|
/pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"> |
Website Success is Key
The popular search engine Google indexes over 8 billion websites. Is one of them yours, or is your website just floating around in cyberspace and you're hoping your customers will just find you? Is your website a benefit to your organization or company? Is it just an expensive showpiece or is it of true value?
These are some of the many questions that can be asked when launching a new website. With so many different websites being published (some amazing, awful and otherwise), it would be safe to assume that most current business plans underway include the utilization of a website, and that most active companies are utilizing the Internet to some degree. If you are interested in publishing a website, or already have, here are some key elements that may help towards its success:
1. Domain Registration: Be sure to register your domain name (www.yourdomain.com) yourself or have it done within your organization, as opposed to letting a third party register your name. Without control of your domain name registration, you can expect to run into some unnecessary delays if the third party becomes unavailable, which is surprisingly common. You also run the risk of having the registration setup incorrectly or even losing the domain. Purchasing a domain is very easy and available at less than $10 a year, so it is a very inexpensive yet potentially valuable asset.
2. Hosting: After domain registration is complete, you will be in control of where to host your website. Your website will be hosted on an Internet server, a computer that will house your website files and process any functionality such as shopping carts, email, databases, etc. Shop around for hosting options, they vary from inexpensive do-it-yourself options, to managed hosting plans, to exorbitantly expensive plans that are unnecessary. What you need to accomplish with your website will determine what your hosting needs are. I have seen small, compact sites be very effective, so beware of purchasing 500MB of hosting when you may only need 10MB.
3. Design and Development: When it comes to website design, less can often be more. Your website should load quickly and yet be visually stimulating. Try to maintain a consistency of look with any pre-existing marketing material you have in place. Avoid bombarding your visitors with tons of miscellaneous information and links, keep your content precise and to the point, and be sure all of your links work properly and that information is presented in an organized manner. Further development can allow you to take online orders, process payments, store customer info in a database, etc. The type of development you need will depend on what your company wants to accomplish with the website. The bottom line is that even a simple website should be beneficial to your organization when well designed.
4. Caution: Keep in mind that anyone, anywhere in the world, can access your website, so take caution with what you make public. The Internet offers wonders of information exchange, but sadly that can sometimes work against us, depending on who accesses the information and for what reasons. One very bizarre and extremely sad case was the young pregnant mother that was murdered and her baby stolen, after her killer saw a picture of the pregnant woman on the Internet (selling dogs) and then setup a meeting pretending to have an interest in a dog. Focus on publishing informative content related to your products and services only, and keep personal or sensitive information private as much as possible.
5. Marketing: Once your website is designed and hosted you will be ready for visitors, but how are you going to get them to visit your site? Make sure a major search engine indexes your website. If the website is coded correctly, this will be automatic but may take a few weeks. Be sure your website address appears on all of your marketing material, and direct customers to your website for specific reasons, ie. coupons, specials, additional info, etc. Also, explore the many online marketing opportunities as well as traditional print ads.
6. Maintenance: Be sure to pay all domain registration and hosting fees on time. If you would like to be able to update and edit your website yourself, some professional website designers may offer this service. You may be surprised how easily it can be done and being able to do self-maintenance allows you to get the most out of your website.
Good luck and have fun publishing!
Michael Faeth is the owner of website and print design shop GLOBI Worldwide. Our clients include local and national companies, both large and small. For more information and to see our portfolio, contact http://www.globi.us or 559.355.3619. Special thanks to Suzanne Crosina-Sahm for editing the article.
Why You Really Need Your Own Web Page In-order To Make Online Business!
How many Web Sites did you stumble over telling you that you don't actually need your own? Now, this is true to a certain extend but not if you are heading for the real scoop.
A Web Site for Your Small Business: How to Set Up a Website
Your web site will be your window to the world. Even if you are not selling any product online still you need your customers to access you 24 hours a day 365 days in a year and you can pass important information to them by hosting frequently asked pages, product descriptions, product improvements etc. Your web site will be your office or interface to the world even when you are away in weekends, sleeping at nights or in an important assignment for your next business expansion. Then how to go about it? We will discuss some basic points here.
