The backpacker, the guided tour, and the resort
There are a lot of options for creating your website. For example, you could use one of the many do-it-yourself site builders, or you could hire an agency. Consider an analogy to vacation travel. The do-it-yourself site builders are like solo backpacking in a foreign country. You have to figure out the language and customs, and get help where you can. The fundamental problem with the do-it-yourself site builders is that they solve the wrong problem. Yes, they help you make a website that runs, but you get no guidance about how to make your website effective.
Hiring a agency is like staying at a luxury resort. The amenities are fabulous, but at the end of the day, you get the product they choose to give you. Now there is a third option, the guided tour. It's formally called Websites as a Service. You get to interesting destinations of your choice, with a helpful guide telling you what not to eat. Instead of building a website as a large, one-time project, you get ongoing service for a monthly fee.


Drew Mathers
Principal
I've been supporting technology since doing manual data recovery in 1982. Five years later, I discovered you could get paid for it, and I never looked back. I spent 6 years troubleshooting computers at Hudson's Bay Company, then founded Almost Painless Computing to do the same thing for small businesses in Toronto. I alternately describe myself as a computer tamer or rent-a-nerd. I've been developing websites since 1996, first in HTML, then Drupal, now WordPress.
Drew has a deep and detailed knowledge of computer systems, and the Drupal framework. A problem-solver, he is can be relied upon to follow up on every project detail and make sure a solution is identified. - Dorothy Birtalan
I have worked with Drew through OPHA for our Youth Engagement Project. Drew helped with the website and is very knowledge in his line of work. He made everything very user friendly for us and was timely in his given tasks! I highly recommend Drew! - Evanna Li
Drew did an amazing job organizing and servicing our website for the International Convention in Toronto (Torcon 3) in 2003. I highly recommend his services. - Michelle Boyce