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How can I make sure my web site is better than my competitors? I've never been involved in building a web site before. How does the process work? What are all the costs involved in having a web site? How do I know if I have a poorly designed web site?
Why do I need a web site? If you've been alive for the past 5-10 years you have most certainly heard of the Internet. Its boom has come and gone but one thing is for certain...it is here to stay. It's changed the way we communicate on a daily basis. And this is especially true for businesses. You don't have to be an online store to leverage the power of the Internet. What we have seen is that the most successful businesses have learned to compliment their traditional brick and mortar stores with an online presence. To be available 24 hours a day and meeting customers demands is the opportunity that the Internet brings. Most small businesses are not aware of how to leverage a web site to increase sales, lower costs, drive branding and just make it easier for your customers to do business with you. A web site can be so much more than an online brochure. It can be an integrated tool that works hand in hand with your business. You can use it for selling products, online scheduling, collecting information, notifying customers or even internal business processes. There are infinite ways you can make a web site a key component of your business. The fact is that more and more customers want to do business with you through a web site. They want to do business on their time. Customers are making choices based on your web site compared to your competitors. There is no question that you should have a web site. In today's world, you'll need a web site just to get in the game. The more important question is where do you turn to build a web site that knows how to make it a successful and effective part of your business. Contact Jb3 designs to explore the possibilities for your business. Why do I need a professional to design my web site? I have FrontPage on my computer and I can just do it myself. Your web site will be a direct reflection of the quality of your business. If a customer's first contact with your business is your web site, you want to make every impression that you are a qualified professional. Just like in the real world, first impressions are hard to change. Actually it's better to have no web site at all than to have a site poorly designed by an amateur. Bad typography, poor graphic quality, misleading navigation and a confusing message are sure to drive customers away. After all, there are many more businesses just like you a few clicks away. So you can put on your tool belt and grab your hammer and saw, but all the tools in the world won't make you a master carpenter. There is just no replacement for skilled craftsmanship and experience by a professional. How can I make sure my web site is better than my competitors? Imagine you are about to buy something on the web. You have narrowed it down to 2 sites that offer the same price. One site has a professional appearance and all the information seems to be straight forward and easy to follow. The other site looks professional as well but they have limited information about the product and you get frustrated and sometimes confused when navigating the site. Which site are you going to trust with your credit card number? In a nutshell, the difference between the sites is usability. There are lots of standards on the web pertaining to usability. These standards are promoted by usability experts like Jakob Nielsen and Steve Krug. Jb3 designs builds all of our web sites according to theses standards. Do you know where logos should typically be placed and why? Do you know what standard links should be on every page? Do you know why your home page should look different from other pages in your site? Do you know where and why you should use Flash in your site? Do you know how to make sure your site works the same in all browsers at different resolutions? We do... I've never been involved in building a web site before. How does the process work? Designing a site is very time intensive. A professional can streamline the process and let you know what will happen and when. A professional designer can't begin any work until they have several things from you. Some examples include the purpose of your site, what makes your business unique, the text for all the pages, any concepts you want to portray and what photos or images you want to use. The first step is to create an image of what your interface might look like. You and the designer can work back and forth to refine it. Once you approve, the designer will make this image into a working prototype that you can navigate in a browser. You need to review the site from your customer's perspective to make sure you are showing the right information. The designer's job is to present that information in an intuitive way while making it attractive and complying with usability standards. Your content should drive the way the site should look...not vice versa. Depending on how many changes you inject into the process, this could last from 2 weeks to several months. Once you are satisfied with the mockup site, the designer will move it to a hosting server where you can access it by typing in a domain name (www.yourdomain.com). What are all the costs involved in having a web site? There are 3 main things that you'll be financially responsible for when deciding to maintain a web site. The first is a domain name. You actually lease, not own, domain names for a minimum of a year at a time. You can prepay to have it longer. The cost for a domain name averages about $20 per year. Jb3 designs can register your domain name for you. The 2nd thing you will pay for is the design of your site. The cost will vary depending on the size and functionality of your site. Just like buying a car, you can go with the standard package, or add more options. Whatever options you choose, Jb3 designs will build the same visual quality into the site. You will get a top quality site no matter if it's one page or 100 pages. If your site information will need to change frequently, and in most cases it should, you will need a maintenance plan. Lastly you will be responsible for the hosting. Your site will need to be placed on a server that will respond when someone requests pages from your site in a browser. Hosting companies exist for the sole purpose of hosting your site. You will pay them on a monthly or yearly basis. Jb3 designs can find the right hosting for your site. Hosting costs can vary depending on your site needs. Usual costs range from $25 per month and up. You can usually get a cheaper rate by prepaying a year in advance. How do I know if I have a poorly designed web site? A poorly designed web site can actually turn customers away. Here are a few tips to help you recognize if your site is due for a redesign.
If possible, try asking one of your customers or a friend what they think of your web site. Ask specific questions about what they liked or didn't like about it. Almost always you will find something that you can improve. Often times, it might be best just to start over with a fresh new design.
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