Some companies out there provide SEO and charge very little monthly fee but since there is no guarantee on internet or Google, they often do hardly anything and not give you any results.

My friend had a hotel in Brighton and he employed a SEO company in Brighton and was only paying about £100 a month, but after 4 months, he was still nowhere near the first page, so he called another SEO brighton company and asked them for a free SEO audit on their website.

This second company checked his backlinks and it came out, that his current SEO company only built 5 links to his website, from which 4 were on absolutely unrelated websites (not bringing any link value with them). Easy to say, he fired the company, but he never got his money back!
They lured him with a cheap price and with promises of first place on Google for “hotels brighton” in a matter of few weeks and then just carried on with excuses.

Remember when choosing a SEO company, always ask them to show you one of their current clients website that they optimised and don’t hesitate to call this company and ask them about their experience in dealing with the SEO people you want to employ, this way you won’t get any surprises.
Always ask for reports on the end of the month from the SEO company saying what they did for you.
It’s essential that you have basic understanding of SEO, unless you’re employing a company that was highly recommended by someone you know, then you can trust their quality and not worry.

If you’re looking for a very experienced and result driven SEO brighton based company choose Search Optimist.

Professional websites consist of web pages that are easy to navigate. Web designers who focus on ease of navigation work to limit the number of clicks a visitor will have to make in order to arrive at the desired page. They also design web pages so that a visitor can always return to the most important pages like the home page from anywhere on the site. Links are also clearly marked so that visitors know where they will end up if clicked.

They adhere to the latest in web design standards. The latest in web design standards is defined by an organization known as the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). The organization makes recommendations to web designers as to the best practices concerning coding the various components that make up a web site. For example, the consortium recommends that designers use HTML (hypertext markup language) to implement textual information and links and use CSS (custom style sheets) to format the layout. The organization also provides a markup validation service that web designers can use to ensure the sites they create are W3C compliant.

Good web designers create pages that load quickly. When pages take too long to load, you can rest assured that visitors will abandon the site possibly never to return. The biggest killers of quick page load time are graphics like photos and Flash animations. While you as a client may not know how to optimize graphics, a web designer will know how to reduce the size of images in terms of bytes while not compromising their quality. You as a client should also make a determination if any particular graphic really suits the purpose of your website. Oftentimes, visitors are not so concerned with the flashy graphics but rather the business problem your website is trying to solve.

They design for all types of web browsers and platforms. It is a mistake to think that all visitors to a website will be Windows users accessing through Internet Explorer. Today, there is a growing population of Macintosh users and there are several web browsers like Firefox, Safari, Chrome, and Opera.

Professional website designers never put up a partially-completed site. They don’t post “under construction” web pages while development is in progress. The idea behind this type of page is to tell visitors that your site is not ready yet and please return later but more than likely they will never return. It is far better to post some content about your product, tell your visitors that the site is not quite ready yet, and leave contact information so that you can be reached to give more information.

They write content for their audience and not for search engines. There have been instances of web designers who use content saturated with keywords mainly to grab the attention of search engine spiders and attempt to get their sites ranked higher more quickly. But this does nothing to build trust in your audience towards your website. They want to come to your website and read information that is helpful for them. Keyword stuffing is also considered to be an unethical search engine optimization (SEO) technique and can get a site penalized by a search engine such as Google.

Know what you need in a website. If all you need is a brochure-style website with a handful of information-only pages then determine that before choosing a web design company. Not determining this causes unnecessary delays in getting your website online because the designer will not know what you want. It also makes it difficult for the design company to arrive at a quote to you for their services.

Examine their previous clients’ websites. Most web site design companies will have no problem giving you links to their previously successful website implementations. Analyze them carefully and determine their style and if it will fit your corporate image. If you look carefully, you can determine if they do their own design or create them from templates you can download freely from the web. Keep in mind, however, that many designers will start from a template in order to save time as far as layout but the graphics should be unique to your business image.

Do you want a website that focuses on cosmetics or functionality? Here again, you need to know what you need in website and who your audience will likely be. Some clients want a data-driven website filled with textual information while some want websites of a more entertaining nature filled with videos, flash graphics, and music. By looking at the websites a design company typically implements, you can determine where its strengths lie.

