The hardest part of having a presence on the
web is getting started and designing your
site. Through the years I have assisted
others with web site design and have
come up with some very helpful steps
to get you going. You'll notice several of
the steps involve a lot of planning long before
we sit down and produce an actual page.

Purpose:

Why do you want a web site? What is it for?

  • Conveying information - This could be in the form of an online resume, latest news, disseminating information on products, services, or research that you've done on a particular subject,
  • Personal expression - You have something important to say and you want the world to hear it!
  • Offering of services and/or products
  • Networking - The web is the new way of keeping in touch. Whether it be friends and/or colleagues.
  • Collecting information - Save them the stamp and have them log in to your site and complete the requested information.

Who is your audience? Be very specific. "Everybody" is NOT the answer here.

  • Family
  • Colleagues
  • Church
  • Club members
  • People who like fine wines
  • Fans of Vigo Mortensen (oh yeah!)
  • Etc.

 Research:

I always send my clients to the web first off to see what's out there. Ask yourself:

  • Who else is doing it and how are they doing it?
  • What works? What doesn't work?
  • How can you do it better?

Design:

Design can say as much about you as your content. There are so many options out there it's hard to decide, but usually you have a vague idea of what you like. Again, peruse the web and note the designs you do like and why. Take into consideration:

  • Layout - The arrangement on the page. And don't assume everyone has high resolution monitors or has theirs set at a high resolution.
  • Navigation - How you move through the site. Can you easily move from page to page? Can you find your way back again?
  • Color Scheme - Pristine, vibrant, soothing? Color can set the tone in and of itself.
  • Font - Fun and light like Comic Sans? Serious like Times New Roman? Keep in mind that fonts are limited to what most people have installed on their computer.

Voice:

One of the things that makes any piece of writing stand out (and web pages are a form of writing) is voice. Voice being the overall style and tone of your words. As you can see from this web site I have a tendency to have a very light tone and like to joke around a little. My site is conveying what I hope is useful information, but in a little less than serious manner. Think of how you wish to express what you have to say. What feeling do you want to convey to your audience?

  • Do they need to take you seriously?
  • Do you need to establish credibility?
  • Do you want to put a smile on their face?
  • Etc.

This is especially important if you will not be the sole author of your site. You need to establish guidelines and make sure everyone contributing follows those guidelines.

Marketing:

Hear ye! Hear ye! There's a new web site out there! What's the point of a web site if your audience doesn't know you are there? You've got to be your own town crier. Unlike opening a shop on an already busy corner, you need to bring the traffic to you. You can do this through:

  • Search engines - There are many large search engines out there, some of which will automatically list you once they find your site; however, they all have different criteria for how they list you. So become familiar with the various search engines' ranking criteria. Also, you may need to manually list your site with others.
  • Listservs - If you are on any listservs that directly relate to your web site and they allow you to post about it, do it!
  • Email lists - First a warning.DON'T SPAM. You want bad press? Spam is the quickest way to get it. Develop an email listing of people you know that are interested. And if they ask to be removed, remove them. Use it sparingly. And don't ever sell the names and addresses on your email list without each person's consent. You want a loyal audience that will return again and again, and bring their friends, too.
  • Business cards, letterhead, etc. - Your web site address will be an integral part of your business. Always make it readily available.
  • Networking - Due to the nature of the World Wide Web (it's called a "web" for a reason), many sites are found by clicking on links from related sites. Contact the owners of related sites and propose to do a link swap (I'll link to you, you link to me). The Google search engine actually uses the number of links to your site to determine your ranking. But be sure the links are relevant. To link for the sake of linking can undermine the credibility of your site.

More to Come...