This is a brief introduction to websites for people who know little or nothing about websites and what is needed to get started on a website design project. It covers some of the key factors that you need to take into account when planning your site.
What is a website?
A website is a collection of pages which can be accessed on a computer that is linked to the internet. A website can exist to provide information, to act as a showcase (an artist website for example) or to sell the owner’s products and services.
What does a web designer do?
A web designer creates the files that are needed to make your website work. This involves coming up with a design (the overall look and feel of your site), sourcing all the photographs and graphics and creating the computer code that holds you website together and makes it work. Finally, the web designer transfers all the files to the host computer.
Host computer? What it that?
Once your website is complete, your web designer will transfer all the files that make up your site (pages, text and images) to a ‘host’ computer. This is the huge computer that is permanently connected to the internet and stores thousands of websites.
What is a domain name and why do I need one?
Your domain name is an address that allows your website to be found. If you didn’t have a domain name, no one would ever find your website.
Where do I start when planning my website?
When you are thinking about having a website, you should ask yourself five questions:
- Why do I want a website?
- Who is it aimed at?
- What do I want my website to do for me?
- What do I want to say on my website?
- What is my budget – how much do I want to spend?
The answers to these questions will define the type of website that you need.
What should I put on my website?
In the world of web design, content is king. Most people visit websites because they want information – the appearance is secondary. (The exception to this are showcase sites for the arts where the look of the site is equally important of course.)
So before you contact a web designer, it is a good idea to draft your content first. This means identifying what pages you want to include, thinking about what photographs or artwork you want to have, and thinking about the colours and website look and feel that you want to present to visitors.
How do I choose and buy a domain name?
The first very important rule to remember is that if a web designer buys a domain name for you, make sure it is done in your name. The reason for this is simple. If your details are not on the domain name registry – then you do not own the domain name. This means that if the web designer disappears for any reason, or does not pay the renewal fees, you will lose your domain name, and it is almost impossible to retrieve.
Domain names are normally leased for one or two years. Ideally we like to register and host your site to keep everything under one umbrella. But if you have already registered a domain name, we can easily transfer it to our host.
Should I choose a .com or .co.uk domain name?
.com names imply a USA base whereas .co.uk suggest a UK base. .com addresses are more expensive – they can cost up to £30 per year. .co.uk addresses are much cheaper – between £5 and £10 per year. .org and .org.uk suggest charity or club. There are others (e.g. .biz, .net, .com.uk) but they are less popular and probably not worth considering.
If you are buying a domain name, it is worth buying both the .com and .uk versions of the name. This is because people often forget which ending to use when typing in an address, and if you have both, it doesn’t matter which they use – they will still be able to access your site.
Also, if you have a .co.uk name, but not the .com name, there is a risk that the .com name might be bought by a competitor. Therefore people looking for your site might accidentally finish up on one of your competitor’s sites.
What web pages do I need?
You can have as many pages as you like on your website. If you are not sure what you need, here are some suggestions:
A small business website
Home
About
Products or Services
Costs
Contact
An artist’s website
Home
About
Inspiration
Gallery 1
Gallery 2
Gallery 3
Workshops
Contact
A photographer’s website
Home
About
Gallery 1
Gallery 2
Gallery 3
Costs
Contact
A theatre website
Home
Latest news
What we do
Performances
Diary
Performers
Gallery
Contact
Links
An actor’s website
Home
CV/Biography
Photo gallery
Contact
Links
An author or writer’s website
Home
Latest news
About the author
Latest books/publications
Other books/publications
Diary
Contact
Links
A craft website
Home
About
Gallery 1
Gallery 2
Gallery 3
Buy online
Contact
Links
