8 WEB DESIGN STEPS
1. Plan Your Website.
- Define the purpose and goals for your business website.
- Define your target audience.
- Analyze your online competition.
2. Select and register your domain name.
A domain name is a unique address on the internet. Examples of famous domain names are 'google.com' or 'amazon.com.' You can host a website and receive email at your domain name.
Guidelines for Selecting a Domain Name:
- Shorter Is Better. Strive for 20 characters or less. The less your customers have to type, the better.
- Avoid Hyphens and Numbers. People may forget to type in the hyphen and numbers are confusing.
- Make it Easy To Spell and Pronounce. If you told someone your domain name over the phone, would they remember how to spell it correctly?
- Add Keywords - Using keywords in your domain name will help your visitors to identify the content on your site, and will increase your ranking with the search engines. Make them specific and descriptive.
- Find an available domain name. We like to use Namecheap.com for this. They have a nice tool to let you see what possible name combinations are available on the web.
3. Gather Content.
All websites are driven by content. It's the content that makes a site effective and successful. It is important to gather images and text to entice visitors to your site and drive them to action.
Identify keyword phrases at this point. There are several tools out there to identify keyword phrases that are relevant to your business. These important keyword phrases will attract visitors and search engines.
4. Design your site for your intended audience.
You're ready to actually start mapping out the major sections of your website. Drawing out quick diagrams is a useful way of doing this. A diagram can easily show the hierarchy of your website and how the various sections are related to each other.
5. Build the web site.
Build fast-loading web pages with clear, consistent navigation.
Be very specific on your home page. Let your viewers know up front your website's main purpose. If a person has to search from page to page just to understand what your website really offers, chances are they will leave your site. Don't keep them second-guessing.
Once you've built the website, you should walk away from it for a day or two. This will allow you to come back and evaluate it with fresh eyes. It might also be a good idea to get someone else to take a look as well.
Before officially launching the site, do a thorough testing of your links, spelling, browser compatibility, and load times.
6. Find a web site host and upload your pages.
You will need server space to store your files and access your site. You can host your site where you keep your domain name or choose someplace different.
7. Point your domain name to the server.
8. Promote your web site.
Testimonial
Em, thank you very much for our fantastic website! Your attention to detail is superb, and your designs of the overall website are more than we could ever dream of!
Marc and I are getting nothing but positive comments from our customers that the website is easy to navigate, along with keeping true to the "NH feel" which is exactly what we were hoping for.
We are both extremely pleased with your constant communication during this entire project along with completing it on the date you said you would.
You're definitely a woman of your word, and a class "A" business owner! Thanks for everything Em!
Warm Regards,
Greg Coulombe, Owner
NH Kitchen & Bath LLC
Manchester,
New Hampshire