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So You want your own web site . . .One of the first questions new prospective clients ask us is, "What will it cost me to have my own web site?" An equally important question is, "How much will it pay me to have my own web site?" Both questions are deserving of honest answers. Your new home on the web should be a profitable venture. How your site will pay you dividends depends a lot on the nature of your business and how well you and Webjazz promote your new online venture. We will do a lot of site promotional tasks for you. There are many promotional things you can do that may be even more valuable to your web site and overall business success. We will help you with this also. One of the strong points of sites by webjazz.net is that we help you integrate your site into your new or existing business. All web sites come with a webmaster/site designer. Few come with a business partner who looks out for your total online presence. It is important that you treat your site as a viable part of your overall business structure. Your web site is the part of your business that never sleeps. It doesn't take vacations, sick leave, holidays, or personal time off. It works while you eat, sleep, drive, work and play - 24x7. It helps you compete with those 800 pound gorillas and introduces you to people from every time zone. We will need your help to learn about your business and your goals so we can tailor your online presence to meet your expectations. We want your business to be presented well to your target audience, not just every online web surfer. When we have gathered your information, then we can get specific about the startup and maintenance costs of being online.
The Elements of Cost .....There are basically four elements of cost in starting a productive web site. Element 1 - Owning a domain name: Your domain name is your "www.anything.com." You must purchase the domain name for a specific period of time kind of like buying a license tag. When it expires, you simply renew it. In most cases, we help you select the name. If your first choice is not available, we will help you find another appropriate name that is available. We even do a trademark search to see that the name you have chosen is not a trademarked name. We register it for you and set up all of the technical registration details. Currently, domain name costs range from about $8 - $15 per year. We watch your registration so that we are both assured that you renew your name before it expires. Element 2 - Hosting your web site: Your web site will consist of a number of computer files. These files must reside on a computer (server) that can access the Internet. It is called the HOST. Webjazz provides web site hosting services tailored to your site's requirements. We currently offer two standard hosting plans (and several tailorable options) :
As we plan your site, we will see that your hosting plan fits your requirements. Except for very large or complex sites or really tiny sites, the Small Business plan is a very good buy. There are a lot of whistles and bells offered with each Webjazz.net hosting plan. We will go over these with you and help you select the plan that is most appropriate for your web site. Element 3 - Web site design and development: Your site can be anywhere from a single business card style page to thousands of pages. We help you decide just how much information is needed online to make your site all that it can and should be. In many cases, we design for growth so that in the future, new valuable features can be added with the least amount of change and additional cost. When we understand your specific site requirements, we will be able to provide a realistic quote to you. (Beware: If a developer gives you a standard price when you initially ask how much it will cost, they are either blowing smoke or do not have your best interest at heart!) After an information gathering meeting, we will determine your site's needed contents and functions. At this time we will know just how much information you will be able to provide to us and how much we need to generate from scratch. Then we will make sure that we have all of the bases covered. We will present you with a proposal that tells you just what we will be doing for you and when. Each phase of our work will be priced. Our proposal will also include the payment schedule based on completed milestones. As we work through each milestone, you are invited to look at our work. You can watch us build your site and give your approval on a private Internet site not available to the public. We post it online in "Wireframe" background pages and want your approval during each phase. At the completion of the final phase (there are usually three phases), and upon your approval, we launch the site to the Internet. Element 4 - Web site maintenance: Web sites that never change give little reason for visitors to return. Fresh information is a major driver for traffic to your site. A few examples of "maintenance items" may include:
In most cases, webjazz.net provides free site maintenance for 60 days after the official site launch date. (This will be defined in our proposal.) Beyond the free maintenance period, we usually negotiate site maintenance costs. How soon can my web site be online?Generally, we can have your account set up and be loading your data within 72 hours. Full site development takes longer than that, depending on your site's requirements. The more information you provide to us digitally, the faster it will happen. When in the planning phase, we will develop target dates for full scale launch of your site. Remember that we are the messenger and you must provide the message (source information). Many of our clients already have the information they would like for us to present on the web. They provide it to us with existing digital files via email. If you are interested in our writing, graphics and editing services to develop your source data as well as your web pages, we will be glad to quote that part of the job as well. SummaryWhether you are a one-man band or a large corporation, we want your business! We want to help you meet your new or expanded business expectations. Our motto ("Web sites with tender loving care!") is not just a saying. It's real! We think you will enjoy working with us and your results of being online.
Please email us for more information or to set up an appointment to get your site started.
Dean Hampton
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