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Creating Art on the Web through Website Design

By Kevin Germain in Web Design

The web is a wild place. It is an art gallery without the admission fee. Web designers are artist of a different medium. Like artists not all of the website designs that they create are going to work. Some websites are truly annoying. Take for instance a painter that really likes the color blue. If it is used in every piece of art the painter makes it will visually not stimulate our eyes and we will become bored or annoyed with the artists art. The same is true for web design. As a website developer you need to make sure that your “art” is different for each client and you need to avoid common mistakes that draw attention away from the client’s product or service. There are several things to steer clear of when designing websites to ensure a perfect site for your client.

Top Five Most Annoying Website Design Techniques

1) Colors that assault the eye – If your clients insisting on using every color of the rainbow in their site design it is your job as the website designer to talk them out of it.

Even though they think it adds just the right touch of pizzazz to their site you know better. Colors that are too bright or morbidly dark will not be suitable to promote your clients work. Even if you are promoting a circus keep the main site colors down to a maximum of two or three. Do not give in to the more is better philosophy with color.

2) Background sounds – Nothing is worse that a site that replays the same sound bit throughout the entire site. Or worse yet a slogan that plays each and every time you click on a new page within a site. Full songs are also an absolute annoyance. It is best that the site visually provides the entertainment leave the background noise out of future web designs.

3) Spelling Errors – You are using a computer with a spell check button make sure you use it. Nothing is worse than bad grammar, incorrect punctuation or pour spelling. Before you go live with any site make sure multiple eyes have looked over all text. Even if the client has provided the text for their site do not trust that it is correct. Always double and triple check for errors or inconsistent tenses.

They will thank you for catching the error before the site has become viewable to their clients.

4) Font Size – If you use all capital letters in your design people will feel like the site is shouting at them. Using all small letters will make people feel like you are whispering. It is best to stay consistent with normal text and punctuation. This way it will make the website feel as if it speaking to the viewer in a normal voice which will make it more pleasing to read.

5) Blinking links and pop-up windows – These items are to the web what junk mail is to our mail boxes. Useless information that gets in the way of important information.

Stop using pop-up windows and blinking lights to attract attention to your art because the reality is that they are just annoying.

Remember in web design it is all about how your website design is perceived by the people viewing it. Make sure the art you present does not detour anyone from visiting the websites your clients have had you design.

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If you have enjoyed this article from Kevin Germain at CPS please visit www.cpsmi.com today. You will find useful information on website development.

What Software Do You Need to Build a Super Performance Minisite?

By Ian Greenwood in Web Design

Creating your own high performance website is not that hard. Leaning the process might seem a little unfamiliar at first, but it’s really not difficult. If you are new to internet marketing one big question you may have is, “Which software do I need to create a mini sales sites?”

One thing that scares people away from creating their own internet minisite is that you need special software to create the web pages. This is called ‘web design software,’ ‘HTML editors’ or ‘web coding software.’ Just the names sound scary, right? But it’s not that bad really. So, where do you start?

The good news is that if you can use word processing software then you can use modern HTML editors. This modern software is neither hard to use, or difficult to learn. And while it’s true that some HTML software packages are expensive, the good news is that there are free or low cost alternatives!

Here are your choices if you want to build your own minisite, and are looking to get it on the net and selling for you.

1. Industry Standard Software.

The industry standard packages are Microsoft Expression Web (which used to be Frontpage) and Adobe Dreamweaver (formally Macromedia Dreamweaver). These two packages form the software base of the professional web development industry. Many professional web development businesses and educational establishments use these packages.

They are incredibly powerful and full featured programs, with price tags to match. They have extensive knowledge bases online as well as free tutorials and support forums.

So, if you are just starting out to construct your own minisites then something a little more modest would probably be the way to go at the beginning. You can always upgrade later when you are at least making some money online!

2. Middle of the road software.

There are a number of mid priced web development packages out there if you need the reassurance of a paid for product, without having to shell out hundreds at a time.

