The Web Design Process

In order to give you an overview of the web design process, we've condensed it for you in the following steps.

The way to start the process is to submit our Web Site Planner. It's important that you be as thorough as possible because the Planner is where we begin the cost estimate process and everyone's main concern is "how much will my web site will cost?" We understand (as should you) that these specs are subject to change at any time during the design process either at our request or yours, but you will be contacted before any cost related changes would take effect.

Although the Planner is designed to be as thorough as possible, every web site is different and so it cannot encompass anything and everything that is involved with each individual site. After we receive and review your Planner, we'll contact you with any questions we may have or to discuss your web site plan in further detail based on the information you've already provided. This generally occurs within the first 24-36 hours after we receive your Planner.

Once we have as much initial information as we feel we need, we then work up an estimate for you and submit it to you in the form of a proposal. 

Register Your Domain Name

If you don't already have one, now is a good time to register your domain name. We recommend you visit GoDaddy to see if the domain name you're interested in securing is available. Domain names go fast, so if you find one available that you truly want, don't wait to long to register it as it may be gone by the time you get back to it. If you're familiar with the registration process, you may register it yourself. If you're not, it's a good idea to contact your designer immediately so he or she can do this for you. It's absolutely imperative that a domain name be registered correctly in order to avoid problems in the future.  Don't take chances with your domain registration.  It's best to insure that it's done right the first time.

Secure Your Hosting Service

Once your domain name is registered, it's a good time to set up your web site hosting. Quality, low cost web site hosting is available through Digital Mouse Designs. Hosting your site with us is not mandatory to secure us as your designer. We do however, require that your site be hosted on a UNIX based server as we do not develop web sites for Windows servers.  In any case, it's also imperative that the hosting service you select be reputable, have good tech support and all the necessary features and services needed to house your site so that it functions properly. Not all hosts provide the same services and so do check with your web designer before securing your host so that he or she can review your selected host's services.

The Design Contract

We will provide you with your design contract. Please read this contract carefully and be sure you understand everything before signing and returning it as the return round of paperwork must include your non-refundable retainer. Once we receive this paperwork and your retainer, we will schedule your design demo for development.

Submitting Your Content

The client is responsible for providing the designer with all text content for the site. Photos or graphic images that you are providing is also considered site content. This is the time to get your content together.Timely submission of content is crucial as without it your site progress stops until the content is received. Your goal should be to to have the content organized and ready before you sign the contract.

Remember that "Content is King!" Your text content is one of the key elements to getting your site seen on the Internet. It needs to be well thought out and well written for best results. Your SEO Specialist will most likely need to edit the content for the search engines, but they need to have good solid base content to work with.

After you have finalized and approved your design and layout, you'll be required to sign off on it before we proceed with the next step.

Intermediate Payment & Page  Approval

Depending on how your contract reads, your second payment may now be due on your web site before the content is added. Once content is received, each page will be posted for you to review and approve. This is the time to look over each page closely for any changes you may want or errors you may find.  

During this time, your site will be validated and tested on the various browsers and platforms. Search engine optimization techniques are applied after the page checking step is completed.

Final Payment & Launch!

Once your final payment is received we will upload your web site to your web host account, take care of making sure things are working properly and finally submit to the proper search engines. Your site is now live. Now's the time to promote it. Announce your new web site to all your business contacts, friends, and family. Make sure to include your web site address on all your correspondence, business cards, letterheads, invoices, etc.