Frequently Asked Questions

Answer: These days anyone with a computer and internet connection can build a website. Marketing Agencies, PR Companies, Graphic designers, PC technicians, your friend’s nephew who did a computer course at college... So, why, of the hundreds of options available should you choose Visualsoft?

1. We've been there, done that and got the t-shirt…

Having been in this industry since 1997 we’ve seen many web companies come and go over the years; but you can rest assured that we will still be here 12 years from now. We invest heavily in research and development and during the last 12 years we have designed and developed over 300 websites. We have an ever growing bank of code which has been developed and improved over this time. By re-using code from previous applications we are able to reduce development time and costs - and therefore pass these savings onto our clients.

Working with so many clients has also provided us with invaluable industry knowledge and an understanding of what works (and what doesn’t). We are stats mad; everything we recommend is based on A/B testing and proven technology to ensure maximum return on investment.

TIP - When choosing a web company be sure to check they have actually worked on similar projects in the past. You do not want to be an inexperienced company’s ‘guinea pig’ project; this can often lead to disappointing results, unfinished sites and/or incomplete projects. This is particularly the case when choosing an ecommerce provider; do not fall into the trap of using a ‘design agency’ that are heavily design focussed on a project that is actually going to be 95% technology. To avoid commissioning a designer to do a developers job, check an agencies portfolio to ensure it has many examples of functional/technical websites; not logos, flyers and print design.  

2. Award winning design…

All of our creative staff are trained in our unique methodology, we train them to think outside the box and to focus on results and clarity over fancy design with no apparent conversion goals or marketing direction. We have won numerous awards for our website design. The most recent being the International iStockphoto Web Design of the Year Award in which we beat over 1.7million entrants to take first place. We’re absolutely thrilled to receive the award which signifies recognition from both our design peers and leading industry experts. The judging panel included Russell Brown, senior creative director at Adobe Systems Incorporated, and Scott Kelby, editor, publisher and co-founder of Photoshop User magazine and editor-in-chief of Layers magazine. 

TIP - When choosing a web company be sure to check their portfolio of recently designed websites. Ignore their portfolio of print design work as this is a completely different arena to design for the web. If you like the style of their previous web work this is a good start; make sure you talk to the designer who will be working on your site design prior to starting the project to ensure the design is not being outsourced (which can have disastrous results). 

3. Ground breaking technology…

All of our web technology is developed in-house where we can maintain quality control and ensure deadlines are met. Our web developers must adhere to strict coding standards, which is reflected in the quality of every website we develop. We have been recognised for our technology on many occasions. Our accolades include the very prestigious Digital Innovator of the Year award. At the recent Digital Awards we were finalists in several categories and won two including Best Use of API for our ongoing work with eBay.

TIP - When choosing a web company be sure to check examples of previous technical projects. If possible, talk directly to these clients to see if a project went smoothly, ask how well problems had been addressed and ask how if the solution was delivered on time. Make sure you talk directly to the developer who will be working on your site prior to starting the project to ensure the development is not being outsourced (which can have disastrous results).

4. Tailored solutions to meet YOUR needs…

All of the sites we build are bespoke and tailored to the client’s needs (we don’t use any ‘off the shelf’ software). This means you get a site built specifically to meet the needs of your target market, giving you higher conversions, better search engine rankings and most importantly a site that actually sells! Using bespoke technology allows us to present your products in the most appropriate and effective way for your business. This is especially important if you have complex products, or product ranges, with multiple attributes or relationships between them.

A bespoke system can also be more easily integrated with existing IT systems and web services as it is developed from the ground up to meet your specific needs. This kind of system can help set you apart from competitors who might use standard off-the-shelf products, which also tend to follow a very similar look and feel.

TIP - When choosing a web company be sure to ask whether the solution is bespoke or ‘off the shelf’. You will often find that cheaper solutions will be using free, out of the box software packages and design templates in order to allow them to quickly create a site. But take caution, over 70% of the work we get is rebuilding such solutions as they rarely give any return on investment. It is false economy to think a free ‘one site fits all’ website package will deliver high level return or meet the specific needs of your business (or your target market).