First up is Web Plus form the UK software developers Serif. This company regularly wins industry awards for their software, and they have good support manuals, technical help and user forums to sort out your problems. The package comes with paper manuals, software on disc and numerous templates.

Another mid priced package is CoffeeCup Visual Site Designer. Don’t confuse this with the other free package from the Coffeecup range – the HTML editor. The Visual Site Designer has a wysiwyg interface that generally lets you drag and drop various elements into your web pages. It also comes with 10 preformatted themes you can adapt, and there are others available to buy in the theme store.

3. Free or Low cost packages.

Some of the best low cost or free packages are Kompozer, HTML-Kit, and Amaya.

There are others, but these are some of the best and most popular. By using software like this you can easily learn all the skills you need to get your minisite up and running. Then when you are ready to upgrade your software to something better your money will be well spent.

Most of the free or low cost solutions have communities online that will help out the newcomer but don’t expect extensive free tutorials or huge support databases. The closest you will come to this is with Kompozer. This is because The Kompozer package is open source software with a big and enthusiastic following on line.

Whichever way you decide to come at developing your sales minisite you should never let the software question stop you. Whatever your experience and budget you will find a solution and with a bit of perseverance you can get your web empire up and running quicker and easier than you imagine.

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Would you like Ian Greenwood to shown every step of creating your own high profit minisite? You can get full details, and save over 35% for a very limited time. Go now to www.BuildWebsitesThatSell.com.

Do You Wish You Had a High Profit Minisite Selling On the Internet?

By Ian Greenwood in Web Design

Many times in life the way you approach a project is the most important part of your success. Building your own profit pulling minisite online is no exception to this rule. If you have never tried to do this, or have tried and failed, then let me show you a way to success!

Like doing anything, there is a right way, and a wrong way, to do most things. Or to put it another way, there is an easy way, and a difficult way. Learning to build your own high profit one page minisite is no exception to this rule. You can cut out a lot of wasted time and hassle if you apply the right things to your project from the start.

That’s what you’re going to find out here. The right way to start your first profit pulling minisite project.

Step 1 – Decide why you want to learn to create mini websites.

Knowing the ‘why’ makes the ‘how’ more manageable. By having a goal in mind at the start you will have something to work towards. You will also know when you have arrived at the end of your project.

Let me tell you a story of someone I know who worked for a bank. Let’s call him Jack. He, of course, never had any experience building websites, or really anything to do with the internet. His wife – we will call her Lynda – was heavily involved with the Girl Guide movement in the UK.

One day Jack was surfing the net on his computer. Lynda was passing and said that she would really like a website for her Girl Guide troop. At that moment Jack made her a rash promise to build her the website she wanted! He then had a goal to aim for.

Well, ten years on, Jack is now one of the top UK internet marketers. He has a business online that draws in hundreds of thousands a year. Having that goal – to build his first website for the Girl Guides – opened up a whole world of possibilities to him, and gave him his first ‘why.’

So, what is your goal for your first website? For most people that will be to make a little money online, or even to replace their 9 – 5 regular job. Well, this is great to aim for in the future, but you really need to take things a little slower at the beginning to guarantee success.

Step 2 – Don’t run before you can walk!

Start by creating a simple one page minisite for a simple ebook or other small product. This includes two important factors. First, You will increase your chances of success by not taking on too much too soon, and second, you will be able to see the project through to completion quickly.

This second factor is critical in your success. Watching as your minisite project progresses quickly is very exciting and motivating. In only a few days, or a week or two, you can have your first sales minisite up and running. This is a great feeling and will spur you on to do it again and again.

Step 3. Learn, and do, a little every day.

No matter where your teaching is coming from, be it a book, class or course, you need to learn something new from it every day. And, you should also do something to progress your project every day, no matter how small.

Most people give up on their first minisite project simply because they leave it for a few days and then never get back to it. This can be fatal to your dreams. Do a little every day and you will see your minisite project progressing in the right way.

