There’s no doubt that most web designers are proficient in their discipline, but few offer a complete A to Z website development service, which also includes content creation and graphic design. The alternative is to deal with several suppliers, or a multi-service advertising agency, both of which tend to be much more expensive.
Allow me to draw your attention to the ‘value-add’ component of my offer, and the wealth of knowledge and experience in marketing communications that allows me to offer a complete custom website development service at an affordable price:
- 30 years of experience in all disciplines of communications, including advertising
- Written communication expertise in English and French
- 10 years of experience as a French-English-French translator
- 20 years of experience in web design, coding, and maintenance
- Commercial art certification
What will your website look like?
From the outset, the “look” of the site is often what most concerns a newbie. And, if the job is well done, there is a simple answer to this question: to you! Or, more specifically, to your organisation. But even if a site to your image is important, its appearance is just one element of a successful web presence.
Beyond the look
Like any other marketing-communication tool, your site is primarily a means to increasing your income, promoting your products or services, selling an idea, or developing your reputation. Therefore, we need to ask early in the development process questions about your objectives, the goal of your website, and your customer profiles. Following are the 7 steps to building a website:
The 7 steps to building a website:
Step 1: Information Gathering
- Website’s purpose and main goals
- Target market(s)
- Company profile (branding, products, services, etc.)
Step 2: Planning
- Sitemap (structure, hierarchy)
- Technology support selection
Step 3: Design
- Page layouts and graphic elements
- Client feedback on work done to this point
- Editing based on client comments
Step 4: Content Creation
- Content assembly
- Editing, copywriting, including catchy headlines
- Translation
Step 5: Coding
- CMS and framework installation on server
- Homepage and stylesheets (CSS) creation
- Static page builds and content migration
- Search engine optimisation (SEO)
Step 6: Testing and Launch
- Final content verification
- Testing of links, scripts, forms, etc.
- File uploads to server
- Site launch
Step 7: Website Maintenance (ongoing)
- Upgrade or update extensions, as required
- Content updates