How a Custom Designed Website Can Help Your Business

Over the years, the internet has grown into a marvelous avenue to promote your business.

In my last article, "Why Your Business Needs to Have an Internet Presence" (http://www.jvmediadesign.com/info37.html), I discussed 5 valid reasons why your business needs a website. In this article, I discuss some things to avoid and how a custom, professional website can help your business succeed.

Professional is the key. Remember, the internet has a global reach. Some of your new potential clientele may be learning of your business for the first time by visiting your website and the old clich?, "you never get a second chance to make a first impression", still rings true.

When a business makes the decision to gain an internet presence, whether they are the largest corporation or the smallest home business, they may be tempted to take what appears to be the "easy way" to get the company website up and running fast. The three major potential pitfalls here are:

1) Some hosting comes with "do it yourself" capabilities and pre-made templates. Although this is a great way to upload photos of your summer vacation for your family and friends to see, this is not a good way to make that great first impression for your business. In short, these "solutions" really do not present a professional image, and often use very minimal templates and overall poor layout and design.

2) Many companies now sell website "templates" for low cost, making it easy for you to get up and running quickly. While this is true (you can get up and running quickly and many of these companies do sell more professional designs), you run the risk of other businesses using that SAME design. And to buy a "unique" copy of the template the cost is often just as, or more expensive, than if you were to hire a professional company to create a custom design for you.

3) Complete websites for $100! This may be a bit of an exaggeration, but I have actually seen advertisements for complete websites for very low prices. You must remember that you are investing in your business when you decide to have a custom website developed, and you really do get what you pay for. A professional design firm creates original designs, from scratch, tailor-made for each individual client - and the prices for that work can vary a lot, but do expect to pay a reasonable amount for the services.

These three potential pitfalls aside, the process of getting your business onto the World Wide Web does not have to be a confusing, time-consuming, and costly affair. Below is a succinct outline of the process.

1) First, you need to design on your domain name for your website. Avoid names with "-" in them and very long names. Try to be as succinct as possible. It is easiest for your visitors to remember a URL that is your company name, or at the very least, keywords that describe your company. For instance, if your business is ABC Accounting, you could consider abcaccounting.com or something such as accountingservice.com. You may find that your first (and second!) choice for a domain name may already be taken, so you may have to get creative. Just remember that a domain name that reflects your business is key.

2) Shop around for the right design firm. There is no shortage of companies who can handle the design and development of your website. Do not be afraid to shop around. Prepare a detailed RFP (Request For Proposal) that outlines things such as the goals of your website, your target market, the information you would like to have on your website, and advanced features such as ecommerce. Review the portfolios of companies and send out your RFP to the ones you feel have the skills to do your job. When you've narrowed down the prospects, do not be afraid to ask for personal or telephone interviews. Find out what their design process and work flow is like. Ask for recommendations about what type of web hosting your site will need. Also, make sure to review the design agreement or contract with the company you choose (a professional company will ALWAYS require a contract before work begins).

3) Have a basic idea of what you would like your finished site to look like. It's a good idea to do some "surfing" of the web to see what your competition and similar companies are doing, but look outside your industry as well for designs that catch your eye. This will give your design team a place to start and an idea of the style of design you expect for your own website.

4) Work on your "content". The content of your site includes all the text you wish to display. This is a very important aspect to your site. Although you do not want to overwhelm your visitors with nothing but pages and pages of text, you do want to offer clear, concise, professionally composed and edited information. Proof read, proof read, proof read! If you are in doubt, it is best to consider hiring a professional copy writer. Remember that grammatical errors shout "unprofessional!" to the viewer.

5) Once your site is up and running, don't be afraid to add or edit your content periodically. This keeps your pages "fresh" and shows repeat visitors that your business is active and "takes an interest" in staying up to date.

Sherry Holub received her degree in design from UCLA in 1995. She is now the Lead Designer and Creative Director at Southern California Studio, JV Media Design. http://www.jvmediadesign.com

green cleaning service Park Ridge ..
In The News:

