Our process as website designers

There are so many different duties within a web design project, and we cover all of them. Here we will go through our process of how we will plan and build your website

The ideas and the wireframe

Once we have agreed to work with each other and have outlined your requirements for your site we can start on the first ideas. Perhaps there are websites you have seen online that you like, or you already have a very clear vision of what you want. Maybe you don’t have either, any of these circumstances are fine.

We first start by creating a wireframe for your site. A wireframe is a basic blueprint idea for the website. This, made on a programme called Figma will outline the layout of the sites main pages so you get a feel of what the layout will be. Aspects such as UX (user experience) and UI (user interface) will be considered and applied at this point. You will get two revisions at this point. Once we have agreed on the sites wireframe we can move on to the draft.

The draft

So, the wireframe is made and we have a general feel for the layout of the site. It’s time to make the draft. This is a vital step and an exciting one too. This is where you see the blueprints turn into a visual representation of your site. The layout, colour and visual theme will become clear here and if you haven’t already we decide on a brand and a visual identity here.

This is the point in the project when we would work on your logos images and infographics if required. If you have not supplied us with your text for your site then we will use Lorem Ipsum (filler text) to fill in the gaps here. You will get two revisions here. After the draft we can move on to the building of the site.

The building

So you have a draft that you’re happy with. Now it’s time for us to turn it into the real thing. We now will bring the draft to life in our selected page builder. We can show you how we are going through the process and keep you updated.

We will be in contact with you during the build and will communicate how we are progressing. The site build time depends on many variables and on what the project is. Once we have finished we will contact you and let you know it’s ready.

The finished site

So you’ve approved the wireframe and the draft. Now the site is finished too. It will need a few running tests and needs your approval that you are happy with what you have here.

There are two further one hour revisions at this point if needed. Due to the fact we are not legal advisors we are not able to write your privacy policy or do your GDPR cookie compliance. Luckily there are free plugins that can help you with this if you need.

Once you have added your cookie compliance and your privacy policy, and you’re happy with the final product it will be ready for you unveil it to the world.

The sites we build

How we build

We keep things real simple. We currently build our websites using WordPress or Webflow. These platforms give us the capability to build all the different kind of sites, and a combination of them if needed. The way we use Wordpress gives us huge scope and flexibility to build almost any site. The websites we build can be put into four main categories:

Standard

This is the most basic website we sell. Usually a static type site with a contact form. This site is best when you just want a presence. The advantage of a site like this with less moving parts is you can focus on making it beautiful without having to worry about added functionality. It’s also the cheapest of the sites we have. A static site can be changed into one of the other categories in the future should you require it to.

E-Commerce, Booking and Listing

E-Commerce

Booking

Listing

How we approach an e-commerce site depends on whether the site will dedicated to just selling, or you want a more traditional page with e-commerce on the side. In the case of a traditional e-commerce then we will use a number of different methods depending on the client and their websites needs.

When we build an e-commerce website we build the framework that your site will run on. We can train you to understand and work the site. We do not however input your products into the system, although that can be arranged for our hourly rate. We can also work with you if you have a CSV file with your products to import your items on to the website. This will only work If the CSV is built in the correct way and is compatible with WordPress.

When we build an e-commerce website we often use a theme that has a yearly license fee per site. This will incur an extra cost of around £50 a year. This annual theme cost would be paid for by you.

WordPress uses Woo-Commerce, the open-source e-commerce plugin for WordPress. There is no subscription fee for using woo-commerce. However they charge a fee on each sale you take. Learn more about Woo-Commerce pricing here

If you are creating a dropshipping business then you may consider the AliDropship Woo Plugin. This helps integrate your website with AliExpress products. This would cost you a one off fee of around £65. This can be factored in to our pricing, should you want us to purchase this for you.

Booking sites are functional sites that allow you to take bookings from customers and clients. Perhaps you have a barbers shop, or maybe a spa, it doesn't matter what your sites booking requirement are, we can build it for you.

We will use our in house plugins to create the booking functionality that you require. If you use this method you will incur no extra monthly fees. In the unlikely event our plugins are unable to provide the booking service you require we can arrange with you an alternative program, that you may have to pay for or subscribe to.

Listing websites allow customers to list their own products or items to sell. A great example would be eBay. These can be a great way to earn commission and once set up can be reasonably simple to maintain and run.

We can build a listing website for you with usually no extra plugin fees or theme costs.

Blog

Blog sites are great for generating traffic and creating conversions to your site. Their large text content is a dream for google when they are well written and with the right keywords and phrases.

Blog sites are a great choice when you want to get SEO results and rise up through the google rankings. It is one that works well with our SEO plan.

Membership

Possibly the most complex of all these sights membership websites can create huge traffic and revenue. They take a lot more customization than most other sites. Because of this they tend to be among the most expensive websites we build. We use Restrict Content Pro to build our membership sites. In this case there would be no extra cost for using that plugin. However in some rare cases the site might require a more complex plugin called Memberpress. In this situation this would have to be purchased on top of the cost of the site. Learn more about Memberpress and its pricing here.

Combo sites

We can also do combinations of these different site types, for example a blog and membership site, or membership and e-commerce. Whatever your preference we can discuss this during the planning of the site.