Website Design Packages

Generally websites fall into four categories:

• Websites for local companies
• Websites for national companies
• Websites for international companies
• E-commerce websites

Using the above categories I price packages accordingly but each time I always include the following:

• Full consultation and design
• Website development
• Targeted user interface
• Manage your own site with my easy to use Content Management System
• Responsive website design - one website that serves mobile / handheld devices and desktops

I've been in business for over 10 years and have clients in the UK, USA, Germany, The Netherlands and China.

Website Hosting

We use a 3rd party web host for all our web sites. There are some very good reasons for doing this. By using Europe's most popular hosting service we are partners in a business that has the resources to implement the latest technology as it emerges. Many smaller hosting companies and web design companies that host their own sites find this level of service impossible to match.

Chris Fickling Design make no money from web site hosting and we ensure your domain name is your property - your domain name will always be registered in your individual or company name.

The quality of web site hosting has a direct effect on your positioning in Google and the end user experience. Our 3rd party host has a 99.6% 'up-time' and a very good delivery speed for web pages.

How do I get a domain name?

Ideally you should speak to us first, so as part of your over all web development strategy we can find the optimum domain name for your business. Your domain name is very important and should be considered carefully.

What about email addresses?

As part of your web development quote we will provide you with a web site hosting plan that will outline the number of email addresses available in your particular package. This will be discussed in advance and the number of email addresses can be increased as the need arises.

Website Design Guide

A brief explanation of how websites work and how the web in general functions.

A brief explanation of web sites

• A web site is a collection of related files stored on a web server
• A web server is a computer that stores web sites and delivers them, on request, to a browser
• A browser is a software program such as Internet Explorer that allows you to view content on the World Wide Web
• The World Wide Web is a network of servers that delivers information to a web browser in Hyper Text Markup Language
• Hyper Text Markup Language is the code used to tell a browser how to display a web page
• A web page is typically a collection of text and images displayed in a predefined format and reached by typing in or clicking on a Uniform Resource Locator
• A Uniform Resource Locator is typically an address on the World Wide Web such as http://www.chrisficklingdesign.co.uk
• chrisficklingdesign.co.uk is a website developer

What does web site design involve?

• First we talk about your expectations and requirements - with particular emphasis on your 'web presence'.
• I then produce a detailed quote explaining exactly how we will handle your requirements - in other words 'a strategy'
• I produce artwork for your approval - this artwork will be the basis of your web site
• I start to write the copy based on what you tell us and with your potential customers in mind
• I optimise all graphics for the web and write the code that tells the browser how to display your pages
• I optimise your web pages to ensure that potential users of your site can find you on the World Wide Web
• Itest and refine the site as necessary

Depending on the type of web site, I update the site on a regular basis or we leave you to update the site after training from me.
How do I know my web site will get found on the World Wide Web?

I build websites to standards that we hope will increase your chances of being found by search engines such as Google. I use high quality servers to deliver your web pages and I word copy on your web site so that it is matched to search phrases I hope your potential customers will use. There are many different ways of building a web site and I am constantly striving to use the latest methods to make your web site as visible to search engines as possible.