- Planning ahead of time
- Why have a web site?
- What do you need to get started?
- Design considerations
- Do you need to register a domain?
- Check domain name availability
- Who is your target audience?
- Where will your site live?
- Who will keep your site current and up-to-date?
- How will people find your site?
- Use the worksheet to help gather your thoughts
- How quickly can your site be up and running?
- Graphic file formats
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Planning ahead of time—things to think about
It’s just like painting a house … most of the work is in the preparation … at least for you as the customer. Think the “W” questions—who, what, when, where and why. With the emphasis on why. The information listed below will help you gather thoughts and materials so we can get the most our of your free initial consultation. The more advance planning, the quicker your site goes together and gets posted, ready for the world to see. -
Why have a web site?
Because it’s totally cool and all your friends have one? Do you have information to disseminate? Or something to sell? Perhaps a service you want folks to know about or goods they can purchase online? Having a web presence says you are serious and professional about your business. Information can be communicated easily and, unlike print media, updated readily. Or maybe your family and friends are far-flung and you want a fun way to share those new baby pictures or that wedding photo album. Whatever it is, the first step is to know why you want a web site and what you expect it to accomplish for you. -
What do you need to get started?
You will need to make decisions about all the things listed on this page. When we meet for your free initial consultation, we can help you with this process; however, the more you have thought about it before we meet, the further and faster we'll get along.
Additionally, before your site can be designed and developed, you will need to gather the images and text that are to be included, ideally (but not necessarily) in digital form.
If we are going to transfer an existing custom domain for you, we will need the name of your current registrar, your account name and password. -
Design Considerations
We'll talk about layout, color schemes and styles. Most things are interrelated. For example, your target audience will help to dictate some things about design. If you are trying to reach a high-end computer-savvy market, you might need fancy, sophisticated effects designed. A more general audience may just be irritated by graphic intensive, slow-loading pages on older computers with slow dial-up connections, or cool presentations that require additional software to see.
Generally, we try to design for maximum functionality whatever the viewer’s software, computer type or internet connection. You may have specific ideas, however, about what you want that must be conveyed to us. What color scheme to you envision and what is the overall feel of the site you are going for? What are some sample sites with a design you particularly like? What are your internet pet peeves? -
Do you need your own domain?
If you have your own domain, your web address (or URL) will be: www.your-name.com. It's pretty fun. And for a business site it is critical to have your own domain to enhance your professional image.
Domain registration is cheap these days, and can be done for one year or multiple years. It will usually cost slightly more per month to have your site hosted with a custom domain. -
Who is your target audience?
Who will look at your site? Your mother? Members of your club? Customers? What kind of computers and internet connections are they likely to have? How web savvy are they? What will your viewers expect from your site?
These are really important questions and the answers may very well dictate the design of your site. -
Where will your site live?
A web site doesn’t do much good unless it is uploaded to the web where people can see it. (An exception would be if you want a presentation developed that will not be viewable on the web but will be put on a CD for distribution to people of your choosing. This too, is possible.)
For one-stop-shopping, we offer hosting options using either our domain, or yours, in our web space. We'll even host it for free if you have a maintenance agreement with us! Or perhaps you already have an account that includes web hosting, or you want to research the possibilities and arrange hosting yourself. -
Who will keep your site current and up-to-date?
The beauty of the web is its fluidity. You can (and generally should) update your site regularly. Add coupons and specials. New services. Update your inventory. Change photos. Etc …
Someone has to do this. Hire us! We like to keep sites we design looking good … we’ll host your site for free if you have a maintenance agreement with us.
Or we can suggest software and train you to do it yourself. This probably works best if your editing needs are minimal, and your page has a relatively simple design. More often, you will want your site to be professionally maintained so that you can focus on your business and your life. We’re happy to do it for you. -
How will people find your site?
The best site doesn’t do much good if no one looks at it. We will optimize your site and submit it to search engines as part of your package. You will also want to think about getting your web address out there on business cards, signs, flyers, print ads. You may choose to pay the top search engines to list your site as a sponsored site. Or professional organizations may have referral sites that you can tap into.
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Use the worksheet to help gather your thoughts
It will help you to put your thoughts down in a form that you can submit to us. When we receive it, we’ll get in touch to set up your free initial consultation.
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How quickly can your site be up and running?
Usually within a few weeks of giving us your materials and signing a contract with us, your site can be up. Depending on the scope of your site, times may vary.
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Graphic file formats
Ideally graphics are supplied to us as high quality digital files, preferably in Photoshop (.psd), Fireworks (.png) or Tagged Image (.tif) formats. JPEG or GIF files may also be used but image quality will be lost if the files must be resized or edited. Graphic file resizing and conversion will be included in the basic web page price. If you do not have digital images, we can scan and convert them for you. Additional charges may apply and quality of scans will vary depending on the image source.