How do you get started with designing a new site?
To start the process, you should first consider writing down the purpose of your site, the goal. Think about what you want to say and display on your site, the theme. Do not worry about graphics, pictures, colors, or the exact layout at this point.
- Purpose of the site?
- Who are you trying to reach?
- Will you be presenting information only, or asking for input from users?
- How often will you be adding or updating information on the site?
If you have never had a website before, and have no idea what you want on it, browse through other sites on the internet of a subject similar to what you will want, and make a note of the website address. For each site, note what you like and dislike about the site (features, layout, information, etc). This will be very helpful in planning your own site, or in giving information over to any site developer.
Static or Dynamic Website?
The type of site really depends on your needs or business. A static site is fine in some cases, but if you desire to offer more value to visitors, and allow for interaction, a dynamic site may fit better to your needs. Our Content Management System is a truly dynamic site, and in most cases, it may be more cost effective to consider this application instead of a static / html website. For information about our Content Management Systems, please click here.
A few key points to consider when launching a website.
Maintaining fresh content is critical! If you are building a site where you hope to increase traffic over time, and expect to have visitors bookmark and return to your site, the content and the freshness of the content is extremely important. There is nothing worse than visiting a site that has old, dated information.
A web site killer is having old out dated content such as an announcement of an event where the date is already past, or you have price information that is out of date, or worse yet.... when you have sections on the site that say "coming soon", but it is obvious that the site had not been maintained in weeks, months, or even years. With out dated content, visitor will not return, and your site will die. With our systems, you can set expiration dates on content, so it automatically hides, such as when a special event was to be held on a specific date.
Consider this when planning for your new site. Will you have date sensitive information on the site, and if so, will you maintain the information yourself, or will you want someone to maintain the data for you. Keeping your site continuously fresh and up to date with valuable information is a major factor in increasing site traffic over time.