What do you do differently at the higher levels of graphic appeal?
I customize my graphics and plan the artistic style that would appeal to the target market. Anyone can make a website but very few can create a good one. Many web developers make the mistake of using free graphics or templates instead of custom making every graphical element of a web site. When free graphical components are used, your site is bound to resemble low-end web sites often used by "fly-by-night" companies. An experienced designer knows to avoid custom designs that resemble the readily available free graphical components. I avoid mediocre styles commonly used in low-end web sites. I specialize in HTML and CSS and code from scratch and pre-made structure templates. Read about my standards here.

What are your qualifications as a web designer?
Seven years of experience, a thousand hours of viewing experience, a taste for the interesting and attractive, an understanding of color blending and balance as well as a background in photography.

What kind of web banners do you do and how much?
All kinds. Any size, shape color(s), animated or not, Custom designed. Price depends on the complexity of the design.

I already have a website. I can not afford an expensive website. Can I still hire you?
Sure. I re-design websites and I can work my way into a budget.

Do you do JavaScript or Flash?
Yes but only when the webpage requires it. I do whatever needed to make your website functional and easy to browse, whatever is best to get your message through.

Do you develop e-commerce or database sites (ASP, PHP, etc.)?
No, but I always wanted to work with a programmer and develop the graphical and artistic aspects of the site as well as the overall information architecture.

Do you offer web hosting?
No, but I also could recommend you options to choose from and make it as part of the package.

What is the process to start getting my website designed?
I usually discuss likes and dislikes with my client, play with ideas and work on samples. I also provide clients with web planning and content worksheets to help them. We discuss price, time schedule and budget where the client pays me half of the agreed price (depending on the agreed payment scheme). After which I design a mock layout. Once the mock-layout is approved by the client, I start working on the webpages. We then get a webhost and a domain name then we go online on the agreed timeline.

How long does the whole web design process take?
Design and delivery schedule is dependent on your cooperation and participation. A medium size web site of 8 to 10 web pages can be done in a minimum of two weeks assuming that all data have been prepared. It is not uncommon that the project gets delayed because the client takes time to submit content materials to be migrated to the website. In order to complete a project on time, I need to receive the following items or arrangements must be made to provide them:

• Domain Name (if not included in plan)
• Web Hosting Space (if not included in plan)
• Content to be added and/or migrated
• A logo and/or images to be used in the design (unless logo design is included in the web design)
• An outline of website organizational structure

What is Web Hosting? What is a domain name? Do I really need a Domain Name? What is the difference between a static and a dynamic website?

• Website - a collection of web pages / documents that are accessed through the Internet.
• Web Page - what you see on the screen when you type in a web address, click on a link, or put a query in a search engine like this page. A web site can have several web pages.
• Domain name – a name that identifies a computer or computers on the internet. These names appear as a component of a web site's URL. (ex. www.dudsonline.com)
• Web Hosting - is the service that makes a web site available to others on the internet 24/7. Basically when you rent web space you are renting disk space on someone's computer which is connected full time to the internet.
• Static websites are websites that stay the same every time you open them in your web browser.
• Dynamic or Interactive websites are those whose content changes.

Yes, you need a domain name if you have a paid web host plus I highly recommend you to have one. It helps your clients and readers to locate you on the net. If you rely on free web hosting services like Geocities, they will give you a sub domain of their websites (e.g. wwww.doodle.geocities.com).

How many pages will I need?
That will depend on the amount of information you want your visitors to read. Content is the best way for your visitors to find your site.

Can I use graphics created for the web in my printed publications?
Most graphics created for the web (72dpi) are not suitable for print media which is usually 300dpi or higher. If we create the web graphics for you, make sure to let me know if you also intend to use them in print. That way I can create them initially as hi-res images (and reduce them as needed for the web).

Can I submit my own images, pictures, drawings etc. to be included in my site?
Absolutely. You can take part in as many design elements as you feel comfortable being involved with. I also encourage you to write your own text.

How much does a website cost?
There are several variables that will affect the cost of your project. Ultimately what it comes down to is time and materials. The more time and / or materials it takes, the more your project will cost. Think of it like buying a phone, the more features, the more accessories, the greater the cost. It is helpful to have the end in mind. Let me know what you need and I'll give you a quote. To get an idea, see website and hosting packages offered below.

Web Design Packages (Static)

Packages	Price	No. of Pages	Free Web Maintenance	Timeline
Starter Website	P8,000	6-8 pages	1 month	1 week
Budget Website	P12,000	9-12 pages	2 months	2 weeks
Standard Website	P15,000	12-18 pages	3 months	3 weeks
Premium Website	P20,000	18-25 pages	3 months	1 month

Additional Web pages	P 500.00 / page
Flash Feature	* Depending on size
Photo Gallery	P 750.00
Additional Web Template	P 1,500 / template
Customized Blog	P 1,000.00

Web Hosting and Domain Registration Packages

Price (PHP) Annual	Space Capacity	Data Transfer Per Month	Subdomains	MySQL	FTP Accounts	POP3 Email Accounts
P1,800	25 Mb	500 Mb	3	3	Unlimited	3
P2,600	50 Mb	1,000 Mb	5	5	Unlimited	5
P4,500	100 Mb	2,000 Mb	10	10	Unlimited	10

How often should my website be updated?
It would depend on the business. I usually recommend a blog or forum page to my clients for updates and keep the rest static. Static websites can be updated at least once a year.

