What
do I need to provide to start the process?
Essentially,
you will need to provide the text, photos and logo that you would
like on your site. If you don't have any of the above, we can
work with you to help design a logo or to acquire any image files
that would help with the overall look of your site. For a full
list of items that you may want to include on your web site,
please click web site
design checklist.
My
friend (or family member) knows HTML, couldn't he make my web
site?
Unless
this person is a professional web site developer who also has a strong background in Sales & Marketing, this is NOT the best choice for a commercial site.
Let's face it, most small businesses work extremely hard to establish their businesses. If they're also extremely talented in Marketing & Sales, they manage to also grow their business. If they're just average at Marketing but good at product development, they will typically go out of business within a few short years and lose their shirt in the process, not to mention wasting a few good years of extremely hard work. This is an unfortunate fact of life. In our observation it is a lack of Sales & Marketing knowledge that causes this debacle. Most small businesses are driven by a great product or service but most lack the Marketing knowledge to bring their dreams to reality no matter how "good" the product is. McDonald's does not offer the BEST hamburger... they simply have mastered MARKETING a below average hamburger.
So the real question is what kind of help do you need at this point? If you're launching a new business, you need all the help you can get in terms of Marketing, Sales and Internet knowledge. It costs a little more up front but what's at stake? Only the success or failure of your business!
In addition to the above, a few other points can be made, not the least of which is that a poorly designed site
will reflect on your business and actually drive potential
customers away. Furthermore, having a friend of a friend attempt your website is typically a disaster in the making. We've seen these relationships break down time and time again, leaving both parties in a state of frustration. When it comes to your business, doesn't it make sense to invest in the tools and providers who will help take your company to the next level? Can your friend's son help take your business to the next level? I doubt it.
Having
a knowledgeable web design professional is the key to making
your web site work for your benefit. As far as the Internet is
concerned, it is not just an "if you build it, they will
come" scenario. A well-designed and properly marketed web
site will increase your revenue and client base. A poorly designed
and marketed web site may only hurt your business.
How
much does a web site cost with you?
Great
question! As a high-end, custom web site development firm, our focus is on top quality web sites that position and brand your company as a leader in its respective industry. Our sites routinely out-perform our competitors because they are developed from a SALES and MARKETING perspective. Most websites miss the mark because they are thrown together by programmers who know very little about SALES and MARKETING. The whole purpose of a website is to use it as a SALES and MARKETING tool. If you're not thinking this through thoroughly, you'll waste money for sure but far worse... you'll lose a lot more in "lost opportunities" because your site wasn't a marketing machine.
Our sites are geared to position your company as a dominant player in the industry and to drive visitors, leads and sales and to accomplish the additional goals and objectives of the company we're representing.
Technically, there are many variables that factor into
the costs of a web project. For example, a large number of the projects we are doing these days include complex database and content management systems, animation work and custom programming. In order to provide an accurate quote, we really need to drill down into the details with you to understand what you need and want.
Why are the quotes I am getting all over the map?
A few years ago, websites were a novelty but now more than ever, they are often the VERY FIRST point of interaction with potential clients. As such, you have to be on your "A-GAME" or you risk NOT landing a big important client, a large government project or simply making that online sale.
The competition on the web is getting fierce in all industries. Your business is now facing lots of competition due to the Internet. Web sites are getting better and better BUT the sites developed by companies using Marketing, Sales and PR techniques are out performing the competition by a large margin.
A decent looking site is NOT ENOUGH today. Sites have to perform and companies who have had any experience with a previous website realize that internet performance is not accidental... site performance is earned through proper planning, strategy and sales and marketing tactics.
Unfortunately most "web designers" cannot engage this need beyond building a site that looks OK. But ask yourself, what good is a 'great looking' restaurant, a 'great looking' showroom, a 'great looking' business if it can't be found, doesn't make sales and can't pay its staff. It's worthless. So the various prices you see for business websites reflect the various levels of skills available in the market place. These break down into 4 basic categories:
- BELOW AVERAGE | CHEAPEST SITES - These sites are often built by automated programs, off-shore teams in India & other places, internal IT staff, poorly skilled and novice web designers, students, friends, neighbors or companies that charge a monthly rate for their template based "web sites".
When built by companies, these types of sites are cranked out, one after the other in mass volume, like a fast food chain makes hamburgers.
These sites are very cheaply built, often using pre-made templates and do not follow modern web standards. They often look several years behind the times, are amateurish and unbeknownst to the purchaser the designs are often re-used over and over for many companies. As can be expected, these lower quality sites generally perform very poorly. These websites are a poor way to represent a legitimate established business and an even worse way to establish a new firm. Incidentally, many websites are in this general category simply by the mere fact of having an old, outdated website. By today's standards these older sites appear to fall into this category.
Due to their extremely low cost of entry, these websites typify probably around 50% - 65% of the business web sites out there.
- AVERAGE | MEDIOCRITY - Better than the "cheapest sites" but not designed for performance. This is your average performing website and the average website does not make any meaningful impact to a company's sales or marketing efforts. Typically these sites do not get much monthly traffic and the traffic it does get, does not get converted into Leads, Prospects or Sales.
These sites are typically built by a "web designer" who is either a one-man-show working from home or a company who doesn't care much about your marketing effort but is eager to sell you a website that is supposed to market and sell your products. Sound oxymoronic? It is.
These businesses don't have sufficient resources to assemble the minimum support team needed to build an above average website OR they simply don't concern themselves with the performance of the website and how you're going to actually put this new website to work to increase revenues.
The minimum team would be comprised of an Internet Marketing & Sales Strategist, a Creative Director, a Creative Designer, a Web Programmer, a Quality Assurance tester and a trained Project Manager. Such a team brings a diverse range of talents together to implement and develop your Internet strategy and produce a website that's worth investing in.
