WEBSITE DEVELOPMENT
Built for how people actually find you now.
Search is changing. More of your future customers are meeting you through an AI answer before they ever click a link. Your website still needs to be sharp, fast, and easy to update — but it no longer needs to be complicated to get there.
How it gets built
Four ways to build it. One right answer for you.
Most agencies build every site the same way, because that’s the only way they know. I work in four, so the platform gets chosen to fit your business. WordPress runs over 40% of the web and is the platform I’ve spent the most years in, so that’s where I start unless the work points elsewhere.
01
WordPress
A mature, flexible build path — the right call when you have an existing WordPress site, a plugin ecosystem you depend on, or a team already trained on it.
02
Squarespace
Everything most businesses actually need, without the overhead. Fast to launch, genuinely simple for you to update, and priced as one predictable monthly cost.
03
Shopify
The right call when selling products is the point of the site. Purpose-built for commerce, with inventory, payments, shipping, and tax handled by the platform rather than bolted on.
04
Custom HTML & CSS
Old-school, hand-written front-end code. No builder, no theme, no bloat — just the markup your project needs. Reserved for the cases where a template would fight you.
Not sure which one?
That’s my job, not yours. We talk through what you’re selling, who needs to update the site, and what it has to connect to — then I recommend the path, and tell you plainly why the other three aren’t it.
Common questions
Questions people ask before hiring
The questions that come up in almost every first conversation — about cost, timeline, platforms, and what it’s actually like to hire one person instead of an agency. Answered plainly, so you don’t have to ask.
How much does a website cost?
It depends on page count, how much content already exists, and what the site has to connect to. As a range: most small-business starter sites land between $3,500 and $6,000, while small-to-medium businesses needing 25 pages or more typically run $8,000 to $15,000. I scope every project before quoting it, so the number you get is tied to actual hours, not a package tier. Branding is quoted separately.
How long does it take to build a website?
A straightforward site is typically four to eight weeks from kickoff to launch. The build is rarely the bottleneck — waiting on content, photography, and approvals is. If you have your copy and images ready, the timeline compresses considerably.
Which platform should my website be built on?
That’s the question this page exists to answer. WordPress runs over 40% of the web and is the platform I’ve spent the most years in, so it’s where I start unless the work points elsewhere: Squarespace when you want simple and predictable, Shopify when selling products is the point, and hand-written HTML and CSS when nothing off-the-shelf fits.
Should I hire a freelance contractor or an agency?
An agency gives you bench depth and a project manager; a contractor gives you the senior person doing the actual work, with no account layer and lower overhead. If your project needs four specialists working in parallel, hire the agency. If it needs one experienced person who can design, build, and read the analytics, that’s what I do.
What do you need from me before we start?
One decision-maker, access to your existing site, hosting, and analytics, and timely feedback. Projects rarely stall on the work itself — they stall waiting on an approval. If content or photography is missing, we scope that as part of the project rather than discovering it halfway through.
Who owns the website when it’s finished?
You do, completely. Whenever possible, accounts and domains are set up in your name from day one. When it's simpler for me to purchase hosting, a platform subscription, or a license to get the build moving, ownership is transferred to you at the end of the project. Either way, you finish owning every account, domain, file, and line of code — nothing stays parked in my name, and leaving is never a migration project.
Will my website show up in Google and AI search?
On-page SEO basics and structured, crawlable markup are part of every build, and AI visibility tracking is set up alongside Google Analytics. Ranking isn’t something anyone can promise, but the technical groundwork that makes a site legible to search engines and AI assistants is non-negotiable.
Can I update the website myself afterward?
Yes — that’s the point of choosing the platform carefully. Every build ends with a guided walkthrough so you can change copy, photos, and pages without calling me. When you’d rather not, ongoing support is available separately.
Do you redesign existing websites or only build new ones?
Both. Plenty of projects start as an audit of what you already have, and sometimes the finding is that a rebuild isn’t warranted — that targeted fixes to a handful of pages will do more for less. I’ll tell you when that’s the case.
What happens after the site launches?
Launch is the middle of the work, not the end. We review the analytics after real traffic arrives and decide the next round from what actually happened. Maintenance, security monitoring, and content updates are available as ongoing support.