What do their prior clients say about them? Do your best to find out who used the web design service in the past and get their opinion directly from them. Remember that any design firm can put testimonials on their own website. Do your homework and find out for yourself. One key question to ask is how the web design company managed their project and kept within time and budget constraints.

Do they offer all the services needed for your project. You first need to determine exactly what it is you need in a website. You don’t necessarily need to know the technical buzzwords but you can make a description in your own words what you need. For example, if you need to save customer information then the web designer would know that you need a website with a database. It also helps if you sketch out what you envision for your website with each sheet of paper representing one web page.

What website maintenance options do they offer? Understand that your website will need to be updated in the future. For example, you may have an address or telephone number change and it will need to be quickly reflected on your website. Web designers offer a variety of maintenance options but the two most common are monthly maintenance fees or maintenance fees on a per-change basis. You should make a determination as to how often you think your website will change before choosing any maintenance option.

They have an effective change management process. Any website will undergo changes in the future but too many changes during the life of a project could be a disaster. Of course, it is not uncommon for changes to be requested by a client during a project creating a risk of wasted time and cost overruns. Getting client requirements straight in the beginning helps to minimize change but managing change when it occurs will help a project succeed and keep a client happy. This is where experienced web designers are helpful in identifying what it is a client wants and negotiating the feasibility of a change if they have to. The goal is to minimize reworking portions of a project as much as possible because it can be costly.

They suggest that the client provide some of the graphics. Creating custom graphics is a time-consuming process and it is costly when the web design firm must go through several iterations of graphic proofs for the client while trying to determine what is wanted. Efficient web designers use a combination of stock photos, custom designed graphics, and client-provided graphics in order to speed the process while still maintaining high quality.

They sometimes use templates as an inspiration for custom design. An professional web design company might have several templates they have developed already. While they will build a custom website for a client, they save time by using a template to lay the framework. For example, they might use the CSS (custom style sheets) file from a template to get a head start as building one from scratch can be time consuming.

They have after-delivery support options that are flexible. After final delivery of your website, it is only a matter of time before you will need changes made. Business is dynamic and so is its information. Most clients naturally call their web designer first and ask for changes and are sometimes surprised when they are quoted a price for the additional work. If they made changes for everyone for free, they could go out of business because they would have no time to focus on new clients. Smart web design companies control their costs by offering you flexible support options such as a fixed number of free change requests after delivery or a monthly support subscription fee.

How well does the web design company communicate? In the initial stages, they may communicate just fine but you should ask them how they communicate progress updates during a project. Good communication is very important during the life of a custom web design project because of specialized details unique to your business. Make sure that you can reach someone by telephone when you need to. How responsive is your web designer to emails? While it is unrealistic to expect your web designer to answer an email right away, they should be able to respond within 24 hours during business the week.

Customization may mean a longer project turnaround time. Whenever you need something special on your website it will naturally take longer if it is a unique design. However an experienced web designer with diverse set of skills should be able to give you an estimate based upon the time it took to complete projects similar to yours in the past. If the web design company is able to give you a customized time estimate for your project then it is an indication that it probably has a time management process in place.

It is important that the web designer identify the purpose of your website. The web designer should first ask you what business problem you want to solve by having a website. The business problem could be as simple as just wanting to communicate your business contact information and description of services but it still must be identified.

The web designer should understand your target market. Without this understanding, they will not know how to present the messages your website is trying to relay. For example, some target markets are served best by video presentations whereas others might like to read more. Some target markets respond best when web pages are filled with flashing graphics whereas others might be turned off by these.

Understanding your target market will also enable the web designer to create custom web content. This content is important for search engine optimization and marketing of your web site. Informative content is what draws people to visit your website. If content is poorly written with no understanding of the audience then it will only drive visitors away.

They are skilled at establishing a quick web presence through brochure-style websites. Often times a client wishing to establish a new web presence will approach a designer not knowing exactly what is wanted but to only quickly get on the internet. This is where the typical 5-page brochure-style website is useful and a good web design service will have plenty of templates in order to provide quick turnaround at a good price for the client. However keep in mind that the more experienced web design companies will only use a template as a structural start for what will become a unique design for your business.

They can provide custom programming because each client business is not the same. While it is good to be able to establish a web presence quickly through brochure-style websites, every client is different thus creating the possibility that customized scripting will have to be implemented. Freelance site designers are usually skilled in a variety of scripting languages and can provide the right programming solution needed to present the data on your website.

