...Mr X (from part 5) is one of those businesspeople that do not want to leave anything to chance, and I understand and appreciate that, he had a few more questions on website hosting. He really wanted to cover all angles, here are a few more questions from him below:
Q: Will you help me with my website all the way when I need help?
A: Yes we will not abandon you once we've taken your money, in fact you will become part of our family and we will provide phone consultaions to help you out.
Q: Will my website show up the same to users of different systems and browsers?
A: Our websites are tested across platforms for both PC and MAC users and will work Internet Explorer 6, 7 & 8, Firefox, Safari, Konqueror, Google chrome and so on.
Q: I have seen people offering unlimited hosting for £1.99 per year. How come you are much more than that?
A: We have seen them too but they seem to fall into the 'cheap n' nasty' category of website hosting circles. We are a legit website design and hosting business with realistic expenses and will offer you the best price we can at all times. We do not offer cheap website hosting only to neglect you when you sign up because we cannot afford the support due to ridiculously low pricing. We offer excellent value website hosting. We may not be offering the cheapest but we give great value.
Q. I already have a domain name, can I use this domain?
A. Yes. The domain name can be easily redirected to our servers at no extra cost. If you need to transfer it altogether we can advise you and help you with that as well when you are ready.
Q. Does Jax Internet receive a percentage of the website revenue?
A. No, all we get paid for is the website design and the website hosting. Your profita are yours to keep.
Q. Can I accept online payments?
A. We can integrate payment gateways into your website and these can be PayPal, Moneybookers, Nochex, direct debit/credit cards (using an existing merchant account if you have one), plus cheques and postal orders or even cash on delivery if your business is that way.
Q. Can I sell anything on my website?
A. You can use your website to sell any product you wish. As long as your products are legal and comply with all local laws you will be fine with us.
Q. What happens after the initial 1 year hosting period?
A. As long as your website is still running you can always keep hosting with us. We do not tie you in for any period so use us for as long as you wish.
Q. Are my customer's payment details kept secure?
A. Yes, all payments on your website are handled by secure payment providers such as PayPal and other online merchant account providers. They have gone to great lengths to keep everyting secure for you.Your customers can shop securely with peace of mind.
Q. Can you make alterations to the website in the future, if needed?
A. Yes, we can provide quotations for modifications, designs and logos etc that are needed in future.
Q. What kind of support do you offer?
A. We provide ongoing email and/or telephone support for the life of your hosting.
Q. How long will it take for my site to be active?
A. From the time we receive your order and paymentt he site normally takes 24-72 hours to be accessible on the Internet.
Q. I already have my own hosting account elsewhere, can you transfer my website for me?
A. Yes we can. Simply give us your details and we will handle it for you.
Q: How do I access my control panel and emails?
A: You will receive a welcome email with all your login details.
Saturday, 27 March 2010
Thursday, 25 March 2010
How to pick a website designer
Did I tell you how Mr X from part 4 picked me for his website design project in the first place? Listen up because he actually had a good way to do this;
Here it is:
First of all you must be absolutely clear about why you want a website and what exactly you want to achieve with it. This way you will be able to get what you want without being swayed or manipulated by a smart-talking salesman with a cheesy tie!
After you have really figured out what you want then you can set about looking for it and picking website designer to do this with.
Ask for a few quotes or tenders (not more than 5 but 3 is ideal) from a few developers or website designers.
Take a very good look and study each entry carefully and ask questions against the wishlist you made in the first point above. Here you are looking for the best fit for your intended outcome which is your business website that looks and does exactly what you want it to.
Ask for references and portfolio from the website designers tendering and make sure they allow you to have a quick chat with their referrences or portfolio customers.
When you talk to the references you want to know how the website designers handle the design process, their terms and how you agree to sign off each stage of develoment. What guarantees do they have and very important; how long their support goes for. They must have an interest in making sure the website does what you set out to do. If this will involve search engine optimization you must make sure you understand how this helps and also should that be left out, you want to know how to measure the website effectiveness versus your intended outcomes.
Once you pick your website designer you want to think about the website hosting and what comes with it or features of the website hosting.
Make sure you are clear who the domain name you choose is registered to. Some unscrupulous website designers have been know to register their clients' domain names in the designer's name and asking for ridiculous amounts of money to let it go. Make sure you do not run into this one.
