Web Design Done Right.

Our philosophy is a simple one...that there's only one way to create a website.

The right way.

While other designers take shortcuts, resort to using "stupid web tricks" and gimmicks that can hurt rather than help your page rankings in Google, skipping important details and generally thumb their nose at doing things the right way, we've developed a winning formula:

Build it right from the ground up.

There is no substitute for a well-written, well-planned, cleanly designed website. While many of the details we take care of are mostly unnoticed individually, they are subliminally felt by the user and present a polished design package and a smooth user experience.

Your website is the virtual equivalent to a retail store or office building, and a direct reflection on your business. It's the first impression your business will make to hundreds, thousands, or even millions of potential customers.

Because it's far easier for unscrupulous fly-by-night businesses to set up shop online than in a brick-and-mortar store, it's important that you to portray a solid reputation online, setting your business apart and letting the quality of your business be shown through the quality of your website.

Where would you rather shop?

A store with peeling paint, decor from the 80's, either clearly neglected or thrown together in a hurry? A store that's hard to get into, with doors that lead to nowhere, is so cluttered you can't find what you need? Loud obnoxious hard-pressure salespeople popping up in your face?

Or a store that makes it easy for you to enter, is welcoming and well organized so you can find what you need and has plenty of help available if needed. Decor that's tasteful but not overbearing, and though you can't always put your finger on exactly what it is, the experience makes you want to spend more time shopping as well as return often.

We design with the following in mind:

  • Industry Appropriate Style
    What may look perfect for Barnum & Bailey would be out of place for Deloitte & Touche. Your site will be designed with your user in mind, in a look and feel that fits your business and will deliver your website's message effectively.
  • Coded By Hand
    All WYSIWYG editors and generators write sloppy bloated code, often adding empty elements, poor syntax, and unintended tags. This adds unneeded weight to your pages, hurts you with search engine rankings, can introduce coding errors and makes maintenance difficult at best.

    While writing the code by hand is more work, we believe the results are well worth the extra effort. It's the difference between baking a cake from scratch, knowing every ingredient that's included...or using a box of Jiffy mix.
  • Cross-Browser Compatibility
    Each browser displays any given website differently, some very differently. Any browser with an average market share of 20% and over is taken into consideration during development, and your website will be tested in those, with adjustments made to compensate for any browser display bugs.

    Currently this list includes Firefox 3.5, Internet Explorer 7, and Internet Explorer 8. Depending on your target market, other browsers may be added to testing.
  • Flexible Layout
    In most cases, a fluid layout is used, which means your website will look good in a wide range of screen resolutions and different browsers. Though it's impossible to accommodate all, we certainly do our best.
  • Easily Expandable
    As your business grows so should your website, and we design from the start to allow for this growth.
  • User-Friendly Navigation
    We use navigation links and placement that make sense, making it easy for users to find the information they seek. In addition to the main navigation bar, there is always a smaller secondary set of text links, which helps with Google as well accessibility.
  • Forward Compatibility
    By strict adherence to Web Standards, our websites are built to work with the technology of today and tomorrow. We don't use outdated code or tags marked as deprecated (which may be made obsolete in future versions of HTML). All pages pass W3C Validation, verifying all code is error-free per the Web Standards set by the W3C.
  • Search Engine Optimized
    Written with SEO in mind and yet still aimed at delivering your message to your audience. We don't use any "stupid SEO tricks", which can actually hurt your Google rankings. Google's own guidelines for webmasters are followed, making it easy for Google to catalog and index your site, which include:
    • Writing clean code with relevant content
    • Use of CSS, to separate content from presentation
    • Use of appropriate and accurate DOCTYPE, META tags
    • Use of appropriate keywords and description
    • Use of an appropriate and descriptive page title
    • Defining a character set (utf-8, for global compatibility)
    • Use of the "ALT" tribute for all images
    • Use of text links
    • Including a robots.txt file
    • Creating and submitting a Google sitemap
  • Fast Loading Pages
    We don't bog down your pages with an overabundance of Javascript, but use it sparingly and only when needed, optimizing (shrinking) all scripts and images used. CSS is used to separate content from the document's structure which makes pages lighter. Since lighter pages load faster, this results in a happy user experience.
  • Secure Code
    The security of your website is a top priority, and only secured scripts and methods will be used.
  • Using The Right Tool For The Job
    We use text, rather than graphics, whenever possible for words and headings. Why not graphics? After all, they're easier and faster for us, and the average user can't tell the difference. Ohhhh, but Google knows. Google always knows. Search engines can read text, but they can't read graphics, so using graphics in place of headings and text will cost you dearly. We don't take shortcuts, we do it right.
  • You Save Money On Hosting and Maintenance
    We keep it lean and tight. Optimizing and organizing results in a website that uses less space and bandwidth. Since most web hosts charge based on disk space and bandwidth usage, this nets you considerable savings over the life of your website.