A groundbreaking new study has uncovered disturbing AI blackmail behavior that many people are unaware of yet.
Four teams of autonomous humanoid robots competed in China's first AI soccer tournament, demonstrating advanced capabilities in ball detection and independent decision-making.
The ID. Buzz autonomous van features self-driving technology with 13 cameras, nine LiDAR units and five radars after Volkswagen partnered with Hamburg and Uber for 2026 deployments.
Social Security phishing scams use urgency and impersonation to steal personal data. Learn how to spot fake SSA emails and implement 10 protective measures.
French startup Pazzi Robotics created an AI-powered pizza robot that made pies in under five minutes without human help, but it closed in 2022 despite patents and expert partnerships.
Reclaim your time from big tech with effective screen time reduction strategies for iPhone and Android, featuring steps to limit app usage and create phone-free zones.
Amazon Prime Day shoppers face threats from 120,000-plus scam websites as cybercriminals prepare phishing traps and malware ahead of the July sales event.
Fox News' AI Newsletter brings you the latest on this rapidly evolving technology.
The AEON humanoid robot tackles labor challenges with Nvidia AI, Microsoft Azure cloud and advanced spatial awareness, working alongside industry leaders Schaeffler and Pilatus.
Google's Ask Photos feature brings AI-powered searches to your photo library, letting you find memories with natural language queries while maintaining privacy controls.
The return of blue book exams emerges as universities fight widespread AI academic dishonesty and educators debate whether to ban AI tools or teach responsible usage.
Signs your phone might be hacked include strange behavior, unauthorized texts, battery drain and pop-ups, while protection involves updating software and avoiding public Wi-Fi.
Tokyo startup H2L has launched Capsule Interface technology enabling full-body robot control with muscle sensors, offering immersive remote operation.
The A.I. industry seems set for growing pains as Big Tech companies scramble for solutions to the medium's unprecedented strain on the power grid.
Fourth of July fireworks cause a 60% spike in lost pets, but GPS trackers and AI photo-matching services like Love Lost can help reunite missing dogs with their families.
Protect yourself from jugging, the rising crime by which thieves monitor ATM users and follow them to steal cash, with six practical safety tips to stay alert and secure.
U.S. airlines like Delta, American and United are selling your domestic flight records to government agencies through the little-known Travel Intelligence Program.
Autonomous robots from Uber Eats are rolling out across U.S. cities, featuring LIDAR sensors, secure compartments and all-weather operation for food and grocery delivery.
Costco has expanded into EV infrastructure with new ultra-fast charging stations that can charge most electric vehicles to 80% in 20-60 minutes while shoppers browse the warehouse.
The new Gemini Robotics On-Device AI allows robots to perform complex tasks without internet, offering enhanced privacy, reliability and adaptability for real-world use.
Protect yourself from Amazon phishing scams by spotting red flags like suspicious sender addresses and spelling errors while using Amazon's Message Center to verify communications.
GAC Group's new Govy AirCab flying car combines lightweight design with advanced safety systems and smart cabin technology to revolutionize city travel with an 18.6-mile range.
The Berkeley Humanoid Light (BHL) is a lightweight, open source humanoid robot that anyone can build using 3D-printed parts and off-the-shelf components.
Meta’s new AI chatbot is getting personal, and it might be sharing more than you realize.
A new threat targets both Android and iPhone users: SparkKitty, a powerful mobile malware strain that scans private photos to steal cryptocurrency recovery phrases and other sensitive data.

Cheap Website Design In Birmingham

Due to the large number of people offering website design... Read More

The Best Simple Software For The Busy Webmaster

Here are a few programs I can't do without. They're... Read More

Content - the Key to Long Term Success

Every day internet marketers are inundated with the latest fad... Read More

Hacked Off with CSS?

For those not familiar with CSS Hacks, they are ways... Read More

Website Conversion Secrets Revealed

In my last article entitled, Maximizing The True Value Of... Read More

Using Server Side Includes to Simplify Your Web Design

An "include" file is a piece of code that can... Read More

How to Create an Enjoyable Web Page Design

Novice and professional designers alike ? you may probably be... Read More

Do-It-Yourself or Hire a Professional Designer

Remember your vision for your company and the brand or... Read More

Web Advertising: 10 Little Known Tricks To Help Convert Your Traffics To Buying Customers

You may not believe it, but people still judge things... Read More

3 Tips You Can Use Right Now to Improve Your Web Sites Usability

Studies done by Jakob Nielson the man touted as the,... Read More

How To Get A Pay Raise From Your Web Site

How many of the visitors to your web site take... Read More

A Landing Page is Not an Order Page (and why it matters)

To explain my point I need to first confuse the... Read More

Make it Clear What Your Website is About

Just about every list of the "Top 10 Web Design... Read More

Excellently Constructed Websites

Want to see an excellently constructed website? As a writer... Read More

Good Content Pays!

Traffic to a site can be a blessing or a... Read More

Images: How To Make Them To Load Fast On Your Web Pages?

1. Use .gifs rather than .jpgs. GIFs are smaller in... Read More

The Next Marketing Tool: Deisgn

Design sells. It's something that all of us know, but... Read More

6 Reasons Why Web Templates Are Todays Trend

As the Internet blooms at an alarming rate, so as... Read More

Why You Want to Include an FAQ In Your Site

Congratulations! You've got a brand new site and it's doing... Read More

Color Scheme for Your Website?

Yes, in a world that is obsessed with makeover madness,... Read More

Secrets to Using Color on Your Website and Common Pitfalls to Avoid

Colors have long been known to have psychological affects on... Read More

Discover 7 Proven Shopping Cart Enhancements to Increase Your Sales

For online businesses with their main goal of selling products,... Read More

Top 10 Web Design Mistakes

As a webmaster, you want to keep your visitors content... Read More

What is ASP.NET

ASP.NET is a new programming framework from Microsoft for developing... Read More

Power of Squeeze Pages for Realtors

Squeeze pages are a very hot topic in the internet... Read More

emergency cleaning services Morton Grove ..