Do you transfer files to my web site or do I?
I will do that for you.

Can I maintain the site myself? Will I be able to make changes to my site? What will it cost for you maintain my website?
In some cases, yes. I teach my some of my clients WYSIWYG editing (what you see is what you get) so they can update their websites and when it is included in the package. Most of the time, when clients rarely update data in their sites, add a few more pages, or need help with difficult editing, I charge per hour. We agree on a price contract for maintenance that is different from the initial web design contract.

I have a website which looks and works fine, but not many people know about it. What should I do?
The problem is that your site hasn't been optimized for target search terms or it hasn't been effectively registered with the major Search Engines and Directories. I will help you to promote your website through search engines, key words and directory placements as well as running advertising campaigns and so on.

How can I keep track of the visitors to my website?
If you use our hosting service you will have access to statistics that will tell you how many visitors you have had, what time they visited, what part of the world they are from, how long they spent, which of your pages they viewed, etc. This is a service that is essential to promote and build a successful website. If your web host doesn't offer this, we could use free aps in your website.

Can I protect my web content?
I can add scripting codes to protect your pics and copyright statements to protect your content. But keep in mind that some people consider internet websites to be public. I suggest you post only details your clients would hear from you anyway if they consider hiring you or buy from you.

How will anyone find my Web site?
Creating an attractive Web site and waiting for people to locate it does not work. I can provide you ideas to help you get your Web site noticed. As soon as your site is approved I register it with Yahoo and Google Search engines. This will help potential customers find your business when searching for information on the Internet. Ialso advise that you publish your site in all your ad materials, or on any of your social networking accounts like facebook and twitter.

Is Page Downloading time really important?
Yes if you want your clients to stay and not wander off to similar websites.

Do you do search engine submissions for your clients? Which search engines to you submit my website to?
Yes, search engine submission is included on all of my web design packages. Though I cannot guarantee placement or ranking on any search engine, I will design your site with search engines in mind. Once your website is fully complete, I will submit your site to: Google, MSN and Yahoo. Search engines that require a pay-per-listing fee are not included. It can take 2 months for all the search engines to list your site, and considerably longer for your site to show up near the top of a search page. Patience is important, because results do not happen overnight.

Why are Search Engines so important for the popularity of my website?
According to surveys up to 57% of Internet users search the Net every day and nearly half of the searches are for product information or services. There is a lot of useful information on the Web, but it's simply impossible to examine all the websites personally, that is where Search Engines can help. The majority of Internet users find Web sites by using keyword searches on the major search engines. They are the most popular type of Web site on the Internet and it's quite common to set a Search Engine as the home page in a browser.

How do Search Engines work?
In response to a request, the Search Engines produce a list of ordered search results. The number of websites in the list may range from just a few to many thousands. The results of search engine searches are placed in order of relevancy to the search term used. Usually there are 10 websites on each page of search results. 96% of search engine users will visit sites listed on the first two-three pages of results and won't go any further.
Search Engines use software agents, known as "robots\crawlers" or "spiders" to survey the Web and gather text content from your website for 'indexing' in their database. The ranking of your website among search results depends on the page content being analyzed by a Search Engine to determine the relevancy of the website's text to the search term and compare to that of other sites.

How quickly will Search Engines index my website?
There are thousands of registration requests that Search Engines receive every day As a result, the delay between submitting a registration and the site actually being indexed can range from a few days to several months. Because Web documents change all the time, robots also update previously catalogued sites and have to work hard to maintain the relevance of their data. How quickly your website will be indexed varies from one search engine to another.

Will Search Engine ranking of my website always remain the same? How can you help me to improve it?
Search Engine rankings change constantly as new sites become indexed, old sites are removed and existing sites work to improve their position. I will suggest you ways to optimize your website content and page titles, meta keywords, meta descriptions in the "head" section of your HTML documents. But remember, there is no magic way to ensure a high ranking of your website. I will not use any misleading information in an attempt to get you a higher ranking for a short period of time.

Is it worth including the links to other sites from mine?
Yes. At first sight the idea of giving your visitors an easy way to leave your site doesn't sound like something that will help you promote your website. But in practice websites provide Internet users with additional resources and a 'way out' will eventually be more successful because they are more useful. Also, with the help of external links you will gain reciprocal links from other sites that will help you attract more visitors to your website. Reciprocal links will increase your site's Link Popularity that has a significant impact on Search Engine ranking. Here's a striking example of Google, a search engine that has rapidly become very popular among Internet users because it is efficient and fast. For Google those pages are more important that are frequently linked to other sites comparing with those having just few reciprocal links. It means that Google gives a high ranking to the site that many webmasters find worth linking to.