    Cleanly coded pages organized in a standard hierarchy also makes the job of whoever will be maintaining and updating your website easier. Since this is a task normally billed by the hour, easier and faster costs you less.

    In addition, we modularize all page elements that are duplicated on each page (calling the element into each page from a single, centralized document). When a change needs to be made to the text in the footer or a navigation link, there's only one file that needs to be changed, rather than every single page. For a 50-100 page website, this alone can be a considerable time and cost savings, in addition to reducing the chance for error.

    By using text rather than graphics for headings and words, changes can be made that much faster. Even with the original PhotoShop files (which we rarely get when doing maintenance on a site someone else designed), recreating graphics takes considerably more time than making a change to text.
  • Web Accessibility
    Our websites are tested and designed for accessibility by several different groups of visually impaired users.

    All images have a descriptive "alt" tag, appropriate use of color combinations that allow for differentiation (while statistics vary, 8-20% of men and 0.5% of women have some level of color blindness), pages have a meaningful title, and all text is proportionately sized as to not conflict with a user's browser settings. If you've ever visited a website that used a very tiny font size that was "locked" and didn't allow for adjustment, you'll know how frustrating this can be even for users who aren't visually impaired.

    Making even an effort towards WAI/WCAG Compliance is so often overlooked, it's another reason your website will shine above the rest. While a federal law requires that federal agencies' websites be made accessible, it's a good idea for all businesses.

    Sadly, the Section508.gov website for the governmental agency set up to promote and enforce this law, while technically passing accessibility validation, does so by using empty "alt" tags. An "alt" tag is what tells both a search engine and a visually impaired user a description of the image, and is part of the requirement of being "accessible."

    Ummmm, yeah. We can do better than that.
  • Attention To Detail
    We take care of all the little details that individually may go unnoticed, but collectively present a polished package that reflects well on your business.
    • Page Titles
      All pages will have an appropriate and meaningful page title, including the company name. Not only is a title required for accessibility validation and a key component in being correctly indexed by Google, it helps your business be recognized.

      Take a moment and look in your own bookmarks. How many do you see with titles of "index" or "home", or even "title goes here"? In most cases, without going to that page, how would you know what website that link belongs to?
    • A Favicon
      That little "icon" that displays in your browser's address bar to the left of the URL, and next to the URL when a page is bookmarked. This helps with branding and name recognition.
    • Spam Protect Your Email and Forms
      To protect your email address as much as possible from spam, any time it's used on your website we munge (obfuscate) it using a small script that still allows humans to read and use it, but blocks email harvesters. On most websites using a contact form (with a special "trap" against email harvesters) is preferable.

