Web design and development projects go through several steps. Depending on the sites goals different action and time frames within each phase. In that, an E-Commerce site has specific needs which take more time and product detail that a Business Information or Advertising site. So in an E-Commerce site the Website Development and Testing phases take more time. There is an E-Commerce specific section below with some additional things to do in the phases.
Project phases are:
Planning
1) Identify the purpose and some goals for the site. 2) Think about your need for things like logo design, photography and any graphics that may have been used for recognition to your business. 3) Gather any press releases or advertisement that has been used. 4) Think about cost and budget for this project. You can get an initial Quote now if you like. 5) Feel free to email or discuss anything you are thinking about your site.
Graphic Design
The planning and graphic design phases may overlap. 1) We will get your thoughts from above. Gather some graphics and create a “Rough Draft” test site. This will help you visualize the site and identify the template to customize. 2) Photography, stock photography, icons and graphic elements are created and gathered. 3) Template and Style Sheet is customized and placeholder wording is placed to get the visual of the final page.
Website Development
1) Secure the planned Web Host and begin the install of the applications on the domain server. 2) Copy everything that is wanted in the final site from the test site. 3) Adding final functionality, features and debugging operation. Quite a bit of programming is done which may overlap into testing. 4) Final content text is placed with links and type styling.
Testing and Training
1) We will go through the site together. Testing ALL links, filling and submitting any contact forms and making sure all menu functionality is in place. 2) Some training for placing text and creating new pages may have taken place during the placement of the final content. If so, we will still go through the Administration functions of your new site. 3) Any added features or changes to functionality are completed and retested. 4) All SEO and keywords in place.
Website Launch
At this point publishing the site is a simple change of the domain pointer or FTP of a few files. There is some fine-tuning to make a good site a great site. We use several tools including Google Webmasters Tools and Google Analytics to fine-tune the site. Minor changes in keywords, page titles, and image titles, can make big difference in how people find your site through the search engines
Project Completion
After the site is complete I will monitor and make any minor change you like for 2 weeks. Minor changes include adding or changing text, adding or changing photos, anything less than 3 hour of labor. Also working with you to make sure you are comfortable with administering your site. After that I will be around to answer any questions or continue Administration of the site on a monthly basis.
Additional for an E-Commerce project
byDesign Web’s E-Commerce solutions allow you to display products or services and collect payment details from your website. We use the latest “Open Source” technology with features that allow the owner to fully manage the eStore. Some important features you’ll have control over are:
- Create product categories
- Editing or adding and deletion of products
- Display sales and featured items
- Coupons, Gift Certificate, Sales Promotions
- Shopping cart system
- Payment Gateway
Access need for:
- Inventory control of item quantities & stock
- Shipping and tax calculation
- Displaying related products
There are several “Open Source” E-Commerce solutions. We have implemented sites using osCommerce, AgoraCart, ZenCart and eStore for Wordpress. The key is to match your need with the system. The more products and features take more time to implement and administer.
