frequently asked questions

Why do I need a custom site? What is a template? Your website is a portrait of your business. Sites which impress are designed with graphics and layouts specific to the content with aesthetics and visuals enhancing information on the page. Sites designed around a stock template, with standard layouts, color combinations, logos at the top and generic stock photography say, "I'm not really invested in my image on the web." Hyers Design can do better, for the same price as the cheapest template. How much does a website cost? Pricing a website is generally determined by its complexity and the time it takes to build it. Many website companies price template sites between $500 - $1,000, but only take a couple of hours to paste client text into pre-written code. Hyers Design sites are usually around $1,000 and take as many hours as necessary to make them perfect (over 25 hrs per site). Visit the Pricing page to see how incredibly far $1,000 will go with Hyers Design. Do you register domains? Can I use one I already have? Hyers Design will register your chosen available domain and it will be the property of YOU. If you use our free hosting, we can use any domain you already own, or we can work with your webhost. It's all possible. What is hosting? Where do you host? Do you have ads? Hyers Design includes 1 year free hosting on hostingrails.com, a tier-one datacenter. Additional years are $50/yr depending on traffic. There are NO ads on Hyers Design webspace. Do you include email from me@mysite.com?Hyers Design can provide unlimited POP3 email accounts which can be accessed from anywhere. You can create your own email addresses using your domain and use them anyway you wish, within service terms (no spam). Should I put my email address on my website? Will I get spam?Email addresses appearing on Hyers Design websites are encrypted to prevent harvesting from spammers. All PHP forms include Human Interface checkers to fool spambots. Nothing is 100%, but we incorporate the latest coding to keep your email safe. How long does it take to build a website?A website can take a week or a month or more. Hyers Design responds to you and works with your schedule. Often, the longest process in web design is gathering photos and text. We can usually code a website in five business days. How frequently and how do I update my site?A website can be dynamic or static. If you choose to include timely material, it's best to update at least once a month. Hyers Design provides ongoing updating at an hourly rate. Blogs are interactive and can be updated by you anytime without any design cost. Can you make me first on Google?Probably not. No company can assure you of a prime position on Google unless you pay for such privilege. Hyers Design uses the latest SEO practices to optimize searching based upon your target keywords. All sites are W3C compliant, follow accessibility guidelines and use meta tags efficiently. What is Flash? Is it good or bad?Flash is an Adobe product installed on nearly 90% of all computers surfing the web providing multimedia content incluidng sound, video and interactivity. It's a great debate whether it's "good" or "bad" but it's a useful tool for many applications. What is cross-browser compliance?Very few two web surfers are alike -- different operating systems, browsers, user-defined options, screen sizes and resolutions all impact how a website is viewed. Hyers Design ensures your website works on the equipment YOUR audience is using. Why can't I use any font I want? What fonts can I use?Fonts on websites can be frustrating. The font your site uses must be installed locally on the computer on which it is viewed. There are hacks and tricks around this, but it's best to keep to the few fonts which are web safe. What is an RSS feed and do I need one? What about a blog?RSS feeds syndicate timely content from your site to those who subscribe. A weblog diary should be updated weekly. Can you commit to maintain timely content? Do you make e-commerce sites? Can I have a shopping cart?Yes. Online shopping carts can be incorporated into any site. Online payment is usually completed through a third-party payment processor like Paypal. Do you sell templates? No. All Hyers Designs are created specifically for clients and remain the property of those clients. Do you do postcard design? Brochures? Logos?Yes. Please see the Graphic Design page for more information. Can I hire you for graphic design only?Of course! Please see the Graphic Design page for more information, or our Contact page to discuss your project.