Frequently Asked Questions
Of course you have questions, and you have a right to get them answered
There are so many questions that our clients ask, and we are happy to answer
them. To make it easy on everybody we have compiled a list of the most
frequently asked questions, and our best answer to them. Of course, if you have
a question and it isn't answered here, then contact us
and we'll be happy to answer it.
Web Design/Development FAQ
How do your rates compare to other companies who do similar services?
The rates iStudio Interactive charges are much lower than you will find
with most interactive firms. The reason for this is partially due to
iStudio not needing an office building or tons of employees. This alone
makes it easier to charge less. We also get much more done in a shorter
amount of time, which also saves you a ton of money.
How do I know that you can handle taking over my website, that was developed by somebody else?
When a website is developed, there is a select number of languages it
can be developed in. We analyze your existing website before we commit
ourselves to it. If we conclude that we cannot do the work that is
needed to get your website updated, within your budget, we will be
honest and let you know. In most cases we can solve your website
updating needs.
What is the turnaround time for creating a website so the world can view it?
It would depend on what you need on your website. Generally if it's a
smaller project, we can have it ready for release in less than 2 weeks.
Larger projects do take time, depending on the level of intense
programming that is required. We do work fast though, just ask any of
our clients!
How do I get my website into the top results in Google, Yahoo and Bing?
That is the age old question, but we have an idea how to answer that. It
takes time, constant keyword researching, some luck, and good
programming of your website. We handle the things that cause "organic"
search engine results. When a search engine organically puts you in
their directory it means they have found it and look at what all the
aspects of your website coding is, then places it where it feels best.
To get the absolute best possible results you will want to consult with
an SEO (Search Engine Optimization) specialist who spends every waking
moment of their life studying search engine technology. They are not
cheap, and finding a good one can be tricky. Don't hesitate to ask us
who we'd suggest.
I have a friend who knows how to create a website, why not just go through them?
This seems to be an issue with more than just interactive companies,
it's around the board. If you want it to look like a novice created it,
then don't hesitate to ask somebody you know who knows a little about
designing a website. More times than not, you eventually end up talking
to a professional to help bring your website to a level that compares
with your competition.
Do we have to pay you every time we need a simple change in our website?
Yes and no. We will always offer you the option of having certain parts
of your website updatable by you, through a backend administrative
website. It's a little more initial cost, but well worth it in the long
run. If you are trying to save a little money by not having an admin
built for your website, then you will have to pay an hourly rate for
each update. If this is the case then we suggest you gather together a
bunch of updates that are needed, and submit them to us at one time.
Since we bill hourly, you will have enough work for us to fill an hour
of time billed.
When you finish our website, do we actually own it and have rights to it?
Of course you do. You paid for it and it's yours to claim. We would
never hold anything you have paid for as hostage for any reason. There
are many clients of ours who have had that happen to them by others who
created their previous website, the reasons as to "why" really don't
make sense.
What is "Website Hosting" and do you do that?
Website Hosting is a term that describes the service provided to store
your website files so when your web address is typed in, your website
shows up. Every website is hosted somewhere. Most website hosts also
provide a place to hold your email on the same server. iStudio
Interactive provides website hosting to a large number of companies. In
fact, most of our web services clients also choose to host their website
with us. Our rates are competitive with what is offered with our hosting
packages.
Graphic Design FAQ
We have MS Publisher that came with our Office software, can't we use that to create a flyer?
Just as explained in the "family member or friend" designing your
website FAQ question, the same goes for graphic design. If you want it
to look like a novice did it then go ahead. What you put in your
customer's hand is a direct correlation of how they view the quality of
your company. Give them something less than professional and they will
look at you the same.
I found a picture on the internet I want to use in a print piece. When I print the picture it looks terrible. Why?
Graphics that you find on the web are generally a low resolution
quality. By this we mean the image is good enough to look nice on your
computer screen, but printed on paper is a different story. If you find
a picture online that is a very large size then it may be able to look
good on paper, depending on how large you are trying to print the image.
A side note...be careful using images you find online. Most of the time
you do not have rights to use an image for your own benefit unless you
have written consent from the creator of the image.