Can you afford the service? Is it bespoke or 'off-the-shelf' ? Just make sure you know what you are getting upfront.
Can you change and update your own website or will you have to pay management fees on a monthly basis? These days most website designers supply CMS or content management systems so you can change and update your own website later to keep it in line with your business at all times.
When all the above are sorted out the rest is customer service. How do they treat you and other customers? Are they helpful? Friendly? Honest?
Do they explain everything to you or bamboozle you with techno language? Always be clear about what's going on with your website at all times. After all you are very good at managing your brick and mortar store, you should be taking full control of the website as well.
If there is any talk of contracts make sure you know how long for and how to get out of it if you decide to do this.
You have been in business for a while and know what you do in general, I suggest you take the same rules as before to the website as well.
Hope this helps. You can direct any questions here.
Here it is:
First of all you must be absolutely clear about why you want a website and what exactly you want to achieve with it. This way you will be able to get what you want without being swayed or manipulated by a smart-talking salesman with a cheesy tie!
After you have really figured out what you want then you can set about looking for it and picking website designer to do this with.
Ask for a few quotes or tenders (not more than 5 but 3 is ideal) from a few developers or website designers.
Take a very good look and study each entry carefully and ask questions against the wishlist you made in the first point above. Here you are looking for the best fit for your intended outcome which is your business website that looks and does exactly what you want it to.
Ask for references and portfolio from the website designers tendering and make sure they allow you to have a quick chat with their referrences or portfolio customers.
When you talk to the references you want to know how the website designers handle the design process, their terms and how you agree to sign off each stage of develoment. What guarantees do they have and very important; how long their support goes for. They must have an interest in making sure the website does what you set out to do. If this will involve search engine optimization you must make sure you understand how this helps and also should that be left out, you want to know how to measure the website effectiveness versus your intended outcomes.
Once you pick your website designer you want to think about the website hosting and what comes with it or features of the website hosting.
Make sure you are clear who the domain name you choose is registered to. Some unscrupulous website designers have been know to register their clients' domain names in the designer's name and asking for ridiculous amounts of money to let it go. Make sure you do not run into this one.
Can you afford the service? Is it bespoke or 'off-the-shelf' ? Just make sure you know what you are getting upfront.
Can you change and update your own website or will you have to pay management fees on a monthly basis? These days most website designers supply CMS or content management systems so you can change and update your own website later to keep it in line with your business at all times.
When all the above are sorted out the rest is customer service. How do they treat you and other customers? Are they helpful? Friendly? Honest?
Do they explain everything to you or bamboozle you with techno language? Always be clear about what's going on with your website at all times. After all you are very good at managing your brick and mortar store, you should be taking full control of the website as well.
If there is any talk of contracts make sure you know how long for and how to get out of it if you decide to do this.
You have been in business for a while and know what you do in general, I suggest you take the same rules as before to the website as well.
Hope this helps. You can direct any questions here.
So... how do I know which website host to pick for my website?
Now Mr X from part 3 wanted to know if my website hosting packages were really good value for money. I tell you, if he had not been a big-contract-to-be I would have most likely walked right out! You see, I was starting to get into that area where you don't know if it's worth it any more? You know, that area where it feels like you just might be working too hard. But I thought 'nah, let's do it!' After all I was confident that my website hosting was a very popular brand of website hosting in Glasgow so I was ok to talk about this.
So... here's how you choose a website hosting service:
You want a website hosting service that will always be up and running with 100% uptime.
They should be able to grow with your business and provide you with scripts and software that you will need in order to run web 2.0 applications on your website. This is important as you dont want to left behind by your competition who will most likely show videos/ RSS feeds and other new gadgets available. Most of these are 1-click installs which means your website host has installed software to get these essential scripts to be installed by simply clicking a button.
Your website host must have Google Sitemaps and submission as standard. In other words before you even think about what page you will rank on, you must have the tools to submit your website to Google and other search engines. This is very important as it allows you to connect with potential clients on the Internet.
Must be affordable and good value website hosting.
Must have customer tailored support with FAST RESPONSE at all times.
Must have a library of any other scripts and software available so that if you need an upgrade it can be down without downtime of your website.
You must have your own control panel for absolute control of your website. There's nothing worse than having to ask third parties for access to your online business. This may take a long time and be a costly delay. You want fast response and that control is best left to you.
They must offer a reasonable money-back guarantee for say 30 - 60 days with no questions asked. After all, if you are satisfied and happy you will stay.
