| Jun. 11 2007 at 8:04 PM |
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It all depends what you want to do with your website. If you want a basic informational site, you can download a pre-developed template and fill in the text you should be what you need.
If your site is more complex then you will have to spend money and hire a professional. Basically its not just development of the website, its the installation of a content management system, its advice on whether your site needs a blog or a wiki, its deployment of analytics, its the knowledge of finding open source vs. paid installed software, just to name a few points, not to mention SEO, marketing campaigns, etc. Even folks who do technology full time do not understand all these topics in depth.
The best way to spend your money is find a firm that will give you guidance for free on what to do before you start.
Good points above the developers do not and should not know your business as well as you do, hence that is why it is your business. But they understand technology, if they cannot tell you what technology should suit your business needs get a new firm.
Terrence Shaw
Wirevibe Consulting
http://www.wirevibe.com/
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| Jun. 13 2007 at 2:11 AM |
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Don't forget about some common sense with regards to website usability too. Whether you build it yourself or hire a professional, make sure the website content and design funnels the user through to whatever call of action you want them to perform. Be it pick up the phone and call you, fill out your contact form, click and buy a product, signup for your newsletter, etc. You can have the most gorgeous site online but if it doesn't convert its clicks into cash for you, what good is your pretty site? Usability should be thought about right at the begining of the designing stage. A great book that is simple and quick to read which will teach you the basics of website usability is by Steve Krug called "Don't Make Me Think: A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability" I highly recommend it for anyone to read before they finalize their website design.
Certified Internet Marketing Specialist
Turning Clicks Into Cash For Her Clients!
Founder of the popular, informative, educational & resourceful Virtual Assistant Networking Association (VANA) and Author of The Virtual Business Startup System
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| Jun. 13 2007 at 7:04 AM |
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Webulant: Very Good question.
Nikole: " Hiring a professional isn't about finding someone who can throw stuff on a page better than you can. It's about someone who knows more than you do about online marketing, copywriting, online businesses, user interfaces/experience/flow, online purchasing behavior, SEO, credit card security, technology ... you name it!" GOOD POINT ,
I agree with you Terrance: "The best way to spend your money is find a firm that will give you guidance for free on what to do before you start. "
Tawnya: I agree with you : "You can have the most gorgeous site online but if it doesn't convert its clicks into cash for you, what good is your pretty site? " THAT'S THE MAIN POINT about web sites and online businesses. Isn't?
Edited by: Sylvie - Jun. 13 2007 at 9:46 AM
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| Jun. 13 2007 at 12:27 PM |
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When you ask about web design, are you speaking also of online marketing and promotion?
Mac-Sage "Complete Mac & OS X Consulting" www.mac-sage.com
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| Jun. 13 2007 at 10:44 PM |
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oh how interesting.... an article about do it yourself web design that is sponsored by microsoft office live basics. 
it comes down to "if you don't have the money, you will try to do it yourself". the results will be disasterous. at that point, if you still care, you will turn to a professional to bail you out.
but you still don't have the money. so you will choose the cheapest professional on your bid list. the results will remain disasterous.
you will decide that you don't really need a website, because your website didn't result in any new sales or customers.
you will take that job at Tim Hortons and you still won't have any money ! 
if your core competency is making websites that work, then you will be able to built it yourself and get it to work well enough to support and grow your business.
if you don't have that capacity, (i.e. your business is something other than websites), then outsource it, but make sure you understand what you need, and understand what you are getting.
this is a crapshoot, because most uninformed website customers base their decisions on "visual" appearance, because that is all they know going into the deal ("oh that looks good, I'll choose this designer").
and most website builders play to this mindset, going for the fast easy money and churning out nice looking but shallow websites that don't do anything. since there is always a new customer around the corner, why bother going for quality? go for quantity!
instead you have to put yourself in the shoes of a prospect and try to find a solution to your prospects problem. this includes using search engines to try to find a solution to your problem, and see what sites come up.
