Frequently Asked Questions
Below are some questions and answers covering many topics regarding the design of an effective Web site. If you would like to find the answer to a question not covered below, please contact us.
Nu-Designs Team (9)
Revisions beyond the scope of the initial project agreement will be billed either as a contract revision or hourly based on the scope of the change. Nu-Designs will obtain verbal or written permission from client before performing additional billable work above and beyond the fee agreed upon in the initial work order. All communication will be documented in our project management software. Clients can access and participate in tracking things that are beyond the scope.
A one-third prepayment is required at the start of a project. Payments can be made by check or credit card. Subsequent monthly invoices correspond to the completion of specified milestones. Prepayments are credited to your account first and you are invoiceed for the balance monthly. Projects are tracked through our project management software called Basecamp. Basecamp is where we communicate messages, notes, todo's, milestones, files and our time. You will be able to check in on the status of your project anytime and approve any of the work before it is complete.
Every Client will be required to maintain a valid credit card on file. Payment for services are due upon receipt and can be paid by check or credit card. Amounts due over 45 days can be automatically billed to the your credit card.
Our project estimates are based on time and materials. We allocate time for each phase of your porject. Our hourly contract rates are currently $95 per hour. Our normal hourly rates are $115 per hour. All of our time is tracked in our project management system called Basecamp.
Nu-Designs excels at meeting client expectations during every phase of the project. Because we include the client during the entire development process, there are no surprises at the time of completion. Nu-Designs guarantees that all final Web site designs and capabilities meet professional industry standards in craftsmanship and quality and will be free of defects.
Many of Nu-Designs’ most satisfied clients are from outside our geographic area. Most communication on a Web development project is conducted via e-mail, telephone, web ex and fax. All mock-ups and in-process designs can be readily viewed on the Web. When needed, Nu-Designs and our clients can make arrangements to meet face-to-face during projects.
Your personal project manager will always be available for any questions or communications. Nu-Designs maintains a customized project tracking system called Basecamp. From this password-protected area, you can monitor your project on a daily basis and view the status of your project as the work progresses. You can participate in the development of the project by creating messages, uploading files, review project todo's and track your project's milestones.
Nu-Designs will typically assign one project lead or Project Manager. The Project Manager will be the center of communication for you during the entire process. However, you may also work directly with one of our designers or programmers. In any case the Project Manager will communicate with you to be sure your project runs smoothly. We will encourage you to directly participate in your website development. You will have access to anyone in our company through our project management software called Basecamp. With Basecamp you will be able to check in on your project at any time.
Some clients may choose to consult with Nu-Designs to develop a thorough list of requirements for their project prior to signing a full-scale production agreement. If this is the case, both parties will sign an agreement specifying that you have agreed to hire Nu-Designs for an initial-needs assessment consultation. Often, we will help clients with their ideas through wire frames and story boarding their project. We can also create a proof of concept prior to actually starting the project.
After an initial meeting has been held and the timeline, requirements and budget for your project have been reviewed, Nu-Designs will prepare a proposal that includes a detailed outline of the job along with cost estimates. Upon acceptance of the proposal, Nu-Designs will send a signed agreement and begin designing your Web site.
Did You Know? (12)
How fast is the Internet Growing? Very fast! It took 38 years for radio to reach 50 million users, 13 years for TV, and only 5 years for the Internet. The Internet is roughly 35% English, 65% Non-English with the Chinese at 14%. North America has the highest concentration with 70% of the people using the Internet. At least 155 million people in the US used search engines in 2007. That number will rise by 25 million in 2011 to more than 180 million people. The total number of Internet users passed 1 billion in 2005, up from 420 million in 2000.
Did you know that we make sure your site is web browser compatible? Your web site should look good on a PC and a MAC. It should maintain its appearance in Firefox, Safari, and Chrome as well as in Internet Explorer (I.E.). We will support at least the last two major versions back of each of the current top browsers.
