S. A. McNeil and Associates Inc.

Q: What's your name and position in the company?
A: Shelley McNeil, President

Q: Describe your company in 5 words.
A: Web Design and Web Hosting

Q: What's your business philosophy?
A: We provide professional web sites that are specific to our client's needs. We keep it simple but provide all of the up-to-date elements needed in professional web design. We are finished our work when our client says so! And our support goes beyond completion!

Q: Describe how your team interact and work together.
A: We contract out work as required.

Q: What makes you different from other web design companies?
A: We don't stop working until our clients are happy. We provide professional design and layout using basic SEO practices. We provide start to finish web presence services including web design, web hosting and email. We can connect remotely to assist with set up of email and other services required.

Q: How do you get the majority of your business?
A: Word of mouth from our existing clients and the local chamber of commerce.

Q: Describe how you manage projects from the initial client contact to completion and handover.
A: I gather information about the clients' business and needs for a web presence. If they already have a web site and need changes, those changes are discussed. The initial meeting is usually by phone. After my initial evaluation, recommendations are typically provided by email and or phone conversatons. A timeline is discussed with client, pricing is provided and the work is carried out usually in a live environment so the client can be kept up-to-date with the progress and make changes as needed.

Q: What do you think is the most crucial element of creating a good client relationship?
A: Communication is key although making sure that I understand the clients needs are just as important!

Q: How do you manage demanding clients?
A: Immediate attention and setting a schedule for meeting objectives.

Q: If a client was trying to decide between a shortlist of web design companies, how would you recommend they go about selecting the right one for them?
A: Select a web design company who is local, who can provide immediate personal attention, who can also provide proof of education and who will provide a contract price up front rather then work on an hourly basis.

Q: Where do you see your company in 10 years time?
A: In ten years, I will be doing more web site maintenance as apposed to full scale new web site designs. Web hosting will become a bigger part of sales income and support will become half of my days work.

Q: Where do you see the web design industry in the future?
A: Web design has quickly become a service that can be offered from anywhere in the world. As a result, there are many companies offering web site designs for drastically reduced prices. Web designers will need to focus on local clients and provide the personal support that international designers will not be able to. Web design jobs will be broken into many smaller areas and web designers will need to focus on one core initiative to remain successful.

Q: What computers do you have use in your offices, PCs or Macs?
A: PC

Q: How was your company name chosen?
A: Incorparated using surname because I don't want to hide behind a business name that has no association to me.

Q: If you were to give your clients one tip on how to get the most from their website what would it be?
A: Simple navigation and title tags for ranking in search engines!