ArtsAutosBooksBusinessEducationEntertainmentFamilyFashionFoodGamesGenderHealthHolidaysHomeHubPagesPersonal FinancePetsPoliticsReligionSportsTechnologyTravel

Starting Your Web Site

Updated on March 7, 2013
WebIWeave profile image

I grew up in a small community in Northwest Arkansas. My life is a busy balance of family and friends, work and play, good times and bad.

So, you want to start a web site? That is great . . . but there are a few things you need to do before contacting a designer.

Step 1 - is the site going to be for business? Personal? Blogging? Social Networking? A combination? Once you have decided what the site is going to be used for, then you move on to the next step.


Step 2 - Get an idea of what you want the site to look like. Background colors, images, layout, etc. One of the easiest ways to do this is to search the Internet for sites that offer similar products, services, or content. While searching, make a list of the sites that you like and write down what detail you like about each site. Type your list in a word document will make it easier to keep track of the sites and allows for review the stuff you liked when you work with the designer.

Step 3 - Page content. You need to pay attention to the pages on the other sites as you search the Internet. This will help you decide how many pages you want for your site and it will give you ideas of what each page should say. *Warning* - do not copy your text from another web site. Abide by the copyright laws!! The best thing to do is to read what someone else has, then put it into your own words. Be original - not a copycat. It is best to type your information in a word document - Hello spell check!!

Step 4 - Find a domain name that fits your site. You may have the perfect name picked out for your site only to discover that it is already taken. It is best to make a list of possible names and go to a hosting site (such as Yahoo or GoDaddy) to search for available domains. Once you have found a domain name, you can purchase it right then or wait until you have talked to a web designer.

Step 5 - Finding a Web Designer. My suggestion here is to look for a local individual or small companies that offers web designing services. The little guys are usually cheaper than the big companies. You are more likely to be able to meet face-to-face with someone local while working on your site. Most of the communication can be done via phone and email if you cannot meet face-to-face. Don't be afraid to ask question and compare prices before you decide on a company. If you have typed your lists from step 2 and 3 in a word document, it is easy to email the list to your chosen designer - saving time and money!

Helpful Tips

Many designers charge by the hour. If a designer has to wait on you to decide what text, colors, images, etc. that you want on a page - your bill may go up and up. If you are having trouble deciding on something or just have a question - ask your family, friends, business acquaintances, or post about it on a social networking site (Facebook!!) rather than wasting the time of a designer. Keep in mind that most designers are more than happy to answer questions of potential clients - feel free to send an email with design questions. The worst that can happen is that they will tell you that they cant or won't help you - which means that you probably don't want to hire that person/company.

One last thing to consider is how often is your site going to need updated. Daily? Weekly? Monthly? At random? You will need to discuss this with your designer and figure out a fee arrangement for the updates. Some designers have a set fee for updates no matter how often they are done while other designers charge a monthly fee for unlimited updates.

My last advice is to make the site yours. "A web site is more that just text and pictures . . . it should have a personality!!!"

Source
working

This website uses cookies

As a user in the EEA, your approval is needed on a few things. To provide a better website experience, hubpages.com uses cookies (and other similar technologies) and may collect, process, and share personal data. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so.

For more information on managing or withdrawing consents and how we handle data, visit our Privacy Policy at: https://corp.maven.io/privacy-policy

Show Details
Necessary
HubPages Device IDThis is used to identify particular browsers or devices when the access the service, and is used for security reasons.
LoginThis is necessary to sign in to the HubPages Service.
Google RecaptchaThis is used to prevent bots and spam. (Privacy Policy)
AkismetThis is used to detect comment spam. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide data on traffic to our website, all personally identifyable data is anonymized. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Traffic PixelThis is used to collect data on traffic to articles and other pages on our site. Unless you are signed in to a HubPages account, all personally identifiable information is anonymized.
Amazon Web ServicesThis is a cloud services platform that we used to host our service. (Privacy Policy)
CloudflareThis is a cloud CDN service that we use to efficiently deliver files required for our service to operate such as javascript, cascading style sheets, images, and videos. (Privacy Policy)
Google Hosted LibrariesJavascript software libraries such as jQuery are loaded at endpoints on the googleapis.com or gstatic.com domains, for performance and efficiency reasons. (Privacy Policy)
Features
Google Custom SearchThis is feature allows you to search the site. (Privacy Policy)
Google MapsSome articles have Google Maps embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
Google ChartsThis is used to display charts and graphs on articles and the author center. (Privacy Policy)
Google AdSense Host APIThis service allows you to sign up for or associate a Google AdSense account with HubPages, so that you can earn money from ads on your articles. No data is shared unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Google YouTubeSome articles have YouTube videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
VimeoSome articles have Vimeo videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
PaypalThis is used for a registered author who enrolls in the HubPages Earnings program and requests to be paid via PayPal. No data is shared with Paypal unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook LoginYou can use this to streamline signing up for, or signing in to your Hubpages account. No data is shared with Facebook unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
MavenThis supports the Maven widget and search functionality. (Privacy Policy)
Marketing
Google AdSenseThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Google DoubleClickGoogle provides ad serving technology and runs an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Index ExchangeThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
SovrnThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook AdsThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Unified Ad MarketplaceThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
AppNexusThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
OpenxThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Rubicon ProjectThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
TripleLiftThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Say MediaWe partner with Say Media to deliver ad campaigns on our sites. (Privacy Policy)
Remarketing PixelsWe may use remarketing pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to advertise the HubPages Service to people that have visited our sites.
Conversion Tracking PixelsWe may use conversion tracking pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to identify when an advertisement has successfully resulted in the desired action, such as signing up for the HubPages Service or publishing an article on the HubPages Service.
Statistics
Author Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide traffic data and reports to the authors of articles on the HubPages Service. (Privacy Policy)
ComscoreComScore is a media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, media and advertising agencies, and publishers. Non-consent will result in ComScore only processing obfuscated personal data. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Tracking PixelSome articles display amazon products as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, this pixel provides traffic statistics for those products (Privacy Policy)
ClickscoThis is a data management platform studying reader behavior (Privacy Policy)