How much does a website cost?

The easiest way to answer this question is to put it into a context. How much does a house cost?

If you only need four walls, a door, a window and a roof, and you're planning to purchase and assemble the materials yourself, you can do it on the cheap. If you're not handy with the tools used, it still won't cost much in labor even if you have a professional build your small house for you.

What if you require a little larger structure? How many rooms do you need? Do you want to use a ready-made plan, or a custom design? Do you want your guests to have full access to all of your house, or do you want to separate public and private areas? As the project becomes more complex, there is more to consider, more to build and more things that need to function together.

What if the house is not for personal use, but is a business structure? Then you have another set of challenges. What if you have a business that exists in several locations? And/or you need employees to access and control various parts of the structure?

In this website analogy, the basic four walls and roof is like an online brochure. It is the simplest of websites with some information about your product or service and a way for people to contact you by way of some combination of address, phone and email.

The next level of website has more information and some interactive elements that enhance the user experience. It performs some function beyond merely conveying information.

The third represents a larger, perhaps enterprise level website, where information changes and updates often. It is likely database driven (could be e-commerce, product pricing sheets, community elements, a blog, etc), and the content itself may be accessible by different levels of website editors, as well as varying customer level access.

One advantage that websites have over houses is that it's pretty easy to add onto the structure while maintaining the original appearance. Websites can expand over time easier than houses (keeping in mind that poor planning can be detrimental to a project in any industry), and thus be cost-effective by assembling only the parts needed at this point in time. "Build-as-you-go" is an effective web development strategy as long as there is a clear goal and plan for growth.

How much should I budget?

How much you have to spend will determine the growth rate of your website. While a database driven e-commerce website can easily set you back 8-10 grand, for a small or start-up business, depending on your product, it may not be necessary to outlay that kind of cash at the inception. You can get started with a deposit of just a few hundred dollars to begin work, a simple template with a few pages and a growth plan. As you work with your web developer over the span of a few months, your website can start bringing in customers — thus, income — to help fund future growth.

This is the kind of website growth plan that I frequently recommend to small businesses.
1. Go live as soon as you can with what your budget will allow.
2. Get your product or service information out there with a way for new customers to contact you.
3. Follow your growth plan to develop your website from there.

Websites cost varying amounts depending on functionality. Your budget will determine the growth rate. Your website plan will keep you on track as you work toward your goals. By just doing one manageable thing at a time, you'd be surprised at how quickly and affordably you can develop a strong presence on the web.

Meet the Artist - that's me!

Saturday, July 25, 2009 - noon-5pm

Northwest Cellars Wine Tasting Room
11909 124th Avenue NE
Kirkland, WA 98034

Directions

Please join me at the Northwest Cellars Wine Tasting Room, home of award-winning Northwest wines, custom wine labels, and the house labels I designed. Sample the currently available wines and buy a bottle or two to take home. If you’d like, I’ll sign the label for you!

I will also have full-size (11"x14") prints of select illustrations available for purchase.

The Humanization of Computers and The Code They Speak With

I'm an artist. A graphic artist. I only build websites because that's where my industry is focused. I'm thus forced into the world of programming. (So I'm a programmer? Eeeww!) This is the main source of my career frustration - being an artist at heart but creating through the writing of code. Just a little counter-intuitive.

Here's an amusing anecdote from something that happened to me yesterday:

The challenge was to create a "BUY" link button by having a red rectangle with white type inside. Rather than delve into detail, let's just say that I found the place in the style sheet where I could write in "rectangle=red, type=white". (It was black with white type originally, so all I had to do was write in "red" where the word "black" was. EASY switch!)

Then I went back to my word "BUY" and framed it with the code that would tell it how to act. Essentially, [red button] BUY [/red button].

No go. No red button no matter what I did. It stayed the original black. VERY frustrating! Just another WTF Moment in the life of an artist-turned-programmer. I tried every kind of troubleshooting I could think of, and then went to Google to search for the problem. That takes a while when you don't know exactly where the problem is. But I'll get to the point.

THE FIX:
I had to insert the snippet "!important" into the line of the style sheet - and BINGO, it worked.