By doing it this way you will never be overwhelmed by the amount you still have to do. You will also have the time to devote to the little problems or difficulties that are bound to crop up from time to time. You will also be able to tick off the little steps as each are achieved . This shows you your progress so you can really watch your end goal coming closer.

Conclusion. If you really want to teach yourself to build websites then this three step strategy can help you win. Just believe that you can learn to do this. Many have before you. It’s not hard, and it can be hugely rewarding – both in cash earned, as well as personal achievement!

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Get some expert coaching for your minisite project! Ian Greenwood teaches the full process of minisite building in his step by step video course Creating Websites That Sell. He has just released a full update of the course, and you can snap it up on the ‘special release offer’ saving you over 35%. This special discount is limited, so you need to go now! Get all the details and see a full video preview at www.BuildWebsitesThatSell.com.

What Are Infographics and When Should They Be Used?

By Jamie Lyons in Web Design

It’s possible to express a thought, an emotion or a viewpoint in any number of ways – these different modes of expression are exalted as art forms if executed well and form the foundations of culture. Wordsmithery (a made up term referring to effective and powerful use of written language) is no exception and is a craft I often attempt to exercise in order to move people, encourage positive thought and of course get visitors to websites. I’m not going to quote any of the appropriate cliches here, but to put it simply: sometimes words don’t have quite the impact required.

When it comes to statistics, words (and of course their good friend: numbers) may comprehensively succeed in providing the bulk of the salient information that one wishes to convey – but the result can be lengthy and boring. Similarly, short of using Comic Sans or Word Art, it’s hard to add visual flourishes to reports on the findings of a research body, or to engage a passing eye and achieve impact on the page with just enjambment, alliteration and very self-indulgent punctuation. To succeed in these cases you need something which expresses the facts whilst also engaging the viewer and breaking often complicated concepts down into comfortably masticated chunks. In this area of communication the infographic is king.

Example 1 – Recruitment 2010…at a Glance

The title of this infographic concisely expresses the function of this infographic and the infographic itself concisely, clearly and imaginatively expresses the facts and figures that the originator wanted to share. View the image here – www.blueoctopus.co.uk/blogtopus/index.php/123/recruitment-2010-infographic/

Although many will find statistics pertaining to recruitment in 2010 absolutely fascinating…the majority of ‘pleasure-browsers’ probably won’t. This infographic caters to both parties by playing with color, graphically expressing facts and figures and providing both negative and positive findings in a clear and balanced way.

Example 2 – The True Cost of Asbestos

This infographic was created to try and raise awareness of the harm that asbestos exposure continues to inflict on a large number of people every year. Much like the previous example, the image serves to graphically demonstrate statistics which are generally never shown in a manner more exciting than a generic bar chart. It grabs attention, pleases the eye and imparts important knowledge, see:
www.lighthouseriskservices.co.uk/true-cost-of-asbestos.html.

Whilst the recruitment infographic still had an air of business-iness about it, this example plays more with color and utilities more elaborate and creative imagery.

Given that it aims to share a message with the widest possible audience, the almost playful presentation of very serious facts and emphasis on visual depiction over lexical elaboration show just how short the average attention span is.

So, if you want to show off some mind-blitzing facts and figures in a way which also appeals to the aesthetically minded you should probably at least consider an infographic…I personally think they’re ace.

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Written by Jamie Lyons with the permission of Blue Octopus Online Recruitment http://www.blueoctopus.co.uk and Lighthouse Health and Safety http://www.lighthouseriskservices.co.uk

Do You Know All About Mini-sites?

By Ian Greenwood in Web Design

If someone said the word ‘website’ chances are you would immediately know what they were talking about. Most people today have at least heard about websites, and may have a fairly good idea what they are. Most who have been on the internet will be familiar with the names of some of the big sites like eBay, Facebook, Google or Amazon.

All these are traditional websites, but they are not the most exciting websites on the internet. The most exciting and powerful websites are mini sites! So, what is a mini website, and what makes it so special?

