"Thanks again and I think it's coming together very nicely! I feel completely confident telling others to use you!"

We follow a standard process to help us ensure that you receive the best project and solution for your needs. It may seem like we spend much more time upfront capturing your needs and details about what you want, but that helps us in the long run provide you with what you need, and without any surprise charges or costs. Customer contacts Tortuga Sun to request information We can discuss the project via email or over the phone. This allows us to ask questions about what the purpose of your website or application is, so we better understand how your customers will use the site. Often times we suggest providing us with a list of similar sites that you like, so we can get a better feel for what your likes/dislikes are (busy, crisp, lots of content, very simplistic, fancy graphics, lots of animation, etc). Customer provides us with a vision of what they want, along with timeframe and budget restrictions Everyone has a budget in mind, and what we want to do is make sure we don't exceed it. We don't even need to know what that number is. Due to our low overhead and re-use of similar applications that we have already created, we feel we can underbid almost any competitor, and provide an equal or better solution. Tortuga Sun works with customer to define actual requirements When we get a request that states that the site must handle large volume of traffic, we want to be more specific. We will work with the customer to estimate the actual number of potential users, and start with a more economical system, with flexibility to expand in the future, instead of starting with the fully enhanced system. Some applications may require thousands of users to be successful, while others may be profitable with only a couple hundred users. A good analogy would be buying a house. If you plan to have 6 kids and 2 dogs someday, but right now it is only you and your spouse, we may want to plan, but not execute on the future. We might want to ensure that we have access to nearby vacant land (or buy a large enough lot). We would recommend building a smaller house with easy options for expanding, instead of building a giant house. This way, if you decide later on to only have 2 kids, or you find out that you may have to relocate for work, then you haven't tied up a lot of money into something that was just a guess, and you probably won't recoup that investment. We might also suggest something similar in your project. If the website grows to a certain point, then we come back and revisit the automation of certain tasks, or creating functionality that wasn't needed when the site was just getting started. We want to make sure you are not only cost-effective today, but also in the future. Pricing options provided to customer for review and further discussion Designing a website will always require decisions to be made, that can greatly increase or decrease the costs, or change the amount of functionality that the site contains. For example, we are always looking out for unnecessary costs to our customers. If you want to have the ability to upload videos on your site, some companies might quote $1500 for an internal system (along with a higher monthly hosting fee). Tortuga Sun might suggest an integration application that works with YouTube, so we don't have to re-invent the wheel, and save you upfront and recurring costs (and will probably be a better solution). Other customers might want an adminstration back-end that updates every aspect of the site. We would suggest looking into the key areas of the site that need updates, and only creating a system for those, instead of the entire site (which saves on the project cost). Customer approves pricing and requirements Nothing is ever "set in stone" but we do want to come to a formal agreement on what the project should be, and when it will begin. Finalized quote sent to customer for signature Payment of 25% of project cost due before work begins Initial framework and layout sent to customer for review, and changes made if necessary Typically we layout the main features of the project and send a link for you to review. This allows you to see the physical project for the first time, and change directions if necessary. We would rather make changes at this point in the development, rather than at the end of the project (when it will be more costly). Usually the project is better than the customer expected, and we move forward without stoppage. Other times we have decided to revisit the original requirements before proceeding. 2nd payment of 25% (50% total) is due when initial review is approved If everyone agrees that the project is off to a good start, then we receive payment so that 50% of the project cost has been paid, and we proceed forward with project completion. We always stay in touch with you when questions come up, or detailed decisions need to be made. You will also have links for you to check on regularly, to see the progress we are making on a daily basis. Project completed by Tortuga Sun We are not so formal that every little change or modification will need to be re-submitted and re-approved each time, but we do want to make sure any changes that greatly impact the project cost are captured. That being said, once we complete the agreed upon requirements (and any other smaller verbal add-ons), we will notify you that the project is complete, and ask for you to review the project in detail. Final 50% payment is due when customer is satisfied with project If your review is successful and you agree the project is complete per the requirements of the project, then we close out the project, and final payment will be due (within 30 days). Hope this explanation helps you better understand our process, so we are all aligned. Again, this will give us the best opportunity to complete a successful project.

Tortuga Sun Enterprises © 2010