These questions, however, can be as vague as asking “how much will a home cost?” or “how much does a car cost?” Websites, like cars and homes, can appear simple on the surface, but under the hood can be very complex. Websites, like most everything, can be a “what you pay for is what you get” type of product, but that doesn’t mean a person who wants a family blog should pay as much as a large company’s online marketing campaign either.

In other words, there is also the question of “what should a ________ website cost?” fill the blank in with the type of website needed. This question can only be answered by having an idea of the website scope and goal, getting some bids, and doing some research.

Here are a list of questions we usually ask when bidding a website:

What type of website is it?

Examples: blog, small business, educational, non-profit, social networking, online store, e-commerce, etc…

What is the purpose of the website?

Examples: marketing campaign, informational, product sells, product development, personal, socializing, etc…

What is the scope of the website?

Examples: pages quantity, shopping cart, user login, contact form or other interactive forms, photo gallery, slide show, animated effects, video, quantity of content, search engine optimization etc…

Will a content management system be necessary?

This is better understood by asking…. will you, the client, need the ability to edit your own content?

How much custom design work will be necessary for your site?

Examples: logos, layout, ad marketing, banners, etc…

Will database be necessary?

Examples: product database, user login and information database, blogging database, etc…

Who will manage the website?

Will there be a need for security?

What type of hosting will be necessary?

A majority of these questions can be difficult to answer at first, but with the help of a good web company… none of them should go unanswered. Also, depending on the purpose and scope of the website other questions can and usually arise.

After reviewing the above question, the best of all questions is:

Does the website need to be found, usable, recognizable, and accessible?

This may sound like the simplest question of all and is usually answered “Yes, of course!”

If answered “No” then rejoice with happiness, this website costs absolutely nothing!  Meaning, this is the key cost of a website, and it is what a website company should provide. With great customer service too of course!

]]> http://jmandesigngroup.com/?feed=rss2&p=329 0 http://jmandesigngroup.com/?p=322 http://jmandesigngroup.com/?p=322#comments Thu, 18 Feb 2010 22:25:00 +0000 admin http://jmandesigngroup.com/?p=322 Chic Nail Styles is St. George, Utah local nail tech company owned and operated by Anna Williams. Anna is new nail tech graduate who specializes in gel and acrylic nails, pedicures, and manicures. The Chic Nail Styles website uses WordPress as its back end content management system. It will be an on going project being managed by J Man Design Group. Original website theme design and code by Cudazi. Themes new customization, logo design, content, and hosting by J Man Design Group.

Chic Nail Styles is a great example of a very cost effective, simple, but elegant website. Though we usually do most of our own web design and development; for clients looking for a cheap alternative we can use our expertise to help you select a website theme and customize it to your needs. WordPress blog themes and even other pre-built websites can still be very confusing to implement, but we are here to help.


]]> http://jmandesigngroup.com/?feed=rss2&p=322 0 http://jmandesigngroup.com/?p=307 http://jmandesigngroup.com/?p=307#comments Thu, 18 Feb 2010 21:10:36 +0000 admin http://jmandesigngroup.com/?p=307 Bracken’s Auto Tech & Tire is a St. George, Utah local one stop automotive repair, towing, tires, wheels, and exhaust shop that has been in business and trusted since 1975. Having used them many times for a wide range of automotive services for over 30 years, we were grateful and proud to help them with there new and improved website. After receiving a rather large yearly renewal bill from 50 Below, their old website provider, and being unsatisfied with their old websites search engine performance, content, usability, and design, Eric Bracken consulted us to see what we could provide for them.


NEW HOME PAGE BY J MAN DESIGN GROUP

50 Below is a large Minnesota website development company specializing in many automotive and tire company websites. Though 50 Below does provide some good tools and websites that are great for certain companies, it in the end wasn’t a right fit for Bracken’s. We were able to provide them with a new design, revamped search engine optimization, and an overall simplified approach to their website usability and content.



OLD HOME PAGE BY 50 BELOW



OLD TOWING PAGE BY 50 BELOW



OLD SERVICES PAGE BY 50 BELOW

After building Eric Bracken’s, son of Del Bracken (founder of Bracken’s Auto), affiliated website Eagle On-site Tire, and being extremely satisfied with his website, Eric felt confident we could provide Bracken’s with the same level of service and satisfaction. Eric has also enjoyed the ability of using a small local St. George company that is able to provide a more intimate and personalized customer service experience.

