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Email forwarding is a tool we use for:
We often set up emails for special purposes like ORDERS. Here's an example: orders@waking girl.com forwards to >> the owner@personal email.com Then, we learn that the accountant also wants to be notified of any orders, so we add: orders@waking girl.com forwards to >> the owner@personal email.com AND accountant@personal email.com And then we want to run some tests, so we add the web designer: orders@waking girl.com forwards to >> the owner@personal email.com AND accountant@personal email.com AND web designer@personal email.com We can continue with this list as needed. When tests are completed, we can remove the web designer from the forwarding chain. Or, if a new accountant is hired, the accountant's email address can be replaced. Email forwarding is an excellent way to work with an organization that has turnover (non-profits, charities, events, etc.). We can easily change out the email forwarder without affecting all of the systems that have been built into the website over time. What are the problems with email forwarding?
Have further questions or want help with email forwarding? Are you feeling neglected by your web designer? Feeling like you have to send 5 emails before you get a response? Panic setting in? Please take a look at these helpful tips that will give more insight to the world behind the computer screen and how to snap your fingers and get your web designer's attention--every time.
1) If your web designer is awesome, he/she receives at least 50-200 emails a day. These aren't annoying subscription emails; these are emails that need to be read, handled and responded to. Put concise instructions and a deadline in your subject line. Example: Add new events to Parade.com before July 4 2) Do not use the subject line "website." 3) Avoid small talk in the opening lines. Pretend your web designer will only read the first sentence. Make it count. 4) Praise your web designer with every new request! Tell your web designer that their hard work IS working. Example: We got 5 new clients today from our website! We want to add 3 fields to our contact form to process new clients faster. So excited this is working so well!!" See how it sounds when you don't praise? Why isn't the phone number field in our contact form? That should have been in there from the beginning. Now we have 5 clients with no phone number. We better add Birth date and Country fields, too. 5) Keep emails to ONE or TWO requests. Web designers want to feel productive. If they can handle a task in 5-10 minutes, they'll jump on it. Long lists of requests should be reserved for new projects or scheduled updates. 6) Put content directly into the email instead of attaching documents. If your web designer has to download and open a program just to read your update it will fall to the bottom of the to-do list. 7) If the budget and pricing has not been pre-arranged, include what you're willing to pay for the work. This will give the web designer an immediate incentive and save on the back and forth of negotiations. Example: I can pay $75 for this update. 8) Web designers love your audience and want to please. Use real deadlines like: Website will be shown at Conference on June 17; need updates completed by June 16. 9) Always offer to pay in advance. Web designers will often under-quote a project not realizing the work involved. To feed the family they may let your project drop to the bottom of the list and turn to the pre-paid clients. Clients who pre-pay allow the web designer to focus JUST on them! 10) Don't be picky until it counts. Web designers work with MANY customers; they focus on the emergency projects first. If your website hasn't launched yet because you can't decide between Lato and Roboto fonts, you are not a top priority. The top priority is the guy who is processing $15k+ on his website every month and the credit card processing company just went down, or the gal who is hosting a big event tomorrow and is doing a last-minute Facebook campaign to drive ticket sales. When your website is highly trafficked and bringing in sales, you can be picky! 11) Give 5 star reviews! If your experience is less than 5 stars, tell them gently and give them an opportunity to improve! 12) Always preface with: I'm not sure if I'm asking this the right way but... Web designers get bombarded with questions that do not make technical sense. It is really hard to answer an incorrect question if the client isn't willing to be educated. When a client confesses their lack of computer knowledge, it opens the door for education and will get you lots of free services. Web designers like being experts! And they like to help!! Know-it-alls put web designers in a corner, and their simple requests turn into challenging accusations. 13) Edit the text for us! Instead of describing the proof reading edits, just go ahead and make them. How to do it: Go to the page that you want to edit. Copy the text. Paste the text into an email. Edit the text. Change subject line to: Please replace text on ABOUT YOU page with text below. Send! The steps above will make this a 5 minute job instead of a 50 minute brain-numbing English 101 exercise. 14) Ask how your web designer prefers to receive large or mass amounts of files. Waking Girl despises Dropbox, and instead offers an easy upload widget on their website. 15) Give your web designer creative license! A web designer is an artist; they will pour energy and time into your project if it is their artistic work and something they can proudly show in their portfolio! You've probably got some questions about how to get into your website, who controls your website, and who owns your website. Please review the information below to clarify the jargon and get answers!
