How we build a website, step by step

When you have a website built for the first time, the biggest uncertainty usually isn't the price, it's what happens next. Who does what, when, and what we'll need from you. Here is the whole process as we actually run it.

Why this process

Most studios start with a design: you get pictures, you approve them, and only then is the site coded. We do it differently. We build the real website straight away and refine it with you over three rounds of revisions. You don't approve an image that may behave completely differently on a phone; you approve a working site you can click through on your phone and computer.

1. Consultation

A short call or a few emails. We want to know what the site should do: bring in enquiries, sell, show your work, or simply give people a way to reach you. Plus who it's for, your budget, and two or three websites you like. The consultation is free and commits you to nothing.

Afterwards you get a quote with a fixed price. It holds as long as the brief doesn't change. How the price is put together is in What a website costs and why.

2. Materials

We send you a clear list of what we need: copy, photos, logo, contact details, and access to your domain if needed. You don't need everything at once; you can send it as you go. What to prepare and what to leave to us is covered in What to prepare before we start.

This is the step that affects the timeline most. A site with finished copy and photos gets built faster than one whose content is still being written.

3. Building the site

Following the agreed direction, we build a working site on a test address. No wireframes or pictures to sign off, but the real site with your copy and photos, responsive on mobile, with a contact form and basic SEO.

4 to 6. Three rounds of revisions

You go through the site yourself, at your own pace and on your own phone. You write your notes into one list and we work them in.

• Revision 1: the big things. Section order, copy, what's missing and what's extra.
• Revision 2: details. Wording, photos, colours, small things on mobile.
• Revision 3: final check and sign-off before launch.

Three rounds are included in the price. In practice they're enough, because you're discussing a finished site rather than a picture.

7. Launch and care

We move the site to your domain, set up visitor analytics, check the forms and make sure Google can see it. After that we can keep looking after it: hosting with an SSL certificate, backups, updates and uptime monitoring for 1,500 CZK a year. It isn't mandatory; the site is yours.

How long it all takes

Mostly it depends on scope and on how quickly the materials arrive. A simpler site with ready content is usually faster than a large one whose copy is still being written. We give you a concrete timeline after the consultation, once we know what we're building.

What we build on

Whatever the site needs. We code custom websites when speed and custom features matter. We also build on WordPress when you want to edit content easily yourself, and e-shops on Shoptet or fully custom. How to choose for an e-shop is in Shoptet, or a custom e-shop?, and between custom and WordPress in Custom website or WordPress?

You'll find finished sites in our work.

Ready to start? Send us a few lines about your project and we'll get back to you with the next steps.