New Clients FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

If you are new to the whole idea of getting and having a website, sometimes you don’t know what questions you should ask. Here’s a head-start on some basic questions that most clients eventually ask:

What Do I Need To Know To Start?

Having an idea of what the site should do for you is a good start. Think about the site from the perspective of your visitor: What will they find useful? Write down your ideas. Don’t be afraid to think big! Things can always be done as a later improvement, if not at first.

Can You Deliver What I Want On Time?

Absolutely. When we arrange a time-frame for the work, you can expect that it will be followed. The estimated start date and delivery dates are listed on your quote to show you when the project can be started, and when it could be finished based on that start date. You will always be notified in advance if the project take longer than we estimated on time – keep in mind that you are not charged additional fees if we take more hours than we originally planned.

Do I Have a Guarantee That This Will Be in Budget?

Since we do not bill on an hourly basis, each project is assigned a set price based on complexity and time needed. Your exact price will be included in your quote. The only time the price changes, is if your needs for the project change and you request something outside the agreed on contract.

Will The Site Look Good?

We pride ourselves on creating excellent designs that reflect the desires of our clients. Your Account Manager will spend time discovering what you like, regarding design/color/layout, before starting.

Will The Site Be Easy To Maintain?

Each website includes an easy to use, point and click, content management system (CMS). You access this CMS online through your web browser or phone, and it allows you to edit your website simply and easily.

Who Will Look After the Site?

We will handle all the technical maintenance of your site for you. We create custom maintenance plans to cover software upgrades, regular site backups, major additions to content that you’d rather not do, and technical support.

I Need A Domain Name – How Do I Get One?

The only service we suggest for domain names is GoDaddy. The GoDaddy.com team is, without question, the leader in domain name providers.

Can’t I Get a Domain Name With New Hosting?

Never bundle your domain name with your web hosting service. Always separate the two. We have had so many clients come to us with problems with their existing hosting/domain package that we never suggest anyone buy them as a package deal.

In a nutshell, when you let your hosting company buy your domain – they control access to your domain name. You need to keep control of your name and branding on the web. Buy your domain name and hosting separately, and you retain control.

I Need Web Hosting, Do You Have Suggestions?

Make sure you already have your domain name purchased before you buy hosting! It will reduce temptation to sign up for a package that sells domain names and hosting together – those give control of your domain name to your hosting company.
We do not provide web hosting because there are many reliable companies out there who specialize in exactly that. We go to the experts for our own hosting, and suggest the same ones we use to our clients.

Many web hosting companies offer a variation on the same services, and what typically sets them apart are either their monthly charges, a few specific features, or how good their customer service is.

Our suggestions for web hosting companies are as follows:

1. Most Sites: HostGator: Our favorite company is HostGator. They have excellent features, good customer service, and overall are a very balanced service. We have found that the Linux hosting Hatchling Plan is more than adequate for the needs of a typical small business website. Those who plan to have lots of additional site features may want to consider the a larger package, but you can seamlessly upgrade your service with them at any time.
2. Very Popular Sites: Media Temple: If you have a site that gets tons of traffic or large traffic spikes, this is the company we suggest. Media Temple is well known for being able to handle a sudden front page listing on Digg or some other major international exposure. This is definitely the place to go if you’ve got a very popular site.
3. Enterprise Level: Rackspace: If the words that define your site are ‘mission critical applications’ then you definitely want to check out Rackspace. They cater to companies that need constant monitoring and support of their high-volume mission-critical websites. You won’t find a company more reputable in terms of customer care. They will handle everything about your site without you needing to hire your own IT team managing your server (although they have options for that as well).

This is our ‘short list’ of who we suggest in web hosting. You are free to use whatever hosting company you like, so long as the host meets the requirements of your website needs.

You can use any web hosting service you like, so long as they have a package that is Linux hosting and provide MySQL databases.

Please feel free to speak with us if you are at all unsure if the hosting plan you are interested in is enough for what you are planning.