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Basic Web Site Guide

Assemble previous advertising and materials. This may include brochures, flyers and logos, even your business and marketing plans. The more the better. You can always eliminate what you don't want. Electronic media you have on a computer is the best, but not everything may be available electronically. Having all this in one place helps paint a clearer picture of what you are trying to accomplish. Remember you know your clients better than anyone. So you may have unique approaches that have worked or you think would work. You want your site to be a reflection of your business.

Make notes about ideas you have. Write these down with goals for your website. Keep it simple at first; one or two. Of course, write down all your questions before you forget them. With these things assembled you can begin to see how they can work with the basic descriptions below to create your web site . Keep in mind these are just basic structural guides. Looking at other sites to inform yourself is extremely helpful. Remember, which ones are organized and consistent. The more specific you can be, the happier you will probably be. After all if you don't know what you want, how will you know if you get it?

Once you are focused then you can go to a professional and begin having your site made. If you have lots of time you can opt to do it yourself. However, many people find this task to become very time consuming and frustrating depending on the nature of the site. You can do some things yourself and have someone else do other things for you. Time and money can be wasted over inexperience and trial and error. At the very least make sure what you end up with is professional and clear.

Basic Web Page Descriptions

Home/Main - Home page is focused on what you do and information you want people to know about first. What sets you apart etc. From there people can follow other links to content they can look at.

About - This page is where you put your mission statement or philosophy.

Contact - You can put your contact information here.

Services/Products - This is where you show off your products and services. This could end up being more than one page. Possibly a catalog. However, navigation becomes especially important here.

Feedback or Order Form - People can contact you here through a form for more information, to order something or request an appointment. The main idea is that you want them to contact you if they are interested.

Content Area - This can be relevant information related to what product or services you offer. You can also have content from affiliates or partners.

Links - This can be a seperate page with affiliates or pertinent links. Keep it focused and watch with whom you link. You may also want to have a knowledgebase or FAQ section for customers with questions that are asked often.