SmarterWays

Q: What's your name and position in the company?
A: Stuart Peters - web and graphic designer

Q: Describe your company in 5 words.
A: Innovative, professional, creative, advanced, inspiring

Q: What's your business philosophy?
A: We believe in the importance of the customers and making sure that each client and their website is treated with individuality and focus. We understand how important word of mouth is which is why we treat our customers with so much respect and which is why we have such a high rate of customer loyalty.

Q: Describe your office environment.
A: The office environment here at SmarterWays is fun and exciting. With the web team working closely together, we all sit together to share ideas and to be able to interact when carrying out the designs. We work closely with the PHP coder in the office and this is unlike many other design companies who simply use a freelance coder. Though the work is fast-paced, we retain an element of calm and fun which makes it enjoyable to come to work!

Q: Describe how your team interact and work together.
A: With only two web designers at the moment, the team interact incredibly well and often bounce off each other with ideas encouraging our designs to be unique and creative. What one of us lacks, the other makes up for and so all of our client's wants and needs are catered for.

Q: What makes you different from other web design companies?
A: We listen to our clients and customers, we have a high ate of loyalty due to our innovative designs and ideas and our team have built a fun and good rapport with each other and their clientele.

Q: How do you get the majority of your business?
A: In the past we have been heavily reliant on word of mouth. A lot of our customers hear about us from their friends and once they are with us they stick with us. Along with website design, we build brands, do exhibition equipment hire and that along with all of our IT services helps to ensure that we are a one stop shop for our customers IT and design needs. Recently because of our desire to expand we have brought in a marketer to help us build awareness for our services and to try and grow more.

Q: Describe how you manage projects from the initial client contact to completion and handover.
A: SmarterWays account manager handles the contact between the team and the clients to handle queries and completion.

Q: What do you think is the most crucial element of creating a good client relationship?
A: Communication, good communication can help make sure that the client and the designer compltely understand the project and makes it much easier to produce a pleasing final piece.

Q: How do you manage demanding clients?
A: As with most companies, SmarterWays have had our fair share of demanding clients. We have learnt to not lose our patience with those clients because we know the importance of having a website designed and how frustrating it can be for clients to get their ideas from their head onto paper and onto a website. We understand and try to be as helpful and understanding as possible in the face of this situation.

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: I'd recommend firstly looking thoroughly through a company's portfolio and the websites they have completed and reviewing whether that work is along the same lines as the work that you would like for your own company. If you decide you like their designs then contact the company and speak to the designers, building a good rapport and getting on well with the team is incredibly important as the process can sometimes be lengthy and it is important for you and the team to get on well, sharing the same ideas about the design that will be going ahead.

Q: Where do you see your company in 10 years time?
A: SmarterWays is currently in the middle of a big growth in the web team, we have recently brought in two new members allowing for a more advanced service making sure that we can provide our customers with every type of design they could wish for. In the next ten years we would like to see this team growing even more and becoming even more creative in our designs. We want to adopt the challenges and advances that the industry takes and become a major player in the web design industry.

Q: Where do you see the web design industry in the future?
A: I believe that the web design industry will continue to grow and grow. More and more people and businesses are moving online due to the efficiency of the online market. With technology always expanding and improving, there are always new innovations to include in web design, meaning there will always be a need for the industry and whilst there is, SmarterWays plan to be a big part of this.

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

Q: How was your company name chosen?
A: The name SmarterWays was simply because we want to offer people the 'smarter' solutions. The Smarter brand covers web design, IT and telecoms solutions, all which provide the best, most innovative and smarter solutions for a business' needs.

Q: If you were to give your clients one tip on how to get the most from their website what would it be?
A: Put content on it. As SEO specialists we understand how hard it is to get to page one of Google and so by adding content to your website it increases your chances of getting higher in the search engines. We design the site to make sure that people stay there, making it attractive and eye-catching yet maintaining a professional edge. All we ask of you is to provide us with the content. If this isn’t one of your strongest points then we have an in-house copyrighter that will do the trick for you.