Am I the Right Web Designer for You?

Lots of people can create web pages but not everyone can create a unique website that will increase your sales. How can you tell if I'm the right web designer for you? Read the following questions and see if they reflect your needs and priorities.

Do you want a web designer who understands that a website is first and foremost a marketing tool? I understand that the reason you want a website is to let your target market know about your products and services. Throughout the web design process I stay focused on making your website a marketing vehicle that will return its investment many times over.

Are you looking for an attractive website design whose aesthetics complement your marketing message? A website with a strong marketing focus can also be a website with an attractive design. Indeed, the visual design plays an important role in getting your marketing message across. And if your products and services have an artistic or aesthetic component then it's even more important that the design of your website reflect your aesthetic.

Are you overwhelmed or confused by all the issues involved in creating a website? Are you looking for a web designer who can guide you through the process from beginning to end? Do you want a clear explanation of all the jargon — from domain names through web hosting to SEO & URLs?

Are you frustrated by computer geeks who can't communicate in English? Are you looking for a web designer who understands the language of business as well as the language of computers?

Have you been disappointed by others who delay delivery or fail to return phone calls and emails? I will be in frequent communication with you, usually returning your calls and emails the same day and frequently within the same hour. I will keep you apprised of my progress, provide regular updates on upcoming milestones and remind you of commitments that you have made to provide content.

Ideal Clients

The people who get the most out of my services are people for whom one or more of the following statements are true:

"I'm more interested in getting the best value than getting the lowest price." You know that the cheapest website is not likely to be the most effective at generating new demand for your products/services. You realize that a good website can return its investment many times over.

"I have a good story to tell about my business." You can make a convincing case for your work and you can explain to your prospects why you're their best choice.

"I'm willing to do the work to create the content for my site." No one knows your business better than you do. No one else can describe all the things that go into making you the best at what you do. So, you need to be willing to spend the time to create compelling content about your business — content that people will take the time to read with information people need about your industry. I can help you with editing but the raw material must come from you.

"I'm interested in being involved in the evolution of my website from conception through the initial design to sample pages and staging to the launch." Some designers give you two designs to choose from and after you've chosen one they go off and build your site with little or no additional input from you. For some clients that works fine. But if you're interested in being a part of the creative process, if you're interested in shaping your website according to your vision, and if you're interested in collaborating with a designer to polish your site until it sparkles, you should consider working with me.

"I'm in a creative business, I'm a professional in private practice or I'm the head of a small company." My approach to web design works best for small websites under about 50 pages. I hand-craft the design and tailor every page to be the best it can be. This approach is labor-intensive and doesn't scale well to large sites. But it produces the most attractive and functional sites possible.

"I'm willing to promote my website through press releases, public speaking, writing articles and networking." A lot of people expect to put up a website and then have the world beat a path to their door hoping that customers will find them with a search engine. Search engines are great but the reality is that there are probably thousands of other companies doing what you do. Getting into the top two or three pages of results for popular search words is difficult. So, most businesses need to rely on other methods of getting exposure for their website. This means you need to promote your website at every opportunity. If you do this, your website will work much harder for you — and your site will place higher in search engine results pages.

If these statements are true for you, please visit my How We Work page for more details about how my web design process engages with you in a way that helps us to collaborate to create the most effective possible website for you.