Website Design

From the heart of the Silicone Forest, BridgeTown Hosting delivers high quality website design and hosting services. While many of our customers are those who choose to support local businesses right here Portland, Oregon, BridgeTown is proud to have also earned the confidence of organizations and individuals outside of the Pacific Northwest. We’ve been writing code since the early eighties and building websites since the inception of the world wide web.

HTML or WordPress ?

There are several factors to consider when choosing which platform should be used for a website.  Bridgetown typically recommends either HTML or WordPress.  Traditional HTML websites are a good choice for static web sites, needing only infrequent changes.  HTML sites offer a high level of security because they are less often the target of hackers and are less vulnerable to attack than are sites built upon Drupal™ or WordPress platforms.  The downside of HTML sites include the possibility of the need for a professional web developer to update the site.  Websites built on a content management system like WordPress can often be maintained by someone of a lower technical skill level.

When planning a new website consider the following: 

• Will this be a site requiring regular changes or updates?
• Is there a need for the site to be interactive? (i.e., Visitors supply information or have a “conversation” with the site.)
• Once the site is online, will the site owner need to make changes on their own?
• Is there a need for the website to send email, run scripts, or generate custom output on the fly?
• Does the website have to be “mobile friendly”?

If the answer is “yes” to any of these questions, then a platform such as WordPress is likely a better choice than a traditional HTML website.  WordPress is not only for blogs.  Although it started as a tool for bloggers, WordPress has grown into a sophisticated web design platform and content management system (CMS).  About one-quarter of the top five million websites today use WordPress, including some very big players like The New York Times, Forbes Magazine, CNN, and the Rolling Stones.  A well constructed website using WordPress, can be updated and maintained with relative ease.  Adding new pages, announcements, photos, and so on, can usually be done by a website owner with little or no web design or programming experience.  Once a website is built using WordPress, many of our clients find that they are able to manage incoming forms and comments, post new articles and photos, and add or edit pages without having to incur additional expense.

Already Have a Website?

BridgeTown can update existing websites at very reasonable rates.  It is not uncommon for a site owner to have lost their webmaster or for a customer to discover that their needs can not be met by the current provider of those services.  Older HTML websites can be updated to your specifications or the site can be re-built from the ground up.  There is a rapidly growing number website designers out there.  Many of them have an outstanding sense of style and strong graphic design skills.  Unfortunately, this does not always go hand-in-hand with technical expertise.  BridgeTown has the skills to enhance your website using the latest techniques.  We can fully take advantage of the tools available, including modifying the PHP programming code that runs WordPress.  We can customize existing WordPress plugins & themes and even write a one from scratch if required.

All too often customers discover that they have paid for a website that is a poorly stitched together collection of off the shelf plugins, of which the “designer” has no concept of the the inner-workings.  Out-of-the-box building block solutions may give a website a pretty face but the back end of the website may be vulnerable to attack or just plain buggy.  Bridgetown has the programming experience to deliver a robust, secure website with customization required to meet your needs.

Is your Website Mobile Friendly?

Today websites have to be “responsive” to the device on which they are viewed.  A website may look great on a desktop computer screen but have text that is too small to read on a hand-held device like a smartphone or tablet computer.  Customers rely on mobile friendly sites to find area businesses, so this is increasingly important.

Search engines may penalize a site’s search results ranking if the website is poorly formatted for a hand-held device.  Many articles have appeared recently explaining how Google will demote a non-responsive website’s ranking, not just for searches performed on a portable device but even for desktop searches.  BridgeTown will build your website so that it automatically adjusts to the screen size, making it easy to read and navigate no matter what browser, computer, or smartphone is used.

If viewing this page on a smartphone or tablet computer, try rotating the device 90° and notice how the page automatically resizes.

What About Hosting?

Every website needs a host. This is the web server where your site “lives”. There is no shortage of options for hosting your site. We will help you find a host that suits you if needed. Since we are a hosting company too, BridgeTown can offer some very specialized services when needed. Our website design clients are not obligated to use BridgeTown’s servers; you may use any host you choose.  Currently, we are offering six months of FREE WEB HOSTING with new website projects. Some restrictions apply, so please inquire for details.

What’s in a Name?

In addition to a host, every website needs a domain name (yoursite.com, .org, etc.) as well.  Most clients come to us with a domain name but if you do not have one, BridgeTown can  help you get one.

Shop Locally and Save!

Portland is well known for its “buy local” culture.  BridgeTown Hosting Co. offers a discount for website design services to Portland area businesses.   This offer is restricted to new customers only.  Please call for further details.

BridgeTown Hosting

(503) 489-8855

Portland, OR