      Not only does this cut down on spam even more, it makes it easier for potential customers to contact you because it doesn't require them to open a separate email client to do so.
    • Separate CSS Document for IE
      Internet Explorer's support of CSS and the way it follows the generally accepted standards other browsers do has always been...different. All development is done and tested using Firefox, the most standards compliant browser, then a special set of CSS rules are written to compensate for IE's differences.
    • Copyright Statement
      At the bottom of each page a copyright statement is included. We utilize a very lightweight script to automatically calculate and change the year as needed, making this one less detail a website owner needs to worry about. And though it's always good to keep your website fresh by adding new content, for those who don't this helps your website not appear abandoned or unmaintained.
    • Last Modified Statement
      When appropriate and/or requested, a small script can be added to each page's footer, showing your users when the page content was last updated. When dealing with time-sensitive material this is highly recommended.
What You Can Expect From Us.
  • Ethical Business Practices
    Adherence to Copyright laws, including the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. No unauthorized or "stolen" copy, images/photos, graphics or documents will be knowingly used on your website, even if you request it. Free open-source scripts and software are used whenever possible, but if only a commercial product will achieve the goal, a legally obtained copy with license fees paid will be used.
  • Complimentary Research Time
    We take the time to research the best and most secure way to accomplish a given goal. Considering the Internet is changing daily, sometimes that can be a daunting task. Sometimes external providers change their methods and disallow access to free services that have worked well in the past. Sometimes a script that worked perfectly two months ago is now outdated or has been found to have security leaks. Sometimes newer more elegant ways and methods are discovered.

    On any given project it's expected that research time will amount to up to 30% of the total time spent. We view research time as being a part of our continuing education in the industry, and except under very rare circumstances (such as an uncommon proprietary software or script) we don't charge for that time and it's included in the total package.
  • Free User Support
    No matter how much testing in a variety of different browsers and screen resolutions happens during development, there can be an unusual user environment (be it their browser, operating system or screen resolution) where your website won't display as intended or something might look out of place.

    For this reason, we like to be available for your users to contact should they find any display abnormalities or experience any errors. It reflects well on you and your business when your users know there's someone available who cares about their experience with your website.

    As long as you're a current client in good standing, we place a very small link at the bottom of each page, so that users may contact us with any issues or provide feedback regarding the design of your website. If it's something that can be adjusted we do so, and at no additional charge.
  • General Recommendations
    Recommendations on what's best for your website and your business, from Branding, Social Media options, Security, Logo Development to Marketing. Out-sourcing to trusted partners when needed.
  • Communication During Development
    The average website takes three to six (3-6) weeks to complete. During that time we keep you informed and involved in the progress.
    • Mockups For Your Approval
      You'll receive mockups (an artistic representation of the basic layout, sort of a "blueprint") of your future website in the first week. You'll have a couple days to look them over and design which design best meets your needs.
    • Test Site
      A test site is created in the 2nd week of development, so you can see the site as it's being created.
    • Periodic Progress Reports
      The process and all that goes into building a website can be overwhelming and unfamiliar to some, and we've found by breaking it down into small "bite-sized" segments, the process is more "easily digestible" and understood by our clients. The timing of the progress reports is dependent on the scope/length of the project, and will be discussed at the beginning.
    • Live Chat
      We're available by Live Chat or Instant Message for quick questions.
    • Wrap-Up Report
      At the completion of your website you'll receive what we call a "Wrap-Up Report", which gives an overall list of your website's design, explains why certain design elements were used, and gives screen shots of key pages.
    • Layout Cheat Sheet
      Along with the Wrap-Up Report you'll receive a "Layout Cheat Sheet", showing the proper names of key elements (or areas) of your website's layout. This makes it easier for us to communicate regarding changes. "The footer is too wide" is much easier to understand than "That blue part doesn't look right...no, the blue part. OK, the other blue part..."
  • AfterCare Included
    Included in each package is two (2) hours of Website Maintenance, we call AfterCare. They can be used for minor tweaking and adjustments after your site is completed; for CMS, Social Media, or cPanel training, or additions to your site.

    Use these hours however you like, they never expire. Hourly Maintenance beyond the two hours is available at the discounted rate of $60.
Everything Your Need Is Included.

Your website is more than just the design.

Setting up everything you'll need can be confusing and unfamiliar territory for some and it usually involves interacting with at least two or three different companies if not more.

We believe in being a full-service company, simplifying the process as much as possible while saving you time and money.

