As part of our current FAQ series, we couldn’t forget about all the website inquiries we get – it’s really the bread and butter of what we do. So without further ado, here are the questions that most people have before getting their website designed, developed and launched.

What is your design process?

Here are the 5 quick steps to get you started from idea to production.

• Step 1: We gather information through a detailed questionnaire that gives us a good look and feel of your vision for the site.

• Step 2: From the questionnaire, we create a customized design mockup and present it to you in a visual website format. (This is not a developed website but it looks and feels like one). We use our own resource of professional licensed images to match your style and feel.

• Step 3: Once the mockup is starting to take shape into a product that you are loving, we send a form to gather content for the site. (This includes team profile images, office photos, bios and additional copywriting for the site). We’ll add all the content and present it in the final website format for approval.

• Step 4: Once the design is approved, we go into full development mode, where our nerdy coders and developers beautifully make the design come alive on a live site. (This is developed on a dedicated server with a temporary url).

• Step 5: We test the live site and then launch it on your own domain by redirecting your domain IP to the new server where the new website files are located. (We will just need access to the account you purchased your domain from).

How long does it take?

Well, it depends. Typically, a 5-7 page custom website takes about 2-3 months. It mostly depends on you. If you love our initial design and approve it quickly, we can get it developed and launched in 1-2 weeks after the design phase. In those cases, the sites can go live in a little over a month. Some clients take a bit longer to decide and some sites can get complicated… there was one site we designed and developed that took over a year. The important thing is that you love it when it’s ready to launch. Our recommendation is not to be in a hurry.

Should I provide my own written copy for the website?

Are you a great content writer and love to write? If so, you should take a stab at it; if not, no worries, we have a professional writer on our team that will work with you to create the content on all of your pages for you. This is an additional fee of course, but we do recommend it to make the design flow faster and more cohesive.

Do you build a custom site or use a template?

All of our sites are completely personalized and custom to you.

What training/support do you offer when the site is launched?

Our website design and development is a full service package, meaning, we will do the hosting as well. We take full responsibility and accountability for your website. We don’t just design and walk away; we continuously update, revise and fix. This way you can feel confident that we are standing behind what we do, and you won’t have to wait 45 minutes to get an answer from some random website provider’s technical support personnel…you just call us and we’ll take care of everything, and all those changes are included. For instance, if you have a staff change, we will simply update the staff bio and replace the image at no charge to you. Also, with the monthly hosting, here’s what is included:

• Daily Virus Scan and File monitoring (This is super important to prevent from possible hacking and malware attacks).

• Full service including if there are any technical issues, malfunction, or shutdown of the site – we take care of and fix everything for you. We work on your behalf with the technical team to resolve the issue.

• Daily backup up to 30 days, which means that you can always roll back the site back 30 days. This feature is also important if the site goes down for whatever the reason, we are able to have it up and running in no time.

• Unlimited revisions and modifications. However, this does not include new design pages, features or implementations. These will be given an estimated time to complete at a fair rate. For reference, a simple new design page could take 2-5 hours to design and develop. Other simple implementations that can be done quickly are taken care of as a courtesy.

• Plug-in and Operating system updates. As you know, software is continuously evolving. Just like a typical iPhone, if you stop updating the software, the apps will later stop talking to each other and eventually stop working. It’s important to keep all the backend software updated and functioning.

• We won’t nickel and dime. Our philosophy is to do our best to meet your expectations and needs without charging for extra stuff. Most of the tools you need will be included in the initial design and development stage.

• Hosting

• Oh, and we offer full training via video tutorial if you want to make changes yourself. No extra cost.

Do I own the site and all of its content after it goes live?

Yup. Everything. We give you full access to the backend and any files or databases you need or want. It’s all yours.

What technical things do I need to know or do before I get started?

Great question! Website requires 2 essential things. Domain and Hosting (Domain = The name of your website URL and Hosting = The Server where all the design files are located that launches you out to the world wide web). That’s it!! We recommend purchasing a domain yourself. You can easily purchase one through godaddy.com for about $10-20/year. This way you’ll have complete control and ownership over your own domain and no one can take it away from you. We take care of the hosting. We use WP Engine as our Server provider – they are known as one of the fastest, safest and the most robust servers in the market. We only ask that you give us access to your domain configuration when your site is ready to launch so we can point the domain to the server where all your design files are located. We’ll give you step by step on how this is done.

How much do you charge?

For a standard 5-7 page website, we charge $4000 minimum plus $95/month for Hosting and Maintenance. We do have more budget friendly options for simpler single landing pages and we also have higher packages for more complex or e-commerce sites. We are also flexible to work with your budget and can offer financing.

There are so many website designers out there, why should I pick BOS Media Group?

As you may observe, all the above answers sound pretty standard and it might be similar to what other companies offer, but where we shine is what you don’t see written out in the process. It’s our full commitment to you along the way.

It’s the way we resolve trouble spots with solutions and suggestions. It’s the way we listen to your needs and wants and make that our priority. It’s the way we, without question, re-design something if you don’t like it. It’s the way we give you resources on best practices and our expertise on what works and what doesn’t. It’s the way we don’t put limitations on revisions nor nickel and dime on hidden fees. Of course, if the project goes beyond the scope of the original contract, there will probably be a fair conversation or renegotiation of the new costs, but we will work hard to make sure you are in full agreement. It’s the way we make sure at the end of the project, you have a website that you love!  It’s the way that we make strong efforts to both enjoy the journey and have fun along the way. I think that’s priceless!!

We say this all the time, but more than anything, BOS Media is about relationships. Our goal is to treat you like our most valuable client, and it’s our sincere desire for you to be a client for life. With all these FAQs, our personal commitment to you is the one thing you’ll never have to question.

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