FAQs
How soon will my site be ready to use?
Your finished website will be ready within 10 business days after we receive your completed content. Our guided content process walks you through pulling your content together – most clients can finish it over a few days. If you’ve already worked on your marketing and have taglines and copy (text) ready to go, you can wrap up your content in just a few hours. Realistically, from purchase to a live website typically takes two to three weeks.
Do I need to have my content written first?
Nope – and you won’t be staring at a blank page, either. Our guided content process, built from 25+ years of creating websites for small businesses, walks you through exactly what to say on every page, one simple prompt at a time. Plus, we show you how to choose and prepare your images. Once you give us your content, we start building – your finished website is ready within 10 business days.
What if I need technical help after my site is built?
For your first 60 days, you can get help any time over email or during my weekly Zoom ‘office hours.’ After 60 days, I offer hourly help ($150/hour, minimum $75) as needed.
What if I want to change something after my site is delivered?
Two rounds of revisions are included in every package. Beyond that, it’s your site, and changing it is easier than you’d think: your Dashboard includes step-by-step guides for swapping images, editing your copy, and adding pages. For your first 60 days, if you get stuck, email me or drop into weekly office hours and I’ll walk you through it. And if you’d rather us handle your updates entirely, we offer that at an hourly rate ($150/hour, minimum $75).
What if I don’t have my logo/colors/fonts yet?
The ‘look’ for a WordPress website is controlled by a theme, and we will build your custom theme around your branding. So, it is best that you have chosen your brand colors and fonts before we build your website. (If you need help with this, we offer complete brand development: reach out to learn more.) But if needed, you can change your colors, fonts, and logo later – our built-in tutorials make it easy.
What if I need more pages than my package includes?
First, take a look at the next package up – it may be the better value. Beyond that, your website dashboard includes how-to guides on adding pages yourself. With WordPress, adding a page is easy: click the “Add new page” button, and your custom theme includes dozens of drag and drop blocks and patterns to simplify adding content. But if you prefer, we can add additional pages for you at $250 each.
Can I edit the site myself later?
That’s the plan! Although you can always hire us to edit your website content, you own your website and your content. You can change anything you want, and your website Dashboard includes how-to guides teaching you how to do it. (I firmly believe that even if you plan to hire someone else to edit your website, every business owner should have a working knowledge of the basics, just in case, and you’ll get that here.)
What if I need extra features like e-commerce or funnel pages?
The Growth Site package includes a landing page with automated lead-magnet delivery and an option for a blog as one of your pages. Beyond that, additional landing pages, blogs, and e-commerce setup are available for $250 each. Once your initial site is set up, adding these is as simple as sending us an email. However, you may discover that adding these features in WordPress is easier than you expect – you may not need us to do it for you.
Can I connect 3rd-party apps, for example, Calendly for scheduling, or Jotform for forms?
Absolutely! That’s the beauty of WordPress: most online apps support WordPress, and they typically have a ready-made connection built right in. And if you run into trouble connecting an app to your website, we’re glad to help you troubleshoot it (at no additional charge) during your 60-day support window.
What platform will my site be built on?
Your site will be built on the WordPress platform, with a custom blocks theme so you can take advantage (if you choose) of all the bells & whistles WordPress has to offer. I design websites almost exclusively in WordPress, and have for over 15 years. There’s a reason WordPress is the #1 platform for business websites: it’s flexible, mobile-ready, SEO-friendly, and secure. It gives you the tools to help your business grow. The only downside to WordPress is the setup learning curve – and a Her Website Launchpad website lets you skip that.
How custom is my website, really?
Your site starts with a template — one of three professionally designed layouts we’ve built and refined so you don’t pay us to reinvent the structure. From there, it’s tailored to your business: your logo, colors, fonts, photos, and content, built into your own WordPress installation. No two finished sites look alike, because your branding and content change everything. That template starting point is why a Her Website Launchpad site costs $850–$2,850 instead of $3,600+. If your business needs a 100% from-scratch custom design, my agency does that: reach out and we’ll talk about whether it’s the right fit.
Do you use AI to build my website?
No. Your website is built by us, using systems we’ve designed and coded ourselves using ‘old-fashioned’ PHP, Javascript, and HTML — no AI generates your pages, your design, or your copy. Your words come from you: our guided content interview draws out your story, your services, and your voice, and then walks you through refining the actual words that will appear on your site. And your business information stays between us: we never feed your content or your details into AI tools.
What makes this different from Wix or Squarespace?
Better SEO. More flexibility. Expandable. You OWN your WordPress site completely. Her Website Launchpad sites are single installations (not multisite), which means you can move your website anywhere.
What if I’m not ready for anyone else to see my website?
No problem. We’ll deliver your finished website on a private preview link that only you can see, and it stays private until it is moved to your website host.
I don’t have a domain name. Will you handle that?
We’ll set up everything on our server initially, and you don’t need your domain name for that. If you already own a domain, we’ll help you connect it when you’re ready to go live. If not, our tutorials walk you through how to purchase your domain name and connect it to your website host.
What about hosting?
Our tutorials walk you through how to choose your website hosting; hosting typically runs $10-20 a month. When you’re ready for your site to go live, we’ll move your finished site to the host of your choice at no charge.
Can I really move my site later?
Yep. This is not a subscription — you completely own your website and your content, and you decide where you want to host it. (We’ll even move it from our preview server to the website host of your choice at no charge.)
Will my site meet accessibility standards?
Yes. Your website will meet WCAG’s current accessibility guidelines for ADA compliance, to ensure your content is accessible to all website visitors.
Are there ongoing fees for WordPress or plugins?
Nope. While there are many great WordPress plugins that have one-time or annual fees, the plugins I’ll install on your website will be free. (And I only choose plugins from reputable, solid vendors.) If you choose to add fee-based plugins, you will be responsible for paying any associated costs.
Are there other fees I should expect for my website?
Unless you choose to add fee-based plugins, the only ongoing fees you’ll have for your website are your hosting charges and your annual domain name registration/renewal.
How do I know you’re legitimate?
I’m Leslie Walters Smith, owner of Heron Design. (You can learn more about me on the Heron Design website here, and on LinkedIn here). I started my company in 2001, and since then I’ve built 200+ websites for small businesses and nonprofits. You can Google me – I’m very real and very committed to your success. In my personal life, I raised three boys who are now in their 20s, and I volunteer with several nonprofits in Chattanooga, mainly with organizations who support women and children.
Is this only for women entrepreneurs?
I am a single-mom-turned-empty-nester who spends my free time advocating for women’s rights, so my focus is definitely on supporting busy moms and women solopreneurs. However, I’m happy to help any professional who needs a quick, no-hassle website!
Have a question that’s not answered here? Email me, and I’ll do my best to answer within 24 hours.