Frequently Asked Questions
This section is provided in order to address the most commonly asked questions asked in relation to our products or services
How much does it cost to build a web site?
Good quality web sites can be produced at relatively low cost, however, bear in mind that people nowadays expect more than static brochure type web sites which many companies published in the past. Also you should budget for some additional work in optimising the site for search engines.
If you would like to discuss your requirements in more detail, we recommend that you call us or fill in our contact form and avail of our free service which involves discussing the various options and your objectives with you, before providing a detailed quotation. We provide this service on a daily basis and there is no obligation for you to proceed if it is not what you require at that particular time.
What is the on-going cost of having a web site on the Internet?
The following are guide prices and are likely to vary. There are two basic costs:
Your domain name registration costs between €6 to €36 per year depending on the provider and whether you want .com, .net, .ie etc.
Hosting your web site on a server will range from around €60 to €120 per year depending on the provider and space required.
The other on-going direct costs will be up-dating of the content, making changes and marketing of the site.
How can I ensure that my site will get a lot of visitors?
Assuming that you have a well designed web site, it requires time and effort to achieve high rankings with the major search engines. This is referred to Search Engine Optimisation and whole businesses have been built around it.
Knowing how to design the web site to make it search engine friendly is the starting point and this should not be left to chance. You can pay a fee to have your site included in search engines or directories or run Pay per Click campaigns also known as sponsored links. Ideally you will want people to find you in the first page of search engine results and unless you have a specialised product with little competition, this can prove quite difficult. However, it is possible and with the right expertise can be done at relatively low cost.
What tools will allow a person to update their own site?
We can supply a range of Content Management Systems which allows people with little or no HTML experience to build quality web sites.
Some training on the use of this system is required, however, once mastered it is easy to make changes and upload files as required. A "Content Management System" with a wysiwyg interface is used.
How can I use the Internet reduces costs in my company?
Some of the cost reduction drivers are listed below.
Email was the first major benefit the Internet brought to businesses, it is now hard to see how we got on without it. Having your web site on-line 24 hours a day, 365 days a week means that potential customers in any part of the world can view your products and services. This reduces the number of expensive brochures required and the cost of post.
Files such as .pdf with extensive technical or marketing information can be made available on the web site for downloading at any time and at no extra cost. This will reduce the time and effort spent dealing with repetitive issues by making these details available to your customers on-line. This can also be in the form of technical documents or drawings or a "Frequently Asked Questions" page on the web site.
An eCommerce enabled site allows customers to purchase products on-line thereby reducing the time sales staff spend on the telephone or freeing them for other work.
Integrating the web site with the back-end office systems can reduce administration costs and paperwork.
What is the timescale to design and build a web site?
From the time the order is received to the site going live will depend on the complexity of the project. A simple design with 5-10 pages may take one to two weeks. While a more complex application with perhaps a database and server side scripting will normally take longer.
It is advisable to spend some time planning what you want to achieve from the web site. We find that the delay is not usually down to the designer but often waiting on content to be provided in order to populate the web site.
What is involved in marketing a web site?
A well designed web site is of little use if people do not know about it or if it is not easily found.
The URL of the web site should be on all company stationery such as business cards, compliment slips, letter heads, invoices, statements etc.
Any press advertisements should also have the URL prominently displayed.
The web site design should be search engine friendly so that they it will be indexed by the important directories and search engines and displayed prominently in the relevant search results.
Sponsored links can be used on selected search engines to ensure that when certain keyword phrases are used, your URL will be displayed. This can be a useful and cost effective method of driving traffic to your web site when effectively managed.
What does Pay Per Click mean?
This can be a useful and cost effective way of bringing visitors to your site especially if you have not yet managed to get your page listed in the regular search results.
Major search engines such as Google and those associated with Overture offer sponsored links. When a person searches using one of your search terms, your web site URL is displayed under sponsored links. If the person then decides to click on your ad which brings them to your web site, you pay a small fee. Hence the term Pay Per Click.
When setting up the campaign you will have the opportunity to specify how much you are willing to pay each time your add is clicked and the maximum amount you will pay per day. For example if you specify 50 cents per click, your ad may appear at the top of the search results, however, if someone else pays 51 cents, they will appear above you.
Much will depend on the popularity of your search terms. If, for example you are in a specialised business with few competitors, the charge per click may be very low.
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