Domain, Website, Hosting There are three pieces to your website: the domain, the website and the hosting. I relate these to a house. The website is the house, the hosting is the property that the house sits on, and the domain is your postal address. These components work together to bring you your website. Each of these components can be taken apart, moved and matched up with other components to bring you a new website, a new domain, or a new host. DOMAIN: yourBusiness.com Do I own my domain name? Yes. Where is my domain name? In Waking Girl's GoDaddy account. Can I access my domain name? Generally no. For the protection of our clients we cannot give free-for-all access to our account. We may be able to assign access to specific services for unique cases. Can I move my domain name? Yes. Just set up your own GoDaddy account and email the Username and Email address, and we'll initiate an Account Change. What will happen if I move my domain name? Services may be disrupted. We charge $100/hour to reinstate any services as a result of a requested domain Account Change. Do I have to pay for my domain name? Yes. We either include the cost of your domain with your hosting or maintenance plan or charge $15/year for just a domain. Why is it set up this way? We started holding onto domain names because:
What would it cost for me to manage my own domain name? You will need to pay renewal fees to GoDaddy which vary from $10-$15/year. If your domain expires there is a short grace period in which you may retrieve the domain name for an additional $80. Beyond the grace period your domain may be selected to go to auction, at which time the domain could run from $400 to $4000, and up. WEBSITE: that pretty thing with your logo, text, pictures and buttons! Do I own my website? Yes. Where is my website? In one of Waking Girl's Weebly accounts. Can I access my website? Yes. Use your Weebly log-in credentials to access the website and make edits or see stats. Don't have these? Please contact us and ask for your Weebly log-in info. Can I move my website? Yes. We can send you a compressed folder of your website files, or we can move your website to a new Weebly account. Just send us an email address that has never been associated with a Weebly account and a request to move your website. What will happen if I move my website? Services may be disrupted. Many features will only work on the Weebly platform. Ecommerce features and products will not transfer to a new Weebly account. Do I have to pay for my website? Yes, you have to pay for the initial build of your website. After that--it belongs to you! Why is it set up this way? Weebly allows us to build websites quickly and reliably. Weebly allows us to build and still give access to clients to make changes. What would it cost for me to manage my own website? It's free! You may also hire another web designer or an intern or your favorite office manager to handle your website updates for you. HOSTING: the online storage place where your website files live. Do I own my hosting? No. Where is my hosting? In Weebly's secure servers. Can I access my hosting? Yes. Use your Weebly log-in credentials to access the hosting and make edits or see stats. Don't have these? Please email and ask for your Weebly log-in info. Can I move my hosting? No, but you may move your website to a new Weebly account. Just send us an email address that has never been associated with a Weebly account and a request to move your website. Can I move my hosting to a traditional server? Not easily. You may attempt to upload your exported website files to a traditional server, but it will require advanced coding to make the website fully functional, and we cannot guarantee all functions will work. What will happen if I move to a new host? Services may be disrupted. Many features will only work on the Weebly platform. Ecommerce features and products will not transfer to a new Weebly account. Do I have to pay for my hosting? Yes, Waking Girl charges $14/month for hosting. This fee is included if you're on a Maintenance Plan. Why is it set up this way? We work on the Weebly host because it is integrated with a building platform that allows us to build quickly and reliably. Going back to our home metaphor, Weebly is like the mother of all gated communities, with a pool and club house and 24/7 security services. What would it cost for me to manage my own website? Weebly's Pro Service runs $9.83/month, which is payable 6 months in advance. Additional fees may apply for eCommerce and Membership services. I'm nervous about the whereabouts of my website, but want to keep working with Waking Girl. For some business owners full control makes the most sense. Full control generally costs you more money, but a restful sleep is well worth it! To move everything into your full control please do the following:
Please understand that additional fees will apply for further maintenance to your website. It does take extra time to access websites and domains outside of the Waking Girl accounts. I'm tired of Waking Girl and want to work with someone else. Hey! Thanks for being honest! :) We have a limited number of Weebly accounts and only want very happy clients using our accounts. Please send the information above so we can get you out! We look forward to assisting you! Let us know how we can help! |
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