5. Fanatical support…

All of our clients benefit from a first class managed hosting service, running the very latest LAMP (Linux, Apache, mySQL and PHP) technologies. We have several dedicated servers at the UK’s leading hosting provider in their state of the art UK data centre. This professional hosting solution runs on the extremely robust Red Hat Linux server platform. Our clients get the peace of mind that their hosting environment is being looked after by the experts. This rest assurance comes via a fanatical support service with 100% network uptime guaranteed, 24/7/365 support and more.

TIP – Be careful when selecting a company to deliver your solution that their technical ‘team’ is actually a team (and not a single person). We receive lots of enquiries from companies who’s only web developer has now vanished leaving them unable to access their site. Many web ‘companies’ actually consist of 1 designer and 1 developer. Over the years we have encountered many scenarios where the only technical contact at a company has left leaving all clients stranded; reasons include bankruptcy, career move, emigrating abroad, death and even one case of a developer taking a backpacking trip around the world (leaving all clients stranded for 3 months!). Make sure you check they have an in-house support team and ensure the solution is not being outsourced (which can have disastrous results).

6. We speak your language…

From your initial consultation with one of our business development team right through to working on a regular basis with your account manager you can be sure that you will deal with people who speak your language. Many internet companies pay lip service to actually listening to customers. We firmly believe that the only way to create exceptional websites is through a total team effort with clear communication at every step of a project.

The Visualsoft team consists of graphic designers, web developers, programmers, search engine optimisation engineers, marketing professionals and project managers that work with a synergy only enjoyed by those who have a vivid passion for what they do – each member of the team are on hand to support and advise you throughout the project. Our clients appreciate our up-front, honest and direct approach to a project. We will not baffle you with technological jargon or woo you with false promises.

TIP – Be wary of a good sales pitch with nothing to back it up. There are lots of ‘middle men’ in this industry and agencies who can outsource the entire project! Don’t fall for a slick powerpoint presentation; make sure you meet members of the team and if possible go visit your developers office to see exactly who you are commissioning to do the project. Quite often those who outsource a project overseas will be reluctant for you to visit their office and meet the team.  

7. We love being first…

As one of the UK’s fastest growing and most successful web development company’s we pride ourselves on consistently developing cutting edge technology and bringing innovation to the marketplace. Operating our business this way enables us (and our clients) to stay one step ahead of the competition. This is essential in such a competitive arena as the web.

TIP – Ensure you stay one step ahead of your competition by having a site that is as adaptable as your market. By utilising a bespoke solution you can set yourself apart from your competitors and change your site when you need to (rather than having to wait for it to be included in the next upgrade of your software package – which may never happen). This is particularly the case when it comes to Search Engine Optimisation. A search engines algorithms change on a regular basis; your site must have the ability to change to meet the latest SEO requirements to ensure you achieve high results on a search engine. There is a common phrase ‘if you stand still online, you will go backwards’ and this is often the case when companies are unable to grow, enhance and adapt to change due to the limitations of an off the shelf solution.

Like most companies we could talk all day about how great we are; but don’t just take our word for it – please do feel free to talk to our clients to see how we compare. 

Answer: As many as possible!!

Over 70% of the enquiries we receive is for our website redesign service; often picking up failed projects and turning them into successful websites. Companies who offer website design come in many different guises; these include Marketing Agencies, PR Companies, Graphic designers, PC technicians, your friend’s nephew who did a computer course at college...So, be very careful when putting your business in the hands of a web company and make sure you know (1) who you are dealing with; and (2) what it is you are actually buying. Below are some key questions to ask when selecting your web partner:

1. How many years have you been trading?

Having been in this industry since 1997 we’ve seen many web companies come and go over the years (we’ve employed several of them!). The average lifespan of a web design company is around 18 months. For many it is a ‘lifestyle business’ that tends to go wrong when the pressures of running a business gets too much; designers often end up spending more time running the business and less time doing what they enjoy (creating websites). The outcome in most cases is they seek a full-time role at a larger agency; offering better job security and enabling them to spend 100% of their time doing what they enjoy (creating websites). Several members of our team have joined us via this route.

