Website & Server Support for Designers & Agencies

Great website design and great server administration require very different skills.

A designer or marketing agency may be excellent at branding, graphics, content, advertising, and client relationships—but occasionally encounter a website, hosting, email, PHP, DNS, security, or server problem that falls outside the work they really want to be doing.

Zehr.net can provide experienced technical support behind the scenes, allowing designers and agencies to concentrate on the parts of their business they do best.

You keep the client relationship. We help with the technology.

A Technical Resource When You Need One

Not every agency needs a full-time server administrator or web developer.

You may need technical help only occasionally. Perhaps a few hours for a difficult problem, assistance during a website launch, ongoing server support, or someone available when an unfamiliar issue appears.

That can make a flexible working relationship particularly useful.

Instead of adding another full-time position, you can have an experienced technical resource available when the work requires it.

Areas Where We May Be Able to Help

Website and server support can include areas such as:

• Linux web servers
• Apache and nginx environments
• PHP configuration and compatibility
• MySQL and database-related troubleshooting
• Website hosting and migrations
• Domain and DNS configuration
• SSL certificates and HTTPS
• Email configuration and delivery issues
• SPF, DKIM, and DMARC
• Website and server security
• Backups and recovery planning
• Website performance
• Mobile and responsive design issues
• Website accessibility
• HTML, CSS, PHP, and JavaScript troubleshooting
• Forms and online payment integrations
• Third-party services and integrations
• Legacy website troubleshooting and modernization
• Technical research and problem solving

Every situation is different. If the problem is outside our expertise, we will say so and help identify what kind of expertise may be needed.

You Do Not Have to Give Up the Client

One concern agencies understandably have when bringing in outside technical assistance is protecting the client relationship.

We respect that relationship.

Zehr.net can work behind the scenes as a technical resource while your agency remains the primary contact with the client.

Depending on the arrangement, communication can take place entirely through your agency, collaboratively with the client, or in whatever way makes the most sense for the project.

The objective is to strengthen the service you provide—not compete with it.

Sometimes You Just Need Someone to Troubleshoot

Website problems are not always obvious.

A page may suddenly stop working after an update. Email may be rejected even though nothing appears to have changed. A site may work perfectly on one device and fail on another. A PHP upgrade may reveal older code that needs attention. A DNS change may affect services that appeared unrelated.

These are the situations where experience and systematic troubleshooting become valuable.

Start with what changed, gather the available information, check the logs, isolate variables, test possibilities, and work toward the cause.

Sometimes the solution is complicated.

Sometimes it is one line of code.

Legacy Websites Need Help Too

Agencies occasionally inherit websites they did not build.

The original developer may no longer be available. Documentation may be limited. The site may contain older PHP, unfamiliar code, outdated design practices, or years of modifications made by several different people.

Replacing the entire website is not always necessary or practical.

Sometimes the first step is simply determining what you have.

We can help investigate an existing website, identify potential problems, evaluate compatibility with current technology, and determine whether repairing, gradually modernizing, or replacing the site makes the most sense.

Server Work Behind the Website

Visitors see a website.

Behind it may be a Linux server, web server software, PHP, databases, DNS, SSL certificates, mail services, security systems, backups, logs, and numerous configuration settings.

When everything works, nobody thinks about those systems.

When something stops working, they suddenly become very important.

Zehr.net has decades of experience developing and hosting websites and managing the technologies that support them.

Security Is a Shared Responsibility

Website security involves much more than installing a security product.

Operating systems, web server software, PHP versions, website applications, passwords, access controls, backups, email authentication, firewall rules, updates, and human behavior can all affect security.

A designer should not have to become a server security specialist simply to create a great website.

We can help evaluate the technical side while working with the agency to keep the overall system understandable and maintainable.

Accessibility & Technical Quality

Designers create the visual experience, but many important accessibility and usability considerations are also built into the underlying code.

Heading structure, alternative text, form labels, keyboard navigation, semantic HTML, responsive behavior, readable content, and other details can affect how successfully people use a website.

Zehr.net can provide another set of eyes when evaluating these technical considerations and help identify practical improvements.

Launch Support

A website launch can involve much more than uploading files.

Domains may need to be redirected. DNS records may change. SSL certificates need to work. Email must continue functioning. Old URLs may need redirects. Forms need testing. PHP and database versions need to be compatible. Mobile behavior, accessibility, and performance should be checked.

Having additional technical support available during a launch can make the transition considerably smoother.

Occasional Help or an Ongoing Relationship

Some designers and agencies may need assistance with one difficult project.

Others may benefit from an ongoing technical relationship.

That could involve a few hours as needed, recurring website maintenance, server assistance, technical troubleshooting, project support, or a regular part-time arrangement.

There is no reason to force every relationship into the same model.

The arrangement should match the work.

AI-Assisted Problem Solving

Modern artificial intelligence has also become a valuable addition to technical troubleshooting and development.

AI can help analyze code, explore possible causes, explain unfamiliar technologies, compare approaches, research documentation, and generate ideas for testing.

But AI does not replace experience, testing, documentation, logs, backups, or careful verification.

We use AI as another tool in the toolbox: extremely capable when appropriate, questioned when necessary, and combined with human judgment.

A Partner, Not a Competitor

There are many talented designers, developers, marketing professionals, photographers, writers, and agencies doing excellent work.

We do not all need to provide the same services.

Sometimes the best solution is collaboration.

A designer can concentrate on design. A marketing professional can concentrate on marketing. A photographer can concentrate on photography. And when a server, website, security, accessibility, or technical problem appears, Zehr.net may be able to help.

Have a Project That's Getting Too Technical?

If you are a website designer, developer, marketing company, creative professional, or agency and have a project that is moving beyond the technical work you want to handle, contact Zehr.net.

You do not need to transfer your clients, hosting, or business to us.

Tell us what you are working on and where you could use some help.

You take care of your clients. We'll help take care of the technology.