I don’t know about you but some of us (me for example) are overwhelmed at even the mere thought of designing a website. Luckily, I managed to find lots of articles with helpful hints for newbies like me.

The internet is our friend, Yes?

Here are just 9 tips I have collected.

1: Fast Loading web site designs- This is the number 1 tip that every web designer should follow. There’s no point in designing a website that looks great if people aren’t going to see it. If your site takes too long to load most people will move on. You will want your site to take no more than 15 seconds to load. Face it, people are impatient.

2: Install an analytics package- Stats collected in these programs are So important. They let you know who’s visiting your site, where they are coming from, the keywords they use,  which pages are getting the most visitors and more.

3: Make sure to create a header or logo that is eye catching- You will want your site to be memorable and unique

4: Use CSS (cascading style sheets)- CSS sheets make it easier to change the design of your site later on and keep your information intact. CSS also keeps code cleaner and makes it easier for search engine spiders to crawl your site.

5: Plenty of text- Make sure you have enough text and content on your site that search engines and visitors will know what your site is about. Articles and/or blog entries are always a good idea.

6: Fonts- Use fonts that are easy for your visitors to read. Stick with the basics.

7: Website structure- Make your website user friendly. The key to the success of your website’s structure is the ease with which your visitors can navigate the site. A general rule of thumb is that it should take no more than three clicks for a visitor to find what they are looking for. Also make sure your website structure is expandable for new information down the road.

8: Most important on top- Keep the most important information on the top half of your page. This is especially necessary on your homepage where first impressions are so vital. You don’t want visitors to have to scroll down the page to find your best ideas or information.

9: Must haves- You must include a contact page and an ‘About Us’ page at the very least. Major search engines expect legitimate sites to have these. You don’t want to end up being tossed into the list of spam sites.

Remember to be creative and have fun in designing your site this is where your online presence will live so make sure it reflects your own colors and thoughts.

Choosing your web hosting service should not be taken lightly.
Web hosting can make or break your online business.
Just imagine a potential customer clicking on your link only to get a blank page
or error message half the time. You want your website to be available at all times, right?

Make sure you are choosing a reliable and professional hosting service. And please do not settle for free hosting if you are serious about building an online business.
Free hosting will use Your site for Their promoting purposes. No Thanks.

When choosing a hosting service there’s more to consider than an affordable price.
Do they provide Email accounts? If so, how many?
Do they support web mail?
Do they have a good support team?

Make sure the service you pick offers you plenty of space, at least 1000 MB.
You will use this space up quickly once you start uploading images, products, banners, blogs…etc.

Also take into consideration bandwidth. A bandwidth of no less than 60GB is best.
When you get close to your bandwidth limit your webpage will load or open very slowly.
This may cause many visitors to click away from your site.
If you exceed your limit, your webpage will Not open at all…that’s one way to lose potential customers.

Take your time when choosing.
Make sure you are choosing a hosting service that’s right for you and your business.