We'll advise you on ways to promote your site and draw increased traffic to your Web site to maximize its effectiveness. We won't "over sell" you on something you don't want or need. But our broad experience in marketing, advertising, sales promotion and copy writing, will help you determine what is right for your company and your emerging Web marketing strategy.

PROPOSAL: From our consultation with you, we jointly determine a basic web site outline and development strategy for your Internet presence. We always supply a written proposal and quote in advance for your approval. Should the project change significantly during the development stages, we guarantee no additional costs without your approval in writing in advance to any and all changes.

Follow this link to see some typical professional services web sites design concepts. These concepts were developed for legal firms, but are adaptable to any professional services companies, such as Chartered Accountants, Book Keeping and Tax Preparation firms, Therapists, Counsellors, Consultants. In fact any firm which sells personal services, as opposed to products, might use these particular design concepts if they wish.

STANDARD WEBSITE DESIGN PACKAGES: Our Standard Web site Design Packages contain everything a small business needs to put its business on the Web, except a dial up account, a domain name and fees for hosting web pages on a web hosting service computer. These three items you obtain yourself, but we will be happy to advise you in your selections.

• Domain Name: A domain name is basically an address for your web site. The domain name for this site is kirwood.com. While there is a way to avoid registering and paying for your own domain, this is penny wise. The cost is currently only US$70.00 for two years. You need a domain name and it should probably be your company name for simplicity's sake. Avoid fancy, clever names. We can advise and assist you in selecting your domain name.

• Web Hosting Service - ISP: You also will need a web hosting service, called an ISP, to store your web pages on their computer, and make them accessible to people surfing the internet. This is the only way to access your web site. We can help you with this, but we do not host sites ourself. A ballpark price for budgeting for your web site would be around a CAN$50.00 one time account set up fee and about CAN$35.00 a month for ongoing hosting of your site.

• Direct High Speed or Dial Up Account: You will also need to keep and pay for a separate High Speed or dial up account or dial up service so you can access the internet. You probably already have one of these, if not you can find many in the CAN$20.00 per month range. We recommend the high speed from your cable or phone company.

INCLUDED IN OUR WEB DESIGN PACKAGES: A web page can be any length, unlike a piece of paper. We suggest that it be about three screens long as the practical maximum length.

A web site would typically consist of about ten pages of information about your business, your products or services, your expertise and staffing,

1. Text:
   We design, layout and hand code your pages in the most widely acceptable HTML formats so that your pages display properly for everyone. We ask our clients to submit their text to us in standard word processor format on a diskette.

   Copy writing and rewriting of material clients supply us, is usually a negotiable extra. Typing of material may incur a secretarial charge.

2. Photos and Graphics:
   Your Web site is really enhanced by the appropriate and non-intrusive use of colorful graphics or photos. We'll scan in the photos or graphics you supply. These can be from your existing printed sales material, or we can suggest appropriate illustrations in our design.

3. Custom Graphics:
   We custom design a mast head for your web site pages. This usually reflects your company logo, but in colour, if you have one. We are careful to reflect the appropriate "corporate and professional image" your organization projects and requires. We strongly believe that graphics should assist the viewer in locating information on your site and not become the attention grabbing focus of your pages.

   As a matter of course, all your graphics are carefully optimized to balance the best possible appearance with the fastest download/viewing time.

4. Background Image:
   We also design a matching appropriate background for your pages. We believe that your background design should be fairly simple so that it does not get in the way of your message. Your background will also probably include a band of color or pattern, usually along the left side of the Web site. It is here where people expect to find navigation aids and information about your site. Think of chapter headings in a book.

5. Image Map Navigation Bar:
   An image map bar is included on all web sites of six pages or more to enable viewers to navigate through the site without getting lost. Click on any word in the bar and it will take people to the main sections of your site This might alternatively take the form of navigation buttons.

6. Response Form:
   One of the most powerful features of your Web site will be an order form or enquiry/response form. People who visit your site will give you their name, address, phone number (if you ask), as well as details about information for which they are looking. All this is very valuable marketing information about potential customers or clients who are interested in your products or services. You can also use this as an order form. One form is included with each of our sites.

7. Bells & Whistles:
   No site is complete without these tools:
   • Hit counter: to see roughly how many people are visiting your site.
     
   • Internal Search Engine: to assist your visitors in locating information on your site.
   • Email contact: to permit visitors in asking you basic questions.
   • Disclaimer, copyright, trademark and privacy protection statements
   These items are included in your basic design package.

8. Installing Your Web Site:
   Once you've approved the layout and design of your web site, we upload and install it in the Web space you've secured from your ISP (web hosting service.)

9. Promoting Your Web Site:
   "If you have a web site and no one sees it, is it really there?"

   Once your web site is in place, you need to let the world know about it. This is mainly done by submitting it to the important search engines.There are two vital areas involved in promoting your web site.

   1. Meta Tag development
      Meta tags tell search engines what is important about your site and largely determine how they list and rank you. Our package includes optimized Meta Tag development, with special expertise in key words, site content tags and site title tags.
   2. Search Engine submissions.
      We include an initial submission of your home page to the top 15 search engines in your package price. This includes AltaVista, WebCrawler, Lycos, Infoseek, Excite, HotBot and others. We will professionally and properly submit your site to at least 15 of the most important search engines and spiders. There is a fine science and art to this service.

   We recommend however, that you also contract for our ongoing web site submission services in order to give your site a quick start in the world wide web. Please refer to our Search Engine Submission Services page for details of this service. While we cannot guarantee a specific ranking in search engines, we can assure you that our submission service will get you a high ranking and definitely bring more traffic to your site.

10. Maintenance & Updating:
    We will always be willing to make minor changes to your site on a complimentary basis. This means price changes, address or name changes, or the revision of the occasional sentence here and there.

    We also encourage our clients to learn some fundamentals of HTML and web site design so they can update their own sites, however we will not leave you alone. We are always available for a quick bit of technical assistance where needed.

    We also offer ongoing maintenance and updating services on a very reasonable, even modest, fixed monthly rate based on a mutual estimate of the work which will be required.

    Web sites require refreshing, updating and maintenance in order to keep your viewers coming back. No one likes to read the same old magazine over and over again. Similarly, you really need to add new material to your site as often as possible.

11. Prices:
    We've priced our Standard Web site Packages to be well within the range of the small business proprietor or professional:
    • Single-page Web site $550.00
    • 5 page Web Site $700.00
    • 10-Page Web site $1500.00
    • 15-Page Web site $2,000.00
    • 20-Page Web site $3,000.00

Please refer to our terms and pricing page for more details. We also will supply a written quote for your approval.

We want to be your web site designer and will do what it takes to earn your trust and business.

Please email me personally, J Kirby Inwood or phone me at (519) 439-6116 to arrange your free consultation.