A mini website has 3 special characteristics that set it apart from other sites. Let me tell you what they are.

1. The mini site has only one main page. That’s right! Only one page. When you go to a mini website the page you land on is generally the whole site. You can start to see why they are called ‘mini’ sites. This front page will always present the primary message of the site.

2. These special sites only do one thing. That’s right, they have just one purpose! This focus is what gives the mini-site it’s outstanding ability. It only has one focus in life, and that focus is usually to sell something! Compared to traditional websites which usually have several purposes, mini-sites have only one – this is their power!

3. That there are generally no navigation links from the main page. This means when you arrive on the main page you only have one choice read the message or leave. Unlike traditional site these single page sites do not engage the reader in any distractions or options. This adds power and force to your message.

These three special features of a mini website combine to give these sites an importance and ability way above their simple construction. As I said most of these sites are selling something and it’s something that they do seriously well. Most internet marketing experts agree that this type of website is the ‘must have’ for anyone trying to sell on line.

The real reason to use these sites is they are easy to build – even for a beginner. They are quick to deploy on line, and easy to change, update or test.

This gives you a great start if you are trying to start your own business online, or are thinking about internet marketing as your next move to make extra cash. Now you know the good news, that you don’t have to reportage your home to get a powerful and effective website on the net and selling for you.

Most of the top internet marketing gurus started their huge empires using these simple one page sites. And, although most are now talking about blogs, membership sites, and social media, the humble single page mini site is still the king when it comes to selling online.

By employing the power, ease of construction, and speed of deployment, of single page mini websites you can easily have the best chance to get your own successful business on the net and selling.

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After a full redesign Ian Greenwood has now re-release his powerful video course Creating Websites That Sell. This is 25 full video lessons that teach you step by step how to create your own powerful profit pulling mini-sites. See the full preview now at www.BuildWebsitesThatSell.com

Identify the Needs of Your Consumers to Provide a Better Website

By Resource Nation in Web Design

When running a website, it is tempting to get engrossed with the technology which is being used. You want to make sure that all of the gadgets help to highlight all of the cool aspects of the company which you want other people to see. The problem is that this might not be what people came to your website to see. What you think might be really cool, others might see as a desperate ploy to grab attention. It is the reason why so many of these same companies have been starting to turn to those that they do business with for advice on how they can improve their website.

There are a few different ways in which you can get insight into what it is that is important to those who visit your website. One of the best ways to get information about what is important is to simply ask them. Another way that you can get information is to start a forum on your website. A forum can be a quick way to get the responses you are looking for from your customers and other within your industry. This is why it is important to find a great web design which can support such media. Still another way that you can gather information is to allow people to connect their social networking pages to your page. The more valuable information you can obtain, the better chances you have in providing your customers exactly what they are looking for.

Asking through Questionnaires
Questionnaires are useful for everything from guest satisfaction surveys to surveys about payroll services. Simply, offer those who visit your site the ability to answer a few questions. The more concise you answer the questions the better. In many circumstances, the best way to get more people to answer the questionnaire is to offer a reward for their opinion. One of the best ways to do so is to offer their name to be submitted into a drawing. They will give you their contact information which can be used for other marketing purposes.

Offering a Forum
Allowing your customers the ability to take openly and freely about your products and services is a great way to find out what they really think about your company and your website. Do not sensor the information which is being entered into the forum as it will discourage people from being honest. Rather than stopping people from entering negative information about your company, have the conviction to do something about it instead. You will have a public record that you can draw from as well as the ability to show others your dedication to customer service.

Allowing Connections to Social Networking Sites Social networking sites are still among the most used internet sites in the world. Sites like Facebook have emerged as one of the biggest online hangouts because people can interact with the people that they already know as well as the ability to meet new people. Social media is not just for the tech 3.0 company, even companies like small business payroll services are interacting with their customer to improve their services or promote selling. When you allow them to connect their social media site to your site, you have the ability to get to know your customers as well as the ability to further advertise. Those who visit your site will be able to see all of the things which their friends like or dislike about your company as well.

