Poiema Web Development

23/06/2024

After a day of gardening and lawn-mowing yesterday, today I get to enjoy it!

What are you doing on this sunny Sunday afternoon?

15/06/2024

To end the week on a high - thought I'd share a recent review from one of my customers.

Mary at Three Hares English Tutoring says:

'I cannot thank Jen enough for her patience and expertise. I came to her knowing that I wanted to build a website for my new tutoring business, but having no idea what that entailed. Over a series of conversations, Jen was able to guide me towards making decisions about style and content, and even threw in some advice about how to use social media to help me promote myself. As a result, I have a shiny new website that looks fantastically professional and that will grow with my business... and I have already had people contact me as a result of finding me online. I could not be happier!'

It's always lovely to hear that you've done a good job.

What feedback have you had recently? Share it in the comments below!

13/06/2024

If you're starting a business and thinking about getting a website built and hosted, my number one piece of advice is to buy your own domain name.

Many website builders will sell you the domain you want along with web hosting as part of a package, and even build the site for you, but if you get the domain from them, you might find that you're then stuck with them forever as the prices suddenly get higher and higher!

Your domain name is your brand identity. You need to purchase it yourself - don't let a third party hosting company have control over it.

I recently met someone who had lost her website and domain name because she wanted to change her website hosting to a different company, and in the process her domain (which the hosting company had originally registered) expired.

She had the files for her website, but the domain name was lost, because as soon as it expired someone else bought it and put their own site up in its place. All her SEO ranking was gone, and she had to buy a new domain and start all over again.

That's why I always tell my clients to purchase their domains when I start a project. I can sort the hosting and all the other aspects of their website build. But I want them to have the confidence that if I were to disappear tomorrow, they have ownership of their brand.

What's the most important piece of advice you've been given as a small business owner? Share it in the comments below, it might help someone more than you know. 😍

08/06/2024

How do you spend your Saturday?

It's usually a bit of a collapse day in our house - we tend to have a chilled morning to recover from the previous week!!

Today though it's been games day - Battleships with number 2 son, plus a session of badminton in the garden 🌞🌤️🏸

What have you been doing today?

05/06/2024

What do I offer?

- New custom website development
- Updates for existing websites: both styling changes and extra functionality
- eCommerce development

Who are my customers?

- Small business owners who want an online presence for their business
- Individuals who want a website as a home for their interest or blog
- Shop owners who want to start seling online

How much does it cost?

- Prices start at £600 for a basic custom website which includes a year's hosting.


All websites are designed and built for your specific needs, so if you have a project you want to discuss. drop me a message or comment below and we can have a chat.

04/06/2024

Hi! I'm Jennifer and I run Poiema Web Development.

I've not introduced myself on this page for a while, so thought it was time I popped a picture on so you can see what I look like!

I've been a software developer for 8 years, and last year I set up my own business developing websites for small business owners and organisations across the UK.

I know that the nuts and bolts of website building can seem like a dark art to many people, and my aim is to make the whole process of getting your business online as straightforward and simple as possible.

19/12/2023

Still chance to get a free planner for next year! Perfect for getting yourself organised in 2024 🗓️👍

With over 150 wallplanners posted out there's still time to get your hands on one.

Simply complete your details on the form/link below and we'll pop one in the post to you free of charge. Many thanks to our sponsors for making this happen.

https://form.jotform.com/233534989615368

Boro Carpets Daisy Chain Clear It - Teesside Ltd Avanti Personnel LTD Zest_io Bowes Joinery services CVFM Radio Merritts Solicitors LLP TTS Engineering Ltd/ Safety First Supplies, Screaming Chimp Chilli Sauce Ltd Red Hawk Group Ltd Boro Beds & Furniture

#2024

15/12/2023

Mary came to me in the summer asking me to build a website for her English Tutoring business. She has 20 years of teaching under her belt, but now was time for something new. She knows her stuff and offers tutoring for all ages and abilities, as well as support for university applications, but she doesn’t know anything about building websites!

I walked her through the whole process: sorting out her domain name and hosting, choosing colours, fonts and layouts, and then built her website.

threeharestutoring.co.uk went live a couple of weeks ago, and I’m reliably informed that Mary hasn’t stopped talking about how pleased she is with it!

If you want a website for your small business in 2024 then be like Mary – get in touch and see how I can help you!

12/12/2023

I want a website so that … people can view my menus before they come to my restaurant.

Ok, I know this might appear a bit of a niche post – but the sentiment can apply to a whole host of businesses if you’re still using Facebook to communicate information about your offerings and services.

Last week my husband went out for Christmas dinner with his pals from the motorbike club. They were going to a local restaurant and all was well, except on the evening before the dinner he got a message saying that because there were over 10 of them attending they needed to ring and order their meals in advance – in the next hour.

Cue much googling and trying to find the restaurant, and more specifically the menu, as quickly as possible.

Getting the restaurant up on Google was fine – but clicking the ‘website’ link was when the trouble started. Because they didn’t have a website. Just a page.
And while their Facebook posts had many references to lovely meals and satisfied customers, there didn’t appear to be much information in the menu department.
After some scrolling, we found the ‘general menu’, and references to the festive offering, but no festive menu in sight.

Eventually my husband rang and asked where he could find the festive menu. The response was roughly along the lines of ‘keep scrolling down the Facebook feed to about November – you should find it there. And we’ve got a specials menu in October’s posts as well. You can order from that too’.
🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯

Really?!

You can’t expect your prospective customers to scroll through months of social media posts to find your menu.

In this particular case my husband was committed – he had to find his food options and the table was booked and arranged - but in a world where 77% of diners say they check a menu before they go to a restaurant can you afford to be hiding your menus in the middle of your Facebook feed?

If you want to use your menus to attract more customers in 2024 then get in touch and see how I can help. I can build you a website with no headache or fuss, and make sure your customers can find the information they need with no doom-scrolling required!

01/12/2023

It's the 1st of December! The beginning of Advent. 🎄

I love the run up to Christmas - but refuse to start thinking about it until December, because it isn't Advent until I can open my advent calendar 😆.

And this year I have the BEST calendar courtesy of Freedom Chocolate. 🍫

My gorgeous little house 🏚️ is packed with delicious dark and mylk allergy free chocolates - I'll going to love eating one of these everyday! 😋

The only downside is that I have to share with my husband! 😆

14/11/2023

It’s been an exciting time for me and Poiema Web Development.

I’ve been busy working on websites for some great new businesses which will be launching soon – watch this space!

Plus Poiema has had an exciting new facelift.

When you’re starting out as a small business you feel like you have to do everything yourself, especially right at the start before you’ve got any paying clients and you still aren’t completely convinced you’re a grown-up, let alone a self-employed business owner!! 😆

But sometimes you just need to get some help and let someone else bring their perspective to your business.

I’ve been working with a design agency to create a shiny new look for Poiema Web Development that will help take the business forward. The colour palette is bright and exciting and I’m loving the new accessible font.

Starting a business can be a scary time, but the past few weeks have reminded me that I do have something to offer small business owners and I’m sure that Poiema Web Development is going to go from strength to strength.

If you want a website for your small business but don’t know where to start, then get in touch. I can take the headache out of building your website so that you can concentrate on building your business.