Webtrade invests €1.2m in new system ( Source: Sunday Business Post - 20.1.2008)
20 January 2008
By Elaine O’Regan
Web development firm Webtrade has invested €1.2 million in the development of a new content management system (CMS) for websites.
The Siternity system, supplied as part of an overall package of web design, development, hosting and online marketing, will be aimed at non-technical customers who want to manage their own websites.
Patrick Bates, Webtrade managing director, said the new system would more than halve the cost of launching and managing a website for client companies. ‘‘The system is specifically designed to allow non-technical users to manage and update their websites easily,” said Bates. 
‘‘Its novel warranty includes automatic upgrades to the core software, meaning customer’s websites are always at the cutting edge of internet technology.”
Bates said Webtrade began to develop the new system at the end of 2005 in response to customer demand for a lower ‘total cost of ownership’ of business websites.
‘‘The project was made up of about six months of research, along with 18 months of development, testing and bringing to market,” he said.
‘‘The cost breakdown was about 30 per cent on research and 70 per cent on development, testing and bringing to market.”
Bates said the design of the Siternity system incorporated a range of easy-to-use features aimed at non-technical website owners and managers. Key features include the ability to add new sections and pages on an ad-hoc basis. ‘‘Our Siternity business model is about ensuring value for money for our clients by offering them up-to-date core functionality as part of our standard offering,” said Bates. ‘‘Clients will always have the latest version of our CMS - and these upgrades are done in a seamless fashion with no impact on our clients’ sites.”
Webtrade is one of Ireland’s longest-established web design, development and online marketing companies. Founded in 1998,i t has developed more than 500 websites for a wide range of leading companies and government agencies. The company employs 15 staff at its offices in Rathfarnham in Dublin. It has an annual turnover of €1.3 million.
Webtrade’s services include web design, web development, content management systems, online booking and reservation systems, online marketing and search engine optimisation, e -mail and website hosting.