Small Business websites
Updating information on your web site can now be made to be as easy as entering some text onto a form on a web page, or writing an email, or creating a Word document, or even sending an update from your iPhone. This is done by using a "Content Management System" (CMS) on your web site. Once the CMS is installed then no IT expert is required.
Contact me to help you navigate through the requirements and jargon of having a web site.
What you need
First: A domain name.
This is simply a web address that uses your business name. It's simple to get and costs only about $10 per year. So that's a no-brainer! In Australia you can only register a domain if you have some demonstrable link to the name - such as a business or product name, or a marketing campaign. (Generic ".com" addresses are slightly cheaper but identifying yourself as Australian is well worth the few extra dollars.)
Second: A web host.
A hosting company runs lots of internet connected computers (servers) and, for a fee, they provide some of that computer power and storage for your web site. Running lots of automated software gives them the benefit of scale to look after lots of background things like making sure all the computers are running and the data is safe and the web sites are always available. Prices for web hosting start at around $50 per year.
Note: There are companies that offer "easy" web sites for free but there's often going to be a catch that might cause you problems in the future. I recommend these to people who want to play around with the look and feel but then recommend they refer that design back to a fully hosted service.
If you have several computers in your business you might want to consider hosting your web site yourself on one of those computers. In particular the Mac Mini configured as a "server" is a really inexpensive way to deploy a web site and at the same time provide internal services to your business.
Third: A web design
This is where you have to develop an idea of what you want your site to look like and what services you want to offer your customers. One of the best ways of getting ideas is to do some web surfing around the sites of your business competitors (or colleagues) both locally and overseas. A graphic designer can take your current business branding and work that into a site design. A web architect will create the functionality that you want and overlay the design so that the whole site has a consistent look and feel.
Fourth: The content
One of the functions that can (or should) be deployed with your web hosting is a system that allows non-tech people to update the actual content on the site. It will do so in such a way that the "look and feel" that has been created by the web design step won't be disrupted. It should also be easy to access - from any internet connected device.
A web expert can give you some ideas as to what sort of content should be created and how to present it, but really there is no getting away from the fact that you and your business need to create the text and pictures - and keep them up to date.
Fifth: Some email addresses
If you've done all of the above then it's a simple thing to set your business up to use email addresses that are part of your domain. This looks a whole heap more professional (and web savvy) to your clients than an address that is hosted by your ISP or at a free global site. Also it gives you complete control and ownership of the addresses so that you can keep them even if you change location, ISP, or web host.
Sixth: A maintenance plan
With a CMS in place and content being updated on a regular basis your web site will generally tick along OK without any extra work. However it's a truth that all technology things change and need some maintenance and updating or upgrading. So it's definitely worthwhile having a professional available to you to do periodic reviews of the underlying infrastructure. If you sign up to a maintenance plan then you'll be making best use of their retained knowledge of your setup and their experience that has been built up across their entire client base.
