New Website needed, recommend me a designer.

_Brian

Hi folks..
I'm preparing the next stage of our little business, my own webstore and ability is at its limit and I need a professionally built online store..
Would anyone care to recommend a company they found good and maybe a link they the site they built for you ?? I'd like to get recommendations from folks really happy with the service they got..

MOD's: I hope this is in the remit of the forum, feel free to delete otherwise..

Thanks all..

smash

_Brian wrote: »

Hi folks..
I'm preparing the next stage of our little business, my own webstore and ability is at its limit and I need a professionally built online store..
Would anyone care to recommend a company they found good and maybe a link they the site they built for you ?? I'd like to get recommendations from folks really happy with the service they got..

MOD's: I hope this is in the remit of the forum, feel free to delete otherwise..

Thanks all..

Theres a web dev forum that might be of more help. Companies around Ireland all vary greatly in both pricing and ability. Also, you may be entitled to a grant from enterprise Ireland so don't for us on a 'cheaper is better' attitude.

_Brian

smash wrote: »

Theres a web dev forum that might be of more help. Companies around Ireland all vary greatly in both pricing and ability. Also, you may be entitled to a grant from enterprise Ireland so don't for us on a 'cheaper is better' attitude.

Thanks..
Yes funding is in the pipeline but I'm just looking to line my ducks up first..

Thanks to those who PM'd me too..

TheCostumeShop.ie: Ronan

_Brian Probably isn't enough information in post for you to find a partner. You need to think through yourself what you need exactly. Websites can be built from simple templates by a college student (wordpress with a paypal plugin) for as little as €500. "Professional" firms with nice suits and ties might come in around 30k. A site with fully integrated warehousing systems, CRM etc can costs six figures.

Some designers (many some would say) will hand over a lovely website, the new owner is delighted for the first day. A month later freaks out because the paid for it, bought stock and the "build it and they will come" strategy didnt work.

Hope it all works out for you. If you need specific advice feel free to PM me.

123qwerty

I found them really good and reliable.
I know they work of templates but that makes site cheaper and faster built.
Pretty? Depends on your needs and funds.
Wont hurt to ask
topseo.ie/cms-website-design-ireland

smash

123qwerty wrote: »

I found them really good and reliable.
I know they work of templates but that makes site cheaper and faster built.
Pretty? Depends on your needs and funds.
Wont hurt to ask
topseo.ie/cms-website-design-ireland

Their own site is rubbish and I wouldn't trust someone who'd charge 'per pages' on their site. If it's a cms there shouldn't be a page limit.

123qwerty

You could be right smash but this is about ecommerce, not standard website.
But still its wort of try at no cost.
PS
I think they try to be as Kilkenny as possible, website in black and amber

devildriver

123qwerty wrote: »

You could be right smash but this is about ecommerce, not standard website.
But still its wort of try at no cost.
PS
I think they try to be as Kilkenny as possible, website in black and amber

Pride in your county is all well and good but I would have serious concerns about any SEO / design company that believes keyword stuffing the site footer to be a good practice in this day and age.

Also the same usability principles apply to ecommerce site design as to "standard" website design. And I would say that it's NOT worth a try even if it's free - you could damage your brand and/or your domain by using dodgy practices.

Do it right the first time and keep improving as you go.

tricky D

Go through their portfolio. It's, eh, interesting.

I use this company http://www.pixeltistic.com . They built a couple websites for me, cost effective ones. Reliable and no messing around. Are always around to make small changes here and there for me when needed within 24 hours, so that kind of service brings me back. Just give them a clear direction about what you want to do.

smash

Deleted User wrote: »

I use this company http://www.pixeltistic.com . They built a couple websites for me, cost effective ones. Reliable and no messing around. Are always around to make small changes here and there for me when needed within 24 hours, so that kind of service brings me back. Just give them a clear direction about what you want to do.

I was wondering why I'd never heard of them given that they have 699 clients but then I looked at their portfolio and they've only done 10 websites. Mostly very basic ones and a handful that look like templates. What kind of money do they charge? CMS used? Hosting platforms?

I dont think thats their full portfolio as I have a site they did thats not up there.

I can't attest to the technical side of things, only that they delivered what I asked for, granted which wasn't very complicated. Whether they can deliver the best in terms of CMS, SEO etc i don't know.

But they aren't expensive, and Ive paid between 1 and 2K for sites from them. Going through the process with them and making various variations on the initial scope, and seeing the hours put in I was pretty happy about the price.

Depends on what the OP has to spend I guess, if money is no object then its a different story.

smash

Deleted User wrote: »

Ive paid between 1 and 2K for sites from them.

Talk about wanting to win the race to bottom. 2k inc. VAT is around 2 days work. If you got more than 15 hours out of them I don't know how they made any money.

smash

smash wrote: »

Talk about wanting to win the race to bottom. 2k inc. VAT is around 2 days work. If you got more than 15 hours out of them I don't know how they made any money.

They have their place in the market as does everyone else in their respective price brackets. You can buy a Toyota Carolla or a Merc if you can afford it.