We used WordPress as their back end content management system, coded their website in a strict XHTML & CSS code format (which is becoming extremely important for search engine love), and provided jQuery enhanced slide shows and accordions.

Their new website can be viewed at http://www.brackenautotech.com



NEW TIRE PAGE BY J MAN DESIGN GROUP



NEW SERVICES PAGE BY J MAN DESIGN GROUP

]]> http://jmandesigngroup.com/?feed=rss2&p=307 2 http://jmandesigngroup.com/?p=268 http://jmandesigngroup.com/?p=268#comments Tue, 26 Jan 2010 06:25:03 +0000 admin http://jmandesigngroup.com/?p=268

• Competition

  Your competitors likely have one! If they do not it is very important to have one before them. Competition can be fierce, especially in a hard economy. Take any marketing edge possible to out do your competition

• Company Information

  Websites are the most brilliant form of exploiting your company info; by far better then any brochure. It’s dynamic, ever changing, and, if done right, fun to look at. Everyone wants to know how your business differs from your competitor; a website is the best way of telling them.

• Better Now Then Later

  One of the toughest things about search engines, such Google, is that it can take months to get good rankings. The longer a business waits to build a live website, the harder it is to get better rankings then their competitors. It is literally almost half the battle! If your competitors do not have a website then beat them to the punch!

• 24 Hour Information

  It doesn’t matter what time it is. Any information posted on website is available to everyone 24 hours, 7 days a week and 365 days a year. With time harder and harder to come by more and more people rely on the web to look up information whenever they need it.

• Cheap

  Websites now are cheaper then ever! Like buying a car….there hundreds of options, but with more competition then ever website companies have figured out ways of making it more economical for their customers. It will likely cost less then phone book, tv, or even radio advertisement!

• Easily Updated

  With content management systems  there are options for quick updates to any site. When any other form of advertisement is either printed or published it is very hard to update them. Website editing is a snap and can be done by you any time. Imagine the possibilities: daily specials or coupons, company news daily, product updates, photo galleries, client feedback and the list could go on and on!

• Contact Information

  People can find a way to contact you via phone, email, contact forms, instant messaging, Facebook, Twitter…if there is way to contact your business it will be on your website. No other form of advertising has this option!

• The Internet is Global

  Not all website businesses need to be found globally, but it is nice to always have that option. For those that do, it is absolutely essential that they are. People that arrive to a new place, whether it be tourists or new residents, they are using the internet more now then ever to find everything! Imagine your business without a sign out front. If you don’t have a website and people are searching, they wont know you exist.

• Professional

  If your business has a website and it looks and feels professional…to your customer it will be more professional. If your business is not on the web, people now days will think it is small and insignificant. All large professional companies have a website. Better to start competing now.

• It Is Happening Now

  For many companies, especially those relying on local markets, it hasn’t always been necessary. Now, however, is a whole different story. It is 2010…the internet is happening now and fast. Do not get left in the dust and be wondering what happened. Imagine if there was a resistance to having a telephone numbers 20 years after phones were in operation…imagine your business without a telephone! Website are the new form of business communication.




J Man Design Group

is dedicated to designing and building websites the way they should be…cost effective and professional. Even if your company already has a website… does it need to be updated, re-designed, or re-done all together. If your not getting the results expected then it is time for a change. To find out more about what we offer view our about page or for a list of services or feel free to contact us with any questions.

]]> http://jmandesigngroup.com/?feed=rss2&p=268 0 http://jmandesigngroup.com/?p=242 http://jmandesigngroup.com/?p=242#comments Sun, 10 Jan 2010 04:49:37 +0000 admin http://jmandesigngroup.com/?p=242 We are happy to announce the website design and development of Westin’s World is complete! Content will be added as frequently as we are able, but this has been a fun project with some unexpected challenges. It took some time to finish, because it was something to do when we weren’t busy with other things, but here it is in all its glory. For regular updates subscribe to the RSS Feed!

Check it out at : http://www.westinsworld.com

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