Maintenance Essentials

We all know that the design of any site is a key factor to building traffic that keeps coming back. Another key factor to keeping people interested is web site maintenance. When a site isn't maintained regularly it becomes obvious to your visitors and they won't continue to return. If you don't take the time to update the site then they won't waste their time visiting. Below you will learn a few simple maintenance steps to keep your site updated.


First, always keep your contact information updated. If you change email addresses remember to update this on all your sites. Nothing looks worse than when someone tries to contact you and the email is returned or they get an invalid email error.


Secondly, be sure and keep any copyright notices updated. If I visit a site and see the copyright is from 2006 then I know the webmaster doesn't spend much time updating the site. Small things such as this will be noticed by many people. So to keep the site looking professional be sure to do the small updates as well as the bigger ones.


Finally, update your content regularly. Fresh information will keep people coming back to see what's new about any subject. Visitors will see that you regularly add new content and they will come back often to check it out. If it's possible add dates to your content. This let's them see how frequently you update.


Maintenance is just 1 of many key factors to running a successful web site. I find it helpful to set aside a couple of hours on a certain day each week just for updating. This way it is on my schedule of things to do and it doesn't get overlooked. Scheduling web site tasks makes it easy to keep up with what needs to be done at certain times. Running a web site is not always easy, but by putting in the time and effort required you get rewarded with great results.

5 Tips to Creating a Successful Website

Building a website that is successful isn't as hard as you think. By implementing the 5 tips below you will make a better impression on your visitors. This, in turn will help build the reputation of your site and increase your popularity, which is the main goal!

1. Attractive design
The design of your page is the 1st thing any visitor sees, so making a good 1st impression is key. Make sure your color scheme is easy on the eyes. Too many overpowering colors can be a big turn off to some. Font size is very important as well. If visitors have to strain to read your content they will most likely just close the page.

2. Easy Navigation
Easily accessible info is a MUST! Try not to bunch too much content into one page. It's better to have more navigation links than for the visitor to have to spend 20 minutes looking for the info they want. Rather than spend the time searching through the site, they will just close it and go onto a site that is easier to navigate.

3. Content
Keep your content on subject and have plenty of it. Updating often is essential as well as dating your updates so that they can see that you do take the time to add new content. This will give you a better chance at being bookmarked and them returning.

4. Simple IS Better
Yes there are still people out there with slower connections. So try not to use too much flash or graphics that will add to your sites load time. Keeping it simple with a fast load time will net you many more visitors and sales than a graphic intense page that looks great but takes forever to fully load.

5. Webmaster Accessibility
Be sure to have a contact page with your email address or phone number so you can be contacted easily. This makes you easily available if someone has a question and trust me people always have questions! :-)

These 5 simple things will help improve the experience of your site for all of your visitors and they will tell their friends. So you will have a booming site before you know it.

Web Design Essentials

Websites are created for many different purposes, such as, selling products, offering services, or sharing information. The one thing all websites have in common is the need to attract visitors and keep them coming back on a regular basis. In order to accomplish this you need to have a web design that is pleasing to look at, easy to navigate, and offers good content.

The first thing any visitor to your website sees is the home page. This should be your design starting point. You can expand on it to create other pages, but you always want to keep the design consistent from page to page. In other words if your home page is black and gold, you don't want to do your other pages in red and green. Any graphics you use specifically for your site should blend with the color choices you make. Pleasant colors and graphics will help make your site memorable.

Easy Navigation is a must. Going from page to page needs to be as easy as possible. Each page should have a link back to the home page. Visitors want to know where they are and how to get back to where they were without having to use the back button. Nine times out of ten they will close the page rather than continuously using the back button to try and find their way back.

Content is the backbone of any website. Spelling and grammatical errors do not look professional. Have someone proofread all content before you add it. Offer content that is specific to the theme of your site. If I do a search for jungle animals and find your site, then I don't want to find content that mostly pertains to the Solar System.

Web design is ninety-five percent common sense. You know what you like to see on other websites. Be sure and use that same criteria when creating a website.