The Website Design and Develop Process of Rocknpics.com

What's the request for Rocknpics Website?

The owner of RockNPics.com, a talented photographer selling his images online, reached out to us in August 2024 with a request to redesign his website. He wanted a fresh, user-friendly design to showcase his artwork more effectively and make it easier for potential buyers to explore and license his images.

How do we design and develop Rocknpics.com?

After we talked, we did a through website audit, and find the following issus:

  1. No SSL Certificate: A Major Problem for Website Visibility

    One of the biggest issues with the website is that it does not have an SSL certificate. SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) is critical for every website today. Without SSL, search engines like Google view the site as unsafe, and this severely impacts its visibility online.

    In fact, the lack of SSL is the main reason why the website is currently not indexed by Google and other search engines. If a website isn’t indexed, it won’t appear in search results at all — meaning that unless people already know the exact domain name, they have no way of finding it through a simple search.

    Even worse, if someone does know the domain and tries to visit the site directly, many modern browsers (like Chrome and Safari) will display warning messages or even block access entirely, telling users that the site is not secure. Google and other search engines prioritize user safety, so they discourage people from visiting sites without SSL protection.

    In short: without SSL, the website is almost invisible online and loses the trust of both search engines and visitors.

  2. Outdated Website Design: Hurting User Experience

    Another major issue with the website is its outdated design. While the design is simple, it looks old-fashioned and lacks modern features that users expect today. As a result, visitors often have trouble navigating the site.

    The outdated layout makes it hard for people to browse easily or find the images they are looking for. Important elements like search functions, organized galleries, or clear navigation menus are either missing or not user-friendly. This not only frustrates visitors but also increases the chances that they leave the site quickly without taking any action.

    In today’s digital world, a website’s design plays a big role in building trust and providing a smooth experience. If visitors find it hard to use, they are unlikely to stay long — and even less likely to come back.

  3. Not Mobile-Friendly: A Critical Issue

    In addition to the outdated design, the website is not mobile-friendly. This means it does not adjust properly when someone tries to view it on a smartphone or tablet. Instead of resizing or reorganizing to fit smaller screens, the website stays in its desktop format, forcing visitors to zoom in, scroll sideways, and struggle to read or navigate.

    Today, more than half of all website traffic comes from mobile devices. If a website doesn’t adapt to different screen sizes, it creates a frustrating experience for users. They may quickly give up and leave the site altogether.

    Even worse, Google considers mobile-friendliness as an important ranking factor. If a website is not mobile-optimized, it can negatively affect its position in search results — or even prevent it from ranking at all.

    Simply put: if a website isn’t mobile-friendly, it’s losing both visitors and search engine trust.

  4. Missing DNS Setup: Website Cannot Be Found

    Another serious issue is the missing DNS (Domain Name System) configuration. DNS is what connects a website’s domain name (like example.com) to the server where the website is hosted. Without proper DNS records, browsers and search engines simply cannot locate the website online.

    In this case, because there is no DNS properly set up, typing in the website’s domain name results in errors — the site cannot load at all. It’s as if the address to the house exists, but there’s no road leading to it.

    Without DNS, the website is completely invisible to the public and to search engines like Google. No matter how good the content or design might be, if DNS isn’t working, the website might as well not exist online.

  5. Insufficient Storage: Slowing Down the Website

    Another big problem is that the website doesn’t have enough storage space on its server. The site hosts a large number of images, and because the server storage is limited, it struggles to handle all the files properly.

    This lack of storage causes serious loading issues. When visitors try to access the website, pages and images load very slowly — or sometimes fail to load at all. Slow-loading websites not only frustrate visitors but also make them leave before even seeing the content.

    Additionally, search engines like Google use page speed as a ranking factor. A slow website can hurt search rankings, meaning fewer people will find the site through search results.

    In short: without enough storage and optimization for images, the website delivers a poor user experience and loses both traffic and trust.

Updating the Design While Preserving the Original Style

The owner of RockNPics had a clear vision: he wanted visitors to be able to browse images by the artists’ names while still keeping his original design style.

To respect his wishes, we kept the website’s signature left-side navigation menu. We then added a powerful search function and organized the images on the right side, clearly grouped under each artist’s name. This makes it much easier for visitors to find exactly what they’re looking for without losing the original vibe of the site.

We also stayed true to his preferred color scheme — maintaining a black background for a bold look, with white and red as the main colors for titles and text. This keeps the website visually striking while greatly improving usability and functionality.

Making It Easy for Visitors to Contact and Purchase Licenses

In addition to browsing images, the owner of RockNPics wanted to make it easier for visitors to contact him and purchase licenses — but he preferred not to have people purchase directly through the website.

To support this, we added a prominent “Contact” button and a pop-up contact form. The form collects essential information, such as which image the visitor is interested in, the desired size, and the intended usage. This streamlined process makes it simple and smooth for anyone interested in licensing an image to reach out and start the conversation directly with the owner.

Setting Up a Business Email

Additionally, we set up a dedicated business email for the owner, which allows him to send notifications to contractors and receive important information from them. This helps keep business communications separate from personal ones. Not only does this maintain a professional image, but it also streamlines communication, making it easier for clients and partners to reach out directly.

Final Development and Launch

After a few rounds of revisions, the owner of RockNPics approved the final design. We then moved forward with the full website development:

  • Installed SSL for security

  • Properly configured DNS for reliable domain access

  • Optimized the website for better search engine performance (SEO)

The new RockNPics website is now mobile-friendly, fast-loading, secure, and easy for both visitors and search engines to access. It stays true to the original artistic style while offering a much better user experience.

Final Version and Ongoing Maintenance

The final version of RockNPics, as shown above, was developed with all the essential features at the backend. This includes daily backups, regular updates, cache cleaning, and more. With these improvements, the website is now fully indexed by all major search engines.

Thanks to these updates, people can easily find the website online, ensuring that it reaches its intended audience and performs at its best.

How's the organic traffic after the website available online?

Website Launch and Performance Results

The website officially went live on October 3, 2024. From that date through April 21, 2025, it was successfully indexed by search engines, which led to a noticeable increase in organic traffic.

According to the Google Search Console report, the website appeared in Google search results 3.23k times and received 47 clicks. This shows that the site’s visibility has significantly improved, driving more users to explore and engage with the content. 

How to maintain the website?

Ongoing Website Maintenance and Support

We continuously update and monitor the website for RockNPics.com to ensure it runs smoothly and securely, allowing the owner to focus on growing the business without worrying about technical issues.

For personal or small websites, having a dedicated tech person to monitor the backend and perform regular updates is essential. If you’re on a budget, we offer affordable website maintenance packages starting at just $10 per month. Instead of hiring a full-time expert, you can take advantage of our comprehensive services to keep your website in top shape.

Contact us today for a customized website solution that fits your needs!