Are you thinking about hiring a website developer to create a new website? Are you unsure on what the process involves?
While I can’t speak for everyone, I can tell you how things work here at Bizboost. Here’s our guide on what to expect when building a new website with us.
Decide on What Website Package is Right for You
The first step in building a new website is deciding which website package suits your business best. Each differs slightly depending on the functionality you would like to incorporate, and how customized the design is to your brand. For more on our packages, visit this page.
Planning
The next step is to meet with you and discuss the project. This can be done face-to-face or over the phone. The purpose is to determine what functionality and design will best suit your business. What do you want the website to achieve? Do you have a look and feel in mind? Do you have examples of other websites that you do/don’t like?
Registering a Domain Name and Creating a Hosting Account
To develop a new website, we need to register a domain name and create a hosting account.
If you already have a website, you will already have a domain name. In this case, it’s just a matter of pointing that domain name to your new website after it has been developed. However, if you don’t yet have one, we will register one on your behalf before we start developing the website. For more on choosing the perfect domain name for your website, visit this article.
If you’re a new client with us, we’ll also set up a new hosting account on a server. All websites need a ‘home’ – a place in which the files that make up your website will be stored, both during development and after it’s launched. For more on hosting and how it works, visit this article.
Do You Need a Logo?
Many of our clients already come to us with a logo in hand. However, if you don’t, or if it needs a refresh, we can design one for you. This will generally be done before we work on the design to the website, as it will influence the final look and feel.
For more on our logo design services, visit here.
Designing the Look and Feel of the Website
Next, we need to decide how it will look. Using the information that we gathered during the planning process, our graphic designer will create a mock-up of a design. This image is then sent to you so we can get your feedback on what you’d like changed. Modifications can then be made until you are happy with the design.
Planning the Content
If you are rebuilding an existing site, this might be as simple as transferring the content from the current website to the new.
However, if you are building an entirely new site, this is the stage where you’ll decide what images and text you want on each page. We have a Content Planning Proforma that can help you with this process.
Building the Site
This is the bit where we get really busy. Our programmer will get to work building your new website, based on the mock up created by our graphic designer and approved by you. Once completed, we will begin to add the content to each page. During this stage we will send you a link to check over the website and how the content is sitting.
Launching the website
Once the website has been completed, the fun begins – it’s time to launch! We do this step, which gives you a chance to sit back and relax.
Once the website is live, we give it a final test to ensure it’s all working correctly and then submit it to the search engines.
Training
All our websites can be easily updated, without the need for any coding knowledge (for those of you who like jargon, they are a CMS or Content Management System website).
After the launch (or occasionally before, depending on the project), we can teach you the ins and out of the website, so you are confident in how to update it in the future.
However, if you’re time poor, don’t panic. If you’d prefer not to have to deal with it, we are happy to manage all future web updates for you as well. All you have to do is email through what you would like changed.
After Care
Unlike many other web agencies, this doesn’t have to be where the story ends. We’ll always be around to provide assistance and support where you need it. Have a question? Get in touch!
