Website Quick- Start Guide

Web Site Quick-Start Guide

There are plenty of advantages to building your own business Web site. You can save money, get your site up more quickly and even have some fun along the way. Building a Web site requires a bit of knowledge, and if you need a more complex site, such as an online store, you should probably work with a professional. But if you're willing to do it yourself, here's how to get started.

• Create a plan. Think about the types of information and services you want on your Web site. Do you want to publish just your address, phone number and business hours? Do you want to give your customers a way to email you directly from your site? Do you want to list your company's products and services?

• Outline your site. Design your site the old-fashioned way — with pencil and paper. Start with your site's home page and then decide how many additional pages you need and what types of information to include on them. When you're done, your diagram should look like a pyramid, with each level of pages providing more specific information. Remember, less is usually more when you're getting started. You can always go back and expand your site later.

• Build the pages. If you're building your own site, you should know that Web pages are created in HTML — hypertext markup language. Basic HTML is easy to learn; you can teach yourself using a book or a Web site. You can also buy a Web authoring tool that allows you to build pages without actually working with HTML.

• Add the links. Hyperlinks hold your Web site together, allowing visitors to move from one page to another. You can also include links to other Web sites. Be sure to design your links so people can navigate your site without getting lost. You should always give people an easy way to go back the way they came.

• Add images. You'll probably want to spice up your site with images and other graphics. As a rule, a few images go a long way; add too many and your site will look ugly and cluttered. Your images shouldn't be so large that people downloading them will get frustrated and leave your site. Working with graphics might require special software, although a number of free and low-cost graphics applications are available. As an alternative, you can hire a graphic designer to make your pictures Web-ready.

• Maintain your site. Your site might be published, but you're not done yet! Nothing looks worse than an old, outdated Web site. Be sure to update your site regularly to include recent news and announcements. Also remember to proofread your site carefully; misspelled words on your Web site make your business look unprofessional.

Foolproof Web Design

You don't have to be a master programmer or have a computer science background to build great-looking Web pages. In fact, the most important consideration is your users. If you can build Web pages that are attractive, easy to navigate and provide value, your users will return again and again.

Designing Web Pages
The natural tendency of beginning designers is to clutter their pages with too much text and too many graphics. Leave ample white space — the space on the page without text or graphics — and your Web pages will be attractive and easy to read.

One of the benefits of the Web is that, unlike in print, there are no space constraints. Take advantage of this: Rather than cramming all your company's information on one overwhelmingly long page, spread that content over three or four pages. Plan these pages out carefully and group similar things together so users can find what they're looking for. For example, put your company's contact information in the same area as directions to your office rather than mix it in with descriptions of your products or services.

Another way to improve the look and feel of your Web pages is to "borrow" concepts from professional designers. If you see a particularly great-looking page, try to emulate it. For example, you can adapt tables, images and even entire page designs to suit your tastes.

All Web browsers allow you to view the source code of any Web page. (See your browser's Help section for specific instructions on the View Source command.) Viewing source is a great way to figure out how to achieve a particular effect you saw on someone else's site.

Testing Your Site
Implementing simple user testing can make your site immeasurably better. It can help you troubleshoot existing problems and uncover problems you didn't know you had.

The phrase "user testing" usually conjures up scenes of cameras, conference rooms and two-way mirrors. But simple user testing requires nothing more than a computer and a few willing volunteers. They should be people who haven't been directly involved with the creation of the site and, if possible, should have varying degrees of Internet experience.

Have your test subjects navigate through your Web site and provide you with feedback on all aspects of the site. Remember that all feedback is valid, and try not to take any comments personally. The goal of user testing is to give you insight into how real-world users will interact with your site. Something on your site might be perfectly obvious to you, but if one (or more) of your test subjects has trouble with it, take it back to the drawing board.

Be sure to test your site on all major browsers. Each browser version has its particular quirks, which can make Web pages appear slightly (or sometimes radically) different. To be safe, design your Web pages to render correctly on version 4 browsers and above from Netscape and Microsoft.

Quality Control
If making pages look too "busy" is the most common mistake of novice Web builders, paying too little attention to quality control is a close second. The content on Web sites — the actual words on the pages — is often given short shrift or neglected completely. Big mistake.

Apart from the overall layout of your pages, the words on the pages are the first impression you give your customers. Nothing says "amateur hour" like a site laden with misspellings and broken links. Take the extra time to proofread your content and check all the links to make sure they work.

In the end, it's important to remember that your Web site is a work in progress. If you don't like the results of your first design attempt, you can revise or redesign your site. Typos and dead links can be fixed in minutes. And as the Internet and browser technology develop, you'll probably want to integrate new bells and whistles into your site. The dynamic nature of the World Wide Web (and no small amount of elbow grease) can make it all possible.


