Creating a Website For Your Company, Part 3: Can I Build My Own Website?

This month we’re interviewing Hannah Evans, freelance web designer and contributor to last month’s article. 

Hannah, I know you do web design, so give us a little advice:  When is it appropriate for a business owner to design their own website?

Most websites are designed by using advanced programs such as Adobe Photoshop and Dreamweaver, or Microsoft FrontPage. If you have a good handle on how design, html, and css works, than you can handle designing your own website–but most people leave that to the experts.

(Note:  if you are still interested in designing your site from scratch, check out the article, “Introduction to Web Design.”)

You can also purchase website templates (both html and flash) online, but again – you will either need to know how to make personalized edits yourself, or hire someone to help you out.  Some web services can help you set up your site completely online without outside help.

Ok, well, assuming I don’t want to learn advanced web design, and just want to use a web service, first, how do I find one?

There are both free and paid web building services online. The difference will be in how many extra features are made available for your use. For example, Google Web Page Creator is free and functions well for posting a clean site that is information heavy, but isn’t very visually interesting.  Network Solutions is a monthly paid service that offers a variety of stylish layouts and more advanced features. Do a basic web search for “website builder” and decide which builder works best for your current needs.

So if I decide to go ahead with using a web building service, will I get a decent value?  Or will I be just wasting my money?

If you’re worried about your budget at this point, try a free website builder to at least get your business name out in the web world. Start small and build up gradually as you discover how useful your web presence is.  Consider your audience – if most of your potential customers are web savvy, you may want to spend some money to create a relevant and stylish site.  If you just want basic contact information accessible, a free site may be a better option.

Thanks again, Hannah, for getting us starting in designing our own website.  For more information about getting your business on the web, the BIC website has a number of articles on Building and Running a Website.  

Sue A. Evans

Creating a Website for Your Company, Part 2: Website Planning for a Site that Sizzles

Well, if last month’s article convinced you to build a website for your company, this month’s article is going to get you started!  Building a quality website that represents your business well takes thought and planning.  Hannah Evans, a freelance web designer, has a few suggestions:

 Before you meet with a web designer, think about the following:

•  Who are you trying to reach: young or old, businesses or consumers, etc.
• How much do you want to spend?
• What do you need your website to do?  Does it need to simply convey information, or are you looking to build an on-line store?
• What is the “culture” of your business, and how can the graphics on the web page represent that?

When you’ve answered these questions, get online and look at a number of websites in your industry.  Make a note (copying the URL of the site) of things you like and don’t like about those sites.  If you are particularly attracted to a site, what is it that attracts you?  The colors?  The simplicity? The flashy extras?  Be prepared to pass this information on to your web designer.

Finally, decide on a timeline for completion of the site.  Is there an event that will require the site to be finished by a certain time?  If not, then realize a single page can be online in as little as a week, but a multi-layer website with purchasing capabilities can take months.  Likewise, a simple one-page site can cost a few hundred dollars or less; a complicated site can cost thousands.   Know your timeline and check some prices before you make unreasonable demands of your web designer! 

 I hope Hannah’s advice will get you on the right track.  Next month:  “Can I build my own website?”

Sue A. Evans