!important ??? What are some of the alternatives? !whenever-you-have-time ?? Or !if-its-not-too-much-trouble ?? Or !you-better-or-I'll-kick-your-ass ??

This PROVES that Computers have Evolved! You can't just make a simple change and have it accept it without question. You have to let it know that the change is !important for it to take effect.

Those of you who think that computer programming is some cut and dry, boring, unimaginative, pocket-protecting head space, let me tell you - you are mistaken. It requires a certain level of tact and understanding. Like any relationship.

Perhaps next time I should try " !please " ...

Building an Online Community - white paper

Have you been thinking about starting an online community for your business? Wondering what the benefits are?

Online Communities, a white paper by Lithium Technologies, outlines best practices and deployment tips for increasing brand loyalty, sales and customer satisfaction while decreasing customer care costs. Lithium shares its answers to four important questions:

1. What is an online community?
   
2. What does it take to create a successful community?
   
3. What are companies doing with online communities today?
   
4. What is the business case for online communities?
   

Does your website have a FAQ page? A community forum? Do you answer questions in a blog? There are many ways to field real and potential customer questions before they arise. Being proactive costs less than fixing a problem after the fact, and builds customer loyalty and satisfaction. Studies also show that online community users buy more, and buy more often than non-community users.

Reach out to your customers. They'll love you for it!

Process trumps Content

In the last few weeks, I've been focusing my attention on networking and content, while in the back of my mind, I've been wanting to add some real meat to this infrastructure I've been assembling. When you surf the internet, do you just see a bunch of websites and content and information? I don't. I don't just have a website and a blog and some social media pages — I have a dream. I have an idea for how to realize it. All of this stuff is just part of the Process.

Today Seth Godin asks What are you good at? "Process... refers to the emotional intelligence skills you have about managing projects, visualizing success, persuading other people of your point of view, dealing with multiple priorities, etc. This stuff is insanely valuable and hard to learn. Unfortunately, it's usually overlooked by headhunters and HR folks, partly because it's hard to accredit or check off in a database.

"As the world changes ever faster, as industries shrink and others grow, process ability is priceless. Figure out which sort of process you're world-class at and get even better at it. Then, learn the domain... that's what the internet is for.

"One of the reasons that super-talented people become entrepreneurs is that they can put their process expertise to work in a world that often undervalues it."

Dang, Seth – you nailed it!

How about you? What are your unique talents? How can they help you in your Process?

Who has time for social media?

I spent the last couple weeks testing what happens when I link my site to social networks like Facebook and Twitter (I was already linked to my LinkedIn profile). There has been a marked increase in visitors to my site and blog. 

In this new media world, there are obvious benefits to using social media and networking to encourage new visitors to come to your site. More visitors means more potential clients. After less than two days on Twitter I racked up two dozen Followers without even trying. What's not to like? Some people on there even have tens-of-thousands of people following their "tweets".

But hang on. For one thing, wow - that's a lot of information coming at me all at once. I had information overload after only modest effort. Plus, I bill clients by the hour. Time spent tweeting is time away from building a website for an existing client. And if my clients are all out tweeting, they aren't doing that thing they do, either. 

I had been studying the activity of professional social mediacs. How does a small business owner of a product or service manage the time it takes to go make all of these social contacts? You can't spend ALL day at the water cooler.

John Jantsch of Duct Tape Marketing outlined his routine for social media yesterday. For those of you just starting out in social media it will seem very time-consuming (and perhaps a little OCD). You will probably say that you don't have the time to devote to such a strategy. But keep things in perspective: Rome wasn't built in a day, John Jantsch markets for a living, and even modest effort really does create measurable results.

Here are the goals I've set for myself for 2009:

• Update my Olsen Creative website once a month (I also added news links so there's new content on there every day)
  
• Post to my Short-term Strategies blog once a week (set to distribute posts to my website and Facebook notes)
  
• Create and maintain a del.icio.us list of bookmarks (I've started a personal list, but want to create one for business)
• Twitter about olsencreative at the beginning and end of my day (I had a deadline today and didn't tweet about it - just got to work)
  
• Start a Facebook Page for Olsen Creative
  

Are you using social media? What services? What are your goals?

