Web design and website development in Gatineau

Web design in Gatineau: Quebec rules, Ottawa customers

Gatineau sits on the Quebec side of the capital region. Your business is subject to Quebec law, yet a good part of your customers may cross the bridge from Ottawa and read English first. Your website has to satisfy both: French first, English just as complete.

We build business websites, websites with a CMS and online stores for Gatineau businesses, remotely from our Montreal office. For a business with locations on both sides, see also our page on web design in Ottawa.

What the law asks of a Gatineau website

• Bill 96: a commercial website aimed at Quebec must be offered in French, and the French version must be at least as accessible as any other language version.
• Law 25: personal information requires consent, a designated person in charge and a privacy policy written in clear terms.
• Sales taxes: online sales to Quebec customers involve 5% GST and 9.975% QST; sales into Ontario involve 13% HST.

We build the site to respect these points; for an opinion on your specific case, ask a lawyer or an accountant. Our guide to Law 25 and website privacy explains the forms, cookies and privacy policy side.

Being found from both sides of the river

Gatineau customers search in French; Ottawa customers often search in English. Each language version of your site gets its own addresses, titles and descriptions, so that both can appear in Google. A complete Google Business Profile, with your hours and photos, does the rest for local searches. If you want ongoing work on your visibility, our SEO service covers it.

French first for the law, English just as good for your Ottawa customers.

How we organize the French and English versions

A bilingual site is not a French site with a translation button bolted on. For a Gatineau business, we plan the two versions together from the brief:

1. 01
   French as the reference

   The French text is written first and stays complete, as Bill 96 requires.

2. 02
   English adapted, not copied

   The English version uses the words Ottawa customers actually search for, not a literal translation.

3. 03
   Two sets of addresses

   Each page exists in both languages with its own address, title and description, linked together for Google.

4. 04
   One place to update

   With a management area, you change both versions side by side.

Who we build for in Gatineau

Offices and professional firms in the Hull sector, family businesses in Aylmer and on the Plateau, trades and home services across the city, restaurants and shops close to the bridges: each needs a site that shows the essentials quickly on a phone and makes contact easy.

• Trades and home services: service pages, service area, estimate requests.
• Restaurants and shops: hours, menu or products, directions.
• Professional services: services, team, booking or contact.
• Growing businesses: a management area to update content without a developer.

Prices and timelines

A landing page starts at CA$1,400 (about one week), a multi-page website starts at CA$4,300 (about two weeks), and a platform with member areas and dashboards is quoted (about four weeks). Invoicing in Canadian dollars is possible, with a deposit then the balance. Our closest live references are in Quebec: CHMT Design and Coiffure Le Ritz in Montreal, Vitres et Pavés étudiants in Quebec City and the Beauce region.