They must have ample after sales support. They should not abandon you at all but have support that will be tailored for you as an individual and not a statistic.
These are the sort of website hosting features that Mr X was impressed by and as a busy man he wanted to make sure he would have the piece of mind that only top notch website hosting provides.
This was ok, but Mr X, ever the shrewd business man, wanted to know how to measure the ROI of this investment in the website design and what else was requirted to make it all work. After all he did not leave anything to chance on the High Street, so why do it online? Same rules apply right?
We decided to meet again and set up a marketing plan and a way to track this process over say a year to start with. Goodness Mr X, you are making me work here!
So... here's how you choose a website hosting service:
You want a website hosting service that will always be up and running with 100% uptime.
They should be able to grow with your business and provide you with scripts and software that you will need in order to run web 2.0 applications on your website. This is important as you dont want to left behind by your competition who will most likely show videos/ RSS feeds and other new gadgets available. Most of these are 1-click installs which means your website host has installed software to get these essential scripts to be installed by simply clicking a button.
Your website host must have Google Sitemaps and submission as standard. In other words before you even think about what page you will rank on, you must have the tools to submit your website to Google and other search engines. This is very important as it allows you to connect with potential clients on the Internet.
Must be affordable and good value website hosting.
Must have customer tailored support with FAST RESPONSE at all times.
Must have a library of any other scripts and software available so that if you need an upgrade it can be down without downtime of your website.
You must have your own control panel for absolute control of your website. There's nothing worse than having to ask third parties for access to your online business. This may take a long time and be a costly delay. You want fast response and that control is best left to you.
They must offer a reasonable money-back guarantee for say 30 - 60 days with no questions asked. After all, if you are satisfied and happy you will stay.
They must have ample after sales support. They should not abandon you at all but have support that will be tailored for you as an individual and not a statistic.
These are the sort of website hosting features that Mr X was impressed by and as a busy man he wanted to make sure he would have the piece of mind that only top notch website hosting provides.
This was ok, but Mr X, ever the shrewd business man, wanted to know how to measure the ROI of this investment in the website design and what else was requirted to make it all work. After all he did not leave anything to chance on the High Street, so why do it online? Same rules apply right?
We decided to meet again and set up a marketing plan and a way to track this process over say a year to start with. Goodness Mr X, you are making me work here!
How will my website be found by the search engines such as Google?
... How will my website be found by Google/Yahoo or Bing? Mr X from part 2 asked again. I wanted to answer this question and get all technical and talk about spiders and all the sophisticated Google algorithm which seems to change every other week but decided against it. This had to be handled in 'English' and put as plainly as possible.
Mr X we will submit your website to the search engines such as Google/ Yahoo/ Bing so we can have the website indexed and known by the search engines. This way when someone searches for your products Google/ Yahoo/ Bing will know about your products and present them to searchers. He had more questions on search engine optimization and I decided to handle his questions together with others I had seen and heard in the field.
Here are some relevant SEO questions below:
Q: What is a search engine?
A: Web visitors generally use search engines to find sites matching their search criteria. The visitor enters words or phrases in the search area, and the search engine produces a list of related sites. The search engine provides this information after conducting a more comprehensive search using indexing software agents, often called "robots" or "spiders". These robots and spiders are programmed to "crawl" the Internet in search of new or updated web sites. The search engine becomes aware of a new site to visit and index when that site is submitted.
Q: Why should I submit my web site?
A: Submitting your URL to a number of search engines increases the odds of potential customers finding your site through traditional online searches. You can further increase your chances of being found through a search by adding relevant keywords to your home page title and text.
Search engines are one of the least expensive and most successful forms of online marketing. If you're serious about reaching new visitors, submitting your site to search engines is essential.
Q: Why should I submit every month?
A: You want to keep your web site registration current. Link Pages move older links to the bottom of the list, and resubmitting puts you back on top. Search engines have a tendency to drop or lose sites from time to time. Resubmitting monthly ensures your site won't get lost. Some web sites offer "What's New" sections. Each time you submit, your site gets added to these lists.
Q:Which search engines and directories do you submit to?
A: Our service submits to the major search engines and several hundred link pages. For a complete list of the sites to which we will submit your site, click here. Each month we'll send you a detailed report via e-mail listing all the search engines, directories and links pages that your site was submitted to, so you can keep track of the submission process.