Even a one-man-show with the best of intentions has a problem assembling an above average website. They just can't wear all the hats simultaneously and even if they could, they don't have a deep enough skill & experience set to do it well.
The skill set required is very contradictory; you have Right Brain Skills to handle all the creative stuff, the visuals, the feeling, the buzz, the brand, the vision, etc & then you have the strong Left Brain skills which are the programming, detail orientation, the logic flow, the practical side of lead generation, making sales and doing business online. Studies show most people are dominant in one area and weak in the other. Even the very best schizophrenic can't manage it! So with teams who can't bring this to the table, you have to make a compromise and the compromise you typically will have to make is selecting a firm without the strong Sales & Marketing background that really serves as the foundation for the whole website. It's sort of like building a great looking car with no engine.
Unfortunately most companies seeking to purchase a web site were never educated about what to look for in a web development company and how to evaluate a good purchase in this regard. Confusing the issue further is the wide range of price quotes clients do receive. Buyers end up treating the purchase as a commodity, like buying "staples" or a "printer" and wonder why they've gotten no traffic, leads or sales 6 months after they launch their site. Later these same clients come calling again and are ready to scrap what they did and start over a 2nd or 3rd time and get it right this time. What a waste of time, money and lost opportunities.
These sites while better looking make up around a good 20% - 30% of the site out there. These sites are built without the crucial Sales, Marketing and PR proposition that is the heart and soul of a website.
- ABOVE AVERAGE | RESULTS ORIENTED - these are the stand out sites in any industry. This is the merging of Sales, Marketing and PR Experience with a very skilled Creative approach. These types of sites and the firms that produce them make up less than 5% of the market, possibly even less. These sites make money, drive business, have good traffic and great conversion rates and are the types of sites that ClearTech Interactive Corp. builds.
In any given geographical area, there are only a handful of companies who have the knowledge, experience, capability and team to deliver such a web site. These are the local boutique firms who have typically been in business 10yrs or more with a focus on Internet Strategy, Marketing and Web Development. These companies see the website as a tool to be put to use to accomplish Marketing and Sales goals and not as a commodity or product. These vendors are very engaging during the web site quote process and will spend a lot of up front time learning all about your business, its target marketing, your strengths, weaknesses, your competition and opportunities. They use this information to assemble a solution that can have a measurable impact on your business. They will typically have a large base of referral based business and loyal customers who will have great things to say about them.
From a cost perspective these sites typically provide the best bang for the buck since the sites are long lasting, don't need costly redesigns and generate two to five times the traffic, conversion, inquiries and sales than a typical website.
Established companies and smart entrepreneurs desire these types of websites as they help propel their own companies forward, ahead of their competition.
NOTE ON BOUTIQUE VS OVERPRICED FIRMS: there is another category of web development agency within the boutique category who produces the same or similar product but who charges a lot more. These development firms are referred to as "Premium Providers". Premium providers are boutique firms but through their impressive client base and effective Public Relations campaigns, can demand an additional premium beyond the typical boutique firm fees. Their premium fees are typically 20%-50% over a normal boutique firm. Many larger companies are willing to pay the premium due to the company's real world experience with top tier clients. However selecting a premium provider does not guarantee the job will be any more competent than another boutique firm. In our experience, often the company staff member making the strong recommendation for such a firm is doing so largely out of self-preservation. By selecting the "most popular" firm, the staff doesn't have to do the hard research, interviewing vendors. Now, the company will pay dearly (up to twice as much) but the staff making the recommendation will largely be off the hook for the outcome. In our eyes this is the lazy way of researching firms and selecting a vendor.
What
are the deposit requirements?
Generally speaking, we
require a 50% deposit on all design work with the other 50% payable
at the prototype phase.
All
web hosting, search engine optimization, professional writing services, logos, 3rd party software purchases and domain name registration are payable at the start of the month or at the start of the project.
How
long will it take to get a site developed?
The
length of time to create your site depends on the complexity
and size of the web design. Generally speaking, once you have approved the layout
of the design it will take approximately 3-6 weeks before
your site will be available for your clients.
What
will my web site be named?
Your web site will have a unique domain name. Most often we will try to get
www.yourbusinessname.com however, another company may have already registered
it. If this is the case we will discuss with you the available, related domain
names. If you have already registered a domain name we can use that name for
your site.
Can
I start with a small site and add to it later?
Sure.
Some of our projects have been planned out in phases. We will
design your site to fill your current needs. Then, as your needs
change your site can be changed to align with them.
How
is a site kept up to date? Can we do the updates in-house?
Every
time a prospect returns to your web site they are that much closer
to becoming a client. To keep them coming back to your site we
recommend updating your content periodically. We can update your
site for you for a fee based on how often you would like to update
it and the complexity of the updates. We can also provide a solution
whereby you can update your own website through a Content Management System.
What
is a Host?
A
Host is the server your website lives on. Typically you will pay a monthly fee to the host, who makes your website available 24/7 to the Internet. The Host also typically provides email services, spam protection, nightly website backups and statistical information to you about your website visitors and your website's performance. The
cost for this service varies but is usually between
$20
and $50
a
month.
What
is a domain name?
A
domain name is the specific "www" address of your web site. Because domain names
need to be unique you will need to register one for your company
so no one else can use your address. The cost for this service
is between $15 and $30 a year.
Who
owns my website once it is finished?
Some
web designers retain the rights to the sites they build and may
even charge you a fee to take "your" site and move
it to another host.
When
you purchase our services, we create the web site for you! At
the end of the transaction you are the owner of the site. You
can move it wherever you would like, copy it, make changes to
it - anything you would like. It is yours.
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