Accidental Graphic Design - 3: 4 things to know before you start a design project

At the core of every graphic design project is the marketing message. It’s the story. The subject. The essence. Beginning a design without clear direction is a recipe for confusion – that’s evidently how we got the platypus.

The message determines the design. Before you pick a single color or font, know your purpose.

Find the answers to these questions, then let the rest fall into place:

1) Who is your target audience? Learn all you can about the demographics. Who are you speaking to? Male or Female? Young or Mature? Empathize. How would you talk to them if they were sitting in front of you?

2) What does your audience expect? Do they already know your product? Do you need to educate them? How does your product compare to the competition? How can you enlighten your audience?

3) What is the personality of your business, or the Brand? (For the sake of creating a design, the more adjectives you can come up with, the better) How your business presents itself is a key element to making a decision on graphic elements. Be consistent with the Brand personality. Imagine that you are the Brand, and you meet a friend on the street. How do you act? How does this situation differ from when you meet a client in the boardroom? Your business should have a consistent brand standard. Know it and live it. Don’t be visually schizophrenic, like our friend Mr. Platypus.

4) What mood or image do you want this project to convey? Do yourself a service and reflect your brand personality. There’s nothing worse than having an established brand and then creating a very different piece based on your creative whim. There’s no better way to lose your audience than to turn away from your buddy, The Brand. Instead, imagine that this piece is speaking on behalf of the Brand. It’s like writing a script for an established character. If you were going to write a play about, say, Robin Hood, he would have a distinct, recognizeable personality (the Brand), but he could find himself in a myriad of situations (the Project), and would handle himself differently depending on to whom he was speaking (the Audience). "Robin Hood the Dude" has many possibilities, but "Robin Hood the Brand" must stay consistent or he risks being mistaken for another character.

When you’re clear in your direction, you're ready to start designing.



Use what you already know.

Learn what your audience already knows.

Know your purpose.

Be relevant in communicating.

Accidental Graphic Design - 2: Think like a designer

At the moment we first entered the world and opened our eyes, we were consumed by visual stimulus. We began to sort and interpret these images, learning their meanings and significance. Every shape has a property. Every color has a meaning. We perceive shapes as organic or architectural based on their function in nature. We perceive colors as warm or cool based on their presence in nature. We organize many separate elements into a collective whole. We perceive, recognize, categorize and cross-reference until we have a comprehensive knowledge of how the visual world works. And as if we’re not already busy enough interpreting visuals, we are simultaneously processing the other four senses of sound, smell, taste and touch in the same manner.

We recognize what we know.

Does that sound too obvious? Through exposure, we put information into context, and thus retain the information. Read on to learn how this key principle applies to reaching your customers.

Effective communication comes down to one simple principle: with each of the five senses, we recognize what we know. Visual communicators learn what is familiar to their audience and select relevant imagery to communicate clearly, effectively and most importantly, quickly. When a visual message is familiar, right and appropriate, it is clear, comfortable and obvious. When it’s unfamiliar, wrong or inappropriate, it can be confusing, unsettling and misrepresenting. 

Unfortunately, even seasoned professional designers sometimes stray from objective decision-making in their quest to create something new and different. Artists by nature, they sometimes forget that graphic design projects are not gallery pieces where museum-goers will stop to ponder the greater significance of the message. To the average consumer, a graphic designer's labor of love is only a snapshot seen in a fleeting moment, if perceived at all. Marketing studies indicate that as consumers zip down grocery store aisles, their eyes rest on a package for approximately .03 seconds. (Pantone Guide to Communicating with Color by Leatrice Eiseman). In this split-second opportunity, the outer packaging must grab attention, communicate the inner contents and create desire. That’s a lot to expect from a busy audience of consumers who are already bombarded with similar images from thousands of other visuals also competing for their attention. Really, there’s no time for lofty, Picasso-centric agendas.

Be relevant.

