The three-milestone method

Why we work in milestones

Commissioning a website usually works in one of two ways, and both have a problem. In the first you pay everything upfront and wait weeks without seeing anything; if the result is not what you pictured, the money is already spent. In the second you pay everything at the end, but the studio cannot reserve time or people for a project that may never be paid, so your site ends up queued behind others.

Milestones resolve that conflict by sharing the risk. Every payment is tied to something you can see, open and touch. You never pay ahead of the work already done, and we can block the calendar and dedicate the team to your project from day one.

In practice, the conversations change. Instead of debating static mockups or descriptions in a document, we talk about a website that works in your hand. Decisions are made earlier, with better information, and changes cost less because they are caught early.

The three deliveries, one by one

Each milestone has a clear goal, a deliverable you can review and a matching payment. The next milestone’s payment only appears in your client area once the previous delivery is done.

1. 01

   Milestone 1 (40%): calendar booking, business analysis, domain registration and architecture start.

2. 02

   Milestone 2 (30%): a real interactive prototype you browse on your own phone through a private link.

3. 03

   Milestone 3 (30%): final sign-off, technical QA, launch on your domain, Google indexing and handover of credentials.

Milestone 1: kick-off and architecture

The first payment books a slot in the calendar and gets the project moving. In this phase we learn your business: what you sell, to whom, what makes a customer choose you over the competition, and what action we want a visitor to take (call, book, buy or message on WhatsApp).

With that we define the architecture: which pages the site will have, the order in which each thing is told and what each section needs to persuade. We also register your domain in your name and prepare the infrastructure the site will live on.

You do not need to arrive with everything solved. If you do not have copy, professional photos or even a logo yet, we tell you what is essential and what can wait.

Milestone 2: the prototype on your phone

The second milestone is when the site stops being an idea. We send you a private link from the client area and you open it on your own phone: with the real typography, colours, animations, forms and navigation. It is not an image or a slide deck; it is the same code that will eventually go live.

It is best to try it the way a customer would. Open it on your phone over mobile data, not only on the office computer. Look for a service, try to call, fill in the form. Notice what makes you hesitate or what takes you a while to find.

Your comments go in the client area, in the same project thread, with screenshots if needed. That way every adjustment is recorded and nothing depends on someone remembering a phone call.

The Milestone 2 guarantee

The prototype is the decision point. If, after trying it on your phone, you are not convinced, you can stop there: the two remaining payments (30% and 30%) are cancelled with no penalty and no lock-in.

Up to that point you will only have paid the initial 40%, which covers the analysis, the domain and the architecture work already done.

The guarantee exists because we trust the method: when the prototype is built on a good first conversation, the next phase is usually about polishing details, not starting over.

Milestone 3: launch and handover

Once you approve the adjusted prototype, we prepare the launch. Before the site goes on the internet we review mobile loading, forms, links, search engine tags and the version shown when sharing on social media.

Then we publish it on your domain over HTTPS, submit the site to Google so it starts being indexed and hand over every credential. The last payment is made when the site is already live on your domain, not before.

Typical timelines

Timelines depend on scope and start once we have the basic material (logo, photos, services or menu, and contact details). They are business days and are set in writing in the quote.

What stretches a project most is not design or development but waiting for content and replies. That is why the client area always shows what is pending on your side.

After launch

Launch ends the project, but not the relationship unless you want it to. The site is yours and you can take it anywhere. If you would rather we keep looking after hosting, backups and edits, there are optional monthly maintenance plans with no lock-in.

When you build a new site, the first month of any paid plan is free, so you can see how support works before deciding.

Common questions