It amazes me, people still believe that all they have to do is “build it and they will come“. I promise that is the only movie quote that I will use. Having personally developed well over 100 websites since 1997 I am always stunned by people complaining that there website is a failure and blaming the person who built it. Having a website is only half the battle! You must promote, promote, and then promote some more. No matter how great your product is no one can buy it unless they know about it.
First let me say that having someone develop a custom website for you is very important. Go cheap and buy a prefab website is usually a prelude to failure. Yes they are affordable and I know you are on a tight budget but never forget “You Get What You Pay For”.
Now to the point. There is a simple formula for success. Spend money = make money. Sounds easy right?
First figure out what you can afford to pay a developer for your website, if you have a product to sell you should be thinking in the $1000 range. Also find a developer who believes in web standards, trust me this is important.
Next figure out a monthly advertising budget and spend it wisely. This is by far the most import advice I can give. Your website is not going to shoot to the top of the search engines or miraculously develop visitors all on its own. While we are on the topic of search engines, keep in mind that a person on the web only has a 4% chance of winding up on your website through a search engine. Most likely they will find your site while browsing on another website. Your best bet, if you can afford it, is to hire a reputable firm to promote your website. They will know what will work and what is a waste of money. If you can not afford to hire a firm, do your do diligence before spending your money. Only advertise on websites that are relevant to your product otherwise you are wasting your money.
This leads to our third point. Believe in the power of link exchange. I do not care what it will do for you in the search engines. The more links you have out their the greater the likely hood that someone will click that link and wind up on your website. If you are on a tight budget this is the best way to promote your website.
This article only covers the basics. Keep an eye out for part two which will have more detail about internet promotion.
Tampilkan postingan dengan label web developer. Tampilkan semua postingan
Tampilkan postingan dengan label web developer. Tampilkan semua postingan
Selasa, 29 Juni 2010
Kamis, 03 Juni 2010
What Clients Want
A potential client calls and wants a website, as a web developer you are more then happy to help. You show them your work, explain how your work is better then the rest and sell the person on the importance of Web Standards. Do you think that a client wants to hear all about Web Standards? Most likely they do not. They do want to here how you are going to make there website a success.
This does not mean that Web Standards are not important or that you should not follow them and yes you should tell your clients that you build websites using proper coding. But this is what they expect from a web developer, otherwise they would be trying to build a website on there own.
A web developer should be responsible for explaining to a potential client what it takes to make a website successful before they pay for your services. Many people still believe that all you have to do is build a website and visitors will show up at your door begging to buy your products. A web developer knows better and should make his novice clients aware of this. No client should think that a website will be a success without spending money on advertising. If you do not offer advertising or SEO optimization to your clients you should be prepared to recommend companies that do offer such services.
It is very important to remember that if a client’s website is a complete flop they will put some or all of the blame on you. Especially if you did not explain the pitfalls of owning and operating a website. On the other hand if you do promote there website or teach them the ins and outs of promoting a website they will be a satisfied customer. Most of my customers are referred to my company by existing clients and I truly believe this is because we do not just build a website for them but teach them what it takes to be an online success.
This does not mean that Web Standards are not important or that you should not follow them and yes you should tell your clients that you build websites using proper coding. But this is what they expect from a web developer, otherwise they would be trying to build a website on there own.
A web developer should be responsible for explaining to a potential client what it takes to make a website successful before they pay for your services. Many people still believe that all you have to do is build a website and visitors will show up at your door begging to buy your products. A web developer knows better and should make his novice clients aware of this. No client should think that a website will be a success without spending money on advertising. If you do not offer advertising or SEO optimization to your clients you should be prepared to recommend companies that do offer such services.
It is very important to remember that if a client’s website is a complete flop they will put some or all of the blame on you. Especially if you did not explain the pitfalls of owning and operating a website. On the other hand if you do promote there website or teach them the ins and outs of promoting a website they will be a satisfied customer. Most of my customers are referred to my company by existing clients and I truly believe this is because we do not just build a website for them but teach them what it takes to be an online success.
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