Web Design Tips

Here are ways to work with you web designer AND get a great looking website:

1) Do your homework first. Find nice looking websites that you like first and bookmark them. Choose at least three. They do not need to be in your same industry. Choose these websites for the graphic look only.If you see a site that looks great, but you're concerned that "I could never afford something like this," put it on your list anyway. I good web designer can find ways to accomplish similar visual effects without charging you an arm and a leg.

2) What is the main impression you want people to get from your website? Many websites suffer from conflicting messages and goals. If you try to get your website to do too many things for too many people, your graphic designer will have a hard time making your website look right. The clearer and more focused your website's objective, the easier it will be for a designer to put together a good design. It will also help you with search engine placement. The tighter the focus of your website, the better off you will be.

3) Whenever possible get digital images from your suppliers and your print shop (for logos or past brochures). If a website design firm has to "re-create" your logo or if a website design firm has to scan images, your costs will increase. The more prepared you are in this area, the lower your costs will be.

4) If you don't already have a logo, there are designers that are very good at this and can do it fairly reasonably. Your logo can really make or break the look of your website.

5) Changes made in the middle of working on a website can be costly. Plan your site ahead of time. Know what you want on the website. Know how many pages you want (or have a pretty good idea). Plan what pages you believe you need to be successful. Write your text out ahead of time for some of your key pages. Get examples ready from other websites of things that you want done.

6) You can really save a lot of money by having your website designer create your home page and a template for the rest of the pages on your site. Then use Macromedia Contribute, FrontPage, Adobe Go Live, Netscape Composer, or some other product to put the text in yourself.

7) Skip the FLASH animation. Most Flash designers charge big bucks for their work (and most Flash designers are worth every penny they charge). But Flash animation doesn't usually equal extra cash from your website. It usually just means it will cost more to maintain and it will cost more up front. I'm sure there are applications where Flash can increase sales, but not as a general rule. So save the cash, don't use Flash. Flash also makes it difficult for the search engines to find you, since they see the flash pages as a single picture rather than valuable key words.

8) When you choose a web designer, make sure that he or she will be available to you in the future to assist you, whether it be updates, server issues, or additions to your site. A website is not like paper copy, it is easy and less costly to keep current. Updates can be made in as little as 5 minutes.

In summary, the key is to plan your website and do your homework first. Then talk to website designer. You'll be able to get a good deal AND get a great looking website.