This the key to communicating quickly to your audience. If the imagery you incorporate into your piece is vague, obscure or otherwise off target, you’ll miss what is likely your only opportunity to get your point across. Sure, you’ve seen those multi-million-dollar ad campaigns that attract attention through surreal product connections, but is that really the project that’s burning a hole in your in-box? “How to Create a 30-Second Ad Spot for The Big Ballgame That Everyone Will Be Discussing The Significance Of The Next Day” is the subject for another blog post. This is about where the rubber meets the road – your project that's going on right now.

You may not know it yet, but you already have everything you need to make your project a success. Don’t underestimate your perceptions or reactions to the effects of graphic elements. You’ve seen as much of the world as a graphic designer has. Even if you’re uninitiated to the process of graphic design, you can still learn how to make objective visual decisions. This blog will give you a context for understanding, to put a label on what you probably already know, and familiarize you with what you already see.

If you can label it, you can communicate it. 

Accidental Graphic Design - 1: Communicate Meaning

One of the things I hope to accomplish with this blog is to demystify the creative process to help small businesses get the most out of the resources available. Today's economy is squeezing small businesses more than ever, forcing owners to think outside the box for cost-effective solutions on all fronts.

If you own a small business, you probably don't have a huge marketing budget. You probably didn't intend to do a lot of the marketing, advertising, promotions and even page layouts yourself, but to keep operating costs down such tasks are frequently necessary for the survival and growth of your business.

You became an Accidental Graphic Designer.

For all of the small business owners looking for do-it-yourself solutions, I'm here to coach you on what you really need to know to creatively survive the marketing and design process.

1: Communicate Meaning

Space is a premium in the world, on the internet and on paper. In a matter of milli-seconds, you have to capture the attention of a prospective customer with a message that's strong enough to compel them to come to you for your product.

A strong message does not necessarily mean big, bold and red – although sometimes it doesn't hurt. Strength is communicated in relevance. How well understood is the message? Are you speaking your target customer's language? What are they looking for at this time, and are you offering it?

Communicate meaning in each and every element you create. Your logo must be appealing and understandable to your audience. It makes little difference if you personally like it, if it doesn't communicate meaning to potential customers. Your website must be logically organized to guide potential customers down the path that leads to the most important place - buying from you. Your print advertising must contain a call to action. Get people onto your website and/or into your store so you can make them your new customers.

Communicate meaning in everything you do.

If you need help getting the ball rolling, please visit our website. We can guide you through the process of creating a meaningful message. 

Betty James, Who Named the Slinky Toy dies at 90

Betty James, who came up with the name Slinky for the stair-walking spring that has delighted children for more than 60 years and who ran the toy company after her husband, the inventor, left it and his family in 1960, died Thursday in Philadelphia. 

[Read NY Times article]

IN MEMORIAM:

On December 20, 2008 at 12:00PM,

Slinkys of the world,

Of all shapes, sizes, colors and creeds,

Will join – in pairs – for stairway processionals.

A moment of stationary will be observed,

Followed by No. 14 in Our Hymnal of Advertising Jingles:

—*—

"What walks down stairs, alone or in pairs,

And makes a slinkity sound?

A spring, a spring, a marvelous thing, Everyone knows it’s Slinky…

It's Slinky, it's Slinky, for fun it's a wonderful toy

It's Slinky, it's Slinky, it's fun for a girl and a boy”

—*—

Wire-cutters will be on-hand in case of emergency.

Volunteer untangling is appreciated.

Introducing pastel illustrations by Laura Olsen

The discovery of a new medium. Just the mention of it sends artists into seething excitement!

I discovered a new medium this summer. It's not new to the world, but rather, I had rediscovered it for myself in a really big way. Pastels. I'm talking about the chalk, not the color palette.

I experimented a little with pastels back in college, but didn't develop a preference for them as a medium. I leaned toward oil painting. When out "in the field" I would usually bring along my sketch pad and graphite pencil, rather than charcoal. I found that charcoal and pastels shared a similar "scritchiness" that bugged me - a little like fingernails on a chalkboard. I preferred the smoother feel of mediums such as graphite and oil paint.

I found that painting en plein air (French for "outside") in the natural light gave my oil paintings a lot more life and freshness than work done in the studio, but what a hassle it was to drag all of that equipment around – not to mention that a wet canvas is not the easiest thing to haul back home.

