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Brian's
Introduction
By
Brian Walsh (Founder & CEO of
Entrepreneur.co.za)
I have met many entrepreneurs who think they can
develop their own websites. You should not
necessarily try and develop your own website,
but far more importantly, realise the power of
the internet and understand what a website can
and should do for your company.
A good functional website gives you an advantage
even against large corporations. If you portray
yourself professionally through a website,
people won’t know whether you are a one-man
business or whether you employ 1000 people. It
gives you an edge, but for goodness’ sake, use
it! Technophobia is the equivalent of being
illiterate in the modern world. Embrace the web
and use it.
An objection I hear too often is how much it
costs, but it doesn’t really cost much if you
educate yourself on what is out there. Having
said that, I have seen larger companies try and
build sites on very small budgets and this ends
in disaster. What you need to learn is that it
is more about the content and functionality than
simply the design. Here are some golden rules to
building and maintaining your website:
1) First
and most importantly, is making your website an
extension of your company. It should live,
breathe and evolve with your company. It should
change all the time incorporating new and
relevant information, and should become a
central pillar around which you build your
company. That may sound outrageous, especially
to some who don’t even see a need for a website.
But let me enlighten you – the digital age is
upon us and more and more people rely on the
internet to find information, communicate and
shop. A website is never a bad investment as
long as you have done your homework.
2) Make
an effort to educate yourself by doing research
online. Look at numerous websites of companies
that are similar to yours, both locally and
overseas. Explore their functionality, what they
look like and where possible, find out how
successful they are. Based on this, draw up a
structure of what you would like on your
website.
3) Be
prepared before you speak to a development
company – have your structure with relevant
content already prepared, and have examples of
sites you like in terms of design and
functionality. The more prepared you are the
less it should cost you, and the quicker you
will get results.
4) Content
management systems (CMSs) are a common thing
nowadays. Find out what is out there, and where
possible, acquire the skills to update and
manage your site yourselves. You shouldn’t have
to pay a fortune for this as there are a number
of great open source systems available, however,
make sure that the supplier offers good training
and user manuals.
5) Lastly,
when selecting a company to develop your site,
do your homework. Review other work they have
done, consult clients they have worked for, and
make sure they have an interest in your company
and have a detailed implementation plan. There
are thousands of ‘fly-by-night’ developers out
there and you should make sure you use someone
who has good experience. Having said that, make
sure you know what their costs will be and that
you are paying a fair price. Some companies
charge ridiculous prices. Also remember that the
better prepared you are, the better and faster
result you will get. A development company is
only as good as the client it works with – that
I can say from experience.
We will be offering and reviewing many tools on
Entrepreneur in the coming months, so hang
around and we will help you as much as we can.
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