Process

From idea to operation, in four steps

At Grafwerk, the same person works on the concept, the design, the code and later on ongoing operation. That keeps paths short and the process easy to follow. Here is what happens at each step, what you do, and how you know a step is finished.

1. 
   01

   Concept

   At the start there is no design, but a question: what do your customers need to know before they call, book or order? In the first conversation we clarify offer, audience and scope. From that the structure of the site emerges: which content exists, in what order it appears and which page does which job.

   You receive this structure in writing, together with a text skeleton and a fixed price. Only once you agree does it continue. Depending on scope, this step takes a few days to two weeks.

2. 
   02

   Design

   Now the structure gets a face: typography, grid, one accent colour, visual language. Design happens directly on screen and is refined in the browser, not in presentation slides. That way you see early how the site will really feel.

   You receive the designed draft of the home page and one sub-page. One feedback round is included; we sharpen it together until the direction is right.

3. 
   03

   Code

   The site is written by hand, line by line. No builder, no theme, no carried-along features nobody needs. From the start this includes clean headings, metadata, structured data and fast load times, because that is what later decides your findability.

   You see every interim state under a test address and can follow along instead of waiting for a finished result. A site of five to eight pages is ready in four to six weeks.

4. 
   04

   Operation

   At launch we set up domain, hosting and the search-engine basics and hand everything over documented. After that the site runs on high-performance servers in Germany (Hetzner), or on a Swiss server on request, is backed up daily, monitored and kept technically current.

   Text changes, a new team member on the page or an extra section: we handle it on request, usually within two working days. That way your presence is still well kept in five years.