Website design and development
Website design and development for growth businesses
Website design and development at 4:59 means flexible sites for modern growth businesses. We plan, design and build marketing sites on WordPress, headless CMS stacks such as Sanity with Next.js, and Webflow, covering strategy and information architecture, UX and UI, modular design systems, development, migrations, performance, accessibility and conversion work. It is for marketing teams that need a site that ranks, converts and stays easy for their own people to run after launch.
What’s included
Everything you need, from one team.
Strategy and information architecture
Analytics, search data, stakeholder interviews and, where useful, user interviews and surveys shape the site map, page templates and content plan. Every page gets a clear job, which often means fewer pages and sometimes means more.
UX and UI design
Wireframes, prototypes and final designs for every template, each designed to convert and tested against real content on real devices. We prototype and refine key templates with you before development starts.
Modular design system
A library of reusable components with clear purposes, sensible defaults and limits that keep pages on brand. Each is built and tested once, then reused, so your team can launch new pages without new design or code.
WordPress development
Custom modular WordPress themes built for editors, speed and search, from focused launch sites to enterprise sites with thousands of pages. It is our deepest platform expertise, including migrations onto WordPress and maintenance after launch.
Headless CMS builds
Structured content in a headless CMS such as Sanity, with a fast Next.js front end and visual editing for your team. Suited to content reused across channels and precise structured data. The site you're reading is built this way.
Webflow design and build
Webflow sites for smaller marketing sites where designers or marketers want visual control over layout and a hosted platform with little maintenance, built on the same research-led architecture and modular design system as every site we make.
Content migration
A full crawl and performance export, a destination for every old URL, redirects, and metadata, structured data and internal links moved with the content. We watch crawl errors and rankings after launch and fix issues quickly.
Accessibility, performance and CRO
Contrast, focus states, semantic HTML, keyboard support and text alternatives, plus lean templates, compressed images and scripts loaded only where needed. Every template is designed to convert, and we keep testing improvements after launch.
Training and handoff
Editing guidance written into the CMS, hands-on training and documentation before handoff, so your editors publish without calling a developer. We can stay on for maintenance, new pages and ongoing conversion testing.
Inside website design and development
Go deeper.
- WordPress developmentCustom modular WordPress themes, migrations, integrations, maintenance and training for marketing sites that rank, convert and stay easy to edit.
- Headless CMS developmentStructured content in a headless CMS such as Sanity, a fast Next.js front end, visual editing and previews, and structured data built for search and AI.
How it works
A fixed date and a named owner, from day one.
- 01
Discovery and research
We review analytics, search data and the current site, and talk to stakeholders and users where it helps.
- 02
Architecture and platform choice
We define the site map, templates, content model and migration plan, and recommend the platform that fits.
- 03
Design
We design the modular system and key templates, then prototype and refine them with you.
- 04
Build and migrate
We develop the site, migrate content, set up redirects and run QA across browsers and devices.
- 05
Launch and learn
We launch, train your team, track performance and test improvements based on real data.
Technology at every step
Where AI speeds this up, and where people check it.
AI-assisted discovery
AI helps us sort analytics exports, crawl data and existing content quickly. Strategists decide what the findings mean for structure and priorities.
Scripted content migration
Migration scripts inventory, classify and move large page sets. People spot-check the output, rewrite what needs it and sign off every redirect map.
Automated QA checks
Automated scans flag broken links, missing metadata and accessibility issues on every template. A developer reviews each flag and tests with keyboard and screen reader.
Drafted test variants
AI drafts headline and call-to-action variants for conversion tests. Writers edit them to brand voice and choose what goes live.
Automated performance reporting
Dashboards pull traffic, speed and conversion data on a schedule. Our team reads them and recommends the next change.
The work
Website design and development, in practice.

Web · Rebrand
ActionIQ: 800 pages moved to a new brand
A modular WordPress platform with Lottie and animated SVG, plus a full migration and team training.

Web · Redesign
Aperture: one home for the world of photography
A unified site that joins editorial, e-commerce and events for the world’s preeminent photography organization.

