1-       Decide on the Navigation structure and types of pages/kinds of pages.

2-        Provide all documents/wording for each page.

3-        Tell us what you like so the site is built your way as opposed to what we think you want.

4-        Provide artwork, logos, etc. We can build these for you or have a professional art designer do this.

5-        Choose free "special services". Many people do. These will include Chat Rooms, Guest Books, WebRings, Message boards, Daily Cartoons, etc. These are paid by advertising.

6-        Choose a Theme or a Template, as opposed to a custom job.  A Theme will have the background color, button colors, link colors, etc. chosen for you.  A template is more expensive but more stylish. It also comes as a set of colors, buttons, etc. Themes are relatively easy to customize if you don’t like some of the choices. Templates are harder to customize. If you don’t find anything you like then we can create a custom web page/style from available artwork that we own.

7-        Provide pictures and other artwork and decide where they go. Building an album of pictures is easy. The hardest part about pictures is NOT cropping them, resizing them, adding special effects, slide shows, thumbnails, etc. but choosing pictures and deciding where they go. So, to save money please choose these things yourself (ditto for artwork, etc.)

9-        Keep the design simple, unless your business is entertainment, flash introductions, special effects, etc. just distract from your content.

1-       Sell products on line! Not just your product and services but also your logo.. in the form of T-shirts, mugs, ball caps, on hand bags and backpacks, etc.  See our section on E-Commerce.

      Seek sponsorships from people and companies that you normally do business with. Make a list of all your suppliers (office products, your bank, equipment suppliers, etc.) and all your typical customers. Look at your Rolodex!

2-       Think of related businesses. For instance, if you hand out annual awards, the people who make the awards themselves, the photographer, the flower shop, the limo company, the restaurant where the ceremony is held, etc. Look at the Yellow Pages for ideas.

3-       Drive around your neighborhood, speak with friends and get ideas.

4-       Don’t go wild on this. After making your lists, choose whom to approach first, second and third. Don’t fill your website with ads. Too many can be annoying.

5-       Not all pages are worth the same. Most often visited pages (homepage, calendar, news, special events, schedules, etc.) are worth more. A “pool” page (I call them “Sponsors”) can be a catch-all for friends’ websites or other sponsors.

      Offer different levels of sponsorship. Usually three would suffice. The difference would come in the size/type of logos or banners and placement.

6-       Ask them to provide the artwork, or it can be created for them (and given to them). We’ll link to their websites. They will be charged for the logo or banner.

7-       Consider joining web-rings or other things that increase traffic so you can charge more for ads.  Sponsors do not want to pay for a dead-end on the internet.

8-       Use your website for promotions, deals etc. that attract new customers to your business.

      Remember that sponsors will pay for your site and can be a source of income above and beyond that - even for a small business.

      It is not unusual for a website to be fully paid for at the time of its launch! Like any other part of your business this needs to be worked on in order to be successful.

      A proper perspective would identify your website as a potential source of income, not as a necessary evil. Think about the fact that so many businesses exist only on the internet! You too can make it work for you.