Q: When will I see my site listed on search engine sites?
A: After successfully submitting your web site to a search engine or directory, it's up to those organizations to list your site. Most search engines will send a "spider" to your site within a few weeks of submission. The spider will read and index your web site and schedule your site to be listed. It usually takes 6-8 weeks before your site appears on major search engines.
Q: Why can't I find my site on any search engine after 8 weeks?
A: The most likely reason that you cannot find your site is that it has a low ranking in the search return. This may be because your site is not optimized for the keywords you entered. It is also possible that the search engine's "spider" has not yet visited your site and this is also adversely affecting the ranking and making it difficult to locate the site in the search return. If you continued to search through the search return, you would eventually find your site.
The easiest way to determine if your site is in the search engine's database is to enter the full URL provided with your submission order. For example, enter www.your-domain-name.com in the search box of the top search engine Google (www.google.com). If you are unhappy with your ranking, we suggest that you optimize your site to help improve your ranking.
Q:What are the best keywords to use?
A: The best way to determine your keywords is to step out of your shoes and imagine yourself as one of your customers or prospects. How do you think these people will search for sites like yours? What keywords do you think they will enter into the search engines?
Create a list of all of the words that apply to your business, including your business name, product names (both brand and generic names) and the names of the geographic regions you serve. You may also want to consider variations of these words (such as "dog, dogs, doggie, etc) and common misspellings of important keywords.
When developing your list of keywords, you should consider all of the possible keywords your customers and prospects may use. Sp end a few days thinking it over. Ask a few of your customers what keywords they would use. Build as large of a list as possible, while still keeping the keywords relevant to your business. Once you have a complete list, you can then rank the importance of they keywords to determine which are the most important to your company.
Q:Why do you limit me to 25 keywords?
A: Some search engines will only allow us to submit 25 keywords on your behalf. Others compute the relevancy of your keywords by dividing the number of keyword matched in a search by the total # of keywords submitted. We therefore limit your keyword list to 25 keywords to ensure that you select keywords that are the most relevant to your site and that will generate the highest ranking in the search returns.
Q:What is a meta tag?
A: A meta tag (or tag) tells the search engine what your site is about. The major search engines will review your site and read your meta tags to determine categories for your site. Meta tags tell the search engine your site's title, description and keywords. Without these tags, it's difficult for your site to achieve a high ranking on many major search engines.
Q:Do I need meta tags?
A: Yes. If your site doesn't have meta tags, you're missing potential traffic. A web site without meta tags is tough for a search engine to place correctly.
Q:What meta tags should I add to my web site?
A: Title:
The title is probably the most important part of your site to evaluate, as it is the most frequently searched component by search engines. It should state exactly what your site is about and include your most important keywords. An example of a good title would be, "Dave's Interior Designs � Decorating the Inside of England's Homes.
Keywords:
The Meta Tag Keywords should be those words or phrases that you think people will use when trying to look for a site like yours on search engines. You should incorporate many Meta Tags within your site's first paragraphs (50 words) and repeat them throughout the text. The right keywords for your web site should be specific enough to describe your web site's focus, yet general enough for potential customers to use as search criteria with search engines. Be sure to include your domain name, company name and product's name in the keywords.
Description:
Your web site description should be a 20 word summary of the content of your site. This description should contain some of the keywords and should avoid marketing jargon. An example of a good description would be, "A full service provider of interior design services � decorating, painting, furniture and color schemes for your home."
Q:Where do I place the meta tags?
A: The meta tags should be inserted between the and tags of your document. Below is an example of how to format meta tags and where to place them:
.. Page content is placed here ..
Q: How do I get the meta tags you create for me into my web page?
A: When filling out the registration form, you should use the same title, description and keywords as those specified in the meta tags included in your site's code. To ensure this process, you can use our meta tag generator. At the end of the registration process, you will receive an e-mail with auto-generated meta tag code for your site. Simply copy and paste this code into your HTML editor and then upload the page to your server.
Q: Other companies submit to 2,000 search engines. Why do you only submit to 400?
A: We've seen these offers, too. How many search engines do you go to when you're looking for something on the Internet? Submission companies that offer 2,000 submissions are simply sending your web site to small niche directories. These pages may no longer exist and in many cases were set up to collect e-mail addresses to use or sell. Be careful if you're using one of these submission services. In the web site promotion game, quality wins over quantity.