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Resource Nation provides free tools, tips, and purchasing advice for business owners and entrepreneurs in over 100 business categories ranging from payroll services to credit card processing. Whether it’s connecting businesses with local and national pre-screened vendors, or offering easy service comparisons on small business payroll services, Resource Nation empowers business decision makers by providing the information they need to make smart choices.

Top 5 Photoshop Alternatives

By Rick Valence in Web Design

For many, the Adobe Photoshop Creative Suite provides everything one needs for photo editing and manipulation; it is user friendly, highly customizable and highly versatile.

However, it’s incredibly expensive. Some users may even have problems with its interface or its overall compatibility. Regardless of your reasons, there are plenty of other programs to consider that are a safe, affordable and a simple alternative to Photoshop. Many are open source, which will save you a bundle. Here are the top five Photoshop alternatives.

1. GIMP (GNU image manipulation program): When it comes to getting the most out of a photo editing software, GIMP has all the features you need to create a variety of stunning effects. If you miss Photoshop’s unique structure, another similar alternative includes GIMPShop, which is a form of GIMP that is quite similar to Photoshop. In terms of navigation, it has almost identical tools featured in Photoshop and allows them to be accessed with ease. Not only is it compatible with a variety of operating systems, but best of all, it is an open source program; which means it can be download for absolutely free.

2. Paint.NET: This is a Windows based photo editor that is perfect for users who want something simple to work with. Out of all of the Photoshop alternatives in this article, this is quite possibly the most basic. Just because it does not have the same bells and whistles as the more ornate programs this software is in no way less efficient. Packed with a variety of simple, user friendly features, it is for photographers who prefer to focus more on taking photos than editing them. Also an open source program, it is simple to download for free.

3. Splashup: An in-browser based photo editing program, there are no downloads necessary. Simply “Jump Right In”, as the site dictates. Boasting a streamlined elegant user interface, it features a wealth of popular tools, features and applications available. However, much of what it offers is rather advanced. Splashup Lite is a great alternative that allows you to get the job done without getting bogged down looking through tools you might not necessarily need. Best of all, both versions allow you to share finished photos to websites, such as Flickr, Facebook, Picasa and more, without a hitch.

4. FotoFlexer: Another one of the Photoshop alternatives that runs through a browser. It is the perfect solution if you wish to tweak a photo before sending it off to Flickr or Facebook. However, unlike Splashup, this is a very bare bones program. While it has most of the tools you’ll need to get the job done, don’t consider it a complete Photoshop replacement. Instead, consider it a convenient additional tool.

5. PhotoLine: The only Mac exclusively based editing program on this list, it provides you with a wealth of features designed to make editing and fine tuning your photos a breeze. It’s not the most attractive of interfaces; nevertheless, it is user friendly enough to make the job easy. While not incredibly well known at the moment, it is definitely a program to keep in mind when it comes to simple and reliable photo editing programs.

Equipped with these tools you will make short work of any photo. It all starts with great photos, so get out there and start shooting!

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Rick is a photography expert at C.R.I.S. Camera Services in Chandler Arizona www.criscam.com. Rick is also a health-nut training and is in the middle of training for the San Diego a triathlon.

Planning Your Website – Essential Prep

By Paula Wynne in Web Design

Before you dive off in your quest to find a website, you need to think about planning, researching and brainstorming your idea.

As you plan your shiny new website, you will understand the need to explore every avenue of your online business so that you are fully prepared. The work you do now will be reinforced along the way.

Naming Your Site

By now you’ll have an idea for your website; Your ideas may have been stewing away in your brain for many years or it may have only popped in for a visit recently and something made you pounce on it.

Before we go into planning your site, one of the first things to consider is the name. Many entrepreneurs have realized the viral effect naming can have on a business. When you go through the process of brainstorming a name, you will come up with all sorts of concoctions.