2. How many staff do you employ?

By asking a provider how many staff they employ you can often gage whether development is being outsourced. Also ask if you can meet the team to see if this would be a problem. Be careful when selecting a company to deliver your solution that their technical ‘team’ is actually a team (and not a single person). We receive lots of enquiries from companies who’s only web developer has now vanished leaving them unable to access their site. Many web ‘companies’ actually consist of 1 designer and 1 developer. Over the years we have encountered many scenarios where the only technical contact at a company has left leaving all clients stranded; reasons include bankruptcy, career move, emigrating abroad, death and even one case of a developer taking a backpacking trip around the world (leaving all clients stranded for 3 months!).

3. Is the solution delivered in-house, or do you outsource any of the work?

Make sure your chosen company is not outsourcing development internationally. Historically, both support and communication suffer greatly in such situations and this can have dramatic results on your online business.

4. Is the solution bespoke or 'off the shelf'?

Make sure your chosen company develops bespoke solutions and does not simply manipulate third party, or boxed code. If this is the case, you can build your own website for free through downloading a copy of OS Commerce, or the like and putting your company’s branding on it.

5. Can I see examples of similar projects?

Check the company’s portfolio of clients – has that company ever provided a solution similar to the one you require. Contact a few of the company’s clients rather than relying on testimonials being forwarded by your perspective supplier. Check is that the company have actually worked on similar projects in the past. You do not want to be an inexperienced company’s ‘guinea pig’ project; this can often lead to disappointing results, unfinished sites and/or incomplete projects. This is particularly the case when choosing an ecommerce provider; do not fall into the trap of using a ‘design agency’ that are heavily design focussed on a project that is actually going to be 95% technology. To avoid commissioning a designer to do a developers job, check an agencies portfolio to ensure it has many examples of functional/technical websites; not logos, flyers and print design.

6. Can you provide me with a full specification and breakdown of features?

Make sure you get a full specification of what a solution will include so that you are comparing like with like.

7. Are there any hidden or additional costs outside this proposal?

Check for potential ‘hidden’ costs, for example ongoing license fees, support and consultation. Some companies may charge for training on using your website, so make sure you take into account all potential costs from the start.

Answer: How long is a piece of string?

But seriously, without knowing the specification of what you need it's impossible to give a price. The cost of the solution is directly linked to the scale and complexity of your requirements. All of the sites we build are tailored to the client’s needs. This means you get a site built specifically to meet the needs of your target market, giving you higher conversions, better search engine rankings and most importantly a site that actually sells!

Although we pride ourselves on our affordability, you must consider that there are quite a few factors that are going to affect the ultimate cost of your web site. When gathering quotes you will get anything from £50 right up to £50,000 and beyond. Because of this it's vital to approach each provider with the same specification to ensure you are comparing like-with-like; its false economy to think you will get the same solution for £500 that some providers are charging £5000 for - so having a detailed spec will help ensure you are comparing a similar solution. It can be tricky choosing a good website provider; be wary of those with hidden additional costs, agencies who outsource development and companies who tie you into a fixed term contract. We always recommend you look at a providers portfolio of websites and if needed talk to their clients to get a 'warts and all' opinion of the company.

For a free no obligation quotation simply contact our business development team who will be happy to assist you. After consultation with our team, either in person or over the phone, we can provide a draft proposal containing the recommended features for the most effective solution. We will always provide you with a firm up front proposal relating to the number of hours your project will take and we will never charge you for any additional time spent on your project if it takes more hours than we have quoted.

Answer: It depends on the amount of traffic you get.

There are several costs associated with running a website; these include web hosting, email hosting, support, maintenance, training and consultancy. We cover all of these within our comprehensive support package. The cost of this service is determined by your bandwidth usage (the amount of traffic you get to your site). This enables us to offer a comprehensive support service to suit all budgets and starts from just £20.00 per month. For larger clients we can offer dedicated servers and bespoke support contracts if required.

Answer: We don’t believe in locking clients in.

You are free to host your new site wherever you wish, but nearly all of our clients choose us to host their solution due to the high level of specialist support that can be provided and our ability to respond rapidly to any problems.

Unlike some providers we don’t believe in locking clients into a fixed term contract; our clients stay with us because we offer unrivalled service and excellent value for money. Our clients benefit from unsurpassed industry knowledge, award winning design and cutting edge technology. Our customers are free to leave us at any point they wish to do so; but they stay because we deliver where others fail. Don’t just take our word for it; please feel free to talk to our clients.

