What actually happens, step by step.
Most people have never hired anyone to build a website and have no idea what they are agreeing to. So here is the whole thing: every step, how long it takes, what you get at the end of it, and what I will need from you. No surprises, and no invoice you did not see coming.
SIX STEPS
You will always know what is happening and what happens next.
Working on your website can feel overwhelming, and that is where I come in. I handle the digital heavy lifting, but I do not disappear behind it. Every step below ends with something real in your hands.
STEP 1:
We start with a conversation
You know your business better than I ever will, so this part is mostly me listening. What are you trying to grow, what is frustrating you right now, and what does a good month look like for you.
By the end of the call I will tell you honestly where I think your money is best spent first. Sometimes that is a new website. Sometimes it is your Google profile and nothing else. Sometimes it is waiting six months, and I will say so.
What you get
A short written summary, plain English, no dashboard logins required
Where you rank today and where two competitors rank
What is holding you back, ranked by how much it costs you
What I need from you
Access to your site, Google Business Profile, and analytics, if they exist
The names of two competitors you measure yourself against
Nothing at all if you are starting from scratch
STEP 2:
I look under the hood
Think of this as a check-up on your digital presence. I review how you currently show up in search results, on maps, in reviews, and in AI answers, and I compare it against two competitors you name.
If you do not have much of a digital presence yet, that is genuinely fine, and in some ways it is easier. I will show you what people see today when they search for a business like yours, and we start from there.
What you get
A short written summary, plain English, no dashboard logins required
Where you rank today and where two competitors rank
What is holding you back, ranked by how much it costs you
What I need from you
Access to your site, Google Business Profile, and analytics, if they exist
The names of two competitors you measure yourself against
Nothing at all if you are starting from scratch
STEP 3:
You get a proposal, in writing
Once I know where you stand, I put together a plan: what I would do, in what order, for a fixed price. It might be a full build, a focused refresh, or ongoing visibility work. If two of those make sense, you will see both, with my recommendation and my reasoning.
Nothing starts until you approve it. The price in the proposal is the price you pay, and if scope changes later, you approve that in writing too.
What you get
A written proposal with fixed scope, fixed price, and a schedule
A clear list of what is included and what is not
A simple contract, 50% to start and 50% at launch
What I need from you
A yes, a no, or a question. All three are useful
Your deposit, which is what reserves your spot in my schedule
STEP 4:
Design and build
I start by mapping the pages: what exists, what each one is for, and what has to be on it for a customer to take the next step. That plan is what I design against. It is also the part that needs things only you have, so the sooner your photos and service details reach me, the sooner you launch. This is the one part of the timeline you control.
I design and build the site in Squarespace so it looks professional, loads fast, and works properly on a phone, which is where most of your customers will see it. Behind the scenes I set up the structure, headings, and schema markup that let Google and AI answer engines understand what you do and where you do it.
You watch it happen on a private link rather than waiting for a big reveal. Two rounds of feedback are built into the schedule, so nothing about this stage should feel like a surprise.
What you get
A page-by-page plan of the site before design starts
Draft copy written for you if writing is not your thing
A private staging link, updated as I build
Two rounds of feedback, with a working session for each
Search and AI optimization built in as I go, not bolted on later
What I need from you
Photos, logo files, service lists, and anything you already have written
Your feedback gathered into one pass per round
One decision-maker. Feedback by committee is what stretches timelines
STEP 5:
Launch
Launch day is deliberately boring, because the work that makes it boring already happened. I test every form, map redirects from your old pages so you do not lose the rankings you have, connect Search Console and analytics, and update your Google Business Profile so the listing and the site agree with each other.
What you get
A live site, with every form and link tested
Redirects mapped so existing rankings carry over
Search Console and analytics connected, so results are measurable from day one
A 30 minute walkthrough so you can update your own content
What I need from you
30 minutes for the walkthrough
Your domain login, or an invite to your registrar
STEP 6:
45 days of support, at no extra cost
Most agencies hand over a login and vanish. I keep working for a full 45 days after you go live: fixing the things you only notice once the site is real, with minor adjustments in copy, changing out a stock photo or two, and watching the first search data come in so we can act on it while it still matters.
What you get
Fixes, tweaks, and small additions, included
A check-in once the first month of search data exists
What I need from you
An email when something bugs you. That is it
Let’s Do This Together
Your business deserves to look its best online and be easy to find. I’ll take care of the digital details so you can stay focused on what you do best.