If your billing 100 euro an hour+ thats your prerogative, you have your market of customers, the cheaper companies have theirs.

smash

Deleted User wrote: »

They have their place in the market as does everyone else in their respective price brackets. You can buy a Toyota Carolla or a Merc if you can afford it.

If your billing 100 euro an hour+ thats your prerogative, you have your market of customers, the cheaper companies have theirs.

The problem is that when people go to buy a car, they know what they're getting for their money. When they go to get a website, they expect the Mercedes for the price of the Toyota!

smash

smash wrote: »

The problem is that when people go to buy a car, they know what they're getting for their money. When they go to get a website, they expect the Mercedes for the price of the Toyota!

True. But they have to learn the lesson the hard way if thats the case. I know I did!

Trojan

123qwerty wrote: »

I found them really good and reliable.
I know they work of templates but that makes site cheaper and faster built.
Pretty? Depends on your needs and funds.
Wont hurt to ask
topseo.ie/cms-website-design-ireland

Do not pretend to be a customer of your own business here on boards.ie. This is your only warning.

boards.ie admin

123qwerty

devildriver wrote: »

Pride in your county is all well and good but I would have serious concerns about any SEO / design company that believes keyword stuffing the site footer to be a good practice in this day and age.

Also the same usability principles apply to ecommerce site design as to "standard" website design. And I would say that it's NOT worth a try even if it's free - you could damage your brand and/or your domain by using dodgy practices.

Do it right the first time and keep improving as you go.

I do not know about SEO but looks like you know all about it and just wondering why you are NO on everything there, are they your competitors?
If I want something to be done regards internet I ask and if I get good answers, stuff I want and like as well good price I go for it. There are always things that can be fixed and made better and when I am completely happy with all I release funds.
There are billion websites and each and everyone could have more or less same number of lovers and haters. Some like pink, others green, yet another plain other fancy sites.
What client wants and like is most important and sets his/hers standards.
Donedeal was build on template and despite many improvements since was released still look crap but people love it cause is simple and popular.

We should focus on post subject and try to help.

123qwerty

@Trojan
excuse me, what?
Just sent you priv

Graham

123qwerty wrote: »

Donedeal was build on template and despite many improvements since was released still look crap but people love it cause is simple and popular.

Really, which template?

devildriver

123qwerty wrote: »

I do not know about SEO but looks like you know all about it and just wondering why you are NO on everything there, are they your competitors?

I'm honestly finding it difficult to understand what you are saying.

Anyway... Yes I do know a little about site design and SEO. That's why I commented on the site you posted. The practice of multiple links on the footer is not viewed positively by Google. So I would advise the O.P. against it

123qwerty wrote: »

If I want something to be done regards internet I ask and if I get good answers, stuff I want and like as well good price I go for it. There are always things that can be fixed and made better and when I am completely happy with all I release funds.

That's fair enough. If you are happy with the work they have done for you that's fine. But I and others here have pointed out that they may not be the best choice for the O.P. based on our analysis of their site, work and practices.

123qwerty wrote: »

There are billion websites and each and everyone could have more or less same number of lovers and haters. Some like pink, others green, yet another plain other fancy sites.

I think the comments relating to the designer's site that you posted were more related to functionality and SEO than aesthetics and colour choices.

123qwerty wrote: »

What client wants and like is most important and sets his/hers standards.
Donedeal was build on template and despite many improvements since was released still look crap but people love it cause is simple and popular.

A good designer/developer will look at what the client wants and combine it with what the client NEEDS to derive the best solution. The designer should guide the client to the best solution using his or her expertise and experience, giving the client "just what they want" is not a professional approach.

I don't really think the Donedeal site is relevant here.

123qwerty wrote: »

We should focus on post subject and try to help.

Yes of course I think that's what we are all trying to do.

pedronomix

Buying a website is nothing like buying a car, with a car, new or used, you see what you are buying in as much detail as you care to investigate. Websites are more like building a house, if you do not know exactly what you want, have no plans and don't even know what accommodation you want, it is very unlikely to turn out to be what you want. You would not give a builder €300K and ask him to do the best he can for you!!

The overarching deciding factors in getting a website are 1) your budget and 2) your end objective. There are any number of examples of large companies spending six/seven figure sums on really crap sites. Because they think, websites and computers... this is a job for the IT people. Add in eCommerce and online trading, better get the accounting people on board too. Somebody should really ask Sales and Marketing what products/services they want up there. Wow this is getting big!! we will need a working group to make sure all interests are represented. Project doomed!

The supply side is much greater than the demand side, so the pricing heads to the toilet. Colleges have been turning out out website technicians/builders by the new time, with hugely varying talents and skill sets. But these new website experts are not trained/talented designers in most cases. it is no wonder that there are lots of sites with pretty decent functionality, that look like dogs doodoo and do no business, irrespective of what they cost. Good design costs money, a couple of grand is never going to buy a decently designed "brochure" site, even with no or little functionality.

