Discover...

We begin a web design project by first being clear about your site goals, researching your industry, and understanding your target audience. Only with established goals can we ensure that we've delivered a successful product.

The primary purpose of a web site is to communicate something to your audience. What is the primary information that your site needs to convey or promote? Is it hard data or soft impressions? What are the business motives behind the communication? If the site's goals is to make a visual or emotional impression(e.g. brand building, entertainment, or a fashion portfolio), you will need a solution that's very strong on aesthetics and less focused on other functional issues. However, if your site and business goals are more concrete (e.g. selling products online, giving access to data, providing applications), we'll need to focus more on functional issues. We will determine this with you as we work to define your web strategy and tactics.

Create...

Now the project acquires its look and feel, as the page design and overall graphic design approach are created and approved. The illustrations, photography, and other content elements for the site need to be commissioned and created. Any programming, database design and data entry, and search engine design will be well under way by now. The goal is to produce all the content and functional programming and have them ready for the final stage: the construction of the actual Web site pages.

Typical products or contract deliverables at the end of this stage could include:

• Text, edited and proofread
• Graphic design specifications for all page types
  • Finished interface graphics for page templates
  • Header and footer graphics, logos, buttons, backgrounds
• Detailed page comps or finished examples of key pages
  • Site graphic standards manual for large, complex sites
• Interface design and master page templates completed
  • Finished HTML template pages
• Illustrations
• Photography
• JavaScript scripts, Java applets designed
• Database tables and programming, interaction prototypes completed
• Search engine optimization completed

Maintain...

Don't abandon your site once the production "goes live". The look and feel of a web site needs regular attention, particularly if more than one person has the responsibility for updating content. Someone will need to be responsible for coordinating new content, maintaining the graphic and editorial standards, and assuring that the programming and links between all pages remain intact and functional. Links on the Web are perishable, and you'll need to check periodically that existing links to pages outside your immediate site are still working. Don't let your site go stale by starving it of resources just as you begin to develop an audience — if you disappoint them by not following through it will be very difficult to attract them back.

Market...

The objective of an internet marketing strategy is clear: significantly increase qualified traffic to your Web-site, which will lead to greater awareness and customer acquisition. Through proper planning, execution and measurement of web-site and marketing-related activities, we will assist your company in accomplishing this task.

If your Web site is aimed primarily at local audiences you must look beyond getting listed in standard Web indexes and publicize your site address where local residents or businesses will see it. Local libraries, stores (and schools, where the content is relevant) are often the key to publicizing a new Web site within your local area.

An Internet strategy focuses on the following aspects:

Pre-Launch Activities
+ Content Review & Assessment
+ Keyword Density Analysis
+ Proper coding of each static page for effective SEO

Post-Launch Activities
+ Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
+ Pay-Per-Click (PPC)
+ Strategic Partnership
+ Permission-Based/Viral Marketing

Coordination with off-line marketing is also critical. You may also find opportunities to cross-promote your site with affiliated businesses, professional organizations, broadcast or print media, visitor or local information agencies, real estate and relocation services, Internet access providers, and local city or town directory sites. Your organization could also feature local nonprofit charitable or school events on your Web site. The cost in server space is usually trivial, and highly publicized local events featuring a Web page hosted within your site will boost local awareness of your Web presence. Site sponsorship might also interest local broadcast media as an interesting story angle.

Measure...

By analyzing the server logs for your web site we can develop a real picture of the success of your site. The logs will tell us what pages were the most popular and what brands and versions of Web browser people used to view your site. Server logs can also give you information on the geographic location of your site readers.This traffic analysis is the key to quantifying the success of your web site.

A number of popular software packages are designed to produce easily readable site traffic reports, complete with data graphics and charts to aid in data analysis. As a service to customers, site hosting companies often offer reports from popular site analysis programs like WebTrends, often free of charge. Before contracting with an Internet Service Provider (ISP) for site hosting services, always ask about site analysis services. We like the free Google Analytics, and will use their dashboard reports to make suggestions for improving your site over time.