The shift
What is a website actually for in 2026?
Not what it was. People discover you on social media and, increasingly, inside AI answers, nearly half of Google searches now show an AI answer first, and AI assistants have become the top research tool before a purchase. By the time someone lands on your website, they've usually already met you. The website's job changed: it's where a nearly-decided human confirms you're real, and it's the source AI reads when it decides whether to recommend you. Two jobs, feed the machines, convince the human. A pretty site that does neither is decoration.
The standard
Built to be found in 2026, and beyond
Every site we build ships with the machinery most agencies charge extra for, or skip entirely, as standard, in the €500 base:
- Real HTML served to every visitor and crawler (server-rendered, no blank pages for AI)
- Unique titles, descriptions and structured data on every page
- Schema markup so AI knows exactly who you are, what you sell and what it costs
- An llms.txt file, your business explained to AI tools in their own format
- Explicit access for AI crawlers (ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, Google's AI)
- Question-shaped content structure AI can lift and cite
- Speed that passes Google's Core Web Vitals
This isn't a premium tier. It's what a website is now.
Look under the hood
This website is the case study.
Everything we just listed is running on the page you're reading. Server-rendered HTML, per-page schema, llms.txt, AI-crawler access, sub-second loads, open the source and check. We rebuilt our own site in July 2026 on exactly the standard we sell, because we'd rather show you than tell you.
<title>Custom-Coded Web Design, No WordPress | Wonder Works</title><link rel="canonical" href="https://wonderworksdesign.net/services/web-design" />"@type": ["Organization","MarketingAgency","LocalBusiness"]/llms.txt → Wonder Works Design, explained to machinesGo on, right-click, View Page Source. We'll wait.
Straight talk
Why don't you use WordPress or templates?
Because speed and structure now decide search and AI visibility, and templates carry baggage: plugin security holes, licence stacks, bloat that fails Core Web Vitals, and layouts a thousand other businesses already use. Custom code is faster, safer, and built around your business instead of around a theme. Templates are why most websites look tired in year one. Ours don't.
The receipt
What's included
After the first year, hosting and care continue from €25 a month, most clients stay, because we treat every website as a long-term partnership. We work with you, not for you. Prices rise only with technical scope: bookings, ordering, e-commerce (headless Shopify), members areas, all priced to your needs, agreed before we start.
Ownership & changes
Will I be able to update the site myself?
No, and that's on purpose. We don't hand you a page builder and wish you luck. Your site deserves an expert working on it, and changes are part of the partnership: tell us what you need and it's usually live the same week. You own everything, the domain, the code, the content, and ownership transfers to anyone you choose, at any time, at no cost. We keep the keys only as long as you want us to.
Proof
Sites we've built (go and click them)
darleys.com
The Brasserie at Darleys, Derby, UK. Full restaurant platform: menus, events, live music, bookings, plus the AI chatbot. Six months in: website visitors up 316%, all organic.
Visit darleys.com →Read the case study →
sofiahairsummit.com
Sofia Hair Summit. International event site, EN/BG, built for a launch that did 10× organic reach in 96 hours and 5m20s average visits.
Visit sofiahairsummit.com →Read the case study →And the one you're on.
wonderworksdesign.net, the standard, demonstrated.
Straight answers
The things people ask us first.
How much does a website cost?
From €500 for a complete site, design, build, domain, a year of hosting and support, SEO and the AI chatbot included. Most sites land between €500 and €2,000; e-commerce and complex functionality are priced to your needs, agreed before we start.
How fast can you build it?
Most websites launch within 10 days of content being ready. Complex builds take longer and we'll tell you exactly how long before we start.
Is WordPress or custom code better for a small business?
Custom-coded sites are faster, have no plugin security surface and no licence stack, and speed and structure now decide Google and AI visibility. WordPress suits businesses that need its ecosystem; we build custom because it wins where it matters.
How does a website show up in ChatGPT and AI search?
AI reads structure: real server-rendered HTML, schema markup, question-format headings, direct answers, and machine-readable files like llms.txt. We build all of it into every site as standard. This site is built the same way, ask ChatGPT about Wonder Works.
What happens after the first free year?
Hosting and care continue from €25 a month, the site stays fast, secure, and current. No obligation: you own everything and can take it anywhere, anytime.
Who owns the website, domain and code?
You do. The domain is registered in your name from day one, and everything we create is yours. We only ask, kindly, whether we can show the work in our case studies.
Let's build your proof.