Having made nearly every error possible since 1998 in buying/having a lot of websites built, I have learned many expensive lessons. The best one is to max out DESIGN spend, even if that means using something template based, or better still a fully features hosted template based format. If you select correctly, you get proven features, functionality, support, IT systems integration, proper gateway compatibility, CRM, reporting/analytics etc etc . It makes no sense to have some bod try to replicate all of these on your dollar, even if you had the dough to spend. Designers hate templates, as it limits their artistic freedom, but good designers are able to produce quality design within the typical constraints.

Understand that you know far more about your product/service than any web guy, it is a waste of money paying them to learn about your business. You can make huge savings by doing a lot of the donkey work yourself even just by sitting down and writing the basic text, it can be easily/cheaply re-written to nicer prose if that is not your talent. Pick out some sites, preferably in your own sector, that nail it and seek to replicate (not copy) their best bits, this will give you a good site layout and feature structure.

Websites are for your customers not you, ALAWAYS ALWAYS put yourself in their shoes and make sure that your site gives them what they want as simply as possible. There is no rocket science here, just some decent design, tons of plain hard work and lots of common sense.

Once you have this done and the site is up and running, you are about 10% along the road. SEO, Marketing, updates, new products/services, redesigns, freshening, and site promotion by whatever means from advertising, social media etc etc need to be a part of every day, forever!!

pedroeibar1

^^great post

CatFromHue

pedronomix wrote: »

There are any number of examples of large companies spending six/seven figure sums on really crap sites. Because they think, websites and computers... this is a job for the IT people.

Reminded me of GSK's site

http://www.gsk.ie/careers/current_positions.html

:D

Buttercake

123qwerty, please stop plugging

Trojan

Buttercake wrote: »

123qwerty, please stop plugging

I think he has dropped it, so we should too. We can all empathise with people trying to promote their business, even if they choose the wrong way to go about it.

--

Pedronomix, super post. I agree with most of it, one minor disagreement, probably about interpretation:

pedronomix wrote: »

Understand that you know far more about your product/service than any web guy, it is a waste of money paying them to learn about your business.

I think it's very important that the folks creating your website understand your business through and through. In fact, I recommend that as a simple rule of thumb when talking to business owners about choosing a website provider: if they start out asking questions about your business you've usually found someone decent; if they're more interested in visuals and what you want the site to look like, walk away.

smash

Some agencies will embark on a discovery process before the project is even handed to a designer to look it. This way they know what your clients and customers actually want, not what you want. It's something that a lot of people disregard because they're too wrapped up in what they want to push.

pedronomix

Trojan wrote: »

I think he has dropped it, so we should too. We can all empathise with people trying to promote their business, even if they choose the wrong way to go about it.

--

Pedronomix, super post. I agree with most of it, one minor disagreement, probably about interpretation:


I think it's very important that the folks creating your website understand your business through and through. In fact, I recommend that as a simple rule of thumb when talking to business owners about choosing a website provider: if they start out asking questions about your business you've usually found someone decent; if they're more interested in visuals and what you want the site to look like, walk away.

Fair point to pick up and as you have spotted I am not really sure how best to put it. It is about what you want and the nuances of your market segment, despite what some outsider might think (as in the obvious). The big point in this is YOUR OWN commitment and involvement. It is like the little industry best bits that an outsider will never get... sometimes you just have to say to the web guy, just do what I say... because!!!!

thecommander

smash wrote: »

Some agencies will embark on a discovery process before the project is even handed to a designer to look it. This way they know what your clients and customers actually want, not what you want. It's something that a lot of people disregard because they're too wrapped up in what they want to push.

We're in the process of redesigning our site, moving from a simple one page portfolio site to a multi page site broken down by customer type and services offered. We decided to hire a copywriter to do the content for each of the pages. During the process of him interviewing us about the company we learned a huge amount about ourselves. Amazing what an external set of eyes can see. What we thought were important pieces of information have now been scrapped. We noticed a trend in the company too and are aiming a page towards that sector. Well worth sitting back from the project before you begin, doesn't have to be with a copywriter, even ask clients about your business.

JMR

I used these guys http://www.iseek.ie/

Very professional and good to work with, available for follow up modifications etc

Ronan_wals

Grange web design in cork are a great service but like Ronan said you need to know what you want.

To me it sounds like you may need to put your money into online marketing more than a website.

whats the name of your store?

thecommander

Ronan_wals wrote: »

To me it sounds like you may need to put your money into online marketing more than a website.

No point in marketing a sh1t website.

Ronan_wals

thecommander wrote: »

No point in marketing a sh1t website.

I'd prefer to have a sh1t website and be able to market it then to have an unbelievable website and nobody visiting it.

Put money into getting visitors, you won't know what works anyway until you A/B test so the original design will always have to be changed.

Graham

Ronan_wals wrote: »

I'd prefer to have a sh1t website and be able to market it then to have an unbelievable website and nobody visiting it.

Put money into getting visitors, you won't know what works anyway until you A/B test so the original design will always have to be changed.

Not sure I'd spend a small fortune acquiring traffic only to have that traffic arrive, decide you're a two bit operation and go elsewhere.