My clients are small business owners who know how important it is to establish an online presence, but haven’t had the time, energy or expertise to either create one or update their existing site so it’s fresh, current and drawing the optimum number of targeted customers.
I work with you to either create or enhance your online presence so you can meet your business needs quickly, efficiently and cost effectively. I also help you create and implement a strategy that will get you to the customers you seek.
Here’s just a brief description of what is addressed within the services offered.
Custom Web Design
- Color
- Design
- Placement
- Content
- Ease of Use
Each is a part of a myriad of important components to help give your business a personality all its own. Let me help you use them to create a web presence that is appealing and entices your customers to visit often.
Content Strategy
A content strategy is often confused with a marketing strategy. But, it’s different. Content refers to the text on pages, blogs, and even graphics and who is responsible for creating, publishing and tracking their success.
I can help you develop a plan that helps you match your goals with your actions.
Brand Management
Your brand is your promise to your customers as to what they can expect from your products and services. It differentiates you and your products/services from your competitors’. Your brand is derived from:
- Who you are
- Who you want to be,
- Who people perceive you to be
WordPress Installation
WordPress is the largest self-hosted blogging tool in the world. It is used on millions of sites and seen by tens of millions of people every day. I highly recommend it for its versatility, variety and availability of customizable themes and security features. Additionally, it well supported by a community of dedicated people worldwide who work vigilantly to ensure its continued viability. It can be easily installed, provided your web host company meets the following minimum requirements:
- Web server: Nginx or Apache with mod-rewrite module
- Disk space: At least 1 GB
- PHP: Version 7.4 or higher
- Database: MySQL 5.015 or higher (An alternative is MariaDB, version 10.1 or higher)
- RAM (Random Access Memory): At least 512 MB
- CPU (Central Processing Unit): At least 1.0 GHz
- Support for HTTPS
The additional steps must be taken prior to installation:
- Gain access to your web server (here’s a video too) (via FTP or shell)
- Confirm ability to create MySQL databases
- Obtain a text editor
- Obtain an FTP Client
- Identify your web browser of choice (e.g., Chrome, FireFox (Mozilla), Microsoft Edge, Safari)
If WordPress is selected for your website platform, I will perform the above steps to ensure WordPress is successfully installed
eCommerce Solutions
Basically, there are two ways to build an eCommerce website:
- Hosted eCommerce solution (more user-friendly)
- Self-hosted eCommerce solution (more advanced & flexible)
To identify the best solution for you, ask yourself the following:
- Am I competent or skilled in using codes and building databases? If not now, would I be willing and have the time to learn?
- Am I capable of managing the technical back-end of my website i.e., hosting, configuring, optimizing, installing security updates, etc.?
- Do I intend to hire a technical team or dedicated person to help me manage the technical aspects of my website?
- Will my store require unique features that most of other online stores don’t need?
If you answered “No” to most of the above, a hosted solution is best for you. If you answered “Yes” to most of the above, a self-hosted solution is best for you. Regardless of your answer, I can help you find a solution best suited for your situation.
SEO Set-Up
SEO stands for “search engine optimization.” It is the process of getting traffic from the “free,” “organic,” “editorial” or “natural” search results on search engines.
All major search engines such as Google, Bing and Yahoo have primary search results, where web pages and other content such as videos or local listings are shown and ranked based on what the search engine considers most relevant to users. Payment isn’t involved, as it is with paid search ads.
There are several “success” factors used when setting up a website to obtain high search engine rankings. Some are:
- found on-the-page such as titles, use of words, freshness of content, etc. These are controlled by you.
- Some are found off-the-page such as links and social media, which cannot be controlled by you.
In implementing these factors, it’s equally important to know what is acceptable and what is unacceptable, i.e., what are considered violations by the search engines. If violations occur, you may be in jeopardy of having your site ranking dropped altogether by the search engines. I will assist you in the initial set-up of your website to help maximize its search engine rankings.
Web Maintenance
It’s always exciting to launch your website after working so diligently to either update or create it, but believe it or not your work isn’t done. There are ongoing tasks that need to be completed on a regular basis like:
- creating full website backups (i.e., content and database)
- installing and testing software updates
- checking for broken links
- testing forms
- resolving simple issues arising from installing updates
For a fee of $65/month, I will perform the above tasks for you. For a fee of $65/hour, the following maintenance items can also be performed.
- adding new products to your eCommerce site
- generating newsletters
- updating content
- monitoring Google alerts to monitor your website’s or brand’s name, and content
- monitoring up-time
- testing website speed
- working with your host company to resolve issues
Consultations & More
- Where do you see your organization in two to five years?
- How does your website fit into this picture?
- What functions do you want it to serve e.g., forum, blog, event registration, newsletter, store, portfolio, link to other social media, etc.
- Who is your target audience?
- How do you currently reach them and how do you plan to reach them in the future?
These and a dozen more questions need to be addressed in order for your goals to be reached. I offer a one hour $130 consultation to help you gain a better understanding of how to proceed in building or revising your online business presence.
If you decide I’m the person you’d like to partner with to help you reach your goals, the fee will be applied toward the project’s cost upon the receipt of a signed contract.
Speaking of More…Here’s Another Topic
Video
The use of videos on a website can be extremely engaging. Many people prefer videos instead of text. In fact, YouTube is the second largest search engine and the third most visited site after Google and Facebook.
Videos can be as simple as a graphic motion or loop or as complex as directed films which inspire and inform.
Visit the AWWARDS website to see examples of how videos are used to convey information, stimulate interest and engage visitors. AWWARDS recognize the talent and effort of the best web designers, developers and agencies in the world.