Creating Your Internet Website
Some Thoughts...
This is where you gain your customers confidence…
This is a very critical area and should not be taken lightly. It starts with your webhost, domain name, the structure, the headlines, sub-headlines, font, tables, images, and works right on down through all your webpages. This is where you get a very small amount of time to capture your visitors interest; so they will stay on your website.
There are more suggestions on how to accomplish this than you can count. I suggest you study some other successful sites and incorporate any or all positive aspects you find. Some things make sense, the main thing you want to accomplish is making it as easy for your customer as possible.
There are trade offs and its just something you will have to work with until you find what works best and gets the maximum conversion rates. It's not a one size fits all situation, what works good for one thing, won't necessarily work for something else. There are several ebooks and some tutorials available on the internet, but there is also a lot of discussion about what is best.
Create Website:
Unless you plan on setting up your own server, you will need to find a web host. There are hundreds of them on the net. Many offer package deals. Some have templates for your web page and you just fill in the blanks. This kind of depends on your expertise. I believe most beginners start with a hosting service that provides templates and charges a monthly, or longer fee. There is a lot of competition in this area; so you just need to look for the best deal and support. Determine your requirements and look for a service that has been around for sometime.
If you are proficient with HTML (hypertext markup language) and FTP (File Transfer Protocol), or have applications for developing web Pages. You may get by without templates and the other user friendly type hosting. You may be able to develop your own web pages. Today, you also need to understand several other programming languages and scripts for maximum capability of web pages. I use a simple hosting service; because I’m not proficient in the various languages.
You can also set up your own server; if you understand the intricate details of getting it set up, and loaded to perform the various functions required. I can’t get into this because I am afraid its way over my head. So I will only deal with the simple way and finding a hosting service.
Determine, what you need to accomplish with your website.
Check out the webhosting service:
- Check that the host isn't on some 'blacklists'.
Some sites have been in trouble and can cause some BIG problems. - Find out about uptime, or downtime, as that is what will impact you.
A good site will be nealy 100% uptime I usually see between 99.8% and 100%. - Check about storage space, where you will keep your web pages. How much additional cost if you exceed limit.
There are a lot of factors to consider here, size of your website, number of pages, images, etc... - Ask about bandwidth available, this can impact traffic and download costs.
It is impacted by several factors, number pages read, traffic, uploads/downloads, it all eats up bandwidth. - Ask about support, everyone seems to have there little quirks. Support can be a very big issue. Probably should be 24/7 if at all possible and knowledgeable operators on duty.
Check about email, web mail, auto responder, list capability, PHP, CGI, and anything else you may want to accomplish with your website.
Compare various providers; ask questions, you need to feel comfortable with whomever you choose. It doesn't hurt to ask for opinions at various forumsor of other users.
Be aware, some host providers are on forums and will point you in their own direction. You will have to make the decision based upon your best judgment. Some hosting services offer free Domain Names and that is something that needs to be taken care of along with finding your hosting service. If your hosting service doesn’t provide you with a domain name; you will need to find someone that provides that service.
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