Internet Marketing Website Promotion -The 7 Biggest Mistakes I See People Make With Websites!
1. Many people are not getting good or complete advice. Often for example people don't understand all the concepts of Internet Marketing and having a website so they simply pay to have a website developed. Often this website may look good but it falls far short in the area of being "search engine friendly". This is typically because many businesses that deal with the web are very one track focused.
Five Essential Questions to Answer Before Creating Your First (or second...or third) Website
Right after the thought, "I need a website," people usually say, "I need a web designer!" Actually, before even whispering "web design," you need to answer these five questions in as much detail as possible. Once you're clear on your strategy, you can provide better information to your web designer. And most likely you'll be pleased with your new home on the web.
A Website Is Not Enough
Your Objective
7 Questions to Understand Your Customer Better
Customer service questionnaires can help your clients better understand their requirements. Your clients can benefit by:
From Concept to Website
You've decided to create a website to market your products or services. More and more people start their information searches online, so having a website is the logical next step. But without web development skills or knowledge, how do you build and market a website?
Your Website Reflects Your Business
Some left shoes are in isle 5, while the right shoes are in isle 3. Shoe hills are in random places. You can barely walk through the store without stumbling over a shoe.
How Worldly is Your World Wide Web?
The growth in Internet usage around the world is astounding - 146% in the five years prior to March 2005. And it's not just European and North American users on the Net. The fastest growth was found in Africa with an almost 200% increase in usage. I am often pleasantly surprised as to how fast the internet connections are in 'developing countries' like Indonesia - much faster than the connection at my parent's farm in rural Alberta in fact!
10 Tips For Running A Profitable Web Site
1. Address your targeted audience on your business site. Example: "Welcome Internet Marketers". If you have more than one, address them all.
The Problem with Automated Accessibility Testing Tools
An automated accessibility tool is a piece of software which can test a web page, or even an entire website, for accessibility. Automated accessibility tools are useful because they can save you a huge amount of time. Don't want to check images for alt text on each and every page on your website? Run the site through an automated tester and it'll do it all for you!
Web Site Promotion: How To Advertise Your Website For Profits
Making money with your web site is the dream and goal of millions of webmasters all over the internet including myself. In order to reach this goal you need a variety of web site promotions running all at the same time.
Top 5 Reasons to Track Your Website Traffic
#5 User Satisfaction: Learn what your visitors and site users do and do not like about your site. Using a good reporting service allows you to monitor your pages individually to see what pages are clicked on first, the most popular pages, duration of any given visitor's time viewing a page (visit duration), and what pages send your visitors off your site (exit pages).
Ever Wondered What Challenges Other People With Their Web Site?
Have you ever wondered what challenges are faced by other webmasters and owners in the design and promotion of their websites, well I certainly have and so I decided to try and find out.
Do You Really Need A Website To Succeed
Rosalind wants to share her inspirational poetry with a wider community. Alas, poor Rosalind lives in a remote town.
Making The Business Case For Web Standards
Through the explosive growth of the Web, companies have realized the benefit of building a strong online presence. By publishing a website to the Internet, companies are able to build their brand, market their products, support existing customers, release publicity pieces, and even take orders. Lost in the feverish pace of growth however, has been an eye on the effect that their current web-building practices have on the bottom line and the future of their online presence. Not only does the website content itself have an impact on the company's income but so does the way the site itself is created.
Top 7 Reasons Why Your Business Needs a Website
A website provides invaluable advantages for businesses who have one.
Art, Artists and the Web: Part 4--What to Do After a Website is Designed
What to do if you are an artist after you finish your website.
Top 5 Webmaster Tools You Can Pick Up For Pennies
1. SiteSpinner V2 - On Sale www.deprice.com/sitespinner.htm
How to Get a Better Web Site ROI
Better Web Site ROI