Who I design websites for

I’m John Schuster, a freelance Chicago web designer and developer. Most of my clients are Chicago small and local businesses that need a site to win trust and book work: home-service contractors, restaurants and venues, retailers, creatives, and professional service providers.

If your customers find a slow, dated, or hard-to-use website when they search for you, that is the problem I fix. For more than 25 years I have designed and built sites for businesses like yours, and you work directly with me from the first conversation to launch day: no account managers, no hand-offs.

What’s included in every custom website

  • A design tailored to your brand, not a recycled template
  • Mobile-friendly, responsive layouts that work on phones, tablets, and desktops
  • Fast pages, so visitors don’t leave before the page appears
  • Search-ready structure: clean code, proper headings, titles and descriptions
  • A WordPress foundation you can edit yourself, with contact and quote forms
  • Logo and brand graphics if you need them, and hosting set up for you or on the host you already use

Recent Chicago web design work

Figure 8 Painting Logo

Figure 8 Painting

A conversion-focused site for a painting contractor, built to turn local searches into quote requests.

Ann_Frances_logo

Ann Frances Music

A mobile-friendly site for a Chicago creative, with a layout that is easy to update for new releases and events.

Jon Haines Logo

Jon Haines Cybersecurity

One site with two jobs: presenting his cybersecurity consulting and hosting his philosophy blog.

See the full portfolio or read case studies.

How the design process works

  1. Discovery: a call about your business, your customers, and what a win looks like (more calls, bookings, or quote requests).
  2. Design: I map the pages and design a look you approve before the build begins.
  3. Build: I develop the site in WordPress so it is easy for you to update later.
  4. Review & launch: you review everything on a private review copy, we refine, and nothing goes live until you approve it.
  5. Support: I’m still here after launch for updates, edits, and questions.

Because one person does both the design and the development, nothing gets lost in translation. I aim to deliver within 30 days of the deposit.

How I work now

AI-assisted tools do the repetitive checking across your site, so I can review more of it, more often. I make the decisions and review everything before it ships. Read how I use AI, or keep your site healthy after launch with Site Care.

How pricing works

Every project gets a fixed quote after a short conversation about what you need, so you know the full cost before any work starts, with no hidden fees. Read how pricing works or the Chicago website cost guide.

Let’s talk about your website

Tell me about your project and I’ll reply with questions, ideas, and a fixed quote. Need heavier custom functionality? See Chicago web developer. Want WordPress design and theme work specifically? See WordPress web designer in Chicago.

Get a free estimate Call 312-380-5745