In 2010, the I.E. market share was just over 50% meaning about half of all internet users were surfing the web using I.E. This may seem like a lot (and it is) but the I.E. market share continues to slide as more and more internet users find modern browsers such as Firefox (32%), Chrome (8%), Safari (6%), and Opera (2%). If you currently use I.E. you should try surfing the web with something new. You just may like what you find.
Click on any of the links below to download the current versions of other major web browsers:
You can grow your business with Internet marketing which includes search engine marketing, display advertising, e-mail marketing, affiliate marketing, interactive advertising and viral marketing.
We can design any number of photo gallery pages for your site. If you want it simple of fancy, we’ve got a solution to fit your budget and needs.
Take a look at a few sample gallery pages we have set up for a few of our clients.
A Web site can look beautiful, but if it has terrible writing, it can affect the reader’s perception of your company’s credibility and professionalism. Beautiful graphics lose their impact when the accompanying copy is full of typos or confusing sentences.
When it comes down to someone making a choice between you and a competitor, good writing can make the difference.
Google has a program called AdSense that could put money in your pocket. If your Web site is getting traffic but not converting page-views into sales, AdSense could be your ticket to putting targeted advertizing on your site and generating revenue from click-through traffic. Contact our SEO team to learn more.
When you think about what your new website should "look" like you might consider starting with your logo. What is your current online branding like. What are your colors, fonts, and shape of your logo. These can help drive what your new corporate branding should look like. Modernization of your website doesn't mean reinventing your brand unless that is what you are looking to do. Our designers like to discuss your current logo first and then let thier creative juices come up with new design ideas for your website. We will suggest many of the latest trends in marketing and usibility on the web. If needed, we can develop a new logo for you based on your corporate vision.
You can always add an additional domain name to your existing site. Have you seen the latest trend? Phrase Domains such as “gettheglass.com” or “morethanpaint.com”. If your domain is too hard to convey to your clients, perhaps the next step is to go with “ComeOverAndSeeMySite.com”
Check now to see if that additional domain name is available for your site.
Your website should be web compliant. Web standards and other technical specifications have are driven by a set of best practacts for building web sites. We work diligently to deliver Web sites that pass the W3C (The World Wide Web Consortium) validation process showing we care enough to follow guidelines that ensure long-term growth for the Web.
Web sites in your industry are competing for the same keyword space on search engines. There may be a significant number of potential clients that need your services but they aren’t finding your site. Use Google Antalytics to find out how your customers are currently finding your website and use the Google Key Word Tool to learn more about key words in your industry.
We can help you make money by installing Google’s AdSense on your Web site. By tailoring the ads that get placed on your site you could get money everytime a visitor to your site clicks on a related link. Find out more by contacting our SEO team.
Everyone knows you can drive traffic to your site by promoting with advertising banners but you can also drive traffic from your own site to specific products and offers and monitor results of your own campaigns. Contact us anytime to learn more about banners and banner management.
SEO stands for Search engine optimization it involves building new websites, or changing existing websites, so that they rank highly in a search engine's organic (free) listings when users search on terms that are related to the site's content. Google maintains a 60-70 percent share of all searches in the United States. One of the main elements that determain your search engine listing is content.
Your website should be web compliant. Web standards and other technical specifications have are driven by a set of best practacts for building web sites. We work diligently to deliver Web sites that pass the W3C (The World Wide Web Consortium) validation process showing we care enough to follow guidelines that ensure long-term growth for the Web.
Web sites in your industry are competing for the same keyword space on search engines. There may be a significant number of potential clients that need your services but they aren’t finding your site. Use Google Antalytics to find out how your customers are currently finding your website and use the Google Key Word Tool to learn more about key words in your industry.
Web Site Design (5)
One consideration when creating your website is to make certain that your layout allows visitors to easily absorb the information presented and that it allows for efficient navigation. Also, if you do not have enough content on your site to justify a sophisticated layout, don’t feel obligated to use one; in other words, if your site’s message is going to be simple, then keep your layout simple. A well-designed layout will make important page links obvious to your visitors, allow them to obtain the information they want in no more than two mouse button clicks and keep them from having to hunt for page links to get more information.
