South Africa
Web design for South African businesses
Stryx Collective designs and builds websites for established South African businesses that need their site to produce enquiries, calls and bookings. The consultancy is based in Salt Rock, Ballito, in KwaZulu-Natal, and works with clients across South Africa, in person between Ballito and Umhlanga and by video call everywhere else.
Who Stryx suits in South Africa
Website design in South Africa is a crowded market, and much of it competes on price. Stryx Collective does not. It suits established businesses that already have customers and need the website to bring in more of them, as enquiries, calls and bookings that can be counted.
Stryx is a specialist consultancy, not a volume agency. Clients deal directly with Ryan Cumming, the founder, who has been building websites for 10 years and holds a BCom in Strategic Management. Two industries get the most attention: hospitality (hotels, lodges and villas) first, and healthcare (clinics and practices) second.
Built for phones and paid data
Most South African visitors arrive on a phone, and most of them are paying for mobile data. A heavy page costs the visitor money and time before it has said anything useful. Stryx builds for that reality. Pages are kept light and images are sized for the screen. Sites are designed from the desktop down and built so that every layout rescales automatically to work on all screen sizes. Speed is part of the design work from the start.
POPIA and where the site is hosted
A website that collects enquiries, bookings or patient details handles personal information, so POPIA applies. Under POPIA, Stryx acts as the client's operator, and the operator contract is part of the service agreement. Stryx can give guidelines on what a client should look for and have in place. It makes no warranty that a site will be compliant, and clients should consult their own legal counsel. Clients can choose to host in the United States, Europe, the United Kingdom or South Africa. Most South African clients choose South Africa or Europe. The South African care plans page covers hosting and support.
In person and remote
Stryx has traded since 2019. It is based in Salt Rock, Ballito, and works remotely. Clients between Ballito and Umhlanga can meet in person when needed. Clients in the rest of the country meet by video call and follow the project in a client portal. Support hours are Monday to Friday, 8:00 to 17:00 South African time, excluding public holidays. Stryx aims to respond to requests promptly.
How this differs from the usual web design company in South Africa
Many local offers lead with a low starting price and a template. Stryx starts with research into business goals, audience, keywords, competitors and content gaps. The platform is then chosen to fit. WordPress is usual when a site needs bookings, reservations or forms. Shopify is sometimes better for shops. Astro on Cloudflare is used when it fits. Stryx has connected websites to property management systems such as Guesty and Hostaway. Tracking for enquiries, calls and bookings is set up at launch, so web development work in South Africa can be judged on what the site produces.
Clients
Clients across South Africa include:
- The Bliss Collection, a luxury villa rental business in Cape Town
- Traverse Health, a biokinetics and health practice in Umhlali, Ballito
- Legacy Med, an executive wellness medical assessment practice in Durban
- Savvy Sheds, an online store for outdoor sheds and storage in Johannesburg
- Powermode, a UPS and backup power business in Johannesburg
- Karoo One, a hotel and farm stay in De Doorns
Related pages
How it works
How a website project runs
Ryan Cumming runs the first call, plans the site and builds it.
You can follow the project in a client portal. When a stage needs your input, a task is assigned to you there.
The process can change to suit the project. Where it does, the changes are set out in your proposal.
- 01
Discovery
Business goals, target audience, keyword research, competitor and market research, content gaps, user experience and technical requirements.
- 02
Site architecture
A visual sitemap of every page and how the pages connect.
- 03
UX design
Wireframes that set the layout and flow of each page before any visual design.
- 04
Outlining and copywriting
Each page is outlined and its copy written.
- 05
UI design
The visual design, and a design system so the site stays consistent as it grows.
- 06
Development
A responsive build on a staging server, with performance, integrations and SEO best practice built in.
- 07
Launch
Browser and screen testing, image optimisation and technical SEO checks, then the site goes live on your domain.
What you get
Everything that's included
- Market, keyword and competitor research
- An opportunity report
- A visual sitemap
- UX wireframes
- UI design and a design system
- The built website, tested on staging
- Analytics and conversion tracking set up
- Redirects from old URLs, where the site replaces an existing one
- A handover document: where everything lives, how it is built and who has access
- Launch and post-launch support
Some of the 80+ businesses we work with
Questions
Questions about Web design for South African businesses
Can't see yours? Ask Ryan directly and you'll get a straight answer, usually the same day.
Ask on WhatsAppDoes Stryx work with businesses outside KwaZulu-Natal?
Yes. Stryx is based in Salt Rock, Ballito, and works with clients across South Africa. Clients between Ballito and Umhlanga can meet in person when needed. Everyone else meets by video call and follows the project in a client portal.
Where in the world will a South African website be hosted?
Clients can choose to host in the United States, Europe, the United Kingdom or South Africa. Most South African clients choose South Africa or Europe.
How does Stryx deal with POPIA?
Under POPIA, Stryx acts as the client's operator. The operator contract is part of the service agreement, so it does not need to be arranged separately. Stryx can give guidelines on what a client should look for and have in place. It makes no warranty that a site will be compliant, and clients should consult their own legal counsel.
Why does Stryx put so much weight on mobile speed in South Africa?
Most South African visitors use a phone and pay for mobile data. A slow, heavy page costs them data and time, and many leave before they enquire. Light pages keep those visitors on the site.
How long does a website take to build?
A typical website project takes about 6 to 8 weeks. Complexity, and how quickly content and feedback come back, can make it shorter or longer.
Do you only build in WordPress?
No. WordPress is the usual recommendation for sites that need custom functionality such as bookings, reservations or forms. Where another platform fits better, such as Shopify for e-commerce, Stryx recommends that.
Who owns the website when it is finished?
You do. Once the project is paid in full, the website and the visual elements created for you are yours.
How does payment work?
50% is paid up front and secures your place in the work queue. The remaining 50% is paid before launch.
Will my site rank on Google?
Every site Stryx builds can be indexed by search engines at launch. Rankings depend on many factors and no one can honestly guarantee them. Ongoing SEO is a separate service.
Will I lose my Google rankings if I rebuild my site?
Old URLs are mapped to the new structure and redirected at launch, which keeps the search visibility the old site had earned.
How do I keep track of the project?
You get a login to a client portal where you can see the stage the project is at and any tasks waiting on you.
What happens after launch?
Bugs that existed before launch are fixed at no extra charge. Hosting, backups, updates and content changes are covered by a website care plan.
Start a project
Be the business they find first
Tell Ryan what you sell and who buys it. You'll get a straight answer on what's holding your website back and what to fix first. There's no obligation to go ahead.
More enquiries you can trace. You'll see which search, page or ad brought in each call, booking and form.
Higher in search results. On Google, in the map results and in AI answers, for the searches your customers make.
One person to talk to. Ryan answers on WhatsApp and sends a plain-language report on results every month.
