FAQ’s
Now that I’ve decided to have a new website designed, what happens next?
We will call you to arrange a time to talk to you about your initial requirements and we will also send you an initial questionnaire based on that discussion. When we have received your completed questionnaire we will then put together a proposal for you and make some initial suggestions that will sit on our development servers.
How long does it take to have my new web site designed?
This is determined entirely by the size of the project that we are undertaking and we will give you an initial guideline and time frame in our first meeting with you.
How do you organise meetings as you are in Dorset and I’m not?
We can organise face to face meetings where distance isn’t an issue or we can hold meetings over the Internet that uses video conferencing software. If you would prefer us to travel to your company and you are outside our normal area of travel, we will probably need to charge you expenses, but we will discuss these in advance and you can then make an appropriate decision.
What is a URL or domain name?
URL means “universal resource locator”, and this is the web address that you see in the web page when you access sites on the Internet. It looks something like http://www.internet-mentor.co.uk. A domain name on the other hand is a specific web site address that registered with Nominet in the UK (if it ends in .uk). Our domain name is internet-mentor.co.uk.
What sort of information is normally found on a website?
All websites are different and the information you need to include will depend on what you would like your website to achieve for you. So, you may include information about the business, about your products and services, how people can find you as well as news and other updates. You may also create an e-Commerce site if you have a shopping cart, that allows your users to buy products and services from you over the Internet. You may also use your website as a way of interacting with your visitors and customers. All of these different models can be discussed during our initial discussions. A good place to start for ideas is on your competitors websites, try not to focus on what they look like, rather on what they can do instead.
Does it matter what it looks like if it works?
It depends on what you mean by ‘work’. Good web design is more than a nice look and feel. It is also important that people can find there way to what they are looking for quickly and easily without it having to be explained to them. However, the way your site looks does say a lot about the quality of the company that it is representing too, which is why we use designs that try to meet both needs.
Do I get e-mail with my website?
Yes! we’ll give you up to five email addresses (plus a handy guide that helps you to add it to your PC for easy access). You’ll also be able to read, reply and write emails on the web, meaning you can keep up to date with what’s going on when you’re away from home too if you want.
Can I see how many visitors I’ve had to my web site?
Yes, we set up a unique account with Google Analytics for you so that you can track what’s happening with your website, whenever and wherever you happen to be.
Will search engines pick my website up?
Yes, all of our sites are registered with the search engines as soon as they are created and everytime you add a piece of news or write in your blog, the search engines will be notified so they can index the site again.
Can I add pages myself with your web content management system?
Yes, but this will depend on how you would like us to set the site up for you. If you want, you can have complete control over everything, which means you can add as many pages as you want, whenever you want. However, this will require a bit of forethought as it will interfere with the layout of your site. You may prefer us to set your site up so that you can simply edit the pages, add products (to an e-commerce site) and add news or blog articles. We’ll happily explain the differences too you so you can make your mind up about what is best for you. And remember, you can change your mind in the future and we can turn features on or off as you wish.
Can I add various files on my web site?
Yes, you can add imges, videos, music and other documents to a page as you wish although there are limits to the size of files you can upload and in some cases you may be better off hosting your files elsewhere and embedding them in your website. You can also use FTP (file transfer protocol) if you are a confident use of the web!
How will I measure the ROI (return on investment) of my website?
As with anything, it is important that your website provides a return on the investment of time and money that you put into it. Therefore, the first thing you need to be sure about, is what you want your website to do for you. In our opinion all websites should have the ability to engage with a potential customer or visitor almost immediately as this will help to make it sticky. There are many ways in which you can do this and we will be able to talk through our suggestions and ideas for you in our initial meeting.
Does my web site have to be hosted by Internet Mentor?
Not necessarily, however you will need a host who can provide you with at least one MySQL database and PHP version 4.3 at the very least. If you want to host elsewhere, we can check with your host if they can hold the software we use.
Can I register my domain name through you?
Yes, we can register domains such as .co.uk, org.uk, com, .org at competitive market rates. Please contact us for more details.
Do I have to transfer my domain to you?
No, you don’t have to transfer your domain to us if you don’t want to, even if you decide to use our hosting. Please talk to us and we’ll explain what we can (and cannot) do for you.
How will I know how to use my website?
We provide comprehensive documentation for your website as well as a one to one training session with the person who will be responsible for it. We will also explain how to use the integrated social marketing strategy we include in all of our packages too.
What do you need from me?
If you have any logo’s or images you would like to use, we will need good quality high resolution copies. If you don’t have them in the correct format you may want to talk to your graphic designers who should be able to convert them for you. If you don’t have a graphic designer, we can use ours, but there will be an additional cost to you which you will be informed of at the outset of the contract.
We will also need information. We will send you a comprehensive questionnaire to complete or alternatively we can use the information you have on any current website.
What charges will I have in the future?
If we host your domain name for you, we will pass the cost of the domain name re-registration to you when it comes up for renewal (this happens every two years). If we host your website we will provide free hosting for the first year and we will then charge you £95 per year, this will also include FREE updates to your software as well. If we aren’t hosting your website, we will charge £45 per year to manage the updates to your software.
Does your web content management system work with both Mac and PC?
Yes, our content management system is completely managed through the web. We do recommend that you use the latest versions of a web browser to administer your website – specifically we recommend using Firefox. However, your website visitors are not restricted in any way at all and your website will work with any browser.
Which browsers does the content management system work with?
Our content management system works will almost all but the very oldest version of web browsers. We aim to support as many browsers as possible, but we urge customers to keep up to date with browsers as they are free on the whole!
Do I need any additional software?
The only software you may need might be something to work on images with such as Adobe Photoshop. If you plan to upload files to your website through FTP, then you will need and FTP client as well – we can advice on this if you would like us to.
Can other people also administer my website or add content if I wish?
Yes, your website can have multiple contributors in the form of authors, editors and administrators. This allows you to manage what the various users are able to do on your website as well. If you prefer we can turn off almost all administrative functions for others except you and ourselves.
When can I update my website?
There is no time limit to when you can update or add to your website, your content managment system is accesible to you 24/7 as long as you have access to the internet and a compatible browser.
Is there any training provided?
Yes, we will provide you with a half day’s training on your website which can be delivered online over the web if you aren’t local to Dorset or in your offices if you are. We will also provide email support and you can telephone us for a chat too!
What about Search Engine Optimisation?
Our website software is specially designed to be highly search engine friendly from the outset and we will provide you with advice on how to use your website effectively to ensure that this continues. You also have a complete social marketing toolkit built into your website from the outset, which is heavily automated to reduce the amount of time that you need to use in managing the site. This will help enormously with ensuring that your website is effective in helping drive business growth.
Do you provide planning and project management?
In most cases this isn’t really necessary, however you may have a plan that is outside of the scope of our standard offerings and we would be happy to talk to you about your requirements. If we feel we aren’t the best placed web development team to help you, then we will let you know and provide you with access to other organisations you can talk to instead.
