Building
a website can be very complex and is often difficult to know
where to start. First things first, you will need a domain...you
may use the domain search above to get an idea of whats available,
courtesy of 1and1 web hosting. Pick a domain that is specific to
your work at home business...we will explain why a little later.
In this section we would like to discuss everything you should
consider before beginning to build your website...
Image 
Choose
an appropriate web design to suit your company image. Consider
style, colour, shape and navigation suitability...there's no
need for a state of the art website for a simple home business
(unless you are particularly ambitious). Keep it clear and
simple...with a navigation structure that is easy to follow.
There are many websites offering free templates if you are
planning on editing your site in a program such as
Dreamweaver or coffeecup...equally, there are many companies
offering website design packages as part of your domain or
hosting
package.
Don't be scared to shop around to find the right image that
suits you, your business and your technical abilty...
Branding Keep
it fresh and consistent, pick a logo and stick with it!
Navigation Make
a list of everything you wish to cover and group them into
categories. From here, you can plot a family tree of your web
pages with your homepage at the peak. This will help you structure
your site in the best way possible. Again, as stated in the
"image" section...keep navigation logical and stick
to menu's either at the top or side of the page...it's what
people expect
to see!
Content Spend
some time here before you get creative on your site.
Fully research your business niche and even make a diary of
everything
you wish to cover. Your content is the foundation of your business,
it will be what keeps people on your website, it will give
you credibility and very importantly...it is a major factor
in Search Engine rankings. Keep your content niche specific,
relative and consistent. Visit our SEO section for more information
on this topic.
Links
& Promotion Consider
what and where you would like to link to...and equally where
you would like links from! Give people a chance to keep in
touch with RSS feeds, Newsletters, even Social Networking
sites...and also link to relevant and informative websites.
You
should
think about
internal
links
which you may incorporate
into your "Navigation" model and family tree.
Monetization This
is simply how you intend to generate revenue from your site,
be it selling products via your own online store, promoting
your ebay page, or maybe your valuable advertising space and
affiliate links? You can build this into your family tree and
it should be a point of reference throughout building your
site. Leave room for expansion as your business grows!
"The
above tips cover all the basics you will need to get started."
If
you are new to website building, you may wish to consider 3rd
party companies to build one for you. If you are on a budget
and wish to do it yourself...website building software can
be very useful, cost effective and faster than designing one
from scratch!
Companies
such as 1and1 and many others available from a quick
search
offer very useful packages ~ domains, hosting, website software,
shopping carts, payment processing and promotional activity.
Having everything in one place can sometimes make the process
much easier.
For
a more detailed insight, you may find our Website and SEO
section useful...preparation
is the key to a successful business! Search Engine Optimization
(SEO) is very important, but easy when you know how...
View
- Download - or Print the QUICK GUIDE addition
to this page here...it's FREE!
We
look forward to working with you...
read more 
Bookmark(ctrl
+ d) 
RSS Twitter MySpace Facebook Newsletter
