Four Easy Steps to Establishing a Website
By Steven
Boaze
Are you ready to establish a web presence for your organization or
business, but overwhelmed by what appears to be a process that is complex
and expensive? Unfortunately, this process does indeed seem confusing,
given the variety of companies selling their services and the inconsistency of pricing from vendor to vendor. But establishing a
web presence can be simplified if you follow these four steps.
1.
Website Name Registration
Choose a name that best represents your
business or organization. while a short, concise name is generally
preferred, sometimes a longer name may be remembered by potential users
and thus be a better choice. For example, www.mooreselectric.com is not
the shortest name possible for the moores electrical construction website,
but it clearly describes the site and is easy for the user to remember.
When selecting names, come up with several alternatives because
your first choice may not be available. Name availability can be checked
quickly at: www.networksolution.com
once at the Network Solutions
website, Click on the "WHOIS" link to see if the name you are interested
in is available. If your first choice isn't available, a number of similar
options will be displayed including those with variety of extensions like
.info, .biz, .org .ws, .cc and .be.
I recommend that you stick
with either a .com, .net and .biz extensions as most other extensions will
not be remembered by your users.
The Cost to purchase a website (
Domain Name) is approximately $20.00 to $35.00 per year. Even if you are
not quite ready to develop a website, you should purchase the Domain Name
you want if it is available since the cost is low and the name may not be
available in the future.
2. Website Design
The cost to
develop a webpage is affected by the amount of content, the complexity of
the site and the web designer you hire. Because of these wide ranging
variables, it is very difficult to estimate what might be considered
reasonable design costs.
However, a simple site that is
essentially an online flier can be created for as little as $500, while a
more complex e-commerce site can easily cost thousands. Don't be afraid to
ask several companies for pricing estimates before making a decision.
In Addition, keep in mind that cost is only one of the many
variables that should be considered.
Shop around for a designer
with whom you are comfortable. If you are unsure whether a website will
help your business, and your budget is limited, start with a simple site
consisting of several pages. This will limit your investment while letting
you get a feel for how this site will enhance your business. You can
always expand your website with additional pages.
Do not allow
yourself to be pushed into starting with an elaborate site if you are not
comfortable with this. Remember, a website should enhance your business
and improve the bottom line like any other investment.
3. Website
Hosting
Your website can be hosted on one of many servers
throughout the country including several local companies. Keep in mind
that the location of your web server is insignificant to the user. Pick a
web host that you feel is both affordable and reliable. A simple website
that is essentially an online brochure should not cost no more than $9.00
per month to host. However, an e-commerce site could cost well over $80.00
per month.
In addition to cost considerations, choose a host that
has a reliable track record. Most hosts will provide data on the
"Down
Time" and you should beware of using any host that is unable or unwilling
to share this information with you.
4. Website Maintenance
Maintenance fees will vary depending on the number and type of
changes you make to the site. Before hiring a web designer, be sure the
maintenance fees are detailed up front. some designers charge a low cost
design fee, but pad their maintenance fees.
Once again a simple
online brochure that does not require many changes
and should have
limited on-going maintenance. Consider having the designer review Your
site quarterly or semi-annually to be sure the site maintains the
appearance initially created.
Following these simple steps will
allow your business or organization to establish a presence on the World
wide Web.
About the author
Steven Boaze (CEO) is
The Owner of The Corporate Headquarters Boaze.com Which houses and
controls two companies (Web Development Technology - www.webdevelopmenttechnology.com ) and (Boaze Publishing -
www.boazepublishing.biz ). Steven is also the author of numerous articles
on Marketing and Advertising published by Boaze Publishing.
Copyright 1998-2003 Boaze.com
A9 Copyright Steven
Boaze
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