If this feels and looks like it might be a little too hard for you, Jax Internet in Glasgow can get your website indexed and optimized for you.
Mr X we will submit your website to the search engines such as Google/ Yahoo/ Bing so we can have the website indexed and known by the search engines. This way when someone searches for your products Google/ Yahoo/ Bing will know about your products and present them to searchers. He had more questions on search engine optimization and I decided to handle his questions together with others I had seen and heard in the field.
Here are some relevant SEO questions below:
Q: What is a search engine?
A: Web visitors generally use search engines to find sites matching their search criteria. The visitor enters words or phrases in the search area, and the search engine produces a list of related sites. The search engine provides this information after conducting a more comprehensive search using indexing software agents, often called "robots" or "spiders". These robots and spiders are programmed to "crawl" the Internet in search of new or updated web sites. The search engine becomes aware of a new site to visit and index when that site is submitted.
Q: Why should I submit my web site?
A: Submitting your URL to a number of search engines increases the odds of potential customers finding your site through traditional online searches. You can further increase your chances of being found through a search by adding relevant keywords to your home page title and text.
Search engines are one of the least expensive and most successful forms of online marketing. If you're serious about reaching new visitors, submitting your site to search engines is essential.
Q: Why should I submit every month?
A: You want to keep your web site registration current. Link Pages move older links to the bottom of the list, and resubmitting puts you back on top. Search engines have a tendency to drop or lose sites from time to time. Resubmitting monthly ensures your site won't get lost. Some web sites offer "What's New" sections. Each time you submit, your site gets added to these lists.
Q:Which search engines and directories do you submit to?
A: Our service submits to the major search engines and several hundred link pages. For a complete list of the sites to which we will submit your site, click here. Each month we'll send you a detailed report via e-mail listing all the search engines, directories and links pages that your site was submitted to, so you can keep track of the submission process.
Q: When will I see my site listed on search engine sites?
A: After successfully submitting your web site to a search engine or directory, it's up to those organizations to list your site. Most search engines will send a "spider" to your site within a few weeks of submission. The spider will read and index your web site and schedule your site to be listed. It usually takes 6-8 weeks before your site appears on major search engines.
Q: Why can't I find my site on any search engine after 8 weeks?
A: The most likely reason that you cannot find your site is that it has a low ranking in the search return. This may be because your site is not optimized for the keywords you entered. It is also possible that the search engine's "spider" has not yet visited your site and this is also adversely affecting the ranking and making it difficult to locate the site in the search return. If you continued to search through the search return, you would eventually find your site.
The easiest way to determine if your site is in the search engine's database is to enter the full URL provided with your submission order. For example, enter www.your-domain-name.com in the search box of the top search engine Google (www.google.com). If you are unhappy with your ranking, we suggest that you optimize your site to help improve your ranking.
Q:What are the best keywords to use?
A: The best way to determine your keywords is to step out of your shoes and imagine yourself as one of your customers or prospects. How do you think these people will search for sites like yours? What keywords do you think they will enter into the search engines?
Create a list of all of the words that apply to your business, including your business name, product names (both brand and generic names) and the names of the geographic regions you serve. You may also want to consider variations of these words (such as "dog, dogs, doggie, etc) and common misspellings of important keywords.
When developing your list of keywords, you should consider all of the possible keywords your customers and prospects may use. Sp end a few days thinking it over. Ask a few of your customers what keywords they would use. Build as large of a list as possible, while still keeping the keywords relevant to your business. Once you have a complete list, you can then rank the importance of they keywords to determine which are the most important to your company.
Q:Why do you limit me to 25 keywords?
A: Some search engines will only allow us to submit 25 keywords on your behalf. Others compute the relevancy of your keywords by dividing the number of keyword matched in a search by the total # of keywords submitted. We therefore limit your keyword list to 25 keywords to ensure that you select keywords that are the most relevant to your site and that will generate the highest ranking in the search returns.
Q:What is a meta tag?
A: A meta tag (or tag) tells the search engine what your site is about. The major search engines will review your site and read your meta tags to determine categories for your site. Meta tags tell the search engine your site's title, description and keywords. Without these tags, it's difficult for your site to achieve a high ranking on many major search engines.
Q:Do I need meta tags?
A: Yes. If your site doesn't have meta tags, you're missing potential traffic. A web site without meta tags is tough for a search engine to place correctly.
