Appearance and Customisation

• Are there any optional extras?

  

  

  Yes, there is a forum/bulletin board option that can be added. There is also a choice of shopping cart options available, prices on application as much of the cost depends on how many products and images have to be uploaded and entered.
  
  One extremely useful optional extra is the email scrubbing service that cuts out over 90% of spam mail almost immediately at a cost of just ?30 per mailbox per year. Each mailbox with this service can have up to five email addresses pointing to it.
  
  97%

  
  

  
  
  • Of our customers' requirements are met using the range of reserved function pages within Webinthebox. Where this is not possible, custom functions and pages can be created either on an exclusive basis, i.e. just for you, or a shared basis where the costs are reduced by allowing us to build the function into the next release of Webinthebox so that it can be resold to other users.
    
    
  
  
  • - Based on a study of our first 200 customers where only six needed any custom work. Much of this has now been incorporated into Webinthebox Reserved Function pages so we do expect this percentage to be even higher at the next review.
  
  
• What is to stop my site looking like every other Webinthebox site?

  

  

  When setting up your site you can choose from well over a hundred different page main layouts at the moment. This number is increasing all the time, so you have no shortage of choice. All your pages can use the same layout, or this can be applied at page level to highlight specific features, or even to make them all different. Within the main content area of each page, users have the choice of 50 inner layouts. This gives a choice of 5000 'shapes' for each page within the site. Each page has ten key graphics that make the appearance unique. There are ten standard colour schemes built in that can be applied to the layouts, new schemes can be made from scratch or by customising any of the built in schemes.
  
  And if that is not enough? We will happily create custom layouts and colour schemes just for you. Because we have so many already in use, this is not as expensive as it sounds either, with custom layouts very often being created by modifying an existing standard one with the resultant savings being passed directly back to the customer.
• What if I don't want to do it myself?

  

  

  No problem! We will happily enter your site content and upload your images, setting up the whole thing from soup to nuts if you prefer. The main thing is that we prefer you to have the choice of whether you upload all of your content, just a part of it and we do the rest, or leave it to us. That is why we are proud to use the slogan 'The independence you want with the support that you need'.

Business Performance and Response

• How do I get enquiries from my website?

  

  

  By default, enquiries from Webinthebox sites go directly into your database, where they can be harvested via your admin pages. At the same time the information is e-mailed to you. This has a number of advantages over the alternative of simply generating emails using a common 'mailto' link:

  • Your email address doesn't have to appear in any pages in a form that can be read by spambots
  • Your enquiries are the life blood of your business, we feel that they should have a place of their own, not get mixed up with everyday correspondence.
  • The information is downloadable in formats that can be imported directly into your sales database or CRM package.

Capacity

• Why fix at 40 pages for the initial installation?

  

  

  Originally, Webinthebox had an unlimited number of 'pages' using just one main page file and changing the content with selections from the menu. This proved to be not so favourable in terms of search engine performance as having specific pages for each subject on a site, so 40 was chosen as a starting number. This way each page points to a fixed content and is much easier for the search engines to index accurately. Unlimited additional units of 20 pages can be added at a small cost to accommodate more content.
• How much information can the site hold?

  

  

  Up to the limit of hosting space purchased, quite a lot really. The image database is capable of storing hundreds of thousands of images, while the text content of the pages is huge. The number of pages is unlimited with optional extra page modules in blocks of 20. Each page consists of ten topics and each topic comprises five elements:

  • Header ? 255 characters
  • Intro text ? 1024 characters (approx 100 words)
  • Main text ? 64K characters (Approx 10,000 words)
  • Sub text ? 1024 characters (approx 100 words
  • Associated image file

  On a standard Webinthebox page, these elements are all placed relative to each other in the main content area by your choice of inner layout file.

Continuity of Service

• What happens if my Village Websmith:-

  • Gets run over by a bus?Gives up the business?
  • Retires?
  • Gets beamed up by aliens?

  Or meets with some other catastrophe?

  

  

  One answer fits all:-
  The Village Websmith is a franchise, so someone else would follow with exactly the same high standard of customer care and training.
• How do I know that my site is going to be available to view all the time?

  

  

  All Webinthebox sites are hosted on dedicated 1and1 Internet servers for reliability and security. 1and1 Internet are one of the longest established and most trusted providers of hosting in the UK and their German server farm is one of the most modern in the world. Servers are protected by Cisco hardware firewalls and every effort is made to secure your information.
• How many other websites are hosted on the server that will host mine?

  

  

  Webinthebox has a very deliberate policy of low-density hosting. This means that the greatest number of sites that will be on one of our servers is 100. We grow by adding more servers rather than putting all our customers' eggs in one basket. Our hosting pledge to all customers is:

  • We will never host more than 100 sites on a server
  • We will never host anyone else's work on our servers
  • We will never host our work on anyone else's server
  • We will never disclose ftp access details to any non Village Websmith personnel
• What if the server fails?

  

  

  All Webinthebox databases are backed up weekly, as are the website folders, so in the case of data loss, the worst case is that the site information content goes back a week. In the unlikely event of a total hardware failure on your server, your site can quickly be up and running again on a new one.

Costs and Delivery

• How long does it take to get my new site live?

  

  

  That depends… Largely the answer is dependent on the flow and availability of information and images.
  
  Setting up the initial file structure and database is very quick. After that, the volume of information takes a hand as does the speed with which you can get it to us.
  
  If information and images are readily to hand, it is usually possible to populate between 3 and 6 pages per day.
  
  Every site is different and every customer is different. If you have a specific deadline to meet, it is always worth talking it over with us. It is often possible to publish the most important elements, then upload the remaining information at a later date.
• How long does it take to get my website published?

