How it works, in detail

Before you pay anything

What happens first?

We have a conversation about your business, at your shop, over a coffee in Inverurie, or on a video call. It's free and there's no obligation.

What do I see before paying?

A design of your homepage, made for your business with your name, your logo and your photos if you have them. You can look at it on your own phone or laptop.

What if I don't like it?

You say so and we part on good terms. You pay nothing. The design stays with the studio and isn't used for anyone else.

What if I'm not sure I need a website at all?

Then say that at the first conversation. If your business doesn't need one, I'll tell you.

Prices and what's included

What does every website include?

• A design made from scratch for your business, with no templates.
• Copywriting: all the text on your site, written for you from a conversation about your business.
• A design that works properly on phones, tablets and computers.
• Your Google Business Profile set up or polished, so your hours, photos and map pin are right.
• Local SEO (search engine optimisation): your site is built so that Google understands what you do and where you are, which helps you appear when people nearby search for a business like yours.
• A short walkthrough at launch, so you know how everything works.

What isn't included?

• Your domain name, which you buy and own yourself. For most domains it costs about £10 to £15 a year.
• Fees for other services you use, such as Square, Shopify or a booking app. These are your own tools, on your own accounts, which you own and manage separately from my work. If your site needs a new one, we discuss it and agree it together first. Nothing is ever added that you haven't agreed to.
• Professional photography. I work with your own photos.
• Logo design. I work with the logo you have.
• Social media management.

Why "from" on the larger packages?

Bookings, shops and bespoke projects vary a lot in size. We discuss what you need and plan it together, and agree a fixed price in writing before the project starts. It doesn't change unless you ask for something new.

Paying

When do I pay?

Nothing until you've approved your homepage design. Then half the price as a deposit to start the build, and the other half when the site is finished and before it goes live.

How do I pay?

By bank transfer, against a proper invoice from Martina Sartor Ltd.

Is VAT added?

Yes. All prices are shown before VAT, which is added to the invoice.

What do founding clients get?

The first five clients get 20% off any package and three months of care at no charge.

Timings and changes

How long does it take?

About a week for a Starter site, two to three weeks for Standard, and three to five weeks for bookings or a shop.

When does the clock start?

On the day I have everything I need from you, listed in the next section. If something arrives late, the launch date moves by the same number of days. You'll always know the current date.

How many changes can I ask for?

Two rounds of changes are included, once on the design and once on the finished site. A round means one list of everything you'd like changed.

What if I want more changes after that?

I'll tell you what each one costs before doing it. Small changes are £40 + VAT each. If you have a care plan, small changes are included at no extra cost, and bigger changes are quoted case by case.

What if there's a mistake on the site?

To err is human. Any mistake is fixed free for 30 days after your site goes live online, whether it was mine or something in what you sent that neither of us spotted. That covers things like a typo, a wrong price or a link that doesn't work. After 30 days, fixes are treated as changes.

What about additions or new requests?

Anything new is a change, not a mistake: an extra page, a new section, a different layout, or a feature we didn't agree at the start. I'll give you a price before doing it. Small ones are £40 + VAT each, or included if you have a care plan.

What I need from you

• Your logo, in the best quality you have.
• Photos of your business, your work or your products.
• Your services and prices, opening hours and contact details.
• About half an hour of your time to talk, so I can write your copy.
• Access to your domain, so I can connect the new site to it.
• Access to your Google Business Profile, if you have one.

Do I have to give you my passwords?

No. For Google, you add me as a manager from your own account, and you can remove me at any time. For your domain, we can change the setting together, or you can give me temporary access.

Domains and hosting, explained

What's a domain?

It's your address on the internet, like yourshop.co.uk. You rent it by the year from a domain company, and it's registered in your name.

What's hosting?

It's the computer where your website lives, switched on all day so the site appears when someone visits. An address with no hosting behind it leads nowhere.

How do the two fit together?

Your domain is set to point at wherever your site is hosted. Changing that setting is how a new site replaces an old one, and it takes a few minutes.

I already have a domain. Can I keep it?

Yes. It stays in your name and your new site uses it.

I don't have one. What then?

I'll help you choose and buy one, in your own name and on your own account, so it's always yours.

Looking after your site

What is the care plan?

For £45 + VAT a month, the studio keeps your site online, secure and backed up, and makes small changes for you within two working days.

What counts as a small change, and what's a bigger one?

Anything that takes up to half an hour: new prices, new opening hours, swapping a photo, adding a paragraph. Bigger jobs, like a new page, are quoted separately.

Is it compulsory?

No. It's optional, and you can stop it at the end of any month.

What if I don't want the care plan, or I stop it?

Your site still has to live somewhere, so you choose one of two things:

• The studio keeps it online for £120 + VAT a year, and any changes are £40 + VAT each.
• I hand you the complete website files, free of charge, for you to host anywhere you like.

Your existing tools

Can I keep using my till, shop or booking system?

In most cases, yes. If you use Square, Shopify or a booking app, your new site is built around it and nothing changes behind the counter.

Does that always work?

It depends on whether your tool is able to connect to other systems. Most well-known ones are. I check yours before we start, and I'll tell you plainly if it can't be done.

Who pays for those tools?

You do, directly to them, as you do now. The studio doesn't add anything on top.

Who owns what

• Your domain is yours, in your name, from the first day.
• Your logo, photos and copy are yours.
• The finished website is yours once it's paid for in full.
• Your Google Business Profile stays under your ownership.

Can the studio show my site as an example?

I'd like to show it in the studio's portfolio. If you'd rather I didn't, tell me and I won't.

What if the studio closed?

You'd be given your complete website files and enough notice to move them. Because your domain is in your name, your address would carry on working.

If plans change

Can I pause a project?

Yes. Tell me and we'll agree a new date. If a project is paused for more than three months, it may need a new quote.

Can I cancel after paying the deposit?

Yes. The deposit covers the work done up to that point and isn't refunded, and nothing more is owed.

What if the studio can't finish?

If I couldn't complete your site for any reason, you'd get back whatever you'd paid for work not yet done, along with everything made so far.

Your information

Anything you share with the studio is used only for your project. Access you give me is used only for the work we've agreed, and you can withdraw it at any time. I don't sell anyone's details, and joining the founding clients list doesn't add you to a mailing list.

The site uses Google Analytics to see how visitors use it, and sets cookies only if you agree to them. The privacy page explains exactly what is collected.

Questions about any of this are welcome. Use the form on the main page and I'll reply personally.