How a build runs, start to finish.

The short version

One developer, start to finish. You talk to me, not an account manager. We agree what the site needs to do, I design it, you react to it, I build it, we launch it. Most projects run four to six weeks from first call to live. The build itself is much quicker than that, usually days rather than weeks, and what stretches the calendar is almost always waiting on content.

Everything is built from a blank page rather than dropped into a template, so the structure follows what you sell instead of the other way round. Nothing goes live until you have seen it and signed it off.

Step one: working out what the site has to do

A short call, or a few messages if you would rather. I want to know who visits, what they need to know before they trust you, and what you want them to do next. Ring you, fill a form, book a slot, buy something. That single decision shapes every page after it.

At the end of it you get a page map and a fixed price. No hourly billing and no scope creep invoices later. If the job grows, we agree the change before I do the work.

Step two: design you can actually react to

You get a real design direction within about a week, usually the home page and one inner page, built as a live link rather than a flat picture. You can open it on your phone and scroll it like a visitor would.

Then you tell me what is wrong with it. How many rounds of changes are included depends on the package, and most people use fewer than they are given. Blunt feedback is welcome and saves us both time.

Step three: build and content

Once the direction is signed off I build the rest. Every page is written to work on a phone first, because that is where most of your visitors will be. Pages are coded to load in under two seconds on a normal mobile connection.

Content runs alongside the build. If you have text and photos, send them. If you have not, I will shape the wording with you and tell you honestly when a photographer is worth the money. Half-finished content is the single biggest reason projects drag, so I chase it.

What is included as standard

• A custom design, not a theme, laid out for mobile, tablet and desktop.
• Enquiry forms or booking flows that land in your inbox and get tested before launch.
• On-page search setup: titles, descriptions, headings, image alt text and a sitemap.
• Domain connection, hosting, SSL and analytics wired up for you.
• Speed and accessibility checks, including keyboard use and colour contrast.
• An editing setup so you can change text and images yourself, plus a walkthrough.

You own the domain, the hosting account and the site. If you ever want to move on, nothing is held hostage.

What I need from you

Not much, but the bits I do need matter. A logo if you have one, any brand colours, photos of real work, a list of services with rough prices if you publish them, and your domain login. Plus one person who can make the final call on decisions. Projects with a committee attached take twice as long.

If your email is currently a Gmail address, this is the right moment to sort a proper one. I can handle domains and email at the same time.

Timelines, honestly

Two clocks are worth separating. The build itself is fast: a Starter site is five to seven days of work, a Business site ten to fourteen, a Growth site three to four weeks, once your content is with me. The calendar is slower, usually four to six weeks from first call to live for a small site, and longer for anything with a big product catalogue. The gap between the two is almost entirely waiting on copy and photos, so the faster you send things over, the faster you launch. I will give you a realistic date once I know the scope, and I will tell you if I think you are being optimistic.

Launch and what happens after

Before we go live I test forms, check every link, run speed and accessibility checks and set up analytics so you can see what visitors do. Launch itself takes an hour or so and I do it at a quiet time for your business.

After that you get thirty days where anything broken gets fixed free. Beyond that you can either run the site yourself or put it on care and updates, where I handle changes, backups and the boring maintenance. Either way I do not disappear the day the invoice clears.

Two builds you can look at

See Middlemarch Construction for the trade pattern of services, proof of work and enquiries, and Nuvitrace for a larger catalogue build. If you already have a site that works but looks tired, a redesign is usually the cheaper route.

Looking for someone local?

This page is about the process. If you would rather read about the market where you trade, pick your town:

• Rugby
• Coventry
• Leamington Spa
• Warwick
• Nuneaton
• Daventry
• Northampton
• Lutterworth
• Kenilworth
• Birmingham
• Solihull
• Banbury