Answer: It depends on what you want built.

Lead times for commencing development work on new projects varies but is typically 2-4 weeks, during that time it is usual for the project management team to work with you preparing the site requirements, content, design brief and finalising the design concepts.

Whilst the precise duration of your project will depend on the complexity of your solution and required features, a typical project takes around 6-8 weeks so if you commissioned a project today you could expect to be fully operational within 10-12 weeks from now.

Answer: Of course not.

We believe that a site going live isn’t the end; it’s just the beginning. You will receive as much dedication, effort and enthusiasm once your site is live as what you did during the project build. Our highly skilled and responsive in-house support team will be on hand to assist you with any queries or issues you might have, you will also have a dedicated account manager that you can contact at any time.

We have a business support team consisting of graphic designers, web developers, programmers, search engineers, marketing professionals and more who are on-hand to help you at every step of your growth. You can get directly in touch with any member of the team for an immediate response to any requirements. Each member of our team has been hand-picked for their individual skills and excellence in their field – and are ready (and willing) to assist you whenever you should need them.

Answer: We certainly can.

We have in in-house marketing team which consists of SEO Specialists, Technical Search Engineers, PPC Managers, Google AdWords Professionals and more. The marketing team will be able to assist in all aspects of online marketing.

Once your site is live we recommend a free consultation meeting with our marketing team to ensure you are on every possible route to market; to give your website the best possible chance of reaching potential customers.

Answer: Yes as part of a project.

Our award winning creative team specialise in website design. Because of this we don't offer logo design as a stand alone service; we'd rather concentrate our efforts on what we do best, website design!

This is not to say that we can't design a logo as part of the project, because we can. If you browse our portfolio you will see lots of examples of exceptional logos. We don't just stop at logos, we can design stationery; letter heads, business cards, compliment slips and even carrier bags!

Answer: No we don't.

A cheap/easy way for web agencies to produce high volumes of websites at low cost is to use design templates to save studio time. Seeing your competitors with exactly the same site as you aren’t the only problems you will encounter.

Web design templates rarely fit your business needs exactly, and clients often end up spending more time and money in the long run tweaking the design to fit their content. We prefer to design around your content rather than trying to fit your content into an already established design.

It is important to follow web best practices on where certain items should be placed; for example your basket should always be presented at the top right hand side. Many web templates do not follow these important conventions; which results in lower converting websites. We know that it is really important to understand your goals, objectives, target audience, and how you want your target audience to act on your site. We design toward optimum conversion so that if your goal is to sell more products, the user is presented with a clear call-to-action to buy and checkout. We look at eye-mapping data that shows where people typically look first on the web in order to place important information.

You need to be very careful when considering a web template; it's often false economy to cut corners on design as the final result is usually a disappointed. We create UNIQUE websites that help you stand out from the crowd; which is essential in such a competitive arena as the web. Be especially aware of templates created entirely in Flash. Search engines cannot spider content in Flash sites so if you go this route, you will inevitably have miserable search engine results.

Answer: Unfortunately not.

Visualsoft will not work with third party designs. To produce a truly effective solution, a designer should have a thorough understanding of the technologies and features incorporated into a website and understand how to maximise their potential.

Through many years of developing effective web solutions, our designers have developed an essential knowledge of shopping behaviour, as well as an acute understanding of designing with search engines in mind. Third party designs may be aesthetically pleasing, but will undoubtedly miss the point of effective calls to action and the true goals of the website – to produce a conversion either through a purchase, or through an enquiry. To remove design from Visualsoft is in truth simply diluting the effectiveness of the tailored solution.

Answer: No, every aspect is done in-house so that quality can be monitored and maintained.

Visualsoft do not and will not outsource development internationally. We operate from a single studio based in the North East of England and believe that even with co location, communication and effectiveness of the team could be compromised.

Typically, to keep costs down many web companies will opt to outsource development internationally. Again, this causes a false economy, with quality of work difficult to manage, and communication fractious at best.

If there is a problem with a Visualsoft website, our team can look into the problem immediately. If such a problem occurs with a company working with an international development team; put simply, a third party is being relied upon who may not understand the urgency of your website losing orders.

