given a choice over the design, and how much can you alter it? Will changing their original design cost you anything extra? How much correspondance will there be during the whole process, and how much say do you have over the end result?

• Will you need to pay a deposit?

You should never have to pay the whole cost upfront, but a deposit may well be required. Follow your instincts, but as a general rule you shouldn’t be asked to pay more than 30%.

• Is there an option for upgrade later on?

Never think of a website as a finished job – it should always be evolving and gaining new content. In line with this, ask if the designer would be willing to upgrade your site later on if you want to expand.

Meet them first

While this may be difficult due to distance, try to have some contact with your prospective designer before you take them on. If you can’t meet them face-to-face try to arrange a phone or video call with them to see what they’re like.

In this meeting you will be looking for a few pointers to case them out.

• Will they offer advice and constructive criticism on your project before you have given them the job?
• Are they clear on what the project will include, and what they require from you at each stage? Ideally, you’ll be given a clear guide or plan to the whole process.
• Do they have clear and upfront pricing? They may not be able to tell you exactly how much your project will cost until they know specifics, but they should be able to tell you what different size and complexity of projects would cost.
• If you have a deadline tell them upfront. If they cannot meet it they should say. If you don’t have a set deadline, agree one with the designer which suits both of you.
• How much do they ask about you and your work? They cannot effectively design a website for you if they don’t know what you want and what is involved. The more questions they ask about what you want and how your business works the better.

During the meeting ask yourself if you feel comfortable with them. Do they stay focussed on the matter at hand? Do you feel like you could stand working with them for the duration of your project?

Another aspect of communicating with the designer before going ahead with them is to judge their dependability. If they are consistently slow in replying to your emails and hesitant in giving answers it’s a good bet that this will continue after the project is started.

Check out their Website

This is almost something which goes without saying, but it’s an important step to choosing the right designer. Visit their site and see if there are any typos or other errors. See how easy it is to navigate around. Check to see if they have a W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) logo demonstrating web standards. If they do it shows they take care over their code. It’s also a good sign that their sites will work in most browers.

While you’re at their site, check out the portfolio. See what their other sites look like, and decide if you like the feel of them. If you don’t like their previous work, chances are you wont like what they do for you. If there are any testimonials, check them out. Ask for confirmation from the person who gave it. If the testimonials don’t have a clear link back to who gave it trusting them becomes more difficult.

Finally

The best designers wont be sending out spam. They rely on referrals and word of mouth. So if you found out about this designer through some unsolicited email or leaflet, be wary.

Overall, trust your instincts as to the person. If you feel comfortable with them and they offer advice and answer your questions, they’re probably the designer for you.

First Post

As this is the first post for the new Treestump blog, I thought I’d make it a bit of an introduction. This is a blog run by the owners and partners in style:Cymru, a website design and hosting company based in North Wales and Cheshire.

In this blog we have a couple of aims. Firstly I specifically want to write articles which would be useful for our clients:

• information about how website design can affect your site
• ideas and information on website maintenance and up keep
• increasing visitors to your site.

Bryn, my business partner, wants to write about website design and best practices, information which will be most useful to other designers out there, as well as sharing some of our ideas we use, and what we’ve found elsewhere on the web.

We will try to keep our titles and categories meaningful and useful, as since we’re writing about the same thing but aimed at slightly different readers we want to make sure that you only read the articles you’re most interested in.

We are always open to suggestions, and if there is anything in particular you are interested in or want us to answer, please do not hesitate to contact us.

That’s it for the introduction, you should see new posts coming soon!

Michelle