We understand the complexities of web hosting, web security and transferring a domain name, and bring that knowledge into the design of your website. Since we handle it all, you'll never have to wonder who to contact if you have a question about your website needs.

While other companies charge extra or trick clients by registering themselves as the owner of your domain name and allowing it's use only as long as you continue to use their over-priced services, or in some cases only continuing to provide any service if you purchase all your website needs from them.

We don't believe in holding our clients hostage. Though these services are included, you are under no obligation to use them. We just think you'd be crazy to go anywhere else.

  • Your Domain Name
    We include your domain name's first year registration, registered with you as the owner. Subsequent years are $15 per year.
  • Your First Six (6) Months of Hosting
    Hosting, including initial set up of your website and domain email. We offer quality hosting that includes:
    • cPanel website hosting management interface
    • unlimited email accounts using your domain name
    • very powerful and user customizable SPAM filtering
    • unlimited FTP accounts
    • mailing lists
    • website traffic logs
    • 50-70 different applications you can install with one click
    • and much, much more
  • Graphic Design And Optimization
    Basic graphic design, photo manipulation and optimizing your photos as needed is included, up to 10 hours (this is plenty for most businesses). We can even scan your photos if you don't have them in digital format. Extensive graphic design needs are additional and billed hourly.
  • Copy Editing
    All client provided copy is edited and checked for correct spelling, grammar and punctuation as needed, with lifetime free error correction if a misspelling sneaks past us. If extensive copywriting assistance is needed, it's available additionally at our hourly rate.
  • And More
    Included (at no additional charge) with all packages of $1,595 and up:
    • A Privacy Policy
      A standard privacy policy page, appropriate for your industry and customized for your business. This not only informs and assures your users of your commitment to protecting their privacy and how you use any information gathered from them, but may be required by your state.
    • Custom 404 Page
      A "404" page displays when your user requests a page that doesn't exist, either from an outdated link or mistyping the URL. Let your users know you care that they've taken the time to visit your website, and that you're trying to help them find the information they're looking for.

      A custom 404 page typically includes a some sort of navigation links, and is highly preferable to sending your users to a generic error page.
Simplified Rates.

If you've done any comparison shopping at all (we encourage you to, as the more competitors you look at, the more we shine) you'll notice very few list any sort of rates. Some only list an hourly rate, and while a few have packaged rates, most just state "Contact us and we'll get you a quote."

We understand why most design firms do that, as each client's wants and needs are different, and the time any website project takes can be hard to quantify.

But we also understand this makes it very difficult for most small businesses to compare. Though we never want to chosen on the basis of price alone, over the years we've come up with a formula that works. You could say...we've got this down to a science.

Basic Design Package: $1,295

This includes the basic design and layout, the index page (your first page), your domain name and 6 months of web hosting.

Each Additional Page: $100

The type and number of pages you should have varies greatly and depends on what you want your website to accomplish. Each website, each client, each business, all have different needs and goals.

Some sites are informational, some are an adjunct to a brick-and-mortar store, others sell products or services directly from the website. More than anything, you want to give users a reason to come to your site.

Here's just a few ideas, but the possibilities are truly endless.

  • About Us or Bio Page [recommended]
    People like to know who they're doing business with, and letting potential customers know who you are is more important online than in a brick-and-mortar store. An "About Us" page tells about you, your business, your business history, accomplishments, why they would want to do business with you over a competitor.
  • Products or Services [recommended]
    What you sell, what you do. A musician could include sound clips, discography, lyrics. An attorney's office could list the types of cases they accept or their specialty.
  • Contact Us [recommended]
    The objective for most websites is so potential customers can contact you, so make it easy for them! Include a contact form, your address and phone number. This can also be a place for social media buttons or links.
  • Specials or Promotions
    A place for your latest promotions!
  • Newsletters
    A place for users to sign-up for your newsletter and/or an online database of past newsletters.
  • News, Announcements
    This can be an RSS feed of the news from your industry or an embedded blog of yours to showcase what's new in your company.
  • Embedded Blog
    A blog is an easy way for you to add fresh content to your site without the hassle and extra cost of a full-blown CMS. We use a free blogging service embedded into a page in your site, customizing the theme of the blog to match and seamlessly blend into your site. Using an external service means you also don't bear the cost or hassle of blogging software updates.
  • Events Calendar
    Announce upcoming company events or presentations.
  • Appointment Booking
    There are several online services that offer widgets for your website, allowing your users to book appointments directly on your website. External services may charge a monthly fee for their service.
  • Testimonials
    This can also be a part of the "About Us" page.
  • Careers, Job Openings
  • Online Advertisements
  • Photo Gallery, Slideshow
  • Training Videos
  • Members Section
    A members section requiring a login can be created.
  • Roadmap, Coming Soon
    Let your customers know what's in the works or new features you're working on making available.
Design A La Carte.

