Website Development Standards

Introduction

At Rouge, we know that great websites are born from a diligent, standardised approach that ensures quality, scalability, security and performance. The following document outlines our rigorous coding and development standards, which are applied universally to every project. Whether a simple brochure site or a complex web application, Rouge ensures that quality is never compromised. Our ISO 9001 certification is our quality assurance in action.

At Rouge, our commitment to security and compliance is backed by our CyberEssentials and ISO 27001 certifications, ensuring that your website meets the highest data protection and performance standards.

If you are reading this alongside an E-PDD (Estimate Project Definition Document) that we created for you, this is your starting point. Your E-PDD details bespoke items and variations on top of this standard process.

Content Management and Core Technology

Rouge exclusively uses WordPress as our CMS, providing a robust, user-friendly foundation. WordPress lets you control your website content directly, enabling easy edits and updates as needed. It is a free and open-source CMS based on PHP and MySQL. It has many features, including a plugin architecture and an easy-to-use editing system.

Development Approach

 All development and testing occur on our secure, private development and staging servers, hidden from the public and search spiders. Once ready for launch, we will work with you or your domain providers to ‘switch’ the domain to point to the new website.

Performance Optimisation

 All websites built by Rouge are optimised for fast load times. This includes minimising file sizes, leveraging browser caching, optimising images using modern formats like WebP, and ensuring scripts are minimised and deferred where appropriate. We aim to keep your website’s loading time below 3 seconds on average, providing a smooth and seamless user experience.

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

 Your finished website will be search engine-ready, and the pages and content will be accessible to search engines. Using best practice design and coding standards (with relevant content) means that search engines are more likely to include your site in their indexes. Our high standards of build and coding will set your website as a solid foundation for SEO success with your chosen SEO partner.

Accessibility

 Through a best-practice approach to design and development, we work towards the W3C Web Accessibility Initiative’s accessibility standards. To reduce barriers to those with limited access, we propose designing, building, and testing your website against the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines WCAG 2.2.

Browser Testing

 Your website will be tested on the most commonly used browsers today. However, we do not test for specific devices. Let us know if you want a specific browser test added to your project.

Responsive Design Port Sizes

 We design and build to a standard set of port sizes and breakpoints, which means your website will deliver a reliable experience on today’s most common screen sizes. Let us know if you want a specific browser test added to your project.

Accessibility Testing

 In addition to coding for WCAG 2.2 compliance, we employ industry-standard tools like Lighthouse to audit the site’s accessibility. We test for keyboard navigability, screen reader compatibility, and appropriate colour contrast to ensure your website is usable by all audiences.

 Analytics and Tracking

 As part of our standard build, we can integrate basic tracking using Google Analytics or other analytics tools. This allows you to monitor visitor behaviour, site performance, and key metrics such as conversion rates. Other advanced and bespoke analytics solutions are available.

Social Media Integration

 Your website will include links to social media channels, feeds, follow-us buttons, ‘like/share’ functionality, and more as part of our standard website build costs. Live integration with other Social Media platforms is also possible. If engaged, we will advise and discuss this with you in detail.

Third-Party Integrations and API Compatibility

 We offer integration with third-party systems such as CRM (HubSpot, Salesforce), payment gateways (Stripe, PayPal), and marketing automation tools (Mailchimp, Force24). Our in-house developers ensure that APIs are securely connected, enabling smooth data flow between your website and external platforms.

 Website Security

 Rouge follows a best-practice approach to website security. Our approach to security includes (but is not limited to) the following:

• Infrastructure
• Code management
• Development
• Deployment
• Installation
• User management
• Brute force attack defence
• SSL (HTTPS)
• Updates and backups.

Rouge is a CyberEssentials and ISO 27001-certified agency.

GDPR, PECR Compliance and Data Protection

 Rouge will consult with you throughout the project to help ensure your website fits your privacy policy (which should comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)). We can’t offer legal advice (we are not lawyers), but we can help guide you towards appropriate action. You must provide us all legal wording and policies for adding to your website.

When working on a website Project, our GDPR advice includes:

• Helping you ensure that all your website forms offer marketing opt-in and acceptance of terms, where appropriate
• Helping you ensure that all your provided policy documents are available on the website, where appropriate
• If you choose the CMS training option, we also ensure that you are trained to manage any data stored by the website so that you can integrate it with your GDPR policy (see optional costs for CMS Training).

Data Privacy and Security

As part of our commitment to protecting your data and your user’s privacy, submitted form data is encrypted in transit via HTTPS using SSL and any personal data is stored securely following GDPR and PECR standards. At launch, we implement stringent cookie policies to ensure all tracking is compliant. We also offer regular security audits to mitigate emerging threats.

Scalability and Maintainability

Every website built by Rouge is structured to allow for scalability. Whether it’s adding more content, additional features, or new integrations, we ensure that the site can evolve as your business grows. Our developers write clean, well-documented code to ensure future updates are deliverable. As your business grows, so will your website. Our scalable architecture ensures that new features, additional content, and infrastructure upgrades can seamlessly integrate without disrupting your site’s performance.

Every site can be further customised with interactive elements, user accounts, e-commerce, etc. Rouge remains a partner beyond launch, offering regular check-ins, performance audits, and proactive recommendations.

CMS Training

 As part of our service, Rouge provides a CMS training session and a custom handbook, empowering you to manage website content confidently.

Change Request Process

• During the Project: Design, content, and development changes are captured in the Project Definition Document (PDD) and reviewed during the revision phases. Significant changes in scope are treated as change requests, with potential impacts on cost and timeline discussed before proceeding.
• After the Project: For post-launch changes, you can update text, images, and basic content through the CMS or engage us for additional design or development requests. Rouge provides estimates and timelines for any substantial modifications.

Quality Assurance

 Rouge is an ISO 9001-accredited agency. Our quality management system aims to meet and exceed customer requirements.