How To Build Your Own Website

One of the first things you should do before building your own website is to obtain a domain name. The following instructions are based on the premise that you already have a domain name in place.

When designing your own website you will want to first determine exactly what it is you want your WebPage to accomplish. Is your site being designed for personal, informational or monetary purposes? Of course, a well designed website can provide all of these criteria its up to you which particular aspect you want to focus on.

Planning your content prior to building your website will save you a lot of aggravation in the long run. Although it may appear complicated at first glance, website design, if planned properly, can be a lot of fun. Here are some easy tips to make your webpage designing a lot less complicated:

Use post-it notes to define your menu compilation. Use different colored ones for each category and move them around until you are satisfied that they are in a logical, easy to understand order.
Try to restrict the number of menu choices to eight or less. Spend some time on ensuring that the information you want to provide is organized in a way people expect it to be. No matter how good your content, if your site is too complicated for users to easily navigate, they will quickly click off to pursue another location.
Use your imagination as an attention grabber; however, dont stray too far from convention as this may confuse your visitors and that is a sure death knell for any website.
By using the post-it note approach to planning, you will have ready information on how many pages you will need and the function of each.

It is imperative that your website have an appealing visual affect on your visitors. Take the time to sketch a few thumbnails (miniature designs) of how you want your site to appear. Sketch each page with the ultimate goal of achieving what you want to display on each page.

Once you have determined the overall layout of your pages and their placement within your site, your next step is to collect and disburse your content in a logical, well optimized manner.

Developing content based on search engine optimization will go a long way in placing your website at the top of the more popular search engines. Search engine spiders rely on keyword density and placement, so your keyword content should be developed with at least 6% optimization. Too much optimization can result in your site being banned because of keyword gluttony, so you must exercise care and common sense.

Try to develop pages that contain important elements without other distractions such as flashing graphics, pop-up advertising and overwhelming fonts. The fewer distractions your visitors have to contend with, the longer they will remain on your pages.

When you build your own website, your efforts should be concentrated on building an easy-to-navigate site that caters to your visitors needs. If you build a website that keeps hype to a minimum while providing easy to read and interesting content your website will stand out from the crowd.

Victoria Hargis has been a web developer for over 10 years. Specializing in internet marketing and website optimization she has spent years studying the connection between web design and monetization. http://www.YourWebBizHere.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=V_Hargis