Frequently Asked Questions

We're designers, brand strategists, marketers, and custom programmers all under one roof. That means we're not just thinking about how your website works. We're thinking about how it looks, what it says, who needs to find it, and what you want visitors to do when they get there.

We also have an in-house team. We don't white label our work or send programming overseas. When you work with Avallo, you're working with Avallo.

Since 1996. Yes, websites existed then.

Avallo started with the idea that websites shouldn't look like they were designed by the IT department. We combined art and technology from the beginning, and we're still doing it today, although thankfully technology has given us a lot more creative freedom.

Sometimes a template is the right tool, but we're not a template-driven web company. We design around your brand, audience, content, functionality, and goals.

For companies that need something beyond the standard options, our programmers can create custom functionality, integrations, databases, applications, calculators, directories, portals, ecommerce solutions, and other tools specifically for your business.

We work with Craft CMS, WordPress, Shopify, WooCommerce, Craft Commerce, and custom development solutions. We don't automatically put every client into the same platform. We can work with any platform and fix issues in others as well.

We'll recommend the technology that makes the most sense for your website, your team, and what you may want to do in the future.

Absolutely. We build websites so our clients can manage the content they're comfortable managing.

We also provide training, and we're always here if you'd rather send something to us and say, "Can you just do this?"

We can.

Usually, yes.

We've inherited websites from other developers, agencies, freelancers, former employees, DIY platforms, and increasingly, AI. We'll review what you have and tell you whether it makes sense to improve it, rebuild portions of it, move it to another CMS, or start fresh.

Yes, and we've already done it.

AI can be an amazing tool for creating ideas, content, code, and even entire websites. But getting an AI-generated website properly launched, secured, optimized, connected to a CMS, and easy to maintain can be another story.

Our programmers can step in where AI leaves off.

Of course. We're web developers. We like technology.

We use AI for research, testing, troubleshooting, ideas, code assistance, content development, and other tasks that help us work smarter.

But AI doesn't replace our designers, programmers, strategists, or the humans who understand your business. We use AI as a tool, not as the creative director.

Traditional SEO helps your website get found through search engines such as Google and Bing.

AI search optimization, sometimes called AEO, helps AI-driven search tools understand your company, expertise, services, locations, and content so your business has a better chance of appearing in AI-generated answers.

Today, we think about both.

No, and we'd be suspicious of anyone who says they can.

Search rankings depend on competition, location, website quality, content, authority, technical SEO, reviews, backlinks, Google's algorithms, and many other factors.

What we can do is build and optimize your website using strong SEO practices and continue improving it based on real data.

Yes. We can optimize your website so AI platforms have clear, useful information about your business.

That includes content structure, schema and structured data, FAQs, service and location pages, authority signals, technical improvements, and content designed to answer the kinds of questions real people ask.

There isn't a magic "put me in ChatGPT" button. We checked.

Not at all.

If you already have a strong brand, we'll work within it. If your brand needs some help, or you don't have a brand, that's one of our favorite parts.

Avallo can develop or refine your logo, colors, typography, photography style, messaging, and overall visual direction. Then we can carry that same look into social media, email marketing, brochures, advertising, presentations, signage, and other marketing materials.

Your website can become the foundation for your entire brand.

Yes. Some clients give us finished copy. Some give us bullet points. Some give us three old brochures and say, "Good luck."

We can work with all three.

Our team can help organize, write, edit, and optimize your content so it sounds like your company while also working for search engines and AI search. For projects that need more in-depth content development, we also work with excellent professional copywriters who can interview your team, gather information, develop your story, and turn that knowledge into polished website content.

Whether you need a little editing or someone to take the content process off your plate, we can build the right approach into your project.

A lot more.

We help clients with branding, graphic design, print materials, social media, Google Ads, social advertising, SEO, AI search optimization, Google Business Profiles, photography direction, accessibility, hosting, ecommerce, applications, integrations, and ongoing digital strategy.

One website project has a funny way of turning into 100 marketing ideas.

Yes. We provide secure managed hosting and have full server access, which means when something needs attention, we're not simply submitting a support ticket to someone we've never met.

Our team can actually investigate what's happening.

It depends on what we're building.

A straightforward informational website and a custom website with e-commerce, databases, integrations, member portals, multiple locations, or specialized functionality are very different projects.

We'll define the scope and provide a firm project price. If you change the scope along the way, we'll talk with you about the additional cost before moving forward. No surprise invoices are a good thing.

Most timelines depend less on the number of pages and more on the complexity of the project, content, integrations, approvals, and how quickly decisions are made.

We'll establish a schedule at the beginning and keep the project moving. And yes, getting us your content on time really does help. We had to sneak that in somewhere.

Absolutely. While our main office is in Golden Valley, Minnesota, we work with businesses and nonprofits across the country.

Zoom has made Minnesota winters much easier to explain to clients in warmer states.

Both.

We've built websites for one-person businesses, nonprofits, medical organizations, financial institutions, franchises, ecommerce companies, and businesses with multiple locations.

Small doesn't necessarily mean simple, and large doesn't necessarily mean complicated. We look at what you actually need.

That's normal.

You don't need to know which CMS you need, what integrations are possible, how your database should work, what schema markup is, or whether something needs an API.

That's our job.

Start by telling us what you're trying to accomplish. We'll help figure out the technology and strategy to get you there.

Good. We like interesting questions.

Whether you're planning a new website, wondering what AI means for your current one, trying to improve your Google visibility, or have an idea that starts with, "Is it possible to...?" we'd love to hear it. Connect with us for all the answers!