Frequently Asked Questions

  1. What does your pricing package really entail?
  2. Why do the domain and hosting cost extra?
  3. What happens to my site when you're done?
  4. I'm an online merchant; will you design a site for me with a shopping cart?



1) What does your pricing package really entail? (In English, this time)

Put simply, I will commit to design your site from start to finish for a flat fee of $150. This includes all consultations, graphical design, coding, etc. I require a minimum of $50 down payment; this helps to cover any upfront costs to me, as well as ensuring that each client is committed to the design of their site. When you, the client, are happy with your site, I’ll publish it to the Internet for you. Only at that point will I request the remainder of the site design costs.

I am a horrible businessman in the sense that I would rather be underpaid than overpaid. My foremost goal is that my clients come away feeling that they have gotten a great website for a great price.

2) Why do the domain and hosting cost extra?

Basically, because these services are provided by external companies. Some clients come in with a preferred (or even existing) domain and/or hosting provider. If not, I typically recommend my preferred provider (Doteasy.com) which provides both hosting and domain registration, usually for well under $30/year. In fact, they frequently run promotions that make the first year’s costs less than $10; that’s less than $10 for your first year, and between $25 and $30 per year after that.

Please note that I am more than happy to handle domain registration and setting up hosting for your site, my services being included in the $150 flat fee. However, in those cases, I would require reimbursement for fees paid to external provider(s); this would be the only time you would see a charge over and above the $150 flat fee on your invoice.

3) What happens to my site when you’re done?

A website is a dynamic, living thing; what suits your needs today could very well need to be modified at some point in the future. Contact information, testimonials, product lines, etc; all of these things change. Upon completion, the site is yours; you own every file, image, and character of code. As such, you’re free to modify whatever code you need to yourself (or via that talented nephew of yours).

I’m also happy to provide my ongoing webmaster services to you for a negotiable hourly fee. And don’t worry; I’m a fast worker!

4) I'm an online merchant; will you design a site for me with a shopping cart?

The short answer is, “No.” While I don’t necessarily feel that it’s beyond my capacity to build a site capable of supporting a shopping cart, I prefer to keep my site design on an informational, “Here’s how you get a hold of us” level. The primary reason for this is that I run an extremely small operation, and I prefer to avoid the stress associated with keeping an online merchant’s livelihood (a.k.a., their shopping cart) operational; I frankly can’t afford to take the legal risks associated with lost income due to a programming error on my part.

If you absolutely need a shopping cart to run your business, I would recommend that you check out one of the larger, more expensive web design firms. They’re more likely to carry the web-design equivalent of malpractice insurance.