What do I need to get online?

Where to start?

What do you want your website to do for you?
Not all small business Web sites have the same goal. Whether you simply want to promote the product, or build an active community. Think about what you want to accomplish before you consider anything else.

Domain Name Registration

Next you will need to register a domain name. A domain name is basically your address on the World Wide Web that enables people to find you amongst the enormous multitude of sites. Like a PO box or street address it will direct people to your site. Your domain usually has a similar name to your business so as to reinforce your business to people. For example if your business name was Sass Design your web address would be beneficial to be www.sassdesign.com.au. Another tip is to keep it short. If your business name is really long try something shorter that will stick in people’s minds.

Hosting

As your domain is like an address for people to find you hosting is your block of land where your website sits. This is where I see my clients getting confused and their eyes say ‘not another charge!’. The problem is that you will need reliable and professional hosting for your site, no to ways about it. To get that reliable space for your site to sit, gather client information, traffic information, run scripts and ensure your website . Hosting also, in most instances will manage your emails so you really want to make sure it is a reliable hosting plan that will allow

Writing Content

You will need to supply your designer/ developer with content. This does not have to be pages and pages of text. As a basis, start with main pages such as home page, about us, products/ services and a contact page. This will give someone visiting your site an overview as to who you are, what you are about and how to contact you. If you require additional pages later the one great thing about a a website is that you or your designer can always add to it!

Hire Someone to Design it

Whilst you may not have a huge budget or need a huge and complex site it is best to hire a professional to ensure your website looks professional and is easy to navigate. If you do put a sub-standard or unprofessional looking site online it will reflect poorly on your business as being a trustworthy and professional organisation. You may want to have the ability to edit your site going forward. For this you will need a template designed into a CMS (Content Management System). Ask you designer if they can design a template and some

Promoting your Site

Ok you have a great website but now what? You will need to market your site. Your web address should be included on all Point of Sale material, advertising and press you do. It is again best to hire a professional to target your audience through print and online advertising when you launch your website to ensure you get noticed. SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) is also very important. SEO will help get your page to the top (or as close to it as it can be) of Search engines such as Google, Yahoo and Bing. So when a potential client or customer is searching the web for say the words ‘graphic designer gold coast’ you will come up on the 1st page as we do!

So there you have it everything you need to get you up and running. Here below are some examples of sites we've created.