Knowledge Base

Design/Development

• Why do I need a web site?

A website opens up all kinds of potential marketing opportunities including: low cost, email, customer support, available 24/7, global reach, update your products quickly and easily, promote sales instantly and more! A website will expand your business allowing a more convenient method of shopping for your customers. They get to shop when they want and where they want without the headache of travel or restricted hours.

• Why should I hire a professional web page designer?

We know what we are doing. You have enough on your plate with knowing your business… let us help you design a professional website presence. There is a lot more to designing a site than just getting a site up and running. We make sure it is accessible on multiple browsers and platforms, search engine friendly, loads in a reasonable time and much more! Why put yourself through the headache of trying to learn our business. We do this every day so let us ease your stress!

• What size resolution do you design for?

We design for 800 X 600 pixel resolution and higher. This should be based on your target audience and what is most widely used.

• Do I need to hire a "local" web designer?

We create websites for clients who are local as well as out of state. By using the Internet, email and the telephone, it is possible to communicate effectively with clients in any location.

• Who owns the rights to the website once it's finished?

Once final payment has been received you are the owner of your website! Dream, Design, Develop LLC does not hold any ownership of the design, content, or code. If we use a third party such as a CMS obviously you will not be the owner of that software. We do ask that we can use your website in our promotional advertisement.

• Can I see my site while it is under development?

Yes! We will provide you with a link to your website on our server. You will be able to keep track of our progress and provide feedback throughout the entire web design and development process.

• How long does it take to have a website developed?

The time frame is determined by the size of your website, the complexity of your website design, and our current client design schedule. Please visit our web development process page for a detailed schedule.

• My first website… can you help?

Absolutely! You do not need any online experience at all. Dream, Design, Develop LLC offers free consultation on all services. We help you right from the start! We will help with all your questions along the way. Just ask! We are here to help you.

• Can you use my existing logo, brochure, etc for my website development?

Certainly. If your logo and promotional materials are not in electronic format, we can convert them to a format appropriate for your website. If you do have them in electronic format we will certain use them. Dream, Design, Develop LLC will help you keep your online image consistent with your existing one.

Website Maintenance and Support

• What is website maintenance?

Website Maintenance refers to changes made to your website after the initial design. Keeping a website up-to-date is essential in having repeat visitors to your site. Updating the site with sales, newsletters, press releases, financial figures and links are all examples of website maintenance. If you already have a website but your business does not have the time to take care of keeping the website maintained, we offer daily, weekly, and monthly updates.

• Can't I just call you if I need support?

Yes, you can call us if you need support. However, we do prefer email communication as the main source for communication.

• If I already have a site can you help me improve it?

Yes, we can!. Fill in our free estimate form and an idea of what you'd like to do, and we'll be glad to give you a quote. Whether your company's website "doesn't look professional", takes too long to load or the navigation is baffling to visitors, we can help.

• Why don’t I see my web site changes?

Your browser will store the last visit to your website. If you do not see the latest changes, just refresh your browser forcing it to go out to the server and find the most recent version of your site. You can refresh your browser by either hitting the refresh button at the top of the screen or hitting F5 on your keyboard.

Email

• Can you help me set-up my email in Outlook?

Yes, we have created a tutorial for you to set up your email in outlook (pdf file)and outlook express.

• I need a new email account set up. Can you help?

Yes, if Dream, Design, Develop LLC set up your hosting and initial email address. Simply tell us what you want the new email and password to be and we will get it set up for you right away.

• How do I access my Webmail?

If Dream, Design, Develop LLC set up your hosting and initial email… chances are you can view your webmail by going to http://mail.yourdomainname.com. The username is your email address. If this does not work, let us know. It may be set up through a different hosting provider, and we will try to help.

Content / Copywriting

• Can you write the content for my web site?

Yes, Dream, Design, Develop LLC does offer professional copywriting services. Please visit our web copywriting page for more details.

• Website Content – what do I put on my site?

That would depend on the goals of your website. If you run a business website, you would include fresh, precise, appealing information about your products or services, everything your customer needs to feel confident enough to purchase from you.

Domain Names

• What is a domain name?

A domain name is a specific website address that you choose and register. Our domain name is "dreamdesigndevelop.com".

• what is a url?

It stands for "universal resource locator.” This is the address typed in to view your web page on the Internet. For example, you would type in http://www.dreamdesigndevelop.com to access our home page.

• What domain name should I choose?

This depends on how you are going to use it. If you are going to be telling people over the phone, choose one that is easy to say and spell out loud. Above all, we would choose one that is memorable and not confusing. Visit our available domain names page for more tips.

Web Hosting

• What is a Web host?

Web hosting is a monthly fee that you pay to have your site accessible on the Internet.