Q:What meta tags should I add to my web site?
A: Title:
The title is probably the most important part of your site to evaluate, as it is the most frequently searched component by search engines. It should state exactly what your site is about and include your most important keywords. An example of a good title would be, "Dave's Interior Designs � Decorating the Inside of England's Homes.
Keywords:
The Meta Tag Keywords should be those words or phrases that you think people will use when trying to look for a site like yours on search engines. You should incorporate many Meta Tags within your site's first paragraphs (50 words) and repeat them throughout the text. The right keywords for your web site should be specific enough to describe your web site's focus, yet general enough for potential customers to use as search criteria with search engines. Be sure to include your domain name, company name and product's name in the keywords.
Description:
Your web site description should be a 20 word summary of the content of your site. This description should contain some of the keywords and should avoid marketing jargon. An example of a good description would be, "A full service provider of interior design services � decorating, painting, furniture and color schemes for your home."
Q:Where do I place the meta tags?
A: The meta tags should be inserted between the and tags of your document. Below is an example of how to format meta tags and where to place them:
.. Page content is placed here ..
Q: How do I get the meta tags you create for me into my web page?
A: When filling out the registration form, you should use the same title, description and keywords as those specified in the meta tags included in your site's code. To ensure this process, you can use our meta tag generator. At the end of the registration process, you will receive an e-mail with auto-generated meta tag code for your site. Simply copy and paste this code into your HTML editor and then upload the page to your server.
Q: Other companies submit to 2,000 search engines. Why do you only submit to 400?
A: We've seen these offers, too. How many search engines do you go to when you're looking for something on the Internet? Submission companies that offer 2,000 submissions are simply sending your web site to small niche directories. These pages may no longer exist and in many cases were set up to collect e-mail addresses to use or sell. Be careful if you're using one of these submission services. In the web site promotion game, quality wins over quantity.
If this feels and looks like it might be a little too hard for you, Jax Internet in Glasgow can get your website indexed and optimized for you.
Saturday, 20 March 2010
Back to Basics with this Lil' Internet O' Ours. Part 2
...So... after talking to Mr X from part 1 my business brain told me, and reminded me, that after being in the Internet business world offering website design services from Glasgow and doing the best I can to offer the most affordable and excellent value for money website hosting, that maybe, just maybe, not everyone was on quite the same page as me. In fact that's exactly why they paid me to do this stuff! I decided to address his questions from part 1 and also come up with a regular FAQ list for future customers and would-be customers, it is below.
What is a Domain Name and why do I need it?
A Domian Name is the unique www web address that visitors type to get to your website. Think of it in the same sense as your physical address and that in the same way they find your house, they use your domain to find your website. An example is my own website here and to find it people need to type in my domain name which is http://www.quicksitemaker.co.uk/. It is mandatory to have a domain name.
Can I have any Domain Name?
A Domain Name must be available and not taken or registered by anyone else for you to have it.
Who owns the Domain Name?
After you register the domain name of your choice from ICANN - Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, the people responsible for registering all domain names on the Internet, you will own this for the stipulated length of time as per your registration contract.
What is Hosting, and what do I get?
All websites require hosting, it's a bit like paying rent for your house except this time you are paying someone to have their computer on 24/7 and for you to store your website files on it so they can be accessed worldwide at anytime by anyone visiting your website. This is called a hosting server, you could do this yourself but it would mean leaving your PC on all the time and always connected to the Internet. Not worth it for the average person due to time and costs from your ISP and power companies. Let the experts do the website hosting for you for pennies a day.
Other Relevant Questions
How long will it take for my Website to go live?
If you use DIY website design it will be as quick as you can make it since you will take full control of this process. If we arrange for a bespoke website design plan we will need you to give us the relevant materials quickly (logos, content,contact details etc) so we can put all these together ASAP and have your website ready and live in a few days.
What kind of support do I get afterwards?
Should you have any issues, queries or problems we will be available to help at all times. Email or call us when you need to.
What length of Contract would I have to commit to?
We do not tie you in for any set periods, If you are happy with us you will stay, simple. The website hosting comes with a FULL money back guarantee from us.
I already have a Website which needs updating, can you help?
We would be happy to look at your site and offer a proposal for your consideration. Look here for more and tell us what you would like.
Are you a website doctor? Can you redesign my Website?
Yes. You can check your website SEO performance here or contact us for a FREE website health check. We can then take it further if you want to.