Web · UX
N6A: every page a landing page
A rearchitected site with streamlined journeys and event tracking on every conversion.
FAQ
Questions we hear a lot.
What does website design and development at 4:59 include?
Strategy, information architecture, UX and UI design, a modular design system, development, content migration, QA, launch and training. Discovery comes first: analytics, search data, stakeholder interviews and, where it helps, user interviews and surveys decide the site map and templates before design starts. Then we design reusable components, build them on the platform that suits you and train your team. We have built focused launch sites and enterprise sites with thousands of pages, and the process stays the same.
How long does a website redesign take?
It depends on the size of the site, the amount of content to migrate and how much custom functionality you need. We set a fixed date with a named owner at kickoff. For reference, Virtual Bridges' analytics review, new architecture, logo and refreshed brand guidelines took 10 weeks, and Photino's brand, WordPress site and animated explainer took six weeks.
Which platform should our website be built on?
We build on WordPress, headless CMS stacks such as Sanity with Next.js, and Webflow, and recommend after discovery. WordPress, our deepest expertise, suits content-rich marketing sites and teams that want one familiar admin. Headless suits teams that reuse content across channels and care a great deal about speed and structured data. The site you're reading is built this way. Webflow suits smaller sites where designers or marketers want visual control and hosting handled for them.
Will a website redesign hurt our SEO?
Not when the migration is planned from the start. We crawl the site and export performance data, give every old URL a destination, carry over the content that ranks, and move metadata, structured data and internal links with it. After launch we watch crawl errors and rankings. ActionIQ's site, with more than 800 migrated pages, saw a 300% increase in organic search traffic, and PEX saw an 80% increase in organic clicks and keyword positions after their redesign.
Will our team be able to update the site after launch?
Yes. We build modular design systems so editors can publish new pages from approved components without a developer, write editing guidance into the CMS and train your team before handoff. Each component has sensible defaults and limits that keep pages on brand. ActionIQ's team was trained on their modular WordPress theme, and the Index Industry Association's internal and PR teams self-manage their redesigned site. We can also stay on for maintenance and new pages.
How can we work with 4:59 on a website?
Three ways. Full service covers discovery to launch, with project management and collaboration tools that keep you close to the work. A support partnership suits teams that already have a site and need design, development and production capacity. Consulting suits teams with in-house developers who want senior help with architecture, platform choice, UX and technology recommendations. Every engagement gets a fixed date and a named owner at kickoff.
Can you redesign our website using our existing brand?
Yes. Many projects work within an existing brand, and we translate your guidelines into a modular web design system with accessible color pairings and web-ready typography. If the brand needs work too, we can refresh it alongside the site, as we did for Virtual Bridges with a new logo and refreshed brand guidelines delivered with their new architecture.
How do you plan site structure and content?
From evidence: analytics, search data and what buyers are trying to do. Every page gets a clear job, and that often means fewer pages. For Virtual Bridges, an analytics review led to an architecture that cut pages by 30%, and time spent on site rose 115%. Sometimes more pages are right: Alliance Direct Benefits' top vertical landing pages converted at 23.08%, 22.17% and 16.09%. For Persado, we re-architected the site so every page worked as a lead funnel.
How do you make a website accessible and fast?
We plan both from the first wireframe and test before launch, because retrofitting costs more and works less well. Design covers contrast, readable type, focus states and heading structure. Development covers semantic HTML, labeled forms, keyboard navigation and text alternatives. For speed, we keep templates lean, compress images, load scripts only where needed and choose suitable hosting and caching. For Discuss.io, we built an accessible design system so new pages inherit those standards.
How does 4:59 use AI in website projects?
We use AI tooling to speed up analytics and content review, inventory and classify pages during migration, draft test variants and run QA checks for broken links, missing metadata and accessibility issues. Senior strategists, designers and developers make every decision about structure, design and code, and the time saved goes into keeping the fixed launch date.
Related services
Often paired with
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Your extended production team for email, web, print and digital design, sales materials, CRM setup and video.
Explore productionTell us the deadline. We'll beat it by a minute.
Share the brief for your website design and development project and we'll come back with a plan, a team and a timeline.