| General
Questions
Why
do I need a website?
What if I already have a website? Do you redesign
existing sites?
How long will it take to design my website?
Are there any hidden fees or costs?
I have decided to use Southern Graphics' design services.
What do I do now?
Why should I hire a professional designer?
What forms of payment do you accept?
Business Specific
Questions
I
am a small business owner. What can a website do for me?
What can a website do for my local business?
Can you use my business's existing logo, brochure design,
and other materials for my website?
Do I own the site and design?
Domain, Search
Engine, & Similar Questions
What is a
URL?
What is a domain name?
What should I look for in a domain name?
What is an Internet Service Provider?
What kind of services will I need once the site
is completed?
What is a web host? Do you provide this service?
Why do I need someone to host my site?
Can I use Southern Graphics to design my site but
choose my own web host?
What is 'site maintenance' and do I even need
it?
Why can't I find my website in the search engines?
Can you guarantee my site will be listed in all
the search engines?
If I build a great website, will they come?
What ingredients should a "good" website
have?
Other Questions
Do
you design websites for individuals, too?
What is your payment policy for website design
clients?
My existing website needs a few minor changes. Do
you handle small jobs like that?
Does a designer need to be local?
After designing the website, if it needs
to be updated what is your maintenance fee to do this?
If there are any problems, how are they corrected?
Support service?
General Questions
Why
do I need a website?
If exposing your business to an unlimited number
of potential customers interests you, you need a website. It's your
24-hour virtual salesperson and your competition probably has a site.
Whether you use your site for sales or simply a tool you can point customers
to for credibility and information, a website can increase your client
base. A website can offer your business many advantages, including:
• More professional company image
• Increased sales
• Inexpensive advertising
• Edge on the competition
• A website can help your business reach new customers, keep you
in closer contact with your current customers, and enable you to respond
quickly and efficiently in a rapidly changing market.
What if I already
have a website? Do you redesign existing sites?
Many people are not happy with the current design
of their website. The internet is now a serious marketplace and your
website visitors WILL be assessing your product based on the professionalism
of your website. Is your website letting you down?
• Does your staff avoid telling customers that you have a website
because they are embarrassed by it?
• Does your site still have frames even though they interfere
with search engine registrations?
• Do you have clip art on your site that you wouldn't dream of
putting on your brochure?
• Does your website look completely different than all of your
printed material?
• Does it still look the same as it did in 2001?
• Is it slow to load because of overly large graphics?
• Do you feel you're losing out to competitors because they have
a better looking website?
• Give your current site the professional looking makeover it
needs! For a small investment in the future of your business, we can
re-image your website and give it a more contemporary and professional
feel. Because you already have all of the elements you need in place,
like photos and the text, your re-design will be faster and less expensive
than if you were starting from scratch.
How long will
it take to design my website?
This will vary depending on the requirements of
the website design and the number of projects Southern Graphicsis currently
undertaking. As an average, our turn around time is 1-2 weeks.
Are there any
hidden fees or costs?
No. Everything is agreed to and then placed in
writing for your protection. Any changes or upgrades that will cost
more will only be implemented with your understanding and permission.
We’re in the business to make sure our clients are happy. We can’t
do that if we surprise them with hidden charges!
I
have decided to use Southern Graphics design services. What do I do
now?
To get started, simply email us or call us directly.
Why
should I hire a professional designer?
You've invested a tremendous amount of time, energy
and money into your business. Your website is a reflection of your business
and needs to effectively and professionally communicate that you are
a serious business professional. Your neighbor's son probably can't
offer that.
What
forms of payment do you accept?
We currently accept checks or money orders.
Business Specific
Questions
I am a small
business owner. What can a website do for me?
A website can offer your business many advantages,
including a:
• More professional company image
• Improved branding
• Increased sales
• Inexpensive advertising
• Better customer relations
• A website can help your business reach new customers, keep you
in closer contact with your current customers, and enable you to respond
quickly and efficiently in a rapidly changing market.
What can a
website do for my local business?
Internet usage has become so pervasive that even
businesses that serve strictly local markets are finding advantages
from doing business on the Web. Let locals and future visitors get to
know you. How much money would it cost to effectively advertise all
the wonders of your business using traditional advertising e.g. radio/TV
spots, newspaper ads, etc? Buy a fraction of the ad space, include your
Web address and tell the whole story on your website.
Can
you use my business's existing logo, brochure design, and other materials
for my
website?
Certainly. If your logo and promotional materials
are in electronic format, we can convert them to a format appropriate
for your website. We can accept almost any type of file, including Adobe
Photoshop, Illustrator, Microsoft Word, Excel, Publisher, and other
Microsoft Office formats. If your materials are printed, we can scan
and convert them. Southern Graphics' designers will help you keep your
online image consistent with your existing one.
Do I own the
site and design?
Yes. As soon as all payments have been received,
the rights are transferred to you. All images used by permission will
retain the rights of their respective owners.
Domain, Search Engine,
& Similar Questions
What
is a URL?
