The Lore Design Co Website Design Process

Let’s be honest, the website design process undertaken by some digital agencies can be quite bewildering (and often even a little intimidating!) to a majority of clients. Personally I like to keep everything as simple and transparent as possible. Some of my clients prefer something as simple as a landing page, a website make over where others prefer complete redesign or BRAND SPANKING NEW website that incorporates things like a Blog, An Ecommerce Store, A Booking Application, Calendar integration and the list goes on…  In attempting to dispel any confusion, I've outlined the core steps in my web design process below. The methodology utilised by other agencies might slightly deviate from this, but my process is designed to be very straightforward and transparent. I believe in always opening ourselves up for questions and collaboration whenever necessary, as I progress through each project I am working on. Step 1: Detailed Project Briefing Step 1 involves obtaining a detailed project brief from you, the client.  This, and any follow up questions I might have, ensures I have a complete understanding of your requirements. This is the most important of all the website process steps.  Some of the things I’ll need to know are - how many pages and sections your website will need, does you website require any additional features of applications like Ecommerce, Online Bookings, Instant Chat, Events or Blog. The briefing process includes gaining a clear and comprehensive insight into your business and its main objectives.  For this I have, over the years, fine tuned a web design questionnaire.  It helps me flesh this information out and delivers it  in a consistent format, project to project. It is an essential part of our website process. I kindly ask you to complete this to the very best of your ability. You’re welcome to supplement this with colour palettes and links to influential websites that you like the look of and would like to draw influence from. Step 2: The Proposal The proposal will stipulate what your website specifications include such as page count and features. It will also provide you with additional inclusions such as style guide creation, basic SEO set up including keywords, page titles, tags and optimised Google description & Mobile editing, as well as what is required by you, the client, nothing too scary - just content/ imagery etc plus a things like additional hosting costs and how many revisions are included during the design process. 

Step 3: Proposal Acceptance. If you’re happy with the proposal and would like to proceed, an official invoice will be sent. ​In order for project bookings to be confirmed Lore Design Co offers two types of payment options once a quote has been accepted by the client:

1. Payment made in full.

2. ​OR the invoice can be divided into 4 x weekly subscription/direct debit payments (credit card, debit card or bank account details will be required). This will be processed via Paypal. ​

Please note that any orders under $1000 must be paid in full to confirm order bookings.

Step 4: File Transfer + Storage In order to ensure a streamline approach for both client and myself, a folder is created for each client on my Dropbox which allows access so that you can transfer (drag and drop) all of your website content and imagery.

Each page of your website will have its own folder (ie. Home, About, Services, Contact) and each of these folders will have subfolders for the imagery and content. This makes everything clear and concise, especially when dealing with Ecommerce sites and multiple products. 

Step 5: The website build. After everything has been supplied, I then take some time to develop the website, placing text and imagery, building your style guide and adding any back end info (ie - this could be anything from adding your shop products, adding shipping details, adding events, adding online bookings info or setting up your blog etc).

Once everything has been finalised on my end, I'll send you an online proof via wix. At this time, detailed feedback regarding any changes can be provided. The design process is very collaborative, so all feedback is welcomed.

You are entitled to two revisions for each website page. Additional charges may apply to revisions required thereafter.

After you’re happy and your website has been finalised, I then adjust your mobile site. Step 6: Keywords, Google Description + Launch After finalising your website, I’ll need you to supply 10 keywords + Google Description.  These words are the keywords that you or someone might type into google to find your site. I also use these keywords to adjust your site meta tags and image alt tags.  The google description is just a couple of sentences that describes your business; what services you provide and where you’re based etc. All this information is pretty much a summary of what is within your website. Once I have the above info I can then link your site to google search console. Once finalised I then sign the site over to you. (You will need to have your own wix account to do this - you can create an account here: www.wix.com)

When handing your site over, I also provide a few Wix Tutorial Link or How To's based on what you require for your site specifically. Ie - if you have an ecommerce site - I'll send you links on how to duplicate products and add additional products to your collections etc, The links I send will be specific to what you might require to DIY your site.

I also offer a 60 minute zoom tutorial (if required at an additional cost, this can be purchased here) to show you how you would go about using your site (for instance if your site was an ecommerce store you might want to know how to fulfil orders, or add products etc. Or if you have a gallery, you may want to know how to add images or content etc). I normally remain as an admin of your site just incase you require any assistance in the future. I am available for additional support, and will gladly walk you through any "how to" features over a quick phone call, or even offer continued site maintenance at at an hourly fee if you’re not Au Fait with DIY website maintenance.

For more information about my terms and conditions, feel free to check out my FAQ page, or if you have any questions, please feel free to email me at lore@loredesignco.com