They can provide websites for e-commerce. Web site designers understand the modules that are required in order to set up shopping carts allowing clients to purchase and pay for items online. They can also coordinate with the merchant services provider needed to approve credit card transactions. Plus, they can design an e-commerce website so that it is also secure and protects the credit information of the client’s customers.

They can give you guidance on content management systems. Content management systems (CMS) allow clients control over the content posted on their website. It also relieves the web designer of many of the maintenance tasks that would otherwise be required in order to keep a client site current. Good freelance web designers empower their clients by providing a CMS so that their websites always look fresh and up-to-date.

The main draw of having a professional service oriented website business is that you gain and keep the trust of customers. This means they will feel comfortable and at ease when ordering from you. They will buy from you for the same reason people order a familiar item on a menu when in a strange restaurant, it is better to be safe than to be sorry. This is particularly true when it comes to both really small purchases where price is hardly the matter. It also applies to very large purchases where customers need to know that they are not going to get ripped off or cheated out of their money.

Not only should you make a good web site, you should also design your letterhead in your emails to match your website theme and reflect its ideals. Use the same fonts when possible and use matching colours. Always include your name and contact information and make the messages personal so that your clients know it is not an automated message that they are reading. Once you got that down, you can flaunt it on your site. If people can see that you show it in your site that you have good service, people will want to buy from you.

Finally, always remember that a client with a complaint is simply that. They are not angry at you, but are simply stressed and dissatisfied. Some customers naturally tend to say harsh words but are simply seeking assurance that their complaints will be handled. Give them fast and friendly solutions to establish a relationship wherein they can be assured that they can approach you for any problem and that their concerns are your foremost priority. Once they feel that that is the level of your service on the web, they will be more polite in making complaints. A professional business site is very important and it is also helpful to promote your site offline with promo giveaways like custom pens and other useful products.

A web designer should be skilled in various techniques ranging from basic web design to programming. A good grasp of grammar is also important and a good eye for detail also ensures that your site has a good overall look. More importantly, you and your designer should see eye to eye about what to do with your web site.

When choosing your designer, the most important factor to consider is communication. How well you and your designer can relay ideas and understand each other will determine how well the site will look. No matter how good the designer is, if he or she is unable to understand your vision then you may end up with a good looking site, but not with the elements that reflects your and your business. So make sure that you choose a designer who you can relate to. The second thing you should look at is the skills and abilities of your prospective designer. Look at his/her design portfolio and study who has the creative style that matches your taste most.

Once you have decided who to go with, you should take the time to really sit down and discuss the project before moving on to production. Not only does this ensure that you will get the perfect look for your site, but will also give you a foresight on what resources you may have to spend or what raw materials like text content and images to give to your designer. Create a viable and practical schedule and stick to it, this ensures that the process of creating your web site will be as efficient as possible.

Finally, if you feel that there is just too much work for one artist, do no hesitate to hire more than one or even consider hiring a small team. Designers often do well in collaborative projects and it is also less stressing for you as well.

If your business does not have its own website, then it is very much suggested that you get one. If your budget is low you can create a website for free. The primary reason for this is marketing. Owning or having your very own website exclusively for your small business is a very useful way of promoting your service. Today, there are millions of people surfing the internet. Visualise that in every 1 thousand internet surfers there are 5 people that come across with your website everyday. In every 1 million, there would be 5,000 who would access your web site everyday. If there are 5 millions internet surfers everyday, then there would be 25,000 people visiting your website everyday. Your company together with the products and services that you offer are promoted, and all you did was have your own website. Very effective way of marketing your products or services is it not?

Having your own website is not enough though. Your website must go thru scrutinizing web site design in order to be able to promote your products or services effectively. Search engine optimisation or SEO must be incorporated into your website in order to efficiently boost traffic for your website to have more visitors. The website must be able to attract the attention of the people you are targeting. As such, web site design plays a crucial role in the marketing of your business.

Thus, web site design and internet marketing are necessarily two sides of a coin. One cannot be useful or effective without the other. These two necessarily go hand-in-hand in order to efficiently boost traffic in a website and at the same time increase the chance of sales. The good part in making use of these two is that these are cheaper and more affordable than the traditional ways of marketing like newspaper and billboard advertisements. As such, why not make good use of web design and internet marketing to your business’ advantage?