Answer: Bespoke = No Limitations = Bigger Return.

To be truly effective, a website should be tailored to meet the individual requirements of a client. (Not the client moving to meet the requirements of the eCommerce package).

The advantages of a boxed solution are that it is often cheap and on face value, offers a cost effective introduction / taster into the world of selling online. In truth, most off the shelf packages represent a false economy, with over 75% of Visualsoft projects involving redesign of off the shelf solutions which simply failed to make sales. Off the shelf packages often restrict aesthetics and in doing so lose sales through lack of effective design and a poor perception online.

In web development, return on investment is key; what represents best value for money- the website which cost £1000 and turns over £100 per week, or the site which cost £5000 and turns over £7000 per week?

Off the shelf packages are often the tool of choice for graphics companies who have stumbled into web design as a loosely related media. With little comprehension for the underlying code (after all someone else wrote it), support is often extremely limited.

Another issue with off the shelf packages is their inability to growth to match the requirements of a company growing online. Once turnover caps out, where do you go from there? At Visualsoft, we have a huge resource of solutions we would not even offer to most clients as start up. Features, such as eBay integration, Amazon integration and Shopping feeds often represent a bridge too far for out of the box solutions.

A bespoke eCommerce solution allows new features to be introduced to fit the exact requirements of your business. A great solution, should not only increase web sales, it should streamline, even automate your business where possible.

Answer: All of them.

We can integrate into any type of online payment gateway, and have in the past integrated into SagePay (formerly Torex), HSBC, Google Checkout, PayPal Express, Barclays EPDQ, World Pay and Sec Pay. Typically, we would recommend SagePay as a preferred payment provider due to their reliability, cost and quality of integration.

Answer: Yes we can; and many more too.

As we develop bespoke, there are very few limitations as to what we can integrate with. We provide both Amazon and eBay integration, allowing an additional route to market for your business; automatically managed from your website.

Feel free to view our technologies and features for a full list of integrations. If you have a query, which is not listed, feel free to contact us.

Answer: Yes we can.

Visualsoft can integrate with any EPOS system which can generate a website feed. Having a live feed between a website and an EPOS system represents a huge saving on time managing stock. Having integrated with a number of stock control systems in the past, including Touchretail, Cybertill and DGCS, we have developed a unique understanding of how to get the most out of your stock control integration.

Answer: Leave it to us.

Products can be transferred across from your old website via a Data Import. This essentially scrapes all data from your existing website and transfers it across to your new site; in doing so, you essentially have a starter for ten in rewriting your descriptions to be search engine friendly (through our own close consultation).

Answer: Can you send an email?

You don’t need any real level of technical proficiency to control and manage a Visualsoft built eCommerce site. As a basic indicator, if you can send an email, you can control the admin of a Visualsoft site. All training is free and any questions you have along the way will be answered in ‘non technical terms.

Answer: Not at all.

We have clients across the country and even Internationally. We conduct business and offer consultancy and training over the phone. In actual fact, we have never even met many of the clients whose businesses we have revolutionised. Often, a company will visit Visualsoft once to meet face to face, or to create an in depth plan of moving forward with the business with our specialist Business Development, or Online Marketing/ SEO staff.

Answer: We welcome you with open arms, and congratulate you on making the right decision.

Once the proposal has been agreed, we will send you a project agreement and our terms of business. As soon as you return the paperwork to us, along with your deposit you will be assigned a project management team. Your project manager will schedule the project in for design and help prepare a design brief to get an understanding of your brand, design ideas and the overall perception you wish to carry online.

The design team will create design concepts (screenshots) which give you the opportunity to make changes to how the site will look before it is actually built. We have a good knowledge of what our clients are trying to achieve and usually get the design right first time. Inevitably though, there are times when the design takes several iterations; our goal, however, is to create a final design you are proud of.

Once design is signed off, the site is then passed to the integration team who will cut the site into XHTML. At the same time the programming team will be working on the bespoke elements of the project and putting together the engine to run the site. Once the back end and content management system has been developed training can occur; and site population can begin.

Once the site is populated and has been tested and you are happy to launch, we will invoice for the remaining balance of the project before launching the site. After launch, our consultancy continues to be free and you are feel to call upon our advice and services in both web marketing and SEO where required.