Will my Website be 'Search Engine' friendly and show up in the search engines?
Yes, all our websites are designed and constructed in compliance with search engine guidelines. To see an actual concerted effort to get on page 1 of search engines or to get sales from your website will require an SEO assessment and for us to enrol you in our SEO service to specifically do this for you. The Search Engine Optimization FAQ is here.
I am a small one man business and would like to do better in my local area. Can you help?
Yes we can help you with this as an SEO service or you can DIY using our email program to dominate your local area using the Internet.
Are there any hidden costs?
NO. We are a very transparent business and we want you to understand our business and our terms before contracting with us. Everything will explained at every step to you.
Can I have an area of my website reserved for customers only?
Yes, we can provide a password protected area for you.
Can I have an autoresponder to capture my website visitors' details?
Yes, we can provide an autoresponder so you can grow your opt-in list and improve your marketing.
Who owns the Copyright?
You do. All your intellectual property and other assets and trademarks will remain intact.
How would I update my Website?
Our websites come with CMS or content management system as standard, we will show/train you how to use this so you can take control and change or update your website when you want to saving time and money.
What if I'm not an expert with computers?
If you can use Microsoft Word you can operate our CMS system, besides, we will train you first.
Can I get email with my Website?
Yes all websites come with mailboxes for you and your staff and in some cases you can have an unlimited number of email mailboxes for your website.
Can I forward my email to Yahoo/Hotmail/Gmail?
Yes we can arrange for email forwarding for you using the control panel that comes with your website.
Can I see how many visitors my Website gets?
Yes. We provide you with your own panel to show you daily stats by simply loggin into it.
What will a Website cost me?
One page brochure websites start from only £99 click here for a website design quote so we can give you an accurate cost estimate.
Do you display 'banners' or 'pop-up ads' on my Website and share in my website revenue?
No we do not. Our contract ends at website design, website hosting and SEO services. We do not get involved in the revenues you make from your website.
PLEASE NOTE: We reserve the right to refuse service to people or entities that may promote illegal or otherwise disturbing materials or business.
...wait! Mr X still had questions, come back in the next part to see what his questions were and how I handled them. See you soon.
What is a Domain Name and why do I need it?
A Domian Name is the unique www web address that visitors type to get to your website. Think of it in the same sense as your physical address and that in the same way they find your house, they use your domain to find your website. An example is my own website here and to find it people need to type in my domain name which is http://www.quicksitemaker.co.uk/. It is mandatory to have a domain name.
Can I have any Domain Name?
A Domain Name must be available and not taken or registered by anyone else for you to have it.
Who owns the Domain Name?
After you register the domain name of your choice from ICANN - Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, the people responsible for registering all domain names on the Internet, you will own this for the stipulated length of time as per your registration contract.
What is Hosting, and what do I get?
All websites require hosting, it's a bit like paying rent for your house except this time you are paying someone to have their computer on 24/7 and for you to store your website files on it so they can be accessed worldwide at anytime by anyone visiting your website. This is called a hosting server, you could do this yourself but it would mean leaving your PC on all the time and always connected to the Internet. Not worth it for the average person due to time and costs from your ISP and power companies. Let the experts do the website hosting for you for pennies a day.
Other Relevant Questions
How long will it take for my Website to go live?
If you use DIY website design it will be as quick as you can make it since you will take full control of this process. If we arrange for a bespoke website design plan we will need you to give us the relevant materials quickly (logos, content,contact details etc) so we can put all these together ASAP and have your website ready and live in a few days.
What kind of support do I get afterwards?
Should you have any issues, queries or problems we will be available to help at all times. Email or call us when you need to.
What length of Contract would I have to commit to?
We do not tie you in for any set periods, If you are happy with us you will stay, simple. The website hosting comes with a FULL money back guarantee from us.
I already have a Website which needs updating, can you help?
We would be happy to look at your site and offer a proposal for your consideration. Look here for more and tell us what you would like.
Are you a website doctor? Can you redesign my Website?
Yes. You can check your website SEO performance here or contact us for a FREE website health check. We can then take it further if you want to.
Will my Website be 'Search Engine' friendly and show up in the search engines?
Yes, all our websites are designed and constructed in compliance with search engine guidelines. To see an actual concerted effort to get on page 1 of search engines or to get sales from your website will require an SEO assessment and for us to enrol you in our SEO service to specifically do this for you. The Search Engine Optimization FAQ is here.
