MAKE THE WEB WORK In association with Fireball Media

Orla O'Leary Sales & Marketing Director, Fireball Media

Building a web site that meets your budget and business requirements can be achieved, writes Orla O’Leary

The continual expansion of the Internet has brought us a whole new world of global markets. This means every one wants to have their web presence, but what steps do you need to follow to make sure that your website improves your business, maximizes your available resources and works well for you?

Research

When you have decided that your company will benefit from having a web presence, you must first do some research. Before even making a phone call, be sure that you have in mind what you are trying to accomplish with your future site.

What’s my business? Here’s where you will want to review your business vision and mission. If you haven’t done so recently, now is the ideal time. Who’s my target market? The more narrowly you can define your market, the better. Are they individuals or businesses? Is location important? Age? Gender? Education? How will I find my target market on the Web? Once you know whom you’re targeting, how are you going to reach them? What content would be attractive to them? What key words would connect your product or service with your target customer?

These are important questions because the more accurate your targeting efforts, the larger base you’ll reach. Seek strategic alliances with others who also target your market for cross referrals. What action do I want visitors to take? The objective is for visitors to request more information, open a line of communication or request services. If you plan to sell products online you want them to buy!

Finally you need to decide how much you have to spend on your site. Decide what you priorities are. You can always start with a small site and build on it as it becomes more popular. It is better to have three or four very good pages than ten mediocre pages. Remember your site is a reflection of your business so budget for marketing. There is no point having a fabulous website if its exdirectory. Once you’ve answered these questions you’ll be able to pass them on to your chosen web designer, which is the next step.

Choosing A Web Designer

This part of the process is very important because web site design is costly and you want to get value for money. Call several companies and compare not only their rates, but also their portfolios. See which company does the work that is closest to what you have in mind for your new site and then talk to some of their references. You have a significant part to play in the design of your web site. Your web site is trying to promote your business, so stay involved. Make sure that your designer knows exactly what you are trying to achieve with the budget you have. Having a timeline for the expansion of your site will help you budget for future additions.

A designer that will suggest cost effective ways to improve and promote your site will be a great help to you. Give your designer the results from your research and business analysis, this will help them understand what you are trying to achieve. Ask questions and anything that you do not understand be sure that they clarify it. You do not want to be left guessing or assuming anything.

Design and Content

Your site needs to catch the attention of your viewers and hold it. Think of your site like a billboard to the world, if it is boring then viewers are not going to explore it, if it is exciting then they will tell others to view it as well. The better the communication between you and your designer, the closer your site will be to what you want. What’s important is that your site looks professional enough to give credibility to your content. Choosing colors and design elements that complement your message will add to the level of trust you instill in your visitors. A designer should always incorporate the branding and logo you already have. To keep your visitors coming back you might want to invest in some additional features. The use of these will depend on your budget.

Discussion boards allow users to discus among themselves and with you, while opinion polls and surveys give you feedback directly from your visitors. Write some specific articles related to your business. If you educate visitors they will remember your site and come back. Above all it adds credibility. Encourage your employees to write for the site and ask visitors to subscribe to your enewsletter. You can advertise your news and new product information with your newsletter.

Most importantly make sure that your site stays up to date. Once you have decided on the initial content, update it regularly to reflect your current events and literature.

Promotion and Marketing

Your web site will be of no use to you if no one can find it. Put your web site address on everything, your letterhead; envelopes; with your signature on emails; business cards; company vehicles. Send an email to all your clients with a link to your site. Set up links and affiliates to drive traffic to your site.

The most important factor is getting your site registered with the main search engines such as Google and Yahoo. Make sure that the keywords you came up with in the research phase are included in your site and that the site headers are relevant to your business. This will ensure that the right people will be able to find your site easily.

STEPS TO A PRODUCTIVE WEBSITE

Establish what you want your website to achieve, find your target audience and decide what action you want them to take when they visit your site Decide on your budget, don’t forget to factor in marketing, hosting and domain registration.     Hire a professional web designer, choose someone that will help you achieve the most     Stay in touch with your web designer, make sure you’re getting what you want and within budget.     Create relevant content for your site, make sure your content is up to date and reflects your business.     If you have an ecommerce site make sure your products and prices are up to date as well as having a secure checkout.     Choose an appropriate domain name one that is easily remembered and stay away from hyphens!     Promote your site. Advertise on print material and signage; register with search engines; pass on your website address to all your contacts.