next you'll need to review those sites to see how they educate and convert the customer, and determine what will be your competitive advantage so your site will rise above the competition and get more popular links (which raises your position in the search engines)
just the time it takes for you to work with a website professional to have this initial discovery phase will cost you $1,000 easily. if not, then that professional is not experienced enough to know what it takes to do the job right, and you'll get a NO-REVENUE producing website. you'll just have a copycat website, and you'll be competing on price alone, which is disaster on the web (where it is too easy to click away from your site and find someone else)
there is a lot more going on behind the scenes than just building a website. you have to worry about marketing, promotion, link popularity, statistics, maintenance and upkeep. you can't let your site stay the same. you have to add content to it every week, or else the search engines ignore you. if you try to do this all by yourself, then you're losing your focus on your core business.
if you are smart, you'll quickly realize that this takes time away from your main business activity. it is much better sense to outsource to the right professional than to try to do it yourself.
but finding the right professional is still a crapshoot.
jeez i think i just wrote a freekin book !
Edited by: SteveWasiura - Jun. 13 2007 at 10:45 PM
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| Jun. 14 2007 at 7:16 AM |
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SteveWasiura,
thanks a lot for posting - mostly i just wanted you to know we have
high standards and believe it's better to keep the barriers to content
reduced ("free to use") while keeping the lights on with ad/sponsorship
revenue.
sorry that you don't like our model of providing free content - as i'm sure you know, the only way we can do it is through the support of sponsors and advertisers.
just so you know, we have very high editorial standards and in any cases where there's a plug or reference to a sponsor/advertiser of StartupNation, we ALWAYS call that out.
this content was created independently of Microsoft Office Live and if you listen to this week's podcast with their US head of marketing, you'll hear that he actually advises certain people to not use template solutions.
Rich Sloan
Co-Founder, Chief Startupologist,
StartupNation
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| Oct. 25 2007 at 4:27 PM |
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It seems to me that all these sites are popping up with the idea that they are going to make millions from their unique and original idea just by having a website.
It is not going to happen. There are thousands of people doing the same thing you want to do already. The only way to compete is to separate yourself from the pack somehow.
This comes in many forms. Marketing, web design, conversion tracking, among others.
The problem comes when people decide they can throw together a site themselves. Or even worse when they chose a "professional" who is buying templates from third parties such as templatemonster.com and then editing them and making a killing from a $65 template calling it a custom solution.
If you don't know anything about web design, look around. Compare the portfolios of the professionals you are considering. Look at what they can do and try to envision what they would produce for you.
Ask them questions about their design decisions and see if they can answer you logically. Look carefully at the entire site, not just the front page or the banners. If the site is not one cohesive living thing, it is not a quality website.
There is so much bad design out there that people are selling for extremely cheap. The problem is that a lot of small businesses spend their budgets unwisely and as such often times skimp in areas that have the most effect on their success. Design is one of these areas.
Not only in web design, but in branding as well. If you start a company and it looks like you designed the logo and the site yourself, is anyone going to respect your business?
On the internet you need to earn trust before you can make a sale. If your site looks bad and the navigation is confusing and it is hard to find content and products, is the visitor going to turn into a customer? Probably not. Because as stated earlier, there are a thousand other sites which are doing it.
I am not making this post because I am trying to sell my services.
I am making this post because I am trying to help people who are not seeing design for what it is worth.
Let me leave you with this task... Go check out the website or logo from any of the huge powerhouses in business. Does their site look unprofessional? Does it look like the neighbor's kid did it after school?
Design is important. Don't over look it. Spend the time and money to get it professionally done.
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| Nov. 14 2007 at 11:13 AM |
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To answer Sylvie, I believe that is part of what your website should do for you. It should also build credibility around your business and encourage your current customers to continue doing business with you.
Your website is both a prospecting tool and a retention tool.
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