Building a website: things to know before you start


Building a website: things to know before you start

So youve started your own business. Now you need to get the word out. Social media is easy enough to set up, but what about the website? Ah. Most of us dont have the skills to do this ourselves, and paying a designer means relinquishing control on some level. Then there is the cost to factor in, and the never-ending maintenance fees to keep it up-to-date. And what about search engine ranking? Clearly there are some things you should know before you pick a designer or learn how to design a site yourself.

Forewarned is forearmed

The hallmarks of a good website include an easy-to-remember address, a clean design that is easy to navigate, a page that looks good on both mobile phones and 21-inch monitors, and loads quickly. Lets face facts: nobody wants to wait 60 seconds for your logo to download. Optimise your code and images, and test it with diagnostics software. Also, you should be easy to find (because whats the point if your customers cant find you?). Search engine optimization (SEO) is a highly specialised field and not all web designers know what they are doing here, so make sure you read enough to get a grip on the basics before you start.

Getting started

Before you start, make sure you know what needs to be on your website. Who are you? What are your passions? Core values? Your website is your shopfront.  How clear, professional, and exciting you want to come across is ultimately your decision, so choose wisely. 

Valued customers

Who is your target market? Your content should be based on their preferences. For example, men and women under 30 spend the majority of their screen time watching YouTube videos. So, if they are your target audience, you should include more video content than written content.

Also, think about how you want people to move through your site and what impression you are making. It should be clear what your business is about, and easy to spend money. What kind of content will get them to stick around, interact, and spend? 

Objective!

Each page on your website should have a clear objective. Confused or annoyed consumers vote with their feet, or in this case with their back button. Each page should help your customer find what they need and make it easy for them to spend money.

All systems go

How accessible your website is to use will directly influence how people view your business. If your website is poorly organized or chaotic, you will lose customers. Make sure you come across as professional, approachable, and responsive.

Before launching, take the time to test your website. Make it your business to know what difficulties your customers will have, and what does and doesnt work. You dont want to lose customers for something so easily preventable.

The host with the most

Some hosts are better for things like blogging, others are better for e-commerce or database management. Make sure you do your research on this one. Read as many reviews on web hosting companies as possible and find the one that suits you best.

Analytics

Free services such as Google Analytics provide a way for you to know what links your customers click on the most, where your traffic comes from, and how long customers spend on your website. This can help you to learn better ways to target your desired audience, and to improve your website for your customers´ needs. 

Bootstrap

If you decide to do your own website, forget everything you know about web design and check out Bootstrap. It is one of the easiest ways to start a website for those of you with a working knowledge of XHTML and CSS. And it is beautifully coded, light, fast, and one of the best solutions out there. It will look great on every device. And its free.