On vacation this summer, I decided to give pastels another try. I discovered advantages to using them in the field. They're portable, more colorful than graphite, drier than paint, and no extensive clean-up is involved. I was able to easily achieve the natural light look without the mess. Plus, time is a premium for me now, so I'm all for any activity that I can squeeze in quickly and easily. The scritchiness of the pastels didn't bother me, either (perhaps age has desensitized my nerve endings).

The result of settling on a medium that allows me to crank out art in short order, is that I am able to accumulate new material at a sustainable pace. What does that mean? It means that I can make enough art to be marketable. What more can an artist ask for?

Where can you find them?

CafePress.com - "Sailboat at Sunset" and "Pacific Northwest Mountains". Also "Pastels of the Pacific Northwest" 2009 wall calendar featuring 12 drawings from 2008.

NorthwestCellars.com - If you're into good Northwest wine, eight varieties are available featuring art by Laura Olsen on the label. For a REAL treat, ask us about personalizing a label for you. Minimum order is one case. Makes a great gift or to have on hand as your own "house" wine.

Joshua Green Building Website

Along with start of the coming school year, I am excited to announce the launch of yet another website by Olsen Creative!

We have just completed design on a website for the Joshua Green Building Restoration which is just getting underway in downtown Seattle at 4th and Pike. The website focuses on the vision, direction and leasing opportunities (office and retail in a prime location) for this historic building, set to reopen its doors in 2009. Built in 1909, it has been owned and maintained by the family of Joshua Green - the Joshua Green Corporation - ever since. Isn't that some kind of record?

http://www.joshuagreenbuilding.com/

The website project was commissioned by Urban Renaissance Group, a full-service commercial real estate company based in the Pacific Northwest. The driving force behind Urban Renaissance Group is a core belief that America is poised for a re-urbanization of its major cities, and for the creation of urban villages in its suburbs. This change is a distinct departure from land use trends marked by sprawl and de-centralization over the last 50 years.

The mission of Urban Renaissance Group is to be a catalyst that understands and ignites this change.

I wish to thank Renee Evans at UrbanRenGroup for igniting this project. The opposite of longevity is the speed by which this got pushed through. Start to launch in two weeks. Renee, thank you for providing complete, concise information - you're on fire! No really, I see smoke... (kidding)

http://www.urbanrengroup.com/

For more information on the Joshua Green Corporation, please visit their website. Be sure to click the About Us tab for their very interesting family history:

http://www.joshuagreencorp.com/


Revitalization of our urban centers - fresh, new websites - a NEW SCHOOL YEAR! We are giddy with excitement!

Stopping the Spam-O-Rama

Wow - there sure is a lot of spam on the Net. Check out the Spam-O-Meter for the current live stats (hover over numbers for description):

spam-o-meter ©dotcombinat.net

What gives??? Since the first comment on my blog was spam, I figured that there's no better time to talk about some Short-term Strategies to Combat Spam.

Here are some quick fixes that you can do:

If it isn't already, turn your spam filter on. Most ISPs have some sort of filtering where mail can be intercepted before it hits your inbox. Check with your ISP to find out how to do this.

If you have a website, cloak your email addresses. Spam robots (called spambots) search your site's source code for the standard "mailto:" code along with the accompanying "name@domain.com". There are a few ways you can disguise your address. 

1. You can create an image. Real people can read it, but the source code says it's an image, so the 'bots go right on by. Isn't this a pretty picture:? With any simple drawing program, you can type in your email address, save it as a jpg or gif and place it wherever you want on your page. Hiding out in plain sight!

2. You can use an Anti-spam JavaScript code snippet like this, which splits up the address and then tells the browser to reassemble it. But hold up a second, you're saying - wouldn't spambots just start looking for this chunk of code? Maybe, but I tend to think they're too lazy. There are plenty of email addresses out there ripe for harvest. Programmers of spam don't need to rewrite their creepy crawling code just yet.

If you have a form on your website, protect it against attracting spam with a CAPTCHA system. That's the funky little distorted text thingy you sometimes have to key in before you can submit a form. People can read it, computers can't. Use it everywhere from your blog to your input forms - anything that has a Submit button.

