What tends to bring people in Chelmsford to Expression 37 is a site an agency built and then stopped supporting, one that's been running unattended since.
Karl's the person who picks it up. He's worked exclusively in ExpressionEngine and Craft CMS since founding Expression 37 in 2007, nobody else on the account.
Nothing gets quoted until Karl's actually looked at the build. From there it's a fix, an upgrade, or a retainer, whichever the site needs.
What tends to bring people to us:
Manufacturing and engineering firms whose site holds technical or product data that has to stay accurate, since errors here carry real downstream cost. Retailers taking payments through Stripe who need that connection maintained with the same care as the site itself. Businesses whose previous agency has gone quiet, leaving a site that's technically live but nobody's watching. And installs old enough that every add-on needs checking individually before an upgrade is anywhere near safe.
How it usually begins:
Most Chelmsford clients get in touch after something concrete: a payment connection that's quietly stopped syncing correctly, a security notice on an old add-on, or the realisation that nobody could explain how part of the site worked. Karl reviews the codebase directly before quoting, and it's normal for a fixed-scope first project to settle into an ongoing retainer.
Common questions Chelmsford clients ask:
We're a short drive away, would you rather meet in person to start with?
Whatever works, but it rarely changes anything practical. The audit, the build work, the ongoing support, all of that happens remotely regardless of how the first conversation happens.
Our previous developer built this without leaving any real documentation, is that unusual?
It's the norm, not the exception. Assume there's nothing useful written down, then confirm what actually exists by reading the templates directly rather than relying on anyone's account of them.
Our site handles Stripe payments that need to be reliable, does that complicate support?
It changes what gets prioritised, not the fundamentals. A payment connection needs the same standard of maintenance as the rest of the site, not treated as somebody else's problem.
Is there a minimum ExpressionEngine version you'll work with?
No, though the older the version, the more of the initial work is spent understanding what's still functioning versus what quietly broke years ago and nobody noticed.
Can we start with something small before committing to more?
That's how most engagements begin. A contained first job, an audit or a specific fix, gives both sides a clear read on whether an ongoing arrangement makes sense.
Do you offer any kind of guarantee on the work?
The guarantee is in how the work gets scoped: nothing starts until Karl's actually read the code, so the quote reflects what's really there rather than a guess that gets revised halfway through.
Ready to get started?
If your website is business-critical and needs a specialist who will take proper long-term ownership of it, get in touch. Karl will respond personally and give you an honest view of how we can help.