	Web Site Quick-Start Guide There are plenty of advantages to building your own business Web site. You can save money, get your site up more quickly and even have some fun along the way. Building a Web site requires a bit of knowledge, and if you need a more complex site, such as an online store, you should probably work with a professional. But if you're willing to do it yourself, here's how to get started. • Create a plan. Think about the types of information and services you want on your Web site. Do you want to publish just your address, phone number and business hours? Do you want to give your customers a way to email you directly from your site? Do you want to list your company's products and services? • Outline your site. Design your site the old-fashioned way — with pencil and paper. Start with your site's home page and then decide how many additional pages you need and what types of information to include on them. When you're done, your diagram should look like a pyramid, with each level of pages providing more specific information. Remember, less is usually more when you're getting started. You can always go back and expand your site later. • Build the pages. If you're building your own site, you should know that Web pages are created in HTML — hypertext markup language. Basic HTML is easy to learn; you can teach yourself using a book or a Web site. You can also buy a Web authoring tool that allows you to build pages without actually working with HTML. • Add the links. Hyperlinks hold your Web site together, allowing visitors to move from one page to another. You can also include links to other Web sites. Be sure to design your links so people can navigate your site without getting lost. You should always give people an easy way to go back the way they came. • Add images. You'll probably want to spice up your site with images and other graphics. As a rule, a few images go a long way; add too many and your site will look ugly and cluttered. Your images shouldn't be so large that people downloading them will get frustrated and leave your site. Working with graphics might require special software, although a number of free and low-cost graphics applications are available. As an alternative, you can hire a graphic designer to make your pictures Web-ready. • Maintain your site. Your site might be published, but you're not done yet! Nothing looks worse than an old, outdated Web site. Be sure to update your site regularly to include recent news and announcements. Also remember to proofread your site carefully; misspelled words on your Web site make your business look unprofessional. Foolproof Web Design You don't have to be a master programmer or have a computer science background to build great-looking Web pages. In fact, the most important consideration is your users. If you can build Web pages that are attractive, easy to navigate and provide value, your users will return again and again. Designing Web Pages The natural tendency of beginning designers is to clutter their pages with too much text and too many graphics. Leave ample white space — the space on the page without text or graphics — and your Web pages will be attractive and easy to read. One of the benefits of the Web is that, unlike in print, there are no space constraints. Take advantage of this: Rather than cramming all your company's information on one overwhelmingly long page, spread that content over three or four pages. Plan these pages out carefully and group similar things together so users can find what they're looking for. For example, put your company's contact information in the same area as directions to your office rather than mix it in with descriptions of your products or services. Another way to improve the look and feel of your Web pages is to "borrow" concepts from professional designers. If you see a particularly great-looking page, try to emulate it. For example, you can adapt tables, images and even entire page designs to suit your tastes. All Web browsers allow you to view the source code of any Web page. (See your browser's Help section for specific instructions on the View Source command.) Viewing source is a great way to figure out how to achieve a particular effect you saw on someone else's site. Testing Your Site Implementing simple user testing can make your site immeasurably better. It can help you troubleshoot existing problems and uncover problems you didn't know you had. The phrase "user testing" usually conjures up scenes of cameras, conference rooms and two-way mirrors. But simple user testing requires nothing more than a computer and a few willing volunteers. They should be people who haven't been directly involved with the creation of the site and, if possible, should have varying degrees of Internet experience. Have your test subjects navigate through your Web site and provide you with feedback on all aspects of the site. Remember that all feedback is valid, and try not to take any comments personally. The goal of user testing is to give you insight into how real-world users will interact with your site. Something on your site might be perfectly obvious to you, but if one (or more) of your test subjects has trouble with it, take it back to the drawing board. Be sure to test your site on all major browsers. Each browser version has its particular quirks, which can make Web pages appear slightly (or sometimes radically) different. To be safe, design your Web pages to render correctly on version 4 browsers and above from Netscape and Microsoft. Quality Control If making pages look too "busy" is the most common mistake of novice Web builders, paying too little attention to quality control is a close second. The content on Web sites — the actual words on the pages — is often given short shrift or neglected completely. Big mistake. Apart from the overall layout of your pages, the words on the pages are the first impression you give your customers. Nothing says "amateur hour" like a site laden with misspellings and broken links. Take the extra time to proofread your content and check all the links to make sure they work. In the end, it's important to remember that your Web site is a work in progress. If you don't like the results of your first design attempt, you can revise or redesign your site. Typos and dead links can be fixed in minutes. And as the Internet and browser technology develop, you'll probably want to integrate new bells and whistles into your site. The dynamic nature of the World Wide Web (and no small amount of elbow grease) can make it all possible.


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