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Affordable Websites

If you've come here looking for a new or upgraded website, you may have already tried to create one using a general website builder service, such as Wix or BigCommerce, and discovered there are features you require that cannot be produced in those systems. Or you may be using a CMS such as WordPress or ExpressionEngine, and need enhancements (or something new altogether) that only a professional web developer can properly build.
 
A typical web services company charges thousands for a basic website, tens of thousands for an e-commerce site or a site with custom features, and takes several months to complete the project. I'm able to build sites of the same sophistication and quality for hundreds instead of thousands, thousands instead of tens of thousands. And projects are completed in weeks or even days, instead of months.

A few of the reasons why this is possible:
  • No overhead. I have no office, no staff, and can develop on any computer that's available at the time. Every dollar you spend goes directly toward the development of your site.
  • Experience leads to efficiency. I've been developing websites since 1998, and can usually determine right away which tools and methods are best for your site. If there's an existing third-party tool or something I've built before that can be re-used, that saves even more time and money.
  • I don't build what you don't need. If you're happy with your current site and just need improvements, I won't try to rebuild it all. I'm comfortable working in just about any CMS or framework
  • You work directly with the developer. There are no surprises, no false claims, no inflated fees. All my work is charged hourly (actually, in 15-minute increments) and I can do work on a daily basis, or call on me after several months if you need an update. Just think of me as your part-time, on-demand webmaster.
 

Custom Business Tools

When someone asks, "What do you do for a living?" it's difficult to explain exactly. If I say, "I build websites," it gives the impression that I just put a bunch of pictures and text together into a website. But the kind of work I do, and do well, goes much deeper.

I prefer to think of myself as a software developer, whose software happens to run in websites. And online custom business tools are my specialty.

Every business is unique. So each business will eventually have a need which cannot be addressed by an off-the-shelf solution. I've built hundreds of custom solutions over the years: small add-ons to existing systems: fully custom e-commerce and client management systems, data migration, spreadsheet imports and exports, graphic user interfaces, web integration for legacy desktop applications, secure intra-office websites, and much more.
 

Top-to-Bottom Development

Use your website to manage all aspects of your business. Not just the part that your customers see, but the information and tools that only your employees see, or the tools to which only you have access.

If you are using a desktop application to manage part of your business, you might be able to manage it better through your website.

If you have multiple offices or other pieces of your business, and need to get them to work together, your website may be the best way to accomplish this.

That's what top-to-bottom development means. Your website can be used to make your business faster, smarter, more efficient, better. I know how to build these tools, and how to make them secure and user-friendly.
 

Collaborative Work

If you are a graphic designer, web designer, or ad agency, and have web projects that require an experienced programmer and developer, I can help. I currently maintain a working relationship with several design partners.

In a typical collaborative project, my partner works with the client to put together the specifications and create a graphic design that presents the look and feel for the website. My job is to take the design and specs, and build them into a rich, dynamic website.

Several of my design partners are skilled artists, and accept no compromise when implementing their creations. I take pride in my ability to faithfully integrate their designs into the final website, often right down to the last pixel, without sacrificing functionality or usability.

I also freely give my expert advice during development. If there's a better way to implement a feature, I'll let you know.
 

Converting Flash to HTML5

With HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript / JQuery, modern browsers and devices now support features and animation that were previously only available through Flash.

When I was young, one of my hobbies was creating animated games on our family's home computer (in Apple BASIC, no less). In college, my favorite class involved creating 3D animations in OpenGL. I always jump at any chance to apply these skills to my web development work. The programming environments are different, but the programming principles are the same.
 

Creative Design

Every site I build starts with a professional, visually aesthetic design. Behind the scenes, clean coding and built-in SEO features ensure your site gets the best possible exposure on Google and other search engines.

I've done creative design in my solo projects, as well. However, I am a developer first, designer second, and I know my limitations. I'm not much of a logo designer, for example.

When needed, I can call on one of my design partners to create the look and feel you need for your website.
 

E-Commerce

E-commerce covers a wide range services, and a wide range of costs. I've built somewhere close to 200 e-commerce websites throughout my career, and can guide you through the best path to an e-commerce enabled website.

If you have a massive product catalog, complex shipping calculations, are looking for ways to automate your fulfillment process, or have tried various off-the-shelf e-commerce packages and found them inadequate for your needs, I've dealt with these situations before. Chances are, I've already built a set of tools similar to what you'll need, and would just need to reconfigure them for your site.

If you are a small nonprofit, and are just looking to collect donations, membership fees, and maybe sell a few things, I can implement a simple solution that avoids all the third-party costs.
 

Legacy Websites

If you have a website built with older technology and several custom features built in over the years, it can be expensive to rebuild everything from the ground up. But you may not have to.

Some of the first sites I built were in Perl, Classic ASP, and even flat HTML pages. So I am just as comfortable working with those as I am with PHP, Python, or .NET environments. In fact, I still maintain many websites that use these technologies, some of which I built myself, others taken over from other developers. They are just as SEO-friendly, mobile responsive, and have the same robust features as any "modern" website.
 

Mobile Responsive Design

Mobile responsiveness has become a top priority in my work. I no longer even consider it optional. Every website I've built since 2012 is mobile responsive. By default, my websites have a three-tier design, where screens 1200px or wider (desktops, widescreen laptops) will display the "full" design, screens 800px - 1200px wide (smaller laptops and tablets in landscape orientation) will display the "tablet" design, and smaller screens (tablets in portrait orientation, and phones) will display the "mobile" design. By request, I've also built sites with four, and even more tiers. For example, desktops might display one design, typical laptops display a second version, tablets in landscape orientation display a third, tablets in portrait orientation display a fourth, and phones display a fifth.

There are several different methods to handle mobile responsive design. My preferred method is Adapt.js because it only requires a single small file, is easy to scale for multiple stylesheets, resizes in real time (if you change the size of your browser window or rotate your tablet, the design adjusts automatically), and is dependent only on screen size -- no messing around with device detection or other techniques.
 

Nonprofit & Advocacy Websites

Nonprofit organizations often don't have the budget and resources of commercial businesses. But they still have the same website needs -- often more so, with tasks such as member and donor tracking, e-news communication, monthly and annual reporting, hub and regional management.

I've built and currently manage dozen of websites for nonprofits, advocacy, and political clients. The wide range of services I provide, along with low costs and minimal overhead, make my work an ideal fit for these types of organizations.