Web Site Design  •  Web Pages  •  Small Business Web Sites

Web site design services for small industrial and manufacturing companies

Enumclaw, Auburn, Kent, Renton, Federal Way and Tukwila areas of King County, (WA) Washington

Web Site Design Frequently Asked Questions

I specialize in designing and maintaining small industrial web sites that yield good returns for their owners.

Over the past several years, I have been asked an awful lot of questions about my web design services.

Here is a selection of FAQs that you might find useful.

Does My Small Business Need A Web Site - We Are Only Small?

It doesn't matter how big or small you are. Probably the most important thing any small business can do right now is to set yourself up with a good small business web site. Even though your business might be doing very well, you still need to have a professional presence on the Internet - which is fast becoming the most important area of today's marketplace.

More and more people are checking out potential business partners, contractors, and service companies on the Internet well before initial contact is made with a view to doing business. If your company does not show up when these check outs are made, then you are losing out already. None of us can afford to turn down new business. Don't forget, today's marketing is tomorrow's business. And a web site is one of the most effective forms of marketing.

So the answer is a definite: yes, you do need a web site, even if only as an international business card at this stage.

What Would My Web Site Contain?

Your new web site would be structured to be as friendly as possible to the majority of search engines and directories. The Home Page of this site, for instance, will give you an idea of the style of internal links to different pages. Your site will be similar in structure. You can check out some of my other client's web sites from the Clients page.

Your new small business web site would be designed with a view to a) giving you a good-looking professional presence on the Internet, and b) influencing your site's visitors to do business with you by using sensible copy and accurate content. It really is that simple!

All my web sites are designed to make the visitor feel comfortable and non-pressured while on your small business web site. That is the key. Make 'em feel comfortable with what they see and they will have no problem in looking to contact you further. None of my web sites have email addresses that contain the word sales like: <sales@website.com>. I firmly believe that there are still a lot of people that will shy away from anything that even hints at a sale of any sort. Sales departments sometimes smack of pressure. The secret is to make them feel so comfortable on your site that they will have no problem in requesting more info from you. Once they have made that initial contact with you, your own quality customer service should then be able to take over and make a sale.

Graphics - Images & Photos
No problem here. In fact, it is very important to have some sort of illustration included in the web site. Having your company logo on your web site is also very important. These images can be either scanned in from your company's brochures and other marketing materials, or if you are local to me, then I can arrange to visit you and take all the photos necessary. Anything you are unable to supply I will make for you using your company's colors and styles - all part of the service!

What Would My Site Not Contain?

Flash-Style Intros
Flash-style intros and animations are all very pretty and stylish with their fancy sounds and complex graphics. However, they have no real place in my type of web site. They tend to inhibit the site's search engine friendliness. If a flash intro is the main page of your web site then search engines will have a much harder time recognizing your site. Visitors to your site will also be irritated with them. They serve no real purpose apart from looking pretty, fluffy, and taking a long time to load. So, NO, I do not use them.

Animations
A couple of years ago, animated graphics were all the rage and it seemed that nearly every web site had some form of singing and dancing on them via animations. In today's marketplace things have moved on and, in my opinion, a good small business web site should have a clean, semi-corporate look about it. This will show a degree of professionalism on your part, but should also retain a certain amount of comfort factor for the visitor - especially if your business is looking to attract retail, end-user type customers. If your small business is more used to dealing with other small businesses, then it is better to cut back just a little on the comfort factor and concentrate more on the professionalism and competence and ability of your company. However, if your site is the type that has "specials" and "sale" items, then I would certainly make up suitable animations to attract your site's viewers to those items.

Java Scripts, Ticker Tapes, Scrolling Text
In general I usually avoid using too much stuff that moves on your screen. Sure, it is very pretty, but experience has told me it serves no real purpose. I would much prefer to concentrate on giving your small business web site a good, clean, professional look to it.

Shopping Carts
As I specialize in small industrial and manufacturing type companies, the need for shopping carts and secure type areas are rare. Most manufacturing companies need a certain amount of personal contact with a potential customer before an order is placed. Because of this, I do not offer shopping carts or secure facilities at this time.

What Does A Small Business Web Site Cost?

This is probably the most asked question I get. Naturally the cost of your small business web site is very important to you and it has to fall within your company's budget. The content of the web site is going to be the deciding factor here - the more it contains, the more it will cost, of course. However, to give an idea to help you factor it into your budget, I would advise setting aside around $1000 initially to get yourself a good small business web site that will be designed to work for you, promoting your business, and eventually paying for itself time and time again. Again, depending on your site's content, it may be possible to incorporate some search engine optimization into this price for you. Once I see what is involved in designing your small business web site, I will be able to quote you an accurate figure for my work.

Sure, you can find cheaper places that advertise web sites for $99, $299, $499 etc. Yes, there are tons of those around, but who are they, where are they, do they understand your business and how it works, are they going to be around to make changes and revisions etc? Bear in mind the old adage: you get what you pay for!

How Long Does It Take To See My Web Site?

Usually it takes around 2 to 3 weeks from giving me the authorization to go ahead and design your new small business web site to actually seeing it live on the Internet. It doesn't actually take that long to design it, but I usually work 2 or 3 other jobs at the same time, plus, of course, my regular house calls to regular clients. This ensures that I am always fresh and receptive to new ideas when working on your site.

Hopefully, this has given you an insight into how your new small business web site will work for you. As you can see, there are so many factors and components that go into the design of a small business web site, and I will make sure that you are fully aware of all the costs and content involved well before you decide to hire me.

There will be no hidden charges whatsoever - this is guaranteed. No tricks, no switching - I just don't have time for that. Just good honest service and advice based on my experience over the years.

Please do not hesitate to contact me for further industrial web site information.

What is the key to a successful small business web site?

One of the most misunderstood situations I come across with other small businesses is the way small business owners portray their businesses on their web sites. All too often we see business owners trying to show their visitors what they want them to see. It really should be the other way around. We should all be looking to show the visitor what the visitor wants to see.

Using a little subtle copywriting (not to be confused with copyrighting for ©), we can make the site very visitor friendly by concentrating on the visitor as well as the company. When a visitor likes what he sees and reads on your site it is much easier to turn him into a customer. By the way, this comes standard on all my small business web sites.