This will usually take up a lot of time and hard work, but once you get your site up and running, it should be well worth the effort, considering the potential profits you may reap.
There're basically 2 options: One is to build the website on your own, the other is to hire a web designer to build it for you.
In this article, we will discuss the pros and cons of each option, and help you decide which option is the best for you.
Build The Website Yourself If you have some programming skills and are well versed in HTML or PHP, you should definitely choose to build the website on your own.
The benefits are:
This means you get full control over exactly which components you want to include on your site and where you want to place them.
Each time you need to make small updates to the product catalogues or new promotions, you can make the updates on your own without difficulties.
If you've decided to go ahead and build the site on your own, you have two choices - to learn the HTML and construct the site from scratch, or to use a HTML editor.
Some resources for learning HTML can be found here:
pagetutor.
com
htmlgoodies.
com
davesite.
com
This software is very user-friendly - you can get your site up and running in no time! It comes together Microsoft Office, and is readily available on most computers.
(http://www.
adobe.
com/products/dreamweaver) This software contains more functionality and is capable of designing more professional-looking websites.
The price is steeper, however, and you may need more time to learn all the intricacies of the software.
Currently, the latest version is Dreamweaver 8.
Apart from having a HTML editor to structure the website, you also need a graphics editing software to create your company logo, navigation buttons, or banners.
The graphics editing software I highly recommend is Adobe Photoshop.
(http://www.
adobe.
com/products/photoshop) It has the capabilities of creating stunning images and effects, allowing you to create professional-looking websites.
However, for someone who has no prior experience in graphics editing, it is more difficult to learn how to use the functions and tools.
Hiring A Web Designer If you're not IT-savvy, the best option is definitely to hire a web designer.
Not only do you get professional web design services, you also save lots of time designing your site and learning how to design it in the first place.
There're actually many web designers out there willing to build your site for very competitive prices.
When selecting a web designer, it's crucial that he has a good understanding of internet marketing, for the following reasons:
Your web designer must understand the tricks of optimizing your sales process and delivering a professional layout focused on user-friendliness.
This is definitely superior to a flashy, attractive website with fanciful graphics, but does not deliver sales.
Salescopy are the words on your site that draws the visitors in with enticing benefits and convince them to close sales.
Such salescopy is instrumental in converting ordinary web visitors into paying customers.
SEO is the process of optimizing your website such that it ranks high on the Search Engine Results Page for your selected keywords.
Much of the SEO process is done when building the website, like the keyword density, META tags, title tags, header tags and
Web designers with experience in SEO can also offer added value in this aspect.
If you cannot afford the extra budget of hiring a web designer, it's usually advantageous to design the site on your own.