Designing Your Website

If you have decided to include a website in your online marketing strategy, you have made an excellent choice! There is no shortage of options. You can: 

• Design the Website Yourself - You may have web design skills and this is a no-brainer for you. You will just design the site yourself using web design software (typically Adobe's Photoshop and Dreamweaver or several other web design programs) or maybe even a content management system. This is right up your alley!

• Hire a Website Designer (through a referral) - Either you do not have the website design skills or the time and you would rather hire someone to design the site for you. If you do not have a designer in mind, chances are good that if you ask around, you can probably find a web designer right in your own backyard. Many web designers receive a large portion of their business through referrals so if you ask around in your community, you will more than likely find a designer that can provide the type of service you are seeking. Every web designer should have a website that will provide a portfolio of their work - sites they have designed. Check out their work.

• Find a Web Designer Online - There are many web design companies out there. Just do a quick Google search and hundreds will appear. But as with any business - especially online, be careful who you give your money to. Just because a company has a beautiful website with all the bells and whistles does not mean that you will be happy with their work or worse - that you will not be scammed. Do your research. Take a look at their portfolio and call the businesses that have hired them. Go to several websites that they have designed and go to the contact page of that site and ask to speak with the owner or the person in charge of the website or marketing decision making. Ask how their experience was with the company and would they recommend them. Don't feel bad about doing this. You are trying to make sure you are dealing with a legitimate company and that the clients were satisfied. I don't mean to harp on this but I really do not want to see anyone taken advantage of so it's always better to be safe than sorry.

• Buy a Template - There are many template options online. If you do a quick Google search, you will find many companies selling professional website templates that you can purchase for under $100.00 or much more. The caveat with templates is that there is usually some customization that will be necessary to make the template specific to your business, such as adding your logo, adding or swapping images, changing menus, etc. Many times, people buy a template and then are at a loss of what to do next. Most template companies will provide some instruction, but from my experience, some companies are better at this than others. Before buying a template, it might be a good idea to contact their customer service to find out all the work that is necessary.

• Buy a "Free" Website - I have the word "free" in quotes because there are some companies that advertise free websites but they may charge you for hosting the website. You may also see advertisements for companies that will offer you a website for a very low cost. It might all sound well and good but the moment you want any type of customization, you are hit with the REAL cost. I wont mention any names, but there are a few companies on television currently offering these low introductory rates but when you check out the website and do a little exploring...it's not so inexpensive anymore.

When it comes to creating a website, some people know exactly what they want. As a web designer, I have worked with clients who are very detail - oriented and they are involved with every step of the design process. Then there are others who aren't really concerned with the details. They will pretty much leave it up to the designer. They just want something that "looks nice." Whether you fall into one of these categories or somewhere in between, what you might want to do is a little web surfing. Find maybe 2 to 3 websites that you really like that can serve as inspiration for the site that you are seeking. Providing this information to a designer can help both of you in getting on the same page a little quicker. Notice the color scheme, the navigation, animation, ads, etc. This will help you as well if you are designing your site for the first time. Having a concept in mind or a source of inspiration can be very helpful.

If you are working with a designer, he or she may review their design process or work flow with you. I said "may" because not all web designers work this way. The more established web designers (size of company does not always matter), tend to have processes that they follow from start to finish to complete the project. Some designers who are just starting out or who have small shops may not yet have a consistent process in place. This is not a bad thing. I speak from experience because when I first started working with clients, I was developing my processes as I went along but I got the work done - and I made sure that my clients were happy.

Every company is different in how they manage the web development process. The process is usually divided into cycles - sales, design, development (if there is database work to be done or CMS) and content development. You may be assigned a project manager that will work with you or if you choose a smaller company, the owner may wear all of the hats. What is important is that you are kept in the loop with the design process. There should be a phase of the cycle where you are shown a prototype or mock up - a still version of what the site will look like based on the needs assessment that you had with possibly the designer. Usually there are two options that are designed and you choose the best of the two. You sign off on this so that you know that the end product - your website will look pretty similar to the mock-up. There should be no big "gotchas" when the final website is complete.

Personally I think the best way to find a designer is to check out the websites of the people in your community that you do business with. What about your nail salon, real estate agent, insurance company, your church? Check our their sites and if you like what you see, ask what company they worked with and how the experience was. Chances are if you are very impressed with their site and the client was happy with the web designer's level of service, you probably will be also.

Good Luck!