Moderate your blog comments. Yes, I moderate comments on this blog (OK, "comment"). I decided to post it as an example of how spammers get their names onto blogs (and guestbooks, etc). If you're busy and have a high-traffic blog - too much to research and approve every little comment, then use the CAPTCHA system above.

Use a separate email address for postings to internet mailing lists, blogs, newsgroups, etc - never use this for your personal email. Only give your main email address out to trusted sources. Then, you can quickly go through the secondary mailbox (and delete most of it) and your primary box won't be so full of spam.

Never buy anything from a company that spams. Sounds simple, but someone must be buying something, or spam solicitation wouldn't be such a lucrative business. If you click, you'll be proving to them that you're a live body and you'll just turn yourself into a bigger target. Just delete those emails.

~ SPECIAL BONUS TIP ~

Be selective about who you send email to. It's hard to think of your friends as spammers (because you've never sent spam), but if they receive an email that says "send this to everyone in your contact list", and actually do follow directions, then they're contributing to the Spam-O-Rama (as indicated by the current load in the Spam-O-Meter), sucking up valuable bandwidth across the internet.

Resist the urge to forward it even if it says "if you get this back from 5 friends, you're a wonderful person." On the contrary. 

For long-term solutions in fighting spam, here are some helpful resources:

Federal Trade Commission

Entrepreneurs-Journey.com - Some good ideas for making the transition toward a more spam-free existance.

How to work with creative-types

Everyone has a talent for something. Everyone has the ability to create. Talent and creativity are things that everyone is born with, to varying degrees. In terms of visual creativity, some people are attuned to seeing the possibilities. Some can’t draw their way out of a paper bag. Most people fall somewhere in the middle.

I cannot count the number of times that clients have approached me with a project and said, appologetically, “I’m sorry, I’m not a designer. Can you help me with this?” 

OK, that would be like me going to my doctor and saying, “I'm sorry, I tried to fix this ruptured spleen at home, but I’m not a surgeon.” Hey, I don’t know my spleen from my appendix, so who knows what I would have been taking a stab at. (Sorry for the gratutious pun!)

The thing about designers (and all creatives), is that they have a feel for what solution best supports a message, and hopefully have had some advanced education and experience so that they can make good decisions. 

Just like when you go to the doctor, you may have a feel for what the problem is, but you can be better treated if you outline the symptoms. The creative process works the same way. If you tell your designer where to “operate” you may not be treating the real problem. If you tell your designer where it hurts, then they can come up with a solution that tackles the problem directly.

What is "valid" web code?

  
Seen these icons? This is what they mean:

In the context of websites, valid code means that the (x)html is error free in syntax. (x)html is a computer language. All languages have their own grammar, vocabulary and syntax. Validation does not refer to the content, but rather that the mark-up of the page meets the basic requirements for industry standards.

What does Validation do?
Some claim that validation helps to increase traffic and improve rankings with search engines. Not necessarily so. That's like saying that a car with a smooth running motor will attract riders and turn heads. Mechanics would certainly take notice, and if you needed a dependable ride, such a car would likely get you where you're going. But it doesn't stand to reason that you'll get there in style. Thus, validation is the declaration that it is indeed, a well-oiled machine. What is DONE with it is another matter.

Why is Validation important?
Valid web code helps browsers know how to render the page. If the web code contains errors in syntax, then browsers are left to guess what the programmer probably meant by the inclusion or ommission of an element. Therefore, an error in syntax can result in an error in rendering the page. While browsers are smart about some things, I personally wouldn't leave the rendering of a layout open for interpretation by a piece of software.

How do you check Validation?
The World Wide Web Consortium has a free validation service. Simply enter a URI and it checks the syntax for errors, returning a "red light" or "green light" indication of whether the page passed the test.

So, when you see these icons, it means that the web developer took the extra time to ensure that what's under the hood is running optimally. In web design, just like with fancy cars, no one likes a poser.

Who are my clients?

I love my job. Always have. People have told me that I'm "lucky" because I can make a living doing something I love. What an odd statement, I think. I don't believe that luck has a lot to do with it. I make a living doing something I love because I made it happen. Everyone else has the same opportunity to be "lucky" with their own talents. The only difference between me and them is that I followed my own path.

