Connemara Publications

You don't get a second chance to make a first impression. If your website looks outdated or is poorly designed, it will reflect negatively on your company. A poorly designed website can sometimes be worse than no website at all. Here at Connemara Publications we invest our time into researching the latest technologies to enable us to provide you with the best web design and web solutions.

Where to begin - choosing a name for your website

You have a company name, and now you want to put it on the web. Or you have an idea for a web business but aren't sure what to call it. Let's look at domain names.

WebSite Naming Strategy

Choosing a domain name can be difficult for a number of reasons. Is it a name that's relevant to your target market? Is the name available? Do you choose a .com or .net or other TLD (top-level domain) from among what's out there? Is it a choice that will get you search engine results? In other words, will it help you to be found? These are the questions you should first answer before you purchase your name. While a name isn't everything for a website - as the "dot-bomb" stock speculators and venture capitalists proved - it is still a key consideration, one you can't ignore.

Here at Connemara Publications we're well equipped to guide your decision and help you through the minefield of choices.

Choose a web hosting package that's right for you

After deciding on a name and figuring out the probable needs of your website, your next step is to choose a "hosting package", which will include your email accounts and other server-specific information usually sold as a bundled package.

Hosting comes in all shapes and forms depending on your specific needs. Prices vary from cheap to mid-priced, to higher-end, feature-rich hosting packages. What you choose will depend on your needs. There are many solutions out there.

Why cheaper is not always better - in fact, why it hardly ever is

We all want value for money, but what's important to consider when purchasing a hosting setup is reliability. Not only for support when something goes wrong, but for the peace of mind that your site has been safely backed up in case of a hack or human error. There are practically thousands of providers out there. For instance, are you interested in support from a human voice or support over the web via live text chat?

If we design your site we can recommend and work with a host for you. Let us handle the tech stuff! We choose our partners very carefully and have identified the most reliable hosting providers - those with friendly and helpful support, the best features and the best value for money. We match your needs with the host that's right for you.

Feel free to talk to us about any aspect of hosting.

Building the site

Here at Connemara Publications we specialize in building dynamic, database-driven websites that take advantage of the latest technology. A "dynamic" website is linked to a database. Information is stored in the database and shown on the web page each time a browser "calls" the page. As soon as something is modified in the database, the change appears on the web page. This type of website has considerable advantages. You won't have to search through many pages of HTML in order to make a simple edit, such as changing a single price.

The Process
After the initial client meeting and after time frames and budgets have been agreed, we then prepare a detailed proposal in easy to understand language, for the construction of the client's site. This outlines the steps involved in completing your site. Once we have reviewed these steps with the client and everything has been understood, work commences. As each of the steps are ticked off, the client will have full input into the process.

What kind of websites do we develop?

No two businesses are the same, nor are their needs.

We design and develop sites tailor-made to meet our client's needs. It's easy for you to maintain your site through a Content Management System. This gives you greater control of your website and the ability to add, remove and reorganize content at any time.

All of our sites contain these elements.

• Content Management and Support System (add an unlimited number of your own pages)
• Your site will be "Search Engine Optimized" (SEO) to achieve rankings when a searcher types your keywords
• Full site-specific search engine, so users can search within your site
• News and events modules
• HTML editors
• The ability to upload your files and images and insert them in your pages
• Blog integration
• Completely database-driven site engines
• Google Analytics integration
• Dynamic forum/poll/voting booth for on-the-spot results
• Sites that can run on Linux, FreeBSD, MacOSX server, Solaris, UNIX and AIX
• Future-proof your site - expand functionality as necessary

We'll teach you or your site's administrator to use the Content Management System.

Understanding Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

All of our sites are optimized during construction. This means each page is given a title, and we create a description and keywords for your home page and landing pages. Once the site is complete, we submit it to the most popular search engines. Choosing your keywords and optimizing for search engines is extremely important. After all, you want searchers to find what is that you have to offer.

People are sometimes disappointed at the performance of their site in page rankings. Simply put, everyone wants to be number one. How well your site ranks depends on many factors (not least the competition that's out there). This aspect of online marketing has now become a highly specialised industry in its own right.

However there are a few simple things you can do to boost your site's ranking:

1. Patience - rankings are built over time, not overnight.

2. Keyword competition - how many other sites are competing for your keywords, Hundreds, maybe thousands? You might reconsider your niche.

3. Was your site well designed? In other words, are the technical aspects of your site search engine-friendly?

4. Is the content of your site relevant to the service or product you offer? And are you obeying the search engine rules?

5. Do you have a Search Engine Strategy?

Connemara Publications can help you plan your SEO strategy and recommend a specialist if required.

Our commitment to quality work

Web Standards were established by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), an international consortium of companies involved with the Internet and the web. The organization's purpose is to develop open standards so that the Web evolves in a single direction rather than being splintered among competing factions. The W3C is the chief standards body for web design and has taken over most of the development and promotion of standards for the World Wide Web. Many web design companies do not adhere to W3C standards, perhaps because they find it hard to break old habits. Developing attractive and functional websites that meet Web Standards Compliancy is a priority for Connemara Publications for several reasons:

1 Full Accessibility: Accessibility has always been one of the keys to good web design. Standards Compliancy will invite more browsers to view our websites, not fewer. This means maximum coverage and larger audience for our clients.

2 Price: Standards Compliant sites are cheaper to maintain and develop. The tabled and frameset websites of yesterday are more difficult to update, resulting in more design costs. Well designed Standards Compliant sites are much easier to maintain, and markup is simple. Moving items, changing fonts, backgrounds, colours, and (where necessary) creating a virtually new site is possible in a fraction of the time it once took. This gives Connemara Publications flexibility in how we price our services, which is especially important in marketplace.

3 Longevity: Because Standards Compliant sites are more easily controlled, essentially they can be built once and used forever. Older table-based designs are particularly inflexible when it comes to updating them. New browsers are approaching full Standards Compliance. These are the browsers used by the vast majority of people, so it makes little strategic or financial sense to build a site that is obsolete the moment it is completed. Instead, build a website that will last into the future.

4 Search Engine Friendly: Standards Compliant sites are better for search engines - structured content helps engines index you better.

5 Unsurpassed Versatility: Standards Compliant sites are more versatile because they work at any resolution and any monitor size and will fully maintain design integrity.