Understand the tradeoffs.
You should know what you are paying for, what risk it reduces, and what result it is supposed to produce.
About
A practical web consultant with operator experience.
I am Ted Smialek. I graduated with a degree in computer programming in 2000, then spent 20 years running an ecommerce business and maintaining the websites, servers, and network infrastructure that supported it.
The background
I know what it feels like when the website is part of the business, not just a brochure.
For two decades, the website was not an abstract project. It had to sell, stay online, be updated, recover from problems, and support real customers. That experience shaped how I think about small business technology: it should be useful, understandable, maintainable, and sized to the business.
I have always kept up with cutting-edge technology, from the early ecommerce years through today's AI-assisted development tools. That habit now means faster research, better documentation, clearer testing, and more confident problem-solving for practical business websites.
The goal is not to sell AI as a gimmick. The goal is to use modern tools to do careful work faster and explain it better.
Working style
Face-to-face planning, plain language, and no mystery stack.
Do what fits.
Not every business needs a complex platform, a custom app, or a monthly pile of tools. Sometimes simpler is stronger.
Keep it healthy.
Websites age. Hosting changes. Search expectations shift. Maintenance is how the site stays useful after launch.
Free local consultation
Tell me what your current website is doing, and what it is failing to do.
Bring the questions, the worries, the half-working site, or the idea. I will help you sort out what matters, what can wait, and what it should take to keep your website useful.