• Do you offer hosting?

No, but we do work closely with a hosting company that will happily set everything up for you. We can also use a host you specify; the choice is yours.

Website Costs / Payments

• How much will a web site cost?

That depends heavily on what you want for your website. Fill out our Free Planning Guide form so we can provide you with a free Quote customized to your needs.

• What form of payment do you accept?

We accept checks, money orders, and cash. Sorry, we do not accept credit cards at this time.

Website Success

• How do I get more traffic to my site?

Traffic will not come to your site over night. You have to work at it. Continue to add new content and update your site regularly. Try to get as many in bound links as possible… NOT by link farms or reciprocal link exchange! Optimize your site for search engines and continue to improve that optimization! It’s not a one time deal.

• How did your company become so successful?

Most of our success comes from happy customers. We obtain 99% of new business through referrals and word of mouth.

• How long have you been in business?

We have been in business sense 2004, but we have been designing personal websites for many years before that.

Search Engines

• Why can’t I find my website in the search engines?

Once your site has been completed, the top Search Engines may require several weeks, or even months to actually spider and list your website in their index. How fast your site is listed depends on each individual Search Engines database update schedule. Modern search engines like to find your site naturally, through links to your website from other websites. Google especially relies on your incoming links to determine your popularity and relevance. It is important to have your website optimized by Dream, Design, Develop LLC, a search engine optimization company, utilizing a unique keyword strategy to update your content, meta tags (part of the code on your web pages) and your image tags. Without optimization, your site may never show up for specific searches in the major Search Engines.

• What is website optimization?

Website optimization is the process in which we analyze keywords (the words/phrases entered into a Search Engine to produce a search on a specific topic), and create a keyword strategy for your website. Once we have committed to a keyword strategy, Dream, Design, Develop LLC will update your content, meta tags (such as your title tag, description tag and keyword tag found in the code of your website) and your image tags (the text that appears when you drag your mouse over an image) to reflect that strategy. We will also give you pointers on how you can be proactive in gaining Search Engine ranking after your website is optimized.

• Don’t I just need meta tags to place well on search engines?

NO! Meta tags are only a minor part of search engine rankings. In fact, Google doesn’t even look at the meta tag keywords when they perform their ranking algorithm on your website.

• Can you guarantee high search engine rankings?

No honest search engine optimization company will guarantee high rankings! There is no way to guarantee rankings. Dishonest companies will fill your website content with illegal content to shoot your rankings to the top. Once the search engine catches on to your illegal content, and they will catch on, they will ban you from search engines… sometimes permanently. It is extremely hard to get unbanned, and might not be possible at all. We will use all of our knowledge and skill to make sure you are highly ranked, but we can’t guarantee it. Remember that there are billions of websites on the internet and your website competition is world wide. It takes diligent work and due time to build your website rankings. It’s not going to happen overnight! The results are not instant.

• Will you submit my site to search engines?

Yes, but only once and only to the major ones. There is no need to submit a site more than once to search engines. Once your site is indexed it will remain indexed. Your rankings will change constantly, and you may drop in rankings, but you won’t be removed altogether unless you are banned. Only a half dozen search engines are used by internet users so why would you submit to unpopular search engines that get very little use?

• Why am I ranked differently on each Search Engine?

Almost 80% of Internet users use Google, although there are a few other popular search engines like Yahoo, MSN, Netscape, and AOL. Each search engine uses different algorithms or search engine rules to rank websites, resulting in a variety of rankings. Just because you are ranked #5 on Yahoo for your keyword, that doesn’t mean Google will rank you the same. This is why it’s so important to continue to monitor and improve your site optimization. For the best results, use the best talent and tools available. Dream, Design, Develop LLC offers you our very best!

Questions in General

• How much input do I have?

We welcome your input! The more input we receive from you, the better able we are to satisfy your needs and develop a site that will have the desired look and impact that you want. It's your website; we want it to look the way you want it. We guarantee it!

• Does my business need to be computer-based in order to have a website?

You don't need to have computers involved in your business in order to have a website. Many companies do filing, invoicing and more without a computer. Developing a website is more about exposing your business to new potential clients and generating new sales. There is no need to overhaul the way your company does business.

• My company is in the service industry. Will a website help my business?

Absolutely! Over 50% of the population who are online from home or the office are doing so to research about businesses that provide services or products. Your service-oriented business can provide samples, references, location, hours of operation and more. Ask yourself, "Does my business need 24-hour exposure 7 days a week, 365 days a year?" The answer is obvious. What other medium allows you to expose all the benefits of your small business to your target market at their convenience and provide a source of direct correspondence from them to you? The benefits of a website are innumerable.