Domain Names

The most important thing about domain names is: firstly you MUST own it and secondly, find a name that you can use for viral and optimization purposes as well. My book has a lengthy section on how to find a successful domain name. It also explains the difference between a bog standard name and a descriptive, keyword-rich domain name. And it gives you a run down on international versus country domains. Pop over to Amazon if you can’t wait to find out more!

iMindMap

A cool tool to brainstorm is mind mapping. Buzan’s iMindMap brainy piece of software hosts a range of features designed to make you more productive and creative in the way you think.

Mindmapping is like a giant Octopus with colorful tentacles, images and icons that allow you to add notes and links to a range of files.

When brainstorming chapters for my book, I drew up an iMindMap to generate new ideas quickly and effectively and to store them in an organized way. This screenshot illustrates how it can help you to plan and record spontaneous bursts of inspiration, as well as to explore promotions for your future website.

Score Goals

If you haven’t already done so, you will need to set goals and objectives. This way you can establish the exact aim of the site or your potential business. You may have grand plans to sell this brilliant idea of yours for a cash bomb with an exit strategy after a number of years. You might want to manage a small and cozy family business over a long period. Maybe you need to run your online business while working a day job or alongside another business.

Whatever it is you want to do, you need to aspire to something in order to achieve it. Recognition of your aspirations and actually visualizing it, will lead to achievement and result in success.

Niche

Dictionary.com describes a ‘niche’ as “a place or position suitable or appropriate for a person or thing and having specific appeal.”

It’s really important to find your niche and now is the time to research it.

For example: you may be a photographer, so what’s niche about that? Well, maybe you specialize in underwater photography or newly born babies. If you’re a commercial photographer your niche may be shooting scenes such as factory equipment, food or rock concerts.

My Partner and I set up a niche job board (screenshot) that is dedicated to flexible jobs working from home. Take a peek at Remote Employment to see how we found a niche appeal to s specific audience.

Above all, you should only ‘niche’ it up if you love your chosen web concept and you know a lot about it. Don’t settle with a topic you’re unsure about just because you think it will make money. Do what you love the most, where your passion will ride waves and your energy will be unstoppable.

Testing The Market

Research is vital for any project, especially for a full throttle online business. There is a multitude of sites out there so you need to know exactly what you are getting into before you rush ahead, spending money on a fancy website, only to find there are several hundred already doing the same thing. Flip through Create A Successful Website to find a quick test on how to test the market and you’ll find a list of research examples along with loads more content.

Prepping up and setting objectives at this stage will pay off later on. Brainstorm all possible avenues of research so you get all the ‘must do’ tasks out of the way because we are now heading into some pretty exciting stuff.

Best wishes for your website!

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Paula Wynne is the bestselling author of ‘Create A Successful Website‘. She offers practical workshops to help you succeed in your online business. Read more at www.paulawynne

Entice Your Viewers with Powerful Graphics

By Joelle Rene Hughes in Web Design

Any pro salesman will tell you that it’s the WORDS that make the sale. The words describe the features and benefits of a product or business. The words generate interest, compel you to keep reading, and convince you to take action and pull out your credit card. The words are the ‘magic potion’ that makes the world of marketing spin. However…it’s the GRAPHICS that grabs their attention and brings them in the door!

Powerful, professional graphics can make the difference between having just another website and having that ‘one-in-a-million’ site that people are drawn to over and over again. Anyone in the online sales business will tell you how challenging it can be to attract customers to your sales page or web store. Why else would there be so many eBooks, videos and training programs focused on internet marketing techniques and traffic generation? You have an unfathomable amount of competition out there and until you have gained your own stead-fast following, it takes tremendous effort to capture your share of potential customers in your market niche.

Even in online auction sites like eBay, you stand a better chance of getting viewers to your listings if you provide a top-notch thumbnail image. Once inside your listing, adding additional pictures of your product will greatly improve your chances of making a sale.

