The Situation
The client came to us with a deadline, no leverage, and nowhere else to go. Their previous web agency had taken a retainer, started the project, and then gone completely silent. Emails went unanswered. The phone number disconnected. Their old site had already been taken down in preparation for the new one that never came.
Day 1–3: Triage and Asset Recovery
The first task was figuring out what actually existed. We reached out to their domain registrar, their hosting provider, and their original photographer to recover whatever assets we could. We got their logo (fortunately kept in their own files), most of their menu photos, and their Google Business Profile images. Everything else had to be recreated.
Day 4–7: Build
We built on WordPress with a custom child theme — fast to build, easy for the client to update. Menu page, about page, contact page with embedded map, reservation link integration with their existing OpenTable account, and a photo gallery. Nothing exotic. Everything functional.
Day 8–10: Review and Revisions
Two rounds of revisions covering copy, photo selection, and a few layout adjustments. The client was involved at every step — no surprises at launch.
Day 11–14: Testing and Launch
Full mobile testing across devices, contact form verification, Google Analytics setup, and go-live. Fourteen days after they first contacted us, they had a working site.
What This Cost
The project came in under $3,000 — less than they'd paid the agency that disappeared. The lesson isn't that projects should be done in two weeks. It's that clear scope, direct communication, and one person doing the work makes almost anything achievable.