We all know that now days for a business to succeed you have to be online, but what do you need in order to be prepared and have a smooth website delivery? No one wants any surprises, you want to be educated in everything you will need to develop your site from start to finish.
We have put together a checklist for you so you can be prepared to be an online warrior!
Branding. Branding is such a crucial part of the way your potential new customers view your business. Your branding is essentially the representation of your businesses core values and personality. You will present it through your website, business card, vechile signage, printed media and online media so make sure you allow for the time and budget to have a professional corporate logo and branding developed for your business, this will also keep your website costs down as the designer will already have a base for the design!
Domain Name. Firstly you need to check if your business name is available as a domain name. For example if your business name is “x Real Estate” you will want to check that you can get a domain name such as xrealestate.com.au. To check the availability of your domain name there are many tools available on the internet such as whois.com.au. When you are researching a domain name ensure that you haven’t accidentally signed up for hosting as most website companies will offer this as part of your website package. At Neubreed we offer you the flexibility to host with us or elsewhere.
Hosting. Once the website has been developed you will need to have it hosted. There are many options for hosting companies so you need to do your homework. It is generally easier and more streamlined to have all of your services under one roof, that way you only have one company to call should you need some technical help, for this reason most clients keep their hosting with their website developer. If you decide to obtain your own hosting, it is wise to have someone Australian or with Australian office hours so you can call someone if you need help with anything.
Content. A common question we get asked by new clients is how long the website will take to develop. A website development varies in time depending on the complexity of the build but it also depends on how readily available the content is. When you are looking to engage a web designer it is important to have all of your content including text for pages and photos ready to go so the process can be as streamlined as possible.
Responsive. With 68% of Australian smart phone users researching products and services on line via their mobile device it’s now more important than ever to make sure your website is responsive (viewable on all mobile devices). Ensure when you develop your website project you allocate some of your budget for a responsive design to ensure the maximum exposure to your product or service.
Social Time. Once your site has been developed and populated with your content you will need to ensure you allocate some time in your working week to maintain your social networking platforms and any blogs you have developed. This allows you to engage with your customers and promote specials, and products.
Getting Found. Probably the largest part of any website development project. No matter how great the website is, if no one can find it then they will head straight to your competitor! A professional and comprehensive digital strategy is a must for any business serious about making their business successful online. Talk to us today about what is involved in a comprehensive digital strategy.
Keep Updated. It is important to allocate time to keep your website updated. If you have a great website that people are engaged by and find helpful and useful the likelihood is they will be a recurring visitor, so keep your content fresh and updated. A website is never really finished, a great site should always be changing and evolving!
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