Can we take many of the images and look of our website and use it for print?
This question is partially answered in the previous FAQ, but we'll take
it a step further. You certainly can use imaging that is also on your
website, but it's important to know of those plans before hand. Most
images created for the web are sized down (in file size, not
width/height) to make it easy to load on a website. In print it is just
the opposite, images are made of the highest quality so it looks crisp
and great on paper. If you know you are going to use some of the website
imagery for print as well, we will save a high resolution copy of your
image before shrinking it down to a website quality size.
I hear the "Branding" word often. Isn't having out logo on everything pretty much what branding is?
Branding is your logo, but not JUST your logo. A brand is a product, service, or concept that is publicly distinguished from other products,
services, or concepts so that it can be easily communicated and usually marketed. Branding can be applied to the entire corporate identity as
well as to individual product and service names. A company's brands and the public's awareness of them is often used as a factor in evaluating
a company. Corporations sometimes hire market research firms to study public recognition of brand names as well as attitudes toward the brands.
Do you actually do the printing as well as designing our pieces?
We can design anything, but we do not actually do the final printing.
This is very common as the printer specializes in taking a designer's
artwork in a packaged format, and sending it through the big ugly
machines.
If we have an emergency design job, can you handle getting it done quickly?
Of course we can. On a big holiday weekend at 2am the chances of that
are slim, but on most occasions we can do rush jobs. There is usually a
minimal "rush charge", but that is mostly a fee that helps you
understand that we can't always bump another project to get to yours
every time.
Audio/Video Production FAQ
What are your limits on audio production, can you create an album for a band?
There are almost no limits to what we can do with audio production. With
the current tools available today, we can make anything sound like,
well...anything! If you are expecting to bring a group of talented
musicians in to cut an album then we aren't going to be your solution.
Most anything we can handle if it is creativity and putting together
gold to the listener's ear.
I want to use a Beatles song on a commercial or video, is that ok to do?
As long as you have a signed agreement on using copyrighted music or
video, you cannot use it in that manner. This is a big no in the minds
of musicians and video production companies. There are many production
libraries of music and video we can use to complete your great project,
and they are all royalty-free. That means we have paid the high fee to purchase the music and video pieces
with rights to use them as much as we want without having to pay
anything more.
Can you let me come in and record a podcast show I want to do?
You sure could, but it may not be cost effective to have us man the
studio and run the gear. Our suggestion would be to invest a couple
hundred dollars in a nice podcast setup and send us your audio file each
time you do a podcast. We can add the finishing touches to it and put it
online for you. We do it all the time and our clients love that we can
do it.
If you produce a radio commercial for me, how to I get it to the radio station?
When we produce a radio commercial we ask how you would like it given to
you (mp3, wav file, CD, etc). You can either bring it to the radio
station or ask us to email it to them. Most radio stations are now
digital and run everything from digital audio files. Tell us who to send
it to and we'll get it to them in time for the spot to run.
Do you have the ability to do post audio mastering on a multi-track project?
Depending on how ancient your work of art is, we can handle post audio
mastering. We don't use reel-to-reel any longer, but can take your
digital audio tape and mix it down to a great sounding work of art.
What if I want to record myself playing some instruments, can you do that?
As long as it's not a band coming in with multiple sound rooms and house
musicians needed, then we can hook you up to the control board and start
recording.
We put on a big training session for our company every year and want to have them on video, can you do that?
We have resources to take on multiple angle/shot video production. As a
matter of fact, some of the best in the business! We can even integrate
direct sound from your microphone into our on-site control room to make
it sound great on video.
Do you keep a master copy of the video if we need to make a change to it in the future?
All video production projects have the masters stored digitally with all
layers of video, and masters of different shoots, stored together. This
makes accessing them for re-arrangement a breeze. If somebody says they
can't promise that, then I would doubt their ability to produce a great
product. Data backup is a huge part of a successful business, not to be
taken lightly.
Is your video quality just as good what the huge video companies use?
Our video team is what many of those huge video companies contract. Each
person in the video team owns and maintains their own video gear, it's
how they make their living. The gear quality is astounding and the
creativity of each person shows they know what they are doing very well.
