What is a Ghost Runner?

So you’ve got your (hopefully responsive) website designed and ready to go…now it’s time to transform that beautiful design into a functioning website. This phase typically takes the longest because there are so many elements to consider about when planning the development of a website…

The first order of business, do you feel comfortable developing your own website or do you need to hire a developer? If you are planning to develop yourself, what code language is appropriate for your website and the expected functionality? And then, how are you going to write the code for your website? Is a stand-alone (static content) website sufficient or does a Content Management System (CMS) better fit your project’s needs (dynamic content)? Once these questions have been answered, the development process can truly begin.

The Code. There are various web development languages out there that provide different efficiencies and functionalities. Depending on the needs of your particular project you will want to pick the language, or combination of languages, that best meet your project’s technological requirements. This could range from standard HTML & CSS, to PHP, JavaScript, ASP.NET, etc (Here is a comprehensive list of coding languages).

The Platform. Once you have an idea for what you want your website to do and how you want it to work, you can choose to develop it as a stand-alone website, built in a text & code editor like Adobe’s Dreamweaver program (I love Dreamweaver), or you can develop the site in a Content Management System (CMS) like WordPress (also loving WordPress), or Joomla, or Drupal, or SquareSpace…the list goes on. Of course, there are pro’s and cons for either development method, I prefer to use WordPress to develop our websites but I won’t go into all of that right now…

The Development. Ok so you’ve got your plan for development…now the real work begins. The first thing to build out is the website navigation, this is the backbone of your website, the foundation, the main method users will travel from page to page. It’s imperative that your site navigation be thoughtful as well as simple. The next step is to get your content on each of the pages, following the look and feel of the approved design comp(s) and taking into consideration the ‘User Experience’ (UX). This step may also require custom sidebars, module and plug-in setup /integration and custom form creation (just the tip of the iceberg really). Once that’s all complete, you’re almost there! Next, let’s check mobile compatibility. Yep tablets, phones, iOS and Android…all require their own set of styles and modifications…all part of creating an online environment that your Users will find engaging and informative. Now, on to the audit phase…

You’ve got a website…that’s awesome, but what if you’ve had this website for awhile? I mean, you’ve got a navigation, pages with content (text and images), forms etc…what could be wrong with it? Well, a quick site audit can tell me everything I need to know.

During the audit phase I’ll review your site’s front and back-end, checking for browser compatibility, W3C validation, mobile friendliness or responsiveness, quality of code and structure, depth of content, internal cross-linking as well as all outbound links and media downloads. The next step is to generate a sitemap file that tells me all of the pages that google has indexed so we can review your relevant content and pages and shed any excess (irrelevant content) so your site will run at it’s optimal speed. I’ll check the forms for proper functionality. Does the search button work and return accurate results?

There are many steps involved, but I enjoy it…this is the problem solving phase and it’s exciting. From here we can discuss the positives and negatives of your current site and what you want from the future of your site.

Do the three letters S-E-O sound familiar or scary? You’ve heard the phrase that they represent and you know it’s something you have to have – or maybe you thought you already had it? Let’s work together to create a plan to optimize your website and site content to maximize your SEO value. After All, what good is a well designed, responsive website if no can find it?

Of course, it seems like the rules of SEO are ever changing, but the core fundamentals are pretty consistent. There are many elements involved and I could write an entire blog on the steps I follow just to make sure your site is set up to succeed when it comes to being found online (note to self, write a blog on Understanding SEO)…But together we will utilize the tools at our disposal and develop a plan of attack on the google (and other search) bots to make sure your potential customers can find you.

Hackers and spammers…it will be difficult not to swear here…but I’m going to try. I really hate them and I will take every step I can to prevent them from illegally compromising your website’s integrity. You’ve poured your heart and hard earned cash into creating your website, it’s your business lifeline and #1 marketing asset…it’s how customers find your products, contact you and simply know you exist! We must take care of it – protect it, harden it, secure it. I have a few tricks up my sleeve and I will deploy as much protection as I can right out of the gate.

Of course there are things I won’t see coming, or hacks that evolve from one version to another to circumvent the measures we’ve already put into place – but as your digital partner and a strong advocate for hating hackers and spammers…we’ll evolve with them…keeping your site safe and secure is priority #1.