IDEaS Websites 101
This guide is provided to give you a simple layman’s guide to the basic pieces to the puzzle of a website project. We’ve simplified things greatly and written this guide to give you a basic understanding of key concepts and terms. Please note that this is by no means a complete guide to what it takes to run a website.
Ready? Here we go
Design vs. Development
"I know what Website Design is, but what is this Website Development?"
Website Development is a perpetually evolving term that is meant to encompass all aspects of building a website and its individual pages from start to finish. This is really an umbrella term that includes, but of course is not limited to, website design, layout structure, content planning/placement, programming/coding, marketing, and search engine optimization.
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Domain Name
In simplest terms, this is the ending part of an address on the internet. This is what is commonly referred to as your website’s "web address", or URL (i.e. www.example.com). Domain names can be any combination of case-insensitve alphanumeric characters, including the hyphen; and ending in a top-level domain, or extension (i.e. .com, .net, .org, etc.).
There are hundreds of domain registrars that allow you to purchase a domain for your website. Alternatively, IDEaS can advise you in this process and purchase the domain(s) on your behalf. We’ll also give you suggestions and help you decide on that perfect domain name.
Please contact us for Current Domain Pricing
*Note: IDEaS-purchased domains incur a $25 service fee, per domain.
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Hosting
Simply put, to have a website accessible to the "outside world", it needs to be stored on a computer or server connected to the internet. However, websites are accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. So, you need equipment that is made to run in "always on" mode, and can quickly process and serve your website to anyone who wants to view it.
IDEaS has high performance dedicated servers that are built to the task of hosting your website. For more information on our available hosting packages, click here.
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About Search Engines
Search engines (i.e. Google, Yahoo, MSN, etc.) are websites that continually "crawl" the internet to see what websites are out there, so they can provide an end-user with relevant results when searching for a desired term, or keyword. Think of it as a "phone book for websites".
No one wants to pay for a website, only to have it show up on the third page of search results. Having a website on the internet does not necessarily mean your site will be found by search engines. There are many, many things you can do to optimize your website; enough so that a new industry has been coming of age, geared towards optimizing your website so it can be found in search engines.
Enter a new term of the times: Search Engine Optimization.
Search Engine Optimization, or SEO, is basically the practice of doing everything in one’s power to ensure your website is the top ranking in search results for any relevant keywords. While many of the work involved in SEO can be performed by even the newest of beginners, undertaking such a project can be a daunting task. IDEaS has introduced an SEO Package that can be purchased as an add-on. Click here for more information.
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Skin Design
The Skin is the base template of your website. Colors, background, images, navigation treatments, header/footer…that’s your skin. A typical website may use several variations of a base skin, or even have several different skins difering from page to page. What’s important is that key elements (i.e. logo, color palette, header/footer information, navigation) stay consistent throughout your website so as not to alienate your visitors.
When starting a website project, the Skin Design is one of the first components IDEaS will approach in the project. For more information about our Design Services, click here.
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Content
Let’s face it. When all is said and done, the content on your website is what you made your website for, and what visitors come to view. Content can be promotional and descriptive literature, images, charts, products offered, contact information…you get the idea.
IDEaS offers copywriting services as part of your website project. Come in and talk to us—tell us about your company and your products & services you offer; bring in relevant brochures, flyers, summaries and outlines—we’ll do the rest. If you’d like to see some examples of our copywriting capabilities, check out our website portfolio of past and present client projects we have completed.
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The Importance of Research
Check out the Competition
When starting a business, it’s always a good idea to look at your local and regional market for competitors so you can differentiate your company from "that other guy". The same applies to websites. Not only do you want your website to perform better than your competition, you also want it to look better too. So the first step of researching websites is to check out your competition.
Go Feature Shopping
Do some "fun browsing" to see what’s going on in the World of Websites. This is your chance to check out your competition, your peers, and everyone else—no website is off-limits. Look at color schemes, logo and site designs, layouts, features & functions—anything that stands out to you. Make note of what you like, (I’d like to try that on my website). Make note of what you don’t like (Ooh that looks horrible). Copy URL’s, make print outs, take notes; and bring them to your project planning session with IDEaS.
Local? Regional? National? Global?!
All of the above. Remember that the internet is a huge place, (think: infinite) and geographical location of your company’s peers and competitors is not a factor from one website to the next.
All Set!
This concludes the IDEaS Websites 101 course. Hopefully you’ve learned something, and hopefully your brainstorming gears are spinning away. When you’re ready, why not request a project estimate?
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