World Wide Webs 4U - Web Design Workshops

Two workshops are available to develop skills in web design. It is recommended (although not essential) that Workshop #1 be completed prior to attending Workshop #2.

	Workshop #1 A one day workshop that uncovers and demystifies websites. Discover all the underlying principles and trade secrets of planning, building and maintaining an effective website.
	Workshop #2 A practical learning experience where you actually build your own website. Bring your own laptop computer and use a simple to use software program called CoffeeCup HTML Editor to build your website from the ground up.

Learning to be a Webmaster

Do you want to become a Webmaster? Do you want to be in control of my own Web Site?
It is easy to build a web site these day. There are lots of software programs around and lots of providers offering do-it-yourself programs. Unfortunately it is all too easy to build a bad web site if you don't plan or have a basic understanding. And you probably don't want to have a bad website if your business and livelihood is depending on it. With a little help though and a bit of learning you can become a good webmaster without too much difficulty.

What do I need to know?
It is not rocket science, but you do need to understand the basics. Many software programs offer visual methods where you can design a website while knowing nothing about html code or web design. I don't recommend this. It is ok to use these programs but you should always be aware of what is happening to your coding. You might design a master piece that looks spectacular, but then you find out it doesn't rank, doesn't reach your target audience, loads slowly and is full of flaws.

What do I do?
I recommend you start by learning the basics. You will find that this is actually fun. Once you know the basics you can look at the coding in a website and have an understanding of what is happening. Sure, you won't know everything, and neither do I, but you will be able to build a website that is clean and functional and ranks with the best of them on the major search engines.

Also there is no need to spend lots of money on software. I use CoffeeCup HTML Editor for most of my work, which you can buy for around US$40. Clean and functional and you spend most of your time dealing directly with the coding. The programs that do the coding for you in the background can mess things up if you are not aware of what is actually happening. Your website might work and run ok for you, but can cause errors and problems for other users.

How do I get started with learning the basics?
I recommend you have a look around on the internet to see what you can learn for free. Why pay when you don't need to? Here is a site that I like. Take your time and have some fun. Don't be worried if you don't understand it all immediately; experiment with what you have learnt and go back and visit the site again from time to time.

W3 Schools - The best things in life are free

OK, I understand the basics. What now?
Think clean and functional. No matter how impressive your website is, if it takes too long to load people will get bored and you will loose them. Less is always best. I personally stay away from all the fancy flash graphics and music playing in the background. It just slows things down and some of it can affect your web site's visibility to the search engines.

Do some research. Who is your target audience? What is it that you want them to know or do? Once you know this you can start to develop the content. No one wants to read a 1000 word essay (unless it is really interesting!) so keep your content relevant and to the point. It is good to have some depth with 400-500 words on each page but don't ramble on. Remember, most people scan websites and don't read ever word.

Do some keyword research. Search engines are pretty smart these days, but they can't read your mind. Have a think about which keywords are most relevant for your website, then do some research to see if these words are the most commonly used by the people that search for what you do. Once you have identified the keywords that are most important you can ensure they are included in your content, titles, headings, image alt tags, descriptions, links and keyword meta tags. Don't make every page the same. If the content and purpose varies from page to page then so should the keywords.

Don't use keywords in your keyword meta tags that aren't in the content of the page. Some search engines will penalise you for this. And don't use any other sneaky or underhand methods to falsely increase your search engine ranking. Search engines are smart and once found out you will most likely be penalised. An honest and content relevant website written for your audience is always the best approach.

Navigation and functionality are important. Make sure that your menu navigation is logical so people can find their way around your website with ease. Make sure your web pages all look the same. I think there is nothing worse than a website where the colours and layout changes from page to page. And include a site map web page. This links all the web pages together with simple text links that search engines will easily be able to crawl.

Test your site then register it with the major search engines. You will find a few links on my links page that you may find useful so you can check to see if your websites are functional and ready to launch to the world. Most search engines let you register for free, just check their websites, although if your site is well optimised they will find you anyway.

I think I might still need a bit of help!
That's OK, if everyone knew everything then I would be out of a job. The service that I provide is focused on helping you become your own webmaster. I am here to coach you through each step of the process, but only if you need it. I charge an hourly rate so you only pay for what you need. No matter where you are in the world I can help. Telephone, Skype or email me today!

I don't have the time. Can you build a website for me?
I sure can. A good alternative is to get the basic website developed by us. Coaching is then available to assist you with the ongoing edits and maintenance, or I can develop a cost effect service option for you. My service is very flexible and the prices are very competitive.

Happy web development and good luck! Remember, if you need help I am here 4u.

Click here to get your website started!