A "Universal Resource Locator" is the
address typed in to view your web page on the Internet. For example,
you would type in http://www.southerngraphics.biz to access our home
page.
What
is a domain name?
A domain name is your address on the Internet.
You choose and register your domain name with a certified registrar.
Domain names end in .com, .net, .org, .edu, .biz, .ws and more. This
site's domain name is "southerngrapics.biz". We can help you
pick out and register the perfect domain name for your needs.
What
should I look for in a domain name?
While the best domain for your business depends
on many factors, here are some general guidelines for finding a good
domain name:
• Stay as short as possible. Less than 15 letters is preferred.
Less than 10 is even better.
• Avoid words that are hard to spell or have multiple spellings.
• Make it memorable.
• Avoid abbreviations.
• Get a .com if available. If you go with another top-level domain,
then make sure you make it extremely clear in your promotion.
• Avoid numbers.
• Avoid hyphens (usually).
• Stay with easy to remember words or phrases.
• Be sure the name you choose is not trademarked.
What
is an Internet Service Provider?
An Internet Service Provider (ISP) provides access
to the Internet, whether it's dial-up, cable modem or DSL. You usually
get a few email accounts with through your ISP (yourname@bellsouth.net),
but be sure you rely on your domain email for business communications.
What
kind of services will I need once the site is completed?
All websites need web hosting and updating/maintenance.
Some websites require minimal maintenance while some require daily updates.
We can taylor a maintenance plan that best suits your needs. Feel free
to consult us for suggestions.
What
is a web host? Do you provide this service?
A web host provides you space on their servers
where your website will reside (using your new domain name). We do not
offer hosting but will assit you in find a web hosting that will fit
your needs.
Why
do I need someone to host my site?
Hosting companies provide the computer and the
software to 'answer the door' when someone requests your domain name
from their browser. It then serves them your web pages. Your website
actually resides on this computer. It is unimportant where your hosting
service is physically located. Unless you have your own corporate computers
connected to the Internet 24 hours a day, web server software on them
and someone to monitor the server you will need to rent space on the
machines of a hosting service for this function. A hosting service will
cost anywhere from nothing to thousands of dollars per month depending
on how robust of a service you need.
Can
I use Southern Graphics to design my site but choose my own web host?
Sure. When the design is finished, we will give
you a hard copy on CD-ROM. If you provide us with all of the necessary
login information, we will even upload your site to the host of your
choice for free!
What
is 'site maintenance' and do I even need it?
Site maintenance provides minor changes to your
website after the initial launch. This does not include the addition
of new pages or major changes, such as an entire page revision. If your
website will require at least one change a month, a maintenance agreement
is more cost efficient.
Why
can't I find my website in the search engines?
Once your site has been submitted to the top Search
Engines they may require several weeks, or even months to actually spider
and list your website in their directory. How fast your site is listed
depends on each individual Search Engine's database update schedule.
For a fee, you can use various Guaranteed Search Engine Submit services.
Can
you guarantee my site will be listed in all the search engines?
No, and no reputable company should make these
guarantees! However, all of the sites we design, optimize and submit
to the search engines are eventually indexed.
If
I build a great website, will they come?
If you build it, promote it, nurture it, update
it, they will definitely come. We will optimize your site to be search
engine friendly, and then submit your site to the major search engines.
What
ingredients should a "good" website have?
Effective design, sound navigation, pertinent
content, usable interface, fast loading pages and lots of attention.
Other Questions
Your
services seem geared towards business. Do you design websites for individuals,
too?
Of
course! Our competitive and flexible pricing makes professional website
design affordable for individuals and organizations. We can build a
website for your club; a family reunion, wedding, or other special event;
a tribute to a special person—the possibilities are endless. Tell
us what you have in mind.
What
is your payment policy for website design clients?
We require a deposit of one-half (1/2) of the
project price in order to begin development. The remaining balance is
paid after the website has been approved by you and prior to the website
being launched to the public.
My
existing website needs a few minor changes. Do you handle small jobs
like that?
Sure! Contact us with a few details and we’ll
give you a competitive quote.
Does
a designer need to be local?
Not typically. With the technology of email, phone
and the Internet, sites can be successfully created and launched, even
when the designer and client are thousands of miles apart.
After
designing the website, if it needs to be updated what is your maintenance
fee to do this?
We offer 30 days free maintenance/updates following
site completion, installation and publishing. If you will need daily,
weekly, or monthly updates, we will custom taylor a maintenance plan.
If you anticipate minor changes/updates on an infrequent basis after
the 30 day grace period, we offer an “As Needed” option
where you can pay our basic hourly rate when you need it. If you need
updates to your website, just send us a request via email or phone and
it will be completed, normally within 48 hours.
If
there are any problems, how are they corrected? Support service?
If there are problems with the website's functionality,
that would be our responsibility. You are hiring a web designer/developer
to not only design your website, but make sure it is functional across
all platforms and make sure your users are getting the most benefit
from your website. If there is a server related problem, your web designer
would interact with the web hosting company to resolve those problems.
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