Will professional graphics increase the value of your products or services? Well, unless your business is in web design or graphic arts, probably not. They will, however, escalate the ‘perceived value’ of your business. People associate professional graphics and high-end marketing schemes with a better quality product or service. Does the picture on a box of cereal actually improve the contents of
the box? Nope! But it most definitely helps sell the cereal.

Using high quality graphics makes your business look more professional. Professionalism engenders trust. Trust promotes sales. People feel more comfortable buying from those that they trust… so why not present yourself or your business with a professional online presence by incorporating some stunning graphics in your website?

Are professional web graphics expensive? Not usually. In fact, you’d be surprised at how many excellent graphic artists there are out there willing to provide you with a top-notch product for a very reasonable price.

So what’s the next hurdle to overcome? For many of you, it’s probably where to find excellent, trustworthy, reasonably priced graphics artists that can perform the services you need and are willing to listen to what you want.

Some graphics and web designers will put their business logo or contact information on the websites they create. So it may be as simple as finding a few websites that you like and checking for reference links at the bottom of the page. You could also do a search for graphics artists, but the returned results may be in the thousands. Better yet, consider contacting the owners of the websites and asking them who did their graphics designs.

Have fun sprucing up your sites with luscious graphics that capture your viewer’s attention. It’s just a matter of polishing the ‘eye-candy’.

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Joelle Rene’ Hughes is a professional artist, internet marketer, and author of multiple marketing eBooks and videos. For her recommendations for Top Quality Graphics go to => www.gfx-1-graphics.com

Is It Possible To Have Great, Professional Features In A Bargain Price Website?

By John King in Web Design

A cheap, bargain website – or should I say an affordable website, doesn’t have to to mean a poorly built, featureless website, without the inclusion of some vital and important features. There are web design companies in the market who will offer extremely good features for a very reasonable price, including some of the important features and nice touches that you would expect to find only in a high end package.

What Features Should I Expect In My Budget Website?

Here are 10 features that in my opinion even a budget price website package should contain:

1. A CSS driven design with external CSS files. In simple terms, this is a far more convenient way of managing the design and layout on a site-wide basis.

2. Website code that passes from the W3C validation process. This is an important feature as websites with code that passes the validation process will be much easier for search engine robots to crawl and therefore make indexing of your website a speedier process.

3. All meta tags should be completed and the extremely important description tag on every page should contain a page specific description, not a site wide generic description that is repeated time and time again on every page.

4. The other very important tag is the title tag and these tags should be completed on every page incorporating some of the important keywords for that particular page. Once again, the title tag, like the description tag should be page specific and not a generic tag that is repeated throughout the site.

5. It goes without saying that you will want your website to have a nice, modern, fresh looking layout that is uncluttered and easy to navigate. Web 2.0 sites are particularly good at creating a minimalistic appearance that is easily navigated.

6. Do you have a robots.text file? Is there going to be one included in your website build or will this be left out? This is an extremely important file to have on your server as it tells search engine robots which files they are permitted to index, and which ones they are not.

7. Do you have a site map? The sitemap.xml file is easily submitted to Google in the Google Webmasters panel by your site builders and is very important as it helps your site to be quickly indexed by Google, informing Google of a very page that exists on your site.

8. What about an interactive contact form? Will your website company be incorporating a contact form into your site as part of the affordable package price or will it be an additional cost?

9. How will your images be displayed on your new budget website? Will you have an impressive light-box style gallery or will you just be permitted to have a few images throughout the whole site.

10. And while we are on the subject of images, will you have to provide the designers with all your own images or will they be able to provide you with some relevance stock images in the event that you do not have any available?

So there you have it. 10 features that in my opinion every website, even affordable budget websites should have included in them. If your web design company is not prepared to include these features, maybe you should consider looking for an alternative company to build your website for you.

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The author runs a design company and lives in Surrey in the UK. He recommends visiting www.websitelauncher.co.uk for great, cheap websites offering all of the 10 features discussed and more.

© Copyright 2012 All rights reserved. Jayde Online, Inc.

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