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Web Design | Getting Started | Checklist

Once your organization has determined a need for a website, these are suggested steps to follow. We have provided detailed information available by clicking on the links below.

Step 1

Get familiar with the Hypertext Markup Language (HTML)- the language of the web.

 1). Attend or read a Basic Web Authoring or HTML book. Some recormmended choices are:

2). Get familiar with other sites, find out what you like. After you have found some sites, see what they are using. You can check out the HTML Source Code on other web sites you like. Choose -View/Document Source (if you use Netscape) or Choose View/Source (if you use Internet Explorer).

3). Download a page creator/editor.

An HTML editor allows you to create your page strictly by typing HTML tags.

  •  A WYSIWYG editor has a fairly friendly user interface that behaves similar to a word-processing program.

There are several free programs, such as Netscape Composer available for general use.

Conversion tools are internet tools that provide some assistance in converting Word, Excel, Powerpoint and Visio files into HTML. Don't consider converting any documents with fancy formatting (i.e. tabs and indents) as it will not convert very well.

Step 2

Determine your Page Requirements and your audience:

This step is perhaps the most difficult task that you will have.

  • Determine your audience; then get familiar with them. Find out what age group you are targeting, what do they like, what is the level of computer sophistication, what type of computer will they use most likely?
  • Write all of your questions and findings down. And don't assume- test your findings, talk to some users out their that you are targeting. Just because you think that something is cool, doesn't necessarily mean that your audience will like your ideas. When you think you understand your audience, then move to the next step.

Step 3

Design your navigation, graphic elements, and look and feel

1). Decide your color scheme. You may want to highlight your logo, or choose a color that has some meaning to your audience.

2).Carefully collect pictures that convey meaning to your audience. Go through image catalogs, your picture gallery, or even look on the web for pictures that you like. Collect them and again, show them to your audience. Test your ideas along the way.

3). With your pictures in hand, draw how you would like your users to navigate through your page, decide where you are going to place your links and graphics... it is best to draw your ideas on paper. Remember this- good composition generally means good balance. You can test everything first on paper alot better than programming something and finding out that you have to change it again.

4). Decide what functionality and technologies that you will use and need. If you want a E-commerce site for example, decide if you will program it yourself or have someone do this part for you. If you need a user forum, you will need some programming done. If you need special functionality, understand what you are getting into before you make a choice. Some services may cost you several hundreds of dollars, even thousands, and you will have to find someone to host and maintain it.

Unless you are focused on selling over the web direct, most of the time, plain HTML and Javascript will do- Also, just because you think that a two minute animation will be cool, it doesn't mean your users will like the idea of waiting 15 minutes to download your animation will... Sometimes just being simple is best.

You will find that the hard work done up front will pay for itself in time saved in the future.

 

Step 4

Find an ISP

1). Decide if you want a local Internet Service Provider or a major ISP provider (such as GTE, Verio, etc).

  • The advantage with having a local provider is generally they offer better service. Also, they may give you tips and let you know of a local user group in the area, he or she might even commute with you to the meeting. You will be able to get to know them better and have a relationship with them as well, (my ISP friend lives on a beautiful river with the perfect fishing spot that I now fish!). With a local ISP, most likely, you will receive much better customer service and support
  • However, having a major ISP typicaly includes a breadth of services in your package. Some include support for ASP, ColdFusion, merchant accounts, Cash payment processing (for e-commerce), etc. You might get support for a few of these services with a local ISP, but generally you cannot beat the level of services received with a major player. Also, many of the major providers have service agreements that offer you free services if you don't have 99% uptime.

    The choice is yours...

2). Make sure that your hosting provider will support the technogies that you will be using. Another tip: READ THE SERVICE AGREEMENT!

Sometimes you will find the details in the small print unacceptable. I have heard of a few occasions that the customer could not sign with a different ISP for another year because the customer did not read the fine print. The customer was stuck with an inferior provider that didn't offer support for a whole year after they signed the contract.

Be sure to write your findings down on paper and file it for later use. If your ISP does not work out, you will find your old information handy at a later time.

3). When you have found your perfect ISP, see if they have quality of service guarantees. They might say that they are the best and offer the greatest support, ask them to prove it. You can ask them to offer you a free month for example if your site goes down for over a day. You might have to negotiate for this, but it will be well worth the effort in the long run.

Other Starting Links & Resources:

 

HostIndex.com: provides links to the top hosting providers in the US

Amazon.com: Web Development Bestsellers

Finding an ISP Dot.com directory