Looking for a website, unsure where to start?
Starting a website can be a very difficult process; first of all you will have to think about which company to choose? Then what you are looking to achieve with a website in terms of functionality, design, content, profitability and marketability. We are going to have a look in to these areas:
Choosing a web company can be difficult, there are lots out there and they all offer different services, quality of service and the technology of the website. First of all you need to question price and the cost of developing such a website, also ask about any other maintenance costs and after fee's that may come with the website. Next you have to look at the quality of the websites the company has built, it is about quantity and quality and the relevance to the website you are looking for. You lastly need to look at all the services that the company offers, it is better to have all services under one roof as this makes the whole looking for a website process much easier.
So you have chosen the company to build your website what next?
So when you have chosen your company to build your website, you need to decide what you are exactly looking for? The usual examples are as follows:
1. Looking to sell online (This is normally known as an E Commerce website, this gives you the ability to sell your products/services online, take credit/debit card payment from the user securely and administrate your website to keep the content and products/services up to date)
2. Information Portal (This is a website with information, for example what products/services you offer, your contact details, telephone, fax email etc and also any images with regards to the website and the products/services)
3. Functionality Portal (This is a website that is full of functionality. Here at Web21k we are serious PHP developers and we have developed some very advanced PHP systems for our clients to manage the following
Stock Systems
Order Management
Order Reporting
Account Balances
Ledger and Accounting
Product Management
Marketing Management
User Management
Email & Messaging Systems
And much more...
All of the above can be done in the coding language PHP, and they can have impressive results.
4. User Guided Portal (This is information which is generated and administrated by the user, for example forums and blogs are a typical example of user generated websites. Also video and music websites, YouTube and MySpace are 2 of the biggest companies in this area.)
Once you know what you are looking for, you need to think about design and content. When it comes to design you need to think relevancy. For instance, do you have a logo or colour scheme? If so your website should in some way portray this colour and design. When it comes to design, ask your web company to build some demo designs, some companies will charge you for this so be careful, here at Web21k we build unlimited demos until you have seen what you want at no cost.
After you are set with design, you need to think about content. What content do you want to display? You need to make sure it is grammatically correct, and that it is relevant to your website. There is no real general rule of thumb for content just make sure it is relevant and unique, eg not copied from someone else’s website.
Lastly having all the above without any search engine marketing strategy can make all of the above seem not worthwhile. Search Engines are one of the largest marketing areas for websites, getting your website to the no.1 spot for keywords relating to your business can dramatically turn your website around.
.Click here for more information on Search Engines
Copyright Web21k
By Sam Howell - 19th April 2007
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