Web Setup / Beginning Considerations Web Setup

Setting up your Web presence requires the consideration of many factors including E-mail configuration, your existing network, your internal Web maintenance capability, and your Internet connection.

Considerations

• Planning – It is best to plan first, then implement. Should you read articles? Articles and books are definitely helpful if you have the time to qualify authors and absorb the detail. The Web (especially search engine technology) changes so quickly that many books become obsolete by the time they are released. If you don’t have the time to do a great deal of reading, don’t worry. We have done the studying of the Web and have written numerous articles that you may find helpful. We can represent your interests and serve as your implementation consultants. Please see our strategy section. We provide consulting in order to understand your initial desires and the course you should follow.

A good initial course of action would be to visit Web sites that are similar to your business or profession and determine what you like and don’t like about them. Don’t get too hung up on your likes and dislikes, however. Consider that your clients and prospective clients may view sites differently than you do.

• Pricing – Pricing can range from a few hundred to several thousand dollars. The more you prepare in advance, the less your cost will be. Our clients sometimes provide rough layouts and documents in Word or WordPerfect format. This makes our job easier, therefore the cost to you is less.

• Hosting – Should you install your own Web server or sign up with a Web host service? Web hosts differ greatly. They don’t offer the same services and products. Most organizations should sign up with a professional Web hosting service. Remember that simply because a host is large and/or well-known, does not mean that they offer a flexible hosting site with an abundance of services. Please see our Hosting page. If desired, we can help you select a host that fits your needs.

• Design – Should you hire a professional or try it yourself? Perhaps you should do both. At a minimum, you should consult a professional before diving in. This will save you time and money and avoid redesign at a later point.

• Search engine results – Organizations often spend considerable amounts of money on their sites, only to find that their sites do not achieve acceptable search engine rankings. This situation can be a result of inexperience and planning of the meta key words and/or Web pages. Each search engine operates differently. To maintain quality listings, they are forced to frequently change their indexing algorithms. Rapid Internet growth has overloaded many search engines and sites are sometimes inadvertently dropped from the index. Please see our Promotewebs.com or LawWebMarketing sites for more detail.

• Existing computers and software – Consider the implications of and on your existing hardware and software. We can help determine the best design and access by and to your network. If you use Outlook Express, Netscape, Groupwise, Eudora, etc., we can assist in determining the most efficient E-mail and Web access design.

• Maintenance – Should you plan to maintain the site or contract with a designer? Avoid a situation where a template designer sets you up inexpensively, then requires you to pay them for all updates. Many Web designers offer Web maintenance plans. Many of our clients maintain their own sites and call on us for more complex additions and/or changes. Site maintenance and training are a part of our proposal package.