Effective Gold Coast Web Design is a blend between my web design skills and your business skills. You know what you want – I can make it happen!
Have you ever visited a website and asked yourself how they could have made it so great? From layout to graphic design, there are many elements which turn a website from good to great. This article will show you some of the many tips and tricks which the pros use to make your website so much better than a home-made one.
Don’t try to fit too much onto one page when you’re designing a website. If your page is too busy it will take a lot longer to load and can overwhelm visitors. When you’re going to be putting up a lot of content, create pages for everything you can to reduce the clutter on your page. Then link pages together so that your visitors can move around your website easily.
Then make your links obvious. Customers do not like spending time wading through your site searching for something they are interested in. Having a site map, as well as providing big, prominent links will help your viewer find what they are looking for without wasting time in a hunt. Lead them to your information.
To help your Gold Coast Web Design function the way it is intended to, check to make sure all your links are working.
For your image tags, make sure your Gold Coast Web Designer includes a brief description in the ALT attribute. Not only is this good for search engine optimization, but it is also beneficial to the sight-impaired users who rely on screen readers to describe image tag contents. Make your description short and as descriptive as possible.
The right tools are essential for good sites. Building a site from scratch can be overwhelming for amateur designers, so take advantage of the wide variety of design tools and programs that pro web designers have available. Some of these web design tools cost hundreds of dollars; others are known only to the expert. You can build your own website but the lack of tools and know how mean it will probably look home made, not professional.
In addition, things change very quickly online. Most pro web designers are members of online forums that allow them to stay update. Google, in particular, changes the rules several times a year. Pro Gold Coast Web Designers make time to stay up to date; if you are running a full time business, staying up to date on web design issues is extremely difficult.
When joining these online forums you meet people who usually have an understanding of all the new web design technology, and specialised expertise in almost any area of web design. However, much of language is “geek” that only the pro web designer understands. Without the latest web design technology you could end up with a site that is completely outdated.
Always make sure that your Gold Coast Web Design works well in every browser. Your coding might look great in Firefox, but it could be askew in Internet Explorer. You need to ask you web designer to ensure that things look good in all popular browsers. For more on different web browsers, please click here.
Educate yourself on how a website actually works – that way you know if your Gold Coast Web Designer is being straight with you. We show you how to deal with simple problems on your site (like changing a phone number or address), saving you time and money, while educating you on things you should use us for (like changing the site settings).
Know your subject. If you plan on using your site for a blog or similar endeavor, you should be sure to do thorough research on the subject before you talk to a web designer. Having a “look and feel” for your site, eg , similar to www.examplesite.com, can speed up the process for you.
Some people even sketch out a design on their computer, or drawn it on a piece of paper. But, be open to changes – as you develop the site, you or the web designer may have ideas that improve the original concept.
Don’t use too many different fonts or text colors on your web pages. Word processing or web authoring software may present a dizzying array of specialty fonts or wacky colors, but if you use too many, the text on your website may become unreadable. A good practice is to use just one or two fonts per page and avoid excessive use of bold or italic text.
But the best tip we can give you is to ring Terry on 0468 420 470 now and get pro Gold Coast Web Design working on making your dream a reality!
Things you MUST know BEFORE talking to a Gold Coast Business Website Designer …
It can sometimes seem difficult to enter the world of web design. But don’t let the world discourage you from trying to pursue endeavors that you feel you can profit from. The tips in this article can help you understand some of the key aspects of Gold Coast Business Website design.
First, remember the background. While some websites utilize moving GIF backgrounds, opt for simple background since these moving backgrounds can make text hard to read. Choose a background to work with your website, not clash with it, and your visitors will be able to better read and understand your site, and your point of view.
Avoid trying to add every new gadget to your Gold Coast Business Website.
It can be tempting to make your site look cutting edge by including every new web design option out there but it can end up turning people off. Simple will generally get the job done even better than a flashy layout.
Do some keyword research. While your main focus should always be on providing your customer with relevant and current information, you first need to work on gaining a customer base. Understanding what keywords will bring people to your site from a search engine is a vital step to becoming a successful site.
To help make sure your website works as you are designing it, test it on all of the main browsers like Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari, etc. When you test the website as you go along building it, you can quickly correct any problems that might show up once you live. When your website goes live, you want your visitors to be able to see everything working correctly.
Try including real customer testimonials. Very few people want to be the first to try a product or service, so let customers know that others have tried your products or services, and that they were pleased with them. Try asking some clients that have done projects with you to create a short paragraph about their experience with your company, to put on your Gold Coast Business Website.
Solicit feedback from visitors to your website. That will allow you to fix any problems that you may not otherwise notice. Giving your visitors a voice makes them much more likely to return to your site and continue the conversation.
To help your website function the way it is intended to, make sure all your links are working. If you have broken links then your visitors may get frustrated when they try to click on something that interests them. Frustrated visitors are not something you want because they end up leaving your site annoyed.
Even if you know how to design websites, you still have much to learn. Everyone today is using mobile devices – so this means that there is a higher demand for making sites mobile compatible. All of our websites are mobile compatible.
