An Interview with
the owner.
We
get a lot of questions.
Below are answers to the most commonly asked
questions from small business owners and
non-profits we've worked with over the years.
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How much should my website cost?
For a small business or non profit...under
$4000. This will get you an extremely functional,
attractive and useful platform to build your online presence
and help establish your brand online. Hosting
your website costs under $10/mo.
If you want a simple website that contains
5-20 pages to act as a simple online business card you can
build
it yourself for under $30 per month and make
changes whenever you like. Hosting is included.
How long will it take to build?
That depends on how quickly you can get
us the content. After our initial meeting during which we
discuss design and after you've delivered all of the site
content, to include images, copy etc. etc., turnaround time
is under 72 hours.
Wow. That's fast. How do you do it?
We've been doing this a long time and have
our business processes dialed in. This saves us time and
save you lots of money.
I want to have a newsletter, calendars,
event registration, donations, maps, live chat, a forum,
a directory, CRM, social networking, Twitter,
e-commerce, subscriptions and surveys on my site?
Okay. We use third party tools that cost
anywhere from FREE to $24.95 per month. We'll brand as much
of it as we can so the user feels like they are still inside
your site.
Will I be able to know who visits
my site?
Yes. We can tell when, where, from where,
why and how they arrived at your site. If you like, we can
record them while they surf around your site and help you
analyze the user session.
What about e-commerce?
Using Paypal, Authorize.net or
Google Checkout,
we can build a shopping cart overnight and have it up the
next day ready to load product. If you do not already
have a Paypal account, please get one. You can use it for
starters and grow from there. SSL
Certificates may be necessary down
the road. DO NOT go to your bank for
an ecommerce solution. 99%
of banks resell merchant services and the banks and their
reps know very little about ease of implementation.
We work with over 7 shopping carts, many
of which are free, but a few cost upwards of $200 per year
to use. Here's an affordable
small business ecommerce solution you can
set up yourself if you have the time and are inclined to
do so.
Production time is affected by how many
products you start with in your online shop. Make sure you
know your shipping rates, taxes and other minutia
beforehand so this information is readily available.
How do I get ranked at the top of Google,
Yahoo, Bing and other search engines?
We can get you ranked for any number of
keywords pertaining to your business. While we do not
guarantee ranking for any specific keyword, there are some
keywords that we can almost guarantee a high ranking
for in the search engines. Search Engine Optimization is
an art. There is no silver bullet. Time, content and keywords
are your friend. Google the term "West7th web sites" without
the quotes. We come up # 1 in Google and probably everywhere
else. Magic? No. We know how to help your business
"get found".
Do I need a blog?
That depends on what type of business you
have and how much time you can commit to posting on your
blog.
A blog is a simple tool that allows you to talk with customers
about what's going on with your business. Keep it personal
and real. Update your blog, at least, weekly.
If you just want a quick
and easy blogging solution go here or watch a video
on how to use the software.
Will I be able to make changes to my site
or will I need to hire you?
You will be able to make changes to your
site on your own. We use a simple yet powerful Content Management
System to build websites so clients can update their own
sites whenever they choose from any internet connection.
More questions?
Give us a call at
651-235-2603.
We're happy to provide an answer.
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