As Custom template and code creators we can build the look, feel and functionality of your site quickly and on budget. We can also pack it full of powerful functions to make your job maintaining your site a breeze.

Our investment in rapid development tools and our use of powerful CMS (content management systems) means we can typically quote some 2 to 5 times lower than other web design agencies and give you a more powerful site!

After years of designing individual websites, we realised most sites have a great deal in common.

They all, for instance, have an about section with a number of “bits” of information. They normally have a product focused information section. This could be for tangible, intangible or personality items, and in most cases have some kind of contact device, either a form, series of forms or a list of names, addresses and contact numbers. Some have a geo-location aware search to return contact or branch information closest to the visitor. In addition to these basic elements, most sites will either have e-commerce or database manipulation of some kind. They may have user registration, feedback mechanisms and interactive support elements. We recognise how these elements need to be constructed and how they need to work together in a functional environment.

From the site owners perspective, we rarely meet anyone who doesn't need some kind of content control. From email forwarders and FTP access, database extraction for archiving or management reporting, right down to the ability to upload new photos and page content. We recognise these functions are always useful. Web agencies that ask you to come back to them for changes (and then often make you pay for the privilege or keep you waiting days for updates) are a thing of the past using simple editors that make maintaining a site as simple as logging in and typing.

Take a lok at this video showing how simple site maintenance can be!

[VIDEO EMBED IN PRODUCTION]

Structure 'v' Content.

Not all sites come with a balance. We build sites in the traditional way using compliant coded html and CSS styling, we generate fully optimised graphics and build well thought out menu driven structures. What makes us different though is rather than simply “stick” your content onto the pages, we set up powerful content management systems so YOU can manage the structure words and pictures on each of your pages.

This is as simple as logging in, locating the information you wish to change and performing the edit. Changes are made instantly.

When your site is delivered, some content will have already been entered for you. This may include information pages, images, PDF files, product items and payment processing and shipping details. To help you familiarise yourself with the management system, we provide Skype based one to one training at a time to suit you. Here you can start modifying information with one of us talking you carefully through each step. Once you are comfortable with the editors provided, you should have no trouble maintaining and updating your site with new items.

Site Components.

There are a number of components that make up the system that drives your site. Where possible we have provided Open Source or Open Licensed components to achieve most tasks. These components range from the Apache Web server your site uses to serve its visitors, the MySQL and PHP components used to provide script interactivity and database management and components from Drupal / Joomla & MCE to form the core of your content management system. Where we have been unable to provide open source or open licensed components, we have fully paid all licences for the use of the components you are using (e.g. the “cpanel” server control panel etc..)

External Resources

Where possible, we strongly recommend the use of external services and unless you have instructed us to do otherwise, your site will be configured to make use of services like Gmail, Picasa, Flickr, Youtube and Mailchimp (to name a few). To this end, it would be helpful if you could set up the following external accounts (We can help you do this, or set them up completely for you if required).

Email: For reasons of security, your server account will not include any email handling facilities. Instead we offer a comprehensive “forwarding” system. Forwarding can redirect unlimited individual email addresses at your domain to other email addresses. This means you can administer multiple email addresses and domains without having to check multiple email boxes. Full support and help on setting these forwarders up is included.

Our provider of choice is Googles gMail. It has a huge storage capacity and is ideal for archiving your weekly site backups. It also supports secure POP services as well as IMAP and a fully featured web-mail interface.

Video: If you intend to display video on your site, the we suggest Youtube as a video host. If you have an existing account with Youtube, we may suggest you create a new one just to hold video for your site. This allows us to take your entire channel of videos and randomly select items for display as featured content.

Image Storage: If you would like an image gallery on your site, then we recommend the use of Picasa (we can interface your site to Flickr if you would prefer, but this can result in slower loading galleries.). Interfacing with these external systems enables us to provide automatically updating gallery sections and photo slide shows in your site. If you are a PC user, then we suggest the use of the free Picasa image manager. This can maintain both your public and private web albums directly from your desktop. Picasa also features a Youtube video up loader that will perform all sizing, optimising and uploading in a single click.

Newsletters: Your server is fully capable of sending automated emails to is opted-in user-base, however, Mailchimp.com offer a free account for the delivery of 3000 newsletters per month. We can place the Newsletter sign-up straight on your front page or (optionally) integrate directly with the mailchimp servers  to auto-sign new users to your newsletter list when they join your site. Additionally, we can provide a newsletter template that mimics the look and feel of your site design to use in your newsletter productions.

Calendar & Event Management: We already provide these services to other web hosts for use by their clients. Whilst your site is maintained by us, these services are provided to you at no cost.

Server and Database Backups

Backups are automatic and scheduled by our management server. Once a week, during a specific overnight timeslot, your entire database will be extracted, compressed and emailed to you. These backups allow your server databases to be rebuilt in cases of emergency like hardware failure or attack. Even though we maintain a backup of your entire web server system, a complete home directory backup, or an uploaded images backup can be enabled for your account on a monthly basis. Please ask us if you require these. Please also be aware these backup files may become very large!

Domain Names and Hosting.

We always provide 12 months complimentary hosting with every site. We can configure your site to use any existing domain name you own providing you are able to change the name server details to our servers. Or, if you don't already have a domain name that you want to use, we will provide your choice of available .co.uk or .com domain name at no extra charge. If you have, or set up, a GoDaddy (.com) or UkReg (.co.uk) account, we will transfer the fully paid-up and configured domain to your control account on request.

At the end of your complimentary 12 months hosting, you can opt to stay on our optimised servers. If we hold the domain name for your site, we will renew this for you as required at no additional cost. If you would prefer to move to your own server, your site can be taken away at any time (no severance charges). Your automated backups already provide everything you need to set up your site on a new host. (Managed facilities like security upgrades, list management, automatic optimisation, automatic backups, domain renewal.. etc.. will obviously stop working if you move servers, so you should ensure your new host can enable these features).

Who are we? and Why chose us?

We hand code complex sites, optimised for millions of hits, maintaining huge sharded database structures served from global content delivery platforms (e.g. www.noddleit.com)

We provide extreme* RSP (Rapid Site Prototyping) services using CMS frameworks to fast track your ideas into working demonstrations capable of grabbing investor interest.

* We were recently asked to build a fully functional ticket support system including email responder, auto FAQ builder, domain name and hosting. Our extreme team had the complete functional site available to the public in under 4 hours!

We provide high functionality custom sites to small businesses on a tight budget, rich media sites that sell your audio and video content directly from your page, e-commerce solutions allowing you to sell unlimited tangible and digital goods quickly and easily. We also power other web developers by designing and implement CMS structures and template packs for their clients.

We provide fully managed streaming servers with automatic play list management and live streaming capabilities to audiences of up to 2000 listeners connecting to mono 24k up to stereo 128k streams on a permanent, or short term (conference / event broadcasting) basis with full backup and delivery management.

Whatever the level or cost of web service you need, we can almost certainly have a product just right for you. If you just “need a website”, then we are certainly the people to talk to – our rapid building methods mean we can match your needs and budget in the shortest time.