It is likely that you are going to run across interesting designs and techniques on other websites, but it is critical that you use your creativity when designing your own website. Come up with your own ideas and features or improve upon some that you admired on other sites. Following through with this step will certainly give you the best possible website design.
Consider adding a Youtube video to your Gold Coast Business Website – Google owns Youtube and rewards sites that embed Youtube videos. Click here for samples of Gold Coast Business Videos we have created.
So now that you have a better idea of what to do when it comes to web design, you should start to feel a little more confident in the subject. Web design is just like anything else, the more you learn the easier and less overwhelming the subject seems to become.
We have you fully covered for Gold Coast Business Website Design, but the more you know, the better we can work together to give exactly what you want.
Buying a Website – Off-Site Promotion and the Cost of Buying a Website
An Ezine Article Post by Terence Fisher
What does Buying a Website Cost and What are the Payment Terms?
There are two sides to this. The first is how much money your web designer wants upfront. A minimum of $100 deposit up front will normally be required to show that you are serious about buying a website. The balance should not become not due until you have a few top 30 Google rankings. Some Web design Companies Guarantee Top 30 Google / Yahoo results within 60 days – or your website is free; they are pretty focused on getting results for you if they do not get paid until they do, ensuring your website creation does not drag on.
The other important aspect is understanding very clearly what you are getting for your money, and what is not included. The website design field is littered with arguments about, “but I thought I was going to get…” Be clear from the very start what is included, and what is not included. This should be published on the website design company’s website.
Pricing should be flexible, allowing you to buy only what you need, from a basic “online-brochure” to a Guaranteed Top 30 Listing website. For most small businesses, in 2010, under $600 for buying a website is a reasonable target. However, for a hobby site under $400 may do the trick. You should also be able to build a custom package, where you pay only for what you need.
While the highest quote is not necessarily the best, nor is the lowest. Value for Money is what it is all about. A $600 site that ranks highly in Google and brings new business is a better investment than a $300 site that is buried so deep in Google you need to hire a jungle guide to find it!
Always, always, always, ask, “Is this going to make me more money than it costs?”
What ongoing fees are there?
For people with very little experience with websites, it is quite normal to pay someone with the necessary expertise to host and maintain your website and look after your domain name. Anything over $30 per month for hosting is excessive and your domain name should not cost you more than $30 per annum for a dot com (in 2010, when this article was written).
You can host your own website if you have the necessary expertise and look after your own domain name.
Make sure any quote you get includes maintenance, in addition to hosting. One critical area that even experienced web designers forget is to make a backup of your Web site on a regular basis. Any monthly charge should ensure your website is backed up every week. Website backups are like computer backups – you think about it around ten seconds after you realise you need it!
What Off-Site Marketing is Included?
This is one of the most misunderstood aspects of Web Design, both from a web designer perspective and from a client perspective.
A highly ranked website will bring you an increase in business; a highly ranked website that is being actively marketed will bring you even more of an increase in business. Website Designers that have no Marketing skills can be dangerous to your Business’s health!
To understand this, if you have a retail store and have chosen a great location, then you have the equivalent of a website that is ranked highly on Google; both are highly visible. however, you still advertise your retail store and there is an online equivalent of this.
If you talk to a web designer and they consider their work finished when they have created your website, alarm bells should be ringing. On the Internet, there are three quick and easy ways to attract more visitors.
The first is through video, with Youtube obviously being by far the most important site, but not necessarily the only one. When buying a website, make sure creating a video for you and uploading it to YouTube is included. Some website designers are not great at creating Videos; even fewer know how to successfully market a YouTube video, but the importance of YouTube these days makes it critical that you cover this base.
Secondly, EzineArticles should be included; EzineArticles is to articles what Google is to Search Engines. Using the 80/20 Rule, EzineArticles and YouTube are essential; if you have time, then move to the lesser sites.
The third element is what is known as Social Marketing. My preference is for Article Marketing and Video Marketing, but for some people it may be things like Facebook, Twitter and Myspace. Which is best depends on your personal preferences, your product and what, if anything, you already have in place. If you are the president of the local Pony Society and you are marketing items related to that, if you have thousands of people already following you on Twitter, then you have an established market.
In terms of product, it is important to understand that different age groups buy differently, and you must therefore market to what is appropriate for that age group.
Check out the Free “Must-Know” info at the Gold Coast Web Design Company “Business Websites Gold Coast” – before you decide to buy a website.
While based on Australia’s Gold Coast, Business Websites Gold Coast build websites for clients Worldwide.
The unique claim to fame that this particular Gold Coast Web Design Company has is a $495 price tag that absolutely Guarantees a Top 30 Google Listing – Or your website is Free! This includes one YouTube Video plus one ezine article.
Terry not only designs top value-for-money websites, he also has online businesses of his own. This ensures the marketing and business skills required to support creating a profitable website for you are in place.
See an update for 2018 on this article here.
Hope you enjoyed our “Buying a Website – Off-Site Promotion and the Cost of Buying a Website” Article!