Something else "lucky" happened to me a few years ago. I left my job in Corporate America ("left" as in, with a little push). I had been wanting to move on anyway, so it was just the kick in the pants I needed. I started freelancing and built Olsen Creative. It hasn't always been easy, but I've never looked back.

Even more "luck" was bestowed upon me when I found my niche with clients. (Geez, I'm finally getting to the point). Other small businesses just like me needed help that I was able to provide. In other words, my clients are people who are making a living at things they love doing.

How cool is that?

My current clients are a wine guy who blends his own wine and markets his goodies with personalized wine labels (yep, your face or biz logo on a wine label!), a music teacher who started her own vocal studio, a husband/wife team who built a contemporary education project that uses music in a unique and relevant way to excite young people about learning and help them experience success, a community bank that specializes in small business accounts, and a couple other musicians who perform and teach.

If you had asked me 20 years ago where I saw myself today, I would have had a completely different answer, but I would have been nowhere near as happy.

My clients are awesome!

5 steps to get your own website

In today's market, most small businesses know they need a website. They WANT to get online, but don't have a clear idea of what's involved. There is so much information about it on the Internet that it's hard to get down to the nuts and bolts. What do you really need to get online?

This overview lists the basics for the non-technically inclined. Yes, you. Say it loud: "I'M A NEWBIE AND PROUD!" Each part will require some research to choose the specs and price to suit your needs, but just take it one step at a time.

1. You need a computer that is capable of connecting to the Internet
If you want to read some simple blogs and send and receive text-only email, then a computer with a 56k modem will get you where you're going - eventually. It might be fun for about 15 minutes. Your first visit to YouTube will be a stark disappointment. If you want to take advantage of all that the Internet has to offer, get a computer with an ethernet card/port so that you can hook up to broadband (DSL or cable) Internet access. And no, not just to watch funny videos or listen to music. It's not much fun to publish a full website over a slow 56k dial-up connection, or email large attachments that take all night to send. Your computer also needs to have software to access the Internet (a browser), which usually comes pre-installed. The latest versions of popular browsers are available for download online.

2. You need to access the Internet through an Internet Service Provider (ISP)
Now that you have your own computer where you can build a website and access the Internet, there's certainly no need to spend your time surfing at the local public library, computer lab or Internet cafe. And what are you going to do in the wee after-hours when you finish your website changes or have a sudden urge to check your email? You need to get Internet access at home or at your office. The ISP simply provides access to the Internet. You need this if you're going to build and maintain a website, send and receive email and surf.

3. You need to register a Domain Name (DNS: Domain Name System)
The website you're about to create needs an address on the Internet. Your very own dot com. The address is called a URL (Uniform Resource Locator). Your URL can be any name that isn't already taken. Check through a domain search service to find out if your favorite name is available.

4. You need to post your website via a web host
A web host provides space on their server for you to make your website available on the Internet. This is where your actual website files are stored. (Of course, you have another full version on your hard drive, a back-up of that on an external drive and an archived version on CD - you can never be too safe). Web hosting services range from offering space and email addresses, to full eCommerce packages.

5. You need to design a website
No small matter here. You can hire someone to build a site for you, or try your hand with a web design package that contains step-by-step instructions for everything from creating content to uploading your first website to your web host.

Is that it? Well, it's the 10,000ft view. Hopefully it brings enough clarity to make a confusing process a little easier to follow.

If you're "new" and this article helped you, I invite you to click the link below to post a comment. This is my first blog, so I don't mind if it's your first blog comment. We can all learn something new today.

Welcome to Short-Term Strategies

“You shouldn't have a long-term strategy anymore, because you won't be able to move fast enough.” - Orit Gadiesh

(Chairman of Bain & Company, and one of Forbes 100 Most Powerful Women in the World)

What better reason to start a blog? And for me, "to start" means to jump in and do. While that may seem counter-strategic, by the time I had studied everything there was to know about blogging, it would all be so 10-minutes-ago that I'd have to start strategizing on something else.

Thus, I will try hard to hide my amazement if I click "publish" and see this online. It's all part of my strategy.