The Process

If you are improving your current web presence or building our business’s first website. There are some major considerations to look into before you start the process.

Will the site be static or dynamic?
For most small  businesses and for your first web site, a static website is not a bad choice. It is easy to get caught up in the design process of a website and start dreaming of all the content and user interactions that will happen on your site. But most business’s make the first mistake of over building their website. Be honest about the amount of content you communicate now, and aim for something at that level. You can always improve your website, but if you build a site that is too large for your business to populate, then it will never get off the ground. Imagine opening your first craft store inside of an old walmart warehouse.  It will take so long to get the inventory to fit the layout of the store, that you may be out of business before you can open. The same thing happens to websites.

If you feel as though you are ready for a more dynamic web presence including blogging, facebook, and other media, then you are looking for a more dynamic site that needs a CMS (Content Management System). When it comes to CMSs there are many to choose from, and most of them will work just fine. Although you want to consider the long term support and options that come with a CMS. Building a website can be a costly and time consuming venture, and you will want to build it on a system that will grow with your site and not have to repeat this process again a year from now.

Who will build the site?
Most small businesses have their first website built by their uncle’s cousin’s friend’s mom. And if it was done for free, this might have worked out for a static website. The problem with friends of friends is the support and the knowledge. If they are not a full time web developer, then they probably have a good knowledge of one aspect of the website, usually the visual design. The problem is that there is so much more involved and changing about web technology, that if you are not doing it full time, then you are not able to provide an optimal solution. Things like search engine optimization, social network sharing and interaction, as well as domain hosting and email all come into play. I always recommend using professionals for highly technical work. You wouldn’t have your uncle’s cousin’s friend’s mom wire up your new telephone system. Websites are often considered less important than other communication devices utilized by small businesses, but their importance is being proven again and again as a crucial part of your business marketing.

Will we take advantage of open source tools?
Open Source software is developed by a community of professionals usually out to build something to handle essential tasks of technology that are sometimes too important to be left up to the market, especially when it comes to adhering to standards. Most ever website you visit when you surf the web is utilizing some level of open source tools to manage the server or translate the content you are viewing to your browser. Open Source means two things. Usually it means free. Most open source software is released under the GNU license, which means that the source code is free and can be distributed, modified and re-used without accumulating licensing fees. It also tends to mean cutting edge. Even the major software corporations like Microsoft are having a hard time competing with the stability and features of open source tools. Because they are community built, the more demand there is for a feature, the more likely it is to be built. Where the commercial businesses will only add features when they can make more money off of it. The only draw back to open source software, is that there is usually no 1-800 number to call when you have problems. There are great resources online through the developer communities, but not someone who will hand hold you through the process. That is where your web developer fills the gap and provides support for open sources solutions. Using open source solutions will not only save you money, but allow you to keep your site on the cutting edge of new tools and software.

Answer these questions and you will be on your way to finding a developer and having a plan for your website. You can email me if you have specific questions or if you are interested in using the ETC for your web site.