Buying A Website.
7 Critical Factors That Make or Break Your Business – Another of our Ezine articles. This article focuses on the Planning Stage of buying a website. Like building a house, building a website goes much better with planning and preparation ahead of buying a website.
Here are the 7 Critical Factors you must consider before buying a website. Enjoy.
By Terry Fisher
Buying a website, whether business, personal or for your hobby, can be a whole new experience to a person who does not yet have a web presence. Searches on Google can give you confusing results, ending in frustration. So you might be wondering, what’s the ultimate way to buy affordable websites.
Here are 7 critical factors to be considered before buying a website, and there is a hard way and an easy way to cover most of these.
1. Getting a Domain Name
When you buy a website, the first task is registering the correct domain name. A domain name should be chosen very carefully, and we recommend leaving it to the experts – your domain name can make or break your business. It should be precise and relevant to the subject matter of your business/profession/hobby.
Secondly, it is always better to choose a short domain name, because it is easy to remember. Despite the assertion that all the good domain names have gone, a good local web design company like ours has special tools and techniques that can result in a pleasant surprise.
2. Web Hosting Provider Selection
You should look for well-established, reliable web hosting providers when considering buying a website. The server should be fast and backed up by mirror servers. When a server hosts your website, there may be occasional times when there is excessive load or traffic that ultimately results in non-availability of your website. A mirror server acts as a standby and immediately transmits your web content when needed. Again, any local web design company will already have expertise in this area, saving you hours of research when buying affordable websites. If you let your local web design company handle web hosting for you, then you save on set up time and costs, and the technical aspects of web hosting are not your problem. Let us sort this for you.
3. Website Design
The next important factor to consider before buying a website is that of web design. The website should be designed in such a manner so that its main message is clear to the visitor. A poorly designed website turns customers away – the exact opposite of what you are trying to achieve. A basic decision is the platform – WordPress, conventional HTML site, Joomla, etc. Most modern local web design companies go for WordPress these days, a great route to affordable websites that do not break the budget but look terrific.
4. Easy Navigation
A website should have easy navigation, including a sitemap to cover every piece of information on the site. The old business adage of “Make it easy for your customers to do business with you” is very relevant when you buy a website.
5. Colours and graphics
Likewise, the website should be easy on the eye. A “hard” coloured website is often abrasive and causes clients to click away. Moreover, the graphics should be optimized to appear faster on the screen; otherwise the visitor may leave the webpage, even before it gets fully loaded. Respect your visitor’s time when you buy a website and look for affordable websites that are graphically optimized. In particular, avoid Flash websites. Websites that use flash technology are always slower to load and have more to do with satisfying your website designers ego than satisfying your client’s needs.
6. SEO Optimization and Integrated Website Marketing
Before deciding on buying a website, look for SEO optimization plus integrated website marketing. Bit of a mouthful; SEO optimization is simply technical stuff necessary to get good Google Rankings, and best left to your local web design company. We can handle this for you.
Integrated Website Marketing includes adding YouTube videos to your website, creating supportive articles like this one, social bookmarking / networking etc. This should be part of any local web design package.
There are few things sadder than a website that is nicely built, looks good – but with no traffic coming to it. The easy solution lies in SEO and integrated website marketing, where the marketing aspect of your web presence is integrated within the web design package you buy; without proper marketing, the best-looking website may prove to be a dead investment.
7. Considering Quality Vs Affordability
Finally, think of balancing quality vs. affordability before deciding to buy a website. If you focus only on the quality aspects of a website, you may have to invest thousands of dollars. On the contrary, a great looking website does not need to be a cheap website.
So look for that rare combination of quality plus affordability when buying a website. Affordable websites that look great are our speciality.
Here you can buy affordable websites that look fabulous for just $495 (current 2011) with a Top 30 Google spot guaranteed, plus a Youtube video. Even better, all the technical stuff is handled for you – a great domain name is found for you, linked to your web hosting on your behalf, even the Youtube video is uploaded for you – leaving you free to concentrate on your business. So, if a cheap website that looks like a million dollars and has everything handled for you is what you are looking for, call us now on 0468 420 470.
Let us make buying a website easy for you!
Our Promise:
- A great-looking Small Business Website, at an affordable price
- Guaranteed Top 30 Google Rankings – Or your website is free!
- We Market You on YouTube and Ezine Articles – at no extra cost
- Free training that allows you the freedom to make changes in the future yourself and Save Money
- More a “Business Solution” than a Website!
- Your own “Custom Look” (Most web Designers use Templates)
- Free Business Advice from a Management Consultant
To go to the Small Business Websites Topic that interests you, please click the Link:
Small Business Website Samples
Small Business Websites – Google Rankings
Small Business Websites Price Guide
YouTube Marketing – Our Results
Video 1, Small Business Websites – Google Ranking Secrets
Video 2, Small Business Websites – Website Design
Video 3, Small Business Websites – Integrated Website Marketing
Video 4, Small Business Websites – Managing Your Website