  

  

  Times vary mostly according to domain registration or transfer and the availability of site content and images. Usually in the case of a new .co.uk registration, the basic files are ready to accept your input within a few hours and the site is usually visible the same day. After that, it is down to how long it takes to get your content uploaded.
• How much does it cost?

  

  

  Webinthebox sites typically cost anywhere between £195 (Webinthebox Me!) and £2000 ex VAT, depending on the amount of work involved, how much you wish to do yourself and the amount of interactivity you want built in. Prices always include registration or transfer of a .co.uk domain and 12 months hosting and up to five email boxes as well as introductory training in use of the admin pages, advice on uploading content and how to resample/resize images. What is always the same is the level of service and attention to individual needs that ensures customers are only quoted for the elements that they really need, so you really only pay for what you use.
• What are the ongoing costs?

  

  

  Your annual service renewal is ?120 ex VAT for the full Webinthebox service or just ?48 + VAT for Webinthebox Me! customers. This covers server space for hosting, automatic domain name renewals, weekly backup of your site, mailbox maintenance and daily reload of core functionality files.
• Are there any optional extras?

  

  

  Yes, there is a forum/bulletin board option that can be added. There is also a choice of shopping cart options available, prices on application as much of the cost depends on how many products and images have to be uploaded and entered.
  
  One extremely useful optional extra is the email scrubbing service that cuts out over 90% of spam mail almost immediately at a cost of just ?30 per mailbox per year. Each mailbox with this service can have up to five email addresses pointing to it.
  
  97%* Of our customers' requirements are met using the range of reserved function pages within Webinthebox. Where this is not possible, custom functions and pages can be created either on an exclusive basis, i.e. just for you, or a shared basis where the costs are reduced by allowing us to build the function into the next release of Webinthebox so that it can be resold to other users.
  
  * - Based on a study of our first 200 customers where only six needed any custom work. Much of this has now been incorporated into Webinthebox Reserved Function pages so we do expect this percentage to be even higher at the next review.

Functionality

• What standard pages do I get ready formatted?

  

  

  Webinthebox comprises 40 pages as standard. Some of these are left unformatted for you to add standard information for yourself, while others come pre-formatted for the following purposes.

  • Areas Served
  • Brochure download (2 options)
  • Buffet Bookings
  • Calendar of Events (optionally bookable online)
  • Request a Call Back
  • Product Catalogue (7 options)
  • Contact Details
  • Contact Upload
  • Definitions Popup
  • Expanded Content
  • Enquiries Page (10 Fully Customisable Pages)
  • FAQ Page
  • Gallery (5 Options)
  • Guestbook
  • Recruitment Agency Suite
  • Job Application Page
  • Job Vacancies Page
  • Job Vacancy Upload Page
  • Local Sales Page (Ties in with Areas Served)
  • Menu (2 Options)
  • Menu Print Out (2 Options)
  • Newsletter
  • People (Simple Listing of Staff etc.)
  • People 2 (Hierarchical Listing of Staff etc.)
  • Users (Listing of Outside Personnel)
  • Estate/Letting Agents Suite
  • Property List
  • Property View
  • Property Search
  • Questionnaire/Survey
  • Send to a Friend
  • Suggestions Box
  • Online Shop (5 Options)
  • Special Occasions/Personal Celebration Diary
  • Sponsors/Suppliers/Supporters/Recommended Links
  • Subtext Viewer
  • Voting and Ballots
  • 'Blog
  • Links

  The list is growing daily and each page type comes with its own corresponding admin page

Legal and Copyright

• Who owns my website?

  

  

  We both do is the simple answer. In all cases, customers own their content and images. Copyright rests with the originator, and in publishing a site, Webinthebox assumes that the customer has rights to use all material that they provide.
  
  Copyright on the layouts, built in colour schemes and the administration pages/content management system always remains with The Village Websmith.

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

• What is the search engine performance like?

  

  

  There is a wide ranging list of search terms that will find Webinthebox customers on the front page of Google. There are many more, and the list is growing every day. This question is best answered personally, up to date and in respect of your own business.
  
  All Webinthebox customers are linked to all others so that they all benefit from reciprocal link value. Customers don't have to take part in this linking programme and not all do, but it really does help with search engine performance, not only in terms of increasing the search engine 'popularity' rating of each site, but also in filling up spaces on the results page behind the customer with links to other Webinthebox sites.
  
  Naturally, this can't be guaranteed at all times as everyone on the net is working on improvements all the time, sometimes you are in the lead, other times you need to catch up. The good news is that this is monitored by the Village Websmiths and a little help can usually see your site back on track without spending the ridiculous amounts of money often demanded by 'Search Engine Optimisation Specialists' (21st Century Alchemists as they are referred to here)
• Why is Webinthebox so good?

  

  

  Because Webinthebox pages are designed from the ground up to be as appealing to the search engine 'bots as they are to people, every possible opportunity to utilise your keyphrases and keywords in context with the site theme, images and links is maximised. This philosophy works much better than trying to optimise existing pages. The functionality of Webinthebox comes from the core files. These are uploaded freshly to every one of our servers every day, so any changes that are needed to keep up with search engine algorithm evolution are immediately applied to all our customers' sites.
• Does the hosting policy contribute to search engine performance?

  

  

  Yes it does. The search engines now also evaluate page loading speed as a part of their assessment of who goes where in the pecking order. Because Webinthebox sites are hosted in such low density, they load fast. Page load times are shown at the foot of each page so you can see how your site is doing, and make changes to image sizes and content if needed.