Websites
Why do I need a Website? I How do I get started? I What is a URL? I How can I be sure customers will find my web site? I Will I own the site? I What is Metadata I What E-Mail Addresses can I use? I What is Uptime?
Why do I need a Website?
The world wide web is now the most widely used information sourcing tool. The web can act as an online brochure. It will save you money on advertising, publishing and postage costs. Your site can be designed to suit the needs of your target audience. It can be changed as and when you want at a cost significantly less than the redesign and reprint of a brochure. Contacting you is made easy through the use of email. Many businesses use it to speed up decision making and to transfer documents. International traders and indeed, just about everyone, expects you to have a web presence.
How do I get started?
This is one of the biggest marketing decisions you will ever make. You can find a web designer who will design it to your specification or you could design it yourself with one of the many platforms on the Internet today. Be aware that the Web Designer may charge you to update pages once it is online but more and more commonly nowadays they will provide you with a CMS (Content Management System) so that you can do it yourself. Whatever route you choose make it look professional as there is a lot of competition out there.
What is a URL?
Basically it’s the address of the website as in www.tesco.co.uk and it stands for Universal Resource Locator. They are often known as Domain Names and the Domain registry links up the machine address (IP Address or Internet Protocol) which is a string of numbers with a more easily recognised name. These addresses are registered with the relevant issuing body for a set period, usually but not always two years. Thus it is vital to make sure your URL is renewed if you wish to continue using it over the years otherwise someone else might be able to buy it.
E-Mail Addresses
E-mail addresses will take the form of enquiries@yourcompany.co.uk or jim.bates@yourcompany.co.uk with yourcompany.co.uk being whatever URL we have registered for you whether .co.uk or .com etc. This gives a professional image to your company or site. Please see each package for the number of addresses you are allowed. You will need to own at least one live e-mail address for us to divert e-mail traffic to. You could for instance have enquiries@yourcompany.co.uk diverted to a webmail service such as Hotmail so you can pick up any mail wherever you happen to be or it could be linked to your standard e-mail account back in the office. There are some restrictions on whether you can send back mail under your @yourcompany.co.uk alias. This is dependent on the e-mail service you subscribe to as some servers do not allow this kind of traffic to be sent out. It is always best to check. back to top Can you create features on my web pages? We realise cost will be high on your list of concerns. The price will include consultation as well as building and hosting your site. Some of the tools you may have seen on other sites like drop down menus, links to other sites, hypertext links, photographs, logo’s and banner headings will all be possible. We can, however, create the look and the feel that you want for your site. We can quote for a customised service or look at our menu of extras.
How can I be sure customers will find my web site when they log on to the internet?
Someone needs to register the site with the Search Engines. Google is the most obvious one but there are others. Search Engine Robots will then automatically search your site and index the content. Getting to the top of the first page of Google is an art in itself known as Search Engine Optimisation and many thousands of words have been written on the subject. Anyone who guarantees they can get you to the top of Google is probably a scam merchant and the only sure-fire way of doing it is to pay Google through their advertising. The next best thing is to aim at a niche subject and make sure you mention the terms that people search for in your pages. There are free search terms directories produced by Google that you can look at to assist you with this.
Will I own the site?
As long as you have paid your commercial internet host for the site any work and intellectual property on it belongs to you. You still have a responsibility to make it legal and if you use a free host service check the terms and conditions thoroughly.
What is Metadata?
Metadata is basically information about information. It is written into the computer code so only Search Engine and other Robots can see it and it won’t appear on the screen to the end user. Is consists a description of your site using terms which someone would most likely type into a Search Engine to find it.
What is Uptime?
Uptime in the web industry is defined as the time that a website is available for viewing by a user. Some sites go down for a variety of technical reasons meaning that people cannot see them on the Internet. If you use a commercial host look for uptime in the 99% bracket. They will announce them on their website.