FAQ's // Web Design Services, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), Hosting, Emails, Domain Names

//FAQ's

Some of the most common questions we are asked are listed below. If you can't find an answer to your question here, then please call us on 01254 660 560

If I ask for a quote, what happens next?

First, we talk to you over the phone or discuss by email to find out your exact requirements.
Next, we analyse your requirements and make possible recommendations to achieve your web design objective.
Finally, we create a design prototype, along with detailed information about the website. When you're happy with our proposal, we'll begin development of the site and give dates for testing and completion.

How long will it take to design my web site ?

This largely depends on what is involved, as well as how soon you, as the client, are able provide us with the essential documents, such as copy and images. A simple brochure site can be up and running in 1 or 2 weeks. More complex projects can take longer. When we know your exact requirements, we will send you a contract with a realistic completion date.

We know that project deadlines are very important and we will always do our utmost to meet them.

Do you use pre-made templates ?

No, we never use pre-made templates because with pre-made templates, your site would end up looking like hundreds of others sites on the internet. At DPI 21, we create each and every website from scratch, so every design we create will be unique.

What do I need to supply to build a website?

You will need to supply us with the text and images you want to appear on your website. The more complete this content is, the easier the process will be. You can supply your text and images (e.g. full sized jpegs from digital cameras) via email or cd. We can also search for images or graphics for you on the internet, if you don't have any of your own. It is also helpful, if you have any particular ideas about colour schemes or styles that you want, to tell us as much as possible at the start. Furthermore, any websites you particularly find of interest can also help a great deal so give us their addresses and we'll check them out before making our design ideas.

Should we put lots of graphics on my web pages ?

It's essential to keep a balance between aesthetics and clarity. Not everyone has a broadband connection, and overly complex graphics take a long time to download, so it's very important to maintain a fast download time so that people on dial-up connections can browse your website without having to wait for ages. However, all the graphics we incorporate on our web pages are optimised for fast-loading time.

What tools and techniques do you use ?

We usually hand-code our websites using an editor called TextMate. We code using W3C compliant code and we don't use (deprecated) tables but only CSS. By keeping most of the code on a separate file, this ensures your website is standard compliant (a legal requirement sometimes), loads faster and that your pages are clear and easy to update. This standards based way of developing also helps make your sites more search engine friendly.

What is a web browser ?

Web browsers are software installed on computers and used to see the pages of a website located on the Internet or stored locally on a hard drive. Some famous browsers are Internet Explorer, Firefox, Opera and Safari. Our websites are compatible with all browsers and running platforms (Windows, Mac, Linux). We always ensure that each and every website we create is tested to the fullest.

What is a search engine ?

A web search engine searches for information on the public web by sending out a spider to fetch as many documents as possible. Some well known search engines include Google, Yahoo, MSN.

Search engine traffic is considered to be the best traffic a website can receive, along with printed or online directories : nearly 85% of traffic to most web sites is found by using a search engine or directory.

How do search engines work ?

We could write pages and pages on how search engines work, but a generalisation would be that search engines employ the use of spiders to gather information from websites. These spiders continuously crawl a website's pages, following the links on the pages, and is helped greatly by formatting the pages correctly. Those sites that are well built (using semantic clear code) usually fare better in the rankings than those sites that aren't as well produced.

What does «optimising a website» mean ?

It's essential for a web designer to find a balance between several elements : usability (e.g. navigation menu), accessibility,search engine visibility and fast download time. For example, if your website is not accessible, you will lose visitors; if it has a low visibilility for search engines, you will lose potential visitors.

Optimising your website means optimising your internet business.

I have a new site but why isn't it in the search engines yet ?

It can take a certain time before the spiders used by search engines find your first pages and include them in the search engine's results. If you're site has been built to standards, then you can expect it to be picked up within the first month.

How do search engines rank a web site ?

Every search engine uses a different algorithm for ranking the various websites. An algorithm is a very complicated set of rules that a site needs to adhere to, in order to rank well in the search engine's results.

When I type the relevant keywords associated with my business, why doesn't my website appear or why is it very low in the results ?

This is where Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) becomes important: it is the process of increasing the number of visitors to a web site by ranking high in the search results of a search engine. The higher a website ranks in the results of a search engine, the greater the chance that it will be visited by potential clients.

By properly designing your website, we will first ensure that search engines easily find your pages and index them : this is the first (and an important) step.

However, a «new born website» isn't usually of great interest to search engines in comparison to its longer established competitors : this is perfectly normal and logical; the process of becoming popular is time consuming and requires a good knowledge of how search engines work.

Ethical SEO techniques will improve the chance that the site will be found by the search engine and well placed : The goal after that is to have your pages appear in the top results.

Can one get instant results ?

Unfortunately, no. Beware! Many SEO firms which promise instant and magnificent results might use bad techniques prohibited by the search engines that can eventually get websites banned temporarily from the search engines.

At DPI 21, we never use any of these techniques, nor do we promise instant magnificent results, because it is just not possible to promise instant, magnificent results in a very short space of time. Yes, high rankings take some time to build up, especially when using ethical (and safer) practices. However, the benefits will be huge once your website will naturally rank well in terms of visitors and potential clients.

What is a domain name?

A domain name is a unique address which points to your website. Eg. www.dpi21.com. Many personal sites use only the domain name of their Internet Service Provider (ISP) but we strongly recommend you get your own domain name if your site is a commercial enterprise.

How do I register my domain name ?

First, you will need to check if the domain name you are looking for is available to be registered. You can use Nominet's free on-line search facility - called WHOIS in order to determine whether a domain name is available and, if not, the organisation or person to whom it is registered, and at what time that registration was made.

Alternatively, most web hosting companies allow you to do the same checking before you get a webhosting package which will be associated with the domain name you have chosen.

If you need help choosing the right domain name for your business, we'll be happy to advise.

What is Web Hosting ?

Web hosting is the process of renting some webspace on a remote server in order to publish your website online. Web hosting companies offer several web hosting packages, and we can also offer web hosting for all of our website projects.

What does uploading mean ?

While downloading is receiving a file from another computer, uploading is the exact opposite; sending your web pages to your webspace so that they can be accessed by the public across the Internet.

How do I upload things to my website once its online?

Uploading to your website is very simple and can be done in two ways. Depending on the type of site you have, (a content managed site or static site) you will either add things via an online management suite (for a content managed site) or use an FTP program to download and amend your HTML files, then re-upload them. The 1st method mentioned, (using a content management system) is now the preferred method of choice as it offers simplicity and flexibility as well as less technical knowledge. Using the FTP method is still possible, but you would require knowledge of HTML and how to edit your pages etc.

The tech stuff...

All sites are built conforming to the latest W3C standard for XHTML 1.0 Strict, CSS and accessibility law. We hand code everything, which means no third party software or off the shelf products, allowing us to cater for any site development requirement. All sites operate on a LAMP platform (Linux Apache MySQL PHP) and we can install your site on our server or your own server.

“When I type the relevant keywords associated to my business, why doesn't my website appear or why is it very low in the results?”

//FAQ's

Web design services

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

Hosting, emails & domain names

The tech stuff...