The following services are available either purchased alone or with a design package.

  • Installation of a CMS or
    Simple Shopping Cart: $500 - $995
    When installing either a CMS or shopping cart system, security is a high priority, as is ease of use for you.

    Please bear in mind that a CMS and/or a shopping cart system is basically a "site within a site", and as such is almost double the work. The addition of either will add an average of two (2) weeks to your project time frame. If you'd like both added during a new design, we're happy to provide a custom quote.
    • Content Management Systems
      Also called CMS, have become very popular in recent years, and there are hundreds of CMS choices available. A content management system (CMS) is a computer application used to create, edit, manage, and publish content in a consistently organized fashion. A CMS allowing content creators to submit content without requiring technical knowledge of HTML or the uploading of files.

      The best time to install a CMS is during the initial design. "Retrofitting" a CMS into an existing design can be time-consuming and complex, and almost always results in some level of change to the design.
    • Simple Shopping Cart Systems
      Allows you to sell items from your website. As with CMS's, there are hundreds of choices. You can called payments via PayPal, Google Checkout or sign up for a merchant account.

      Any shopping cart accepting credit cards directly (not through a 3rd party payment processor such as PayPal) will require a merchant account (which requires your website to be PCI Compliant), a dedicated IP and a SSL Certificate.
  • Installation of an eCommerce Store:
    $5,000 - $25,000+
    The cost of an eCommerce store depends on which eCommerce platform we agree on (you'll be presented with a few that are best suited for your company and/or products), and how many products you offer..
  • Installation of a SSL Certificate: $99
    [additional SSL products coming soon]
  • Licensing Fees For Commercial Products
    Rates will vary dependent on the commercial product itself.
Custom Quotes Are Always Available.

Just because we've packaged things up in the interest of simplicity, doesn't mean we can't still deliver a custom quote if what we have listed here doesn't fit your needs.

We have a wide range of talents, and are available for different levels of web development collaboration.

  • Database Development and Interfaces
  • Photo Editing and Manipulation
  • Sound Clip Creation and Editing
  • Media File Conversion
  • WordPress or Blogger Theme Design
  • Social Media Consultation, Accounts Setup
  • Fluent In Most Scripting Languages:
    PHP, Perl, Javascript/AJAX (inc JQuery, MooTools)
    in addition to HTML/XHTML and CSS, MySQL, etc
Let's Get Started.

There's never been a better time to promote your business online.

Investing in a quality website is the smartest use of your advertising dollars, with a far higher ROI (Return On Investment) than a Yellow Pages display ad.

And unlike a Yellow Pages ad, which starts to become obsolete before it leaves the printers...a website is a living, growing virtual representation of your business, available 24/7/365 to anyone in the world with Internet access.

Contact Us For A Custom Quote

Contact us today for a customized quote!

Contact Us Now!
Only $500 Gets Us Started

If you already know what you want, have already received a quote, or are just anxious to get started,
we're ready to start building a website for you!

Click Here To Order Now

Pay your initial deposit using our secure ordering cart. After your deposit is received we'll contact you to get the information we'll need to get started right away.

Though the majority of our clients want their website completed yesterday, we're also happy to stretch out the payments to accommodate any budgetary requirements you may have.