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Your Business Website v1.0
You have probably thought of a bunch of things you want for your website – or maybe you have no idea what should be on your website. Both of these possibilities could cause your website launch to stall, since not knowing what to put up can cause confusion and procrastination, and having too many things to implement can cause long delays in “going live”.
The first thing you should put up is something! At the very least, as soon as you have your domain name, you should get a basic page with your logo, tagline and basic contact information. If you can, add a sign-up form for your mailing list. As soon as you have anything up at your domain, you can revise your stationery and business cards to include your domain name.
Next, I recommend you clearly prioritize the website items you’d like to have and start with a flexible site structure that can easily grow with the addition of new content and technologies.
What is a “flexible site structure”? First let me tell you what it’s NOT:
- A visual design that makes it difficult or impossible to add new sections to your navigation menu
- An overly “cutesy” naming scheme for pages or a site theme which will tax your creativity every time you want to add an additional page
- Any website which is constructed entirely of images or Flash (without regular text)
- Any website that is constructed in a way that only the original developer can understand and work with
- A website which is not optimized for the search engines
The best website structure for you will be one that accommodates your long-term plans without needing to be completely redesigned and reprogrammed (which can be a tiresome and expensive process) any time you want to add some new content or sections.
I am personally a fan of flexible open-source (aka non-proprietary) content management systems. Generally these systems will allow you to have plenty of control over your site with the ability to easily add new pages, change your visual design without having to redo your current content, and otherwise grow your site with your needs.
Another option is to have a completely static HTML-only website with a simpler design and structure that can be understood and updated by anyone with some basic HTML knowledge.
It’s important to decide on the infrastructure of your website before you start talking to developers, since laying the right foundation up front will reduce problems later.
Next, get your basic content launched. This includes:
- About you/your company
- Services & Products you offer
- Contact Info
- Case studies or customer testimonials
If you can get this basic content online, you will have a very respectable website that will begin to educate your prospects.
Once this is live, you can spend your energies on all the other great stuff you have planned for your site, including frequently updated news, a blog, podcasts, an event calendar, etc.
Web Action Steps:
- Buy a domain name if you don’t have one
- Get a basic placeholder or squeeze page up at your domain
- Decide on what infrastructure you want for your website
- Find a developer to create your site the way you want it
- Draft content for your website’s basic pages:
- About
- Services/Products
- Contact
- Case Studies/Testimonials
- FAQ
- Get your basic site launched (your “version 1.0” site) with this initial content as soon as possible
- Decide on priorities and create a timeline for implementing other features into your website.
Following this order of priority will ensure you get your site launched as quickly as possible, while allowing for continual enhancement. You need to keep in mind that your site will never be “done” – it’s not like a brochure you complete and then print 1000 copies of. A good site will be continually evolving, keeping pace with your company’s development and your prospects’ expectations. If you need help determining how to set up your website for maximum value and minimum hassle, I suggest you contact me for help.