Clients retain complete copyright ownership of all final artwork and designs. It is possible that purchased or leased photographs may be used within a site may have managed usage rights with limitations defined during acquisition.
Did you know that we make sure your site is web browser compatible? Your web site should look good on a PC and a MAC. It should maintain its appearance in Firefox, Safari, and Chrome as well as in Internet Explorer (I.E.). We will support at least the last two major versions back of each of the current top browsers.
In 2010, the I.E. market share was just over 50% meaning about half of all internet users were surfing the web using I.E. This may seem like a lot (and it is) but the I.E. market share continues to slide as more and more internet users find modern browsers such as Firefox (32%), Chrome (8%), Safari (6%), and Opera (2%). If you currently use I.E. you should try surfing the web with something new. You just may like what you find.
Click on any of the links below to download the current versions of other major web browsers:
We can design any number of photo gallery pages for your site. If you want it simple of fancy, we’ve got a solution to fit your budget and needs.
Take a look at a few sample gallery pages we have set up for a few of our clients.
A Web site can look beautiful, but if it has terrible writing, it can affect the reader’s perception of your company’s credibility and professionalism. Beautiful graphics lose their impact when the accompanying copy is full of typos or confusing sentences.
When it comes down to someone making a choice between you and a competitor, good writing can make the difference.
Including relevant links to other sites is good business on the Web. For example: If you operate a store that sells ski equipment, including a link to the manufacturer’s Web site would allow those visiting to find out more about some of the products that you offer. Overall, links are easy to include and are a great way to provide additional information, entertainment and education to your site’s visitors, all of which increases the likelihood that they will become customers. However, it is more important to the search engines that other relevant websites link to your website. Contact your suppliers, clients and affiliates and ask them to link to your website. Incoming links have a high value to your search engine placement.
When designing graphics or images to be used within a Web page, knowledgeable designers try to balance aesthetics and efficiency. Graphics should be attractive and functional, imposing only a moderate download time of the entire page. Our current development techniques utilize many photos as background images which load independently from the content, helping the search engines find the content quicker.
Nu-Designs prides itself in having one of the fastest turnaround times in the industry. From the signing of production agreement, Nu-Designs averages an eight to 12 week turnaround time for most sites.
SEO stands for Search engine optimization it involves building new websites, or changing existing websites, so that they rank highly in a search engine's organic (free) listings when users search on terms that are related to the site's content. Google maintains a 60-70 percent share of all searches in the United States. One of the main elements that determain your search engine listing is content.
Promotion of your Web site is critical to its success. If nobody knows your site exists, nobody will see it. Word-of-mouth advertising is valuable, but not enough to garner a return on your investment. Luckily, there are ways to go about promoting your Web site that are relatively simple-and effective. Manage your website content. Update your site frequently. Participate in a blog. Establish your business on some of the social networking sites like Twitter, YouTube, and Facebook. Have your suppliers, customers and affiliates link to your website. These are just some of the things you can do to promote your business on the web.
A Web presence is much like radio, print, or television advertising in that your goal is to determine your target audience, capture their attention and motivate them to action. With traditional advertising it is sometimes possible to make a poorly-conceived advertisement work for you as long as you saturate the medium being used. This is not the case on the Worldwide Web. If your site is complicated, poorly designed and impossible to navigate easily, people will simply move on and probably never return no matter how well your site is ranked within search engines. Unlike traditional forms of advertising, visitors to your site, whether they followed a link or found you through a search engine, arrive there because they are already interested in something you have to offer. With that bonus in your favor, a well-constructed Web site is what it takes to convince them that they are in the right place.
You can grow your business with Internet marketing which includes search engine marketing, display advertising, e-mail marketing, affiliate marketing, interactive advertising and viral marketing.
You can always add an additional domain name to your existing site. Have you seen the latest trend? Phrase Domains such as “gettheglass.com” or “morethanpaint.com”. If your domain is too hard to convey to your clients, perhaps the next step is to go with “ComeOverAndSeeMySite.com”
Check now to see if that additional domain name is available for your site.
We're using Basecamp. Login to review the work we are doing for you.