Don't worry! Though building a website can seem to be a daunting task, we'll make it easy for you. Here's an overview of what we need and an overview to help towards getting started with your new website design before we begin!
1) PREPARATION
- YOUR LOGO – PDF, EPS or high res JPEG or PNG if possible.
- HOSTING CREDENTIALS – Your domain name account login (and web hosting login and/or Cpanel username and password if you already have hosting).
- WORDPRESS LOGIN – An administrator login to your current WordPress site. (if you have one up already)
- IMAGE AND PICTURES – Current and/or new images and pictures you’d like to use on the new site.
- CONTENT – Page content and any updated verbiage/information for the site.
- STYLE GUIDE – Brand style guide, colors or any specific design requirements.
These items can be uploaded to your secure Dropbox folder. If you don't already have a free Dropbox account, we can't help you get one.
Dropbox is a great online image/file sharing platform. This isn’t necessary for every project, but if you have more than 15-20 images for your website or if they’re too big to send through email we recommend Dropbox, which is free. We can also use this to share important logins and credentials instead of sending through email. I will set up a folder for the project and will share the folder with you via email. You can upload all images and files there.
2) THE DESIGN PROCESS
Designing a website, no matter how big or small, is an extensive process that can be overwhelming. To better help you understand what to expect during the design and development, I’ve outlined my process into 3 steps:
- Layout and design
A large and time consuming part of designing a website is in the planning and layout stage of the process. We will create the sitemap (Page/Menu hierarchy) of the website for approval first, then we’ll design the home page and a sub page (or more upon request) for approval. Vermont web design done right! - Development
Once the site layout and design is approved, I’ll move forward with the designing the entire site, pages and add all functionality and plugins. We’ll make sure your site looks great and functions nicely across all devices and web browsers before moving to the final step. - Edits & Revisions
Once the site is ready for final review, you’ll be able to review each page and we can make detailed edits until the site is revised completely. We ask that you please review ALL pages to make sure all spelling, grammar, addresses and information are correct before going live.
3) Wrapping Up & GOING LIVE!
Once the site is ready to go live, all unnecessary plugins, pages, images and back-end files will be removed. The new site will be backed up and saved locally, should it ever need restored. Once live, it may take between 24-48 hours for the new site to come up on some devices.
Some computers will need to be refreshed in order to see the new site, though most computers will see the new site immediately depending on the wi-fi connection and where they are in relation to the location of server that the website is on.
Your website logins and all credentials will be sent to you via Dropbox or secure email insuring the security of your passwords.
Though your logins and passwords will be saved by us locally, PLEASE SAVE ALL LOGINS FOR YOUR RECORDS AS WELL. Upon completion, you’ll receive a link to our “moving forward” page where you’ll receive tips and tricks on what to do with your new website and also information on our *Maintenance/Security Plan, which I highly recommend.
* The Maintenance/Security Plan is included free, at no charge for clients who choose to host their websites with us