I am a small one man business and would like to do better in my local area. Can you help?
Yes we can help you with this as an SEO service or you can DIY using our email program to dominate your local area using the Internet.
Are there any hidden costs?
NO. We are a very transparent business and we want you to understand our business and our terms before contracting with us. Everything will explained at every step to you.
Can I have an area of my website reserved for customers only?
Yes, we can provide a password protected area for you.
Can I have an autoresponder to capture my website visitors' details?
Yes, we can provide an autoresponder so you can grow your opt-in list and improve your marketing.
Who owns the Copyright?
You do. All your intellectual property and other assets and trademarks will remain intact.
How would I update my Website?
Our websites come with CMS or content management system as standard, we will show/train you how to use this so you can take control and change or update your website when you want to saving time and money.
What if I'm not an expert with computers?
If you can use Microsoft Word you can operate our CMS system, besides, we will train you first.
Can I get email with my Website?
Yes all websites come with mailboxes for you and your staff and in some cases you can have an unlimited number of email mailboxes for your website.
Can I forward my email to Yahoo/Hotmail/Gmail?
Yes we can arrange for email forwarding for you using the control panel that comes with your website.
Can I see how many visitors my Website gets?
Yes. We provide you with your own panel to show you daily stats by simply loggin into it.
What will a Website cost me?
One page brochure websites start from only £99 click here for a website design quote so we can give you an accurate cost estimate.
Do you display 'banners' or 'pop-up ads' on my Website and share in my website revenue?
No we do not. Our contract ends at website design, website hosting and SEO services. We do not get involved in the revenues you make from your website.
PLEASE NOTE: We reserve the right to refuse service to people or entities that may promote illegal or otherwise disturbing materials or business.
...wait! Mr X still had questions, come back in the next part to see what his questions were and how I handled them. See you soon.
Back to Basics with this Lil' Internet O' Ours. Part 1
I've been involved with the Internet since 1999 (some call it the stone ages of the Internet!) and I have seen it evolve into this new and fancy web 2.0 that we have now with Youtube, Google,Twitter, Facebook and so on. How exciting! ...sigh... The thing is through all this you get to a point where it feels like everyone knows about the Internet and web-services just like you until someone asks you what you think is the most basic of all Internet related questions. You see; I had a conversation with a potential website design client just a few months ago and had a very interesting, if not educational, conversation about the Internet and website hosting.
I had just finished explaining the proposal for the website design work and the hosting that would come with it to the gentleman when he asked the following questions:
With all this happening my business brain (which has the enthusiasm of a 7 year old at Disney World) was screaming at me to sell website design, website hosting, overcharge on the domain name, sell my SEO service and enroll him as the lucky-to-be-first member of my never-seen-before Internet Marketing program called How to Use the Internet To Dominate Your Local Market and whatever else I could come up with impromptu...
Wait, did you just say $$$ dollar $$ signs to yourself there? Well, why don't you come back for part 2 as I explain how a mature Internet marketer such as myself handled this situation? I was thinking of making this one article buy my business brain, (remember the 7 year old at Disney?) is thinking 7 parts to this so come back tomorrow for more.
I had just finished explaining the proposal for the website design work and the hosting that would come with it to the gentleman when he asked the following questions:
- So what exactly is this domain name here? My business (name) is already registered and sorted with my accountant and Companies House why should I pay out again?
- Why should I pay for hosting? The Internet is FREE and for everyone worldwide. Who does it belong to that I would need to pay them every month? Surely no-one owns the Internet?
- I like the fact that I will only pay you £---- as a one off and improve my business prospects over last year when I paid £----- and almost broke the bank. This should sort me out!
With all this happening my business brain (which has the enthusiasm of a 7 year old at Disney World) was screaming at me to sell website design, website hosting, overcharge on the domain name, sell my SEO service and enroll him as the lucky-to-be-first member of my never-seen-before Internet Marketing program called How to Use the Internet To Dominate Your Local Market and whatever else I could come up with impromptu...
Wait, did you just say $$$ dollar $$ signs to yourself there? Well, why don't you come back for part 2 as I explain how a mature Internet marketer such as myself handled this situation? I was thinking of making this one article buy my business brain, (remember the 7 year old at Disney?) is thinking 7 parts to this so come back tomorrow for more.
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