FAQ

First think about what you want your website to accomplish. This will help you to realistically evaluate and prioritize your goals for your online business. Here are a few questions to consider:

Are your goals to:

• Provide comprehensive information about your product or service?
• Directly sell products from your site?
• Reach new markets or clientele?
• Provide online "customer support" 24 hrs a day, 7 days a week?
• Do market research by gathering visitor feedback?
• Give employees internal information?
• Post job opportunities?
• All of the above?

To help you launch your online business, we have a helpful Getting Started page.

Once you have a good idea of your goals, you may contact us by email or call 888-868-9931 to talk about how we can use our expertise to fulfill your vision.

First, we will discuss your primary objectives in placing your organization on the World Wide Web. Then we'll determine which comprehensive solutions will fulfill those goals.

Once we know how extensive a site you want, we will create a content outline that will guide the custom design process. Your opinions and ideas are incorporated into every aspect of this outline.

Based on your input, we will create a dynamic web presence that reflects your organization's identity, and gives each visitor an impressive and inviting online experience of your business.

After the initial design phase, we review each page to ensure that it is accurate and compelling.

Your completed site is uploaded to the server in a "hidden" directory for your final approval. Any changes you want can be made at this time. Upon your authorization, it is then published on the web for public viewing.

We can also help you develop an effective promotion strategy to integrate your Internet presence into your overall public relations and marketing approach. We believe that a website is an ongoing process, not just a one time project.

This is what is referred to as "website maintenance." You can either outsource the job to C I Host for a $50/month fee or you can make those changes yourself using FTP and an HTML editor.

Yes. We specialize in site make-overs - taking an existing website and transforming it into a productive, attractive, and profitable business tool. Always remember, your website is a "window through which the world will view you," so making it as professional looking as possible presents your organization in the best possible light.

We can also provide a professional website evaluation. We will evaluate your site's HTML coding, layout, download time, graphics, and attractiveness to search engines, and prepare a detailed written report. You select how many of the pages you want us to analyze. You can make the changes to the site yourself, or have someone else do it for you.

Most people who visit a commercial or professional site do so intentionally because they either intend to buy something (from you or from someone else in your field) or because they are looking for specific information.

One of the most important ways to attract visitors to your site is to thoroughly integrate your web address (URL) into your overall marketing and public relations strategies.

First, put your web address everywhere, just like your telephone number - on your letterhead, business cards, brochures, advertisements, press releases, newsletters, t-shirts, even on your organization's vehicles.

Second, register your web address with the major search engines (think of a search engine as an advanced form of telephone directory assistance), so anyone looking specifically for you or someone in your field will have the opportunity to get your web address.

You can also buy advertising banners at other sites that display information that would interest complementary buyers to your website.

Finally, you can make arrangements for "reciprocal linkage." This means your URL is made available on someone else's site, and their URL is listed on your site, so you each can benefit from the combined group of visitors.

Be certain you do NOT believe the hype that once you have a website "millions of web surfers" will all of a sudden want to visit you. There are now over a hundred million web pages out in cyberspace, so it is not like having a location in a big mall and just having people stroll in on a busy Sunday afternoon because they have nothing better to do. To get visitors to your site, you must both attract and encourage them.

C I Host gives all of our new web development customers our free Internet marketing book, which has hundreds of cost-effective tips and tricks on how to promote your new website.

C I Host charges a minimum of $10/month to host a website that provides100MB of storage space (plenty for a small business), and the ability to transfer up to 5 GB of of data each month. Your domain name through C I Host will cost $15 per year; and your web design fees will depend on the extent of your website requirements.

For example, a simple five-page website (our Design 5 package) can be as little as $699 (one time charge), whereas a more complex website will require more design work to complete and cost significantly more. To determine your needs, consider what you want your website to do for your organization and figure out how much you can budget over a 12 month period.

When evaluating the cost of a website, it’s good to remember:

• Your website is your "window to the world." First impressions matter and the better your website looks, the better you will look. A professional looking site will enhance your professional credibility. We invite you to visit our client portfolio to see our high level of quality.
• You can always expand your site. It is best to start off with a really strong looking smaller site that can be expanded gradually, and set aside enough money for adequate site promotion. All C I Host sites are scalable. As you grow, your website will grow with you.

We see it as our job to work within your budget. C I Host never turns away a project, no matter how small or how large. We can build an awesome online presence for every budget!

The timing depends on the scope of your website and how quickly the information and images can be gathered and sent to C I Host.

We will guide you through the process of assembling your text and graphics and then begin constructing your site based on what you provide us. The more quickly we receive your packet of graphics and text materials, the more quickly we can begin the design process.

Generally speaking, a mid-sized site takes about a month to get online frm the time we receive text and graphics from you. We can provide a fairly accurate completion date once we review everything you send.

You can do your own scanning as long as the scanning is done correctly and the graphics are optimized for the web. Othewise, the scans won’t be usable.

Absolutely not. We have designed websites for customers in more than 30 countries worldwide and 40 different states in the United States.