Further to my earlier blog post on Internet Censorship in Australia, I have found another way you can have your say against these terrible schemes.

Either click the logo on the right, or the link below, and get involved !

SAVE THE NET

I always have a laugh at self-made websites. Suffice to say, that some are actually quite good, and there are a few examples out there, that are very well done, and I commend them for being so.
The business owner has obviously taken time out of his day, in order to make a professional looking site, for a very small outlay, time.

But....

99.9% of the time, someone refers me to a website that they have built themselves on their home computer, I am horrified.
Actually to drive this point across, usually as soon as someone mentions the words "I built it myself", without even seeing it, my mind goes through a preperation stage.

Random dark backgrounds, flashing and moving gif images zoom through my imagination, and I somehow convince myself that I just really don't want to have to see it.

I type in the url, hit the Enter button, and boom, there it is, in all it's glory.

Just as I'd feared. Flashing banners, moving and rotating gif images, the white text on the really dark background. Oh, and what is that? Is that a link to a web-ring? Oh my....

There are literally millions of self made websites on the web just like this.

This just makes me sad. In this day and age, it is unacceptable.

I asked my girlfriend about a few things the other day. She is an average internet user, uses a laptop at work, and doesn't really know the in's and out's but she loves her facebook.
Here are a few questions that I asked her.

Q. When you are looking for something, and you come across a website like this what are you thinking?
A. I guess my first question would be is, 'Is this company still in business?'.

Q. Lets say that you were looking for a restaurant to visit for the evening, which one would you choose between these two?
   (showing her 2 websites, one self made, and one professionally built by a web development company)
A. I'd definatly choose that one (points at the professionally built website)

Q. Why?
A. Well, it looks nicer, and the photos of the restaurant and menu show me exactly what I am going to see.

Q. So, what if this other one had images on it?
A. I would still choose the nice one.

Q. Why?
A. I don't know, I guess I can trust that their service will be more professional..

This is a great example, of an average internet/consumer's views on presentation and how a company represents itself.
What businesses seem to NOT be understanding, is that you CAN RUIN your business and reputation by keeping these self-made websites available.

Casual visitors / Potential Customers, begin to question you, and that is something that you do not want. Ever.

Your business, logos, imagery, flyers, brochures, business cards are all created by professionals.

Your website should be too.

The internet moves at an incredible rate. Who would have thought 5 years ago, we would be surfing the internet over our mobile phones?

I had a clue, but the latest technologies are moving forward at an alarming rate.

So you had your site built a while back, it didn't cost you an arm and a leg, and well, let's be honest, you really weren't sure it would make an impact on your business anyway, so it did fine.

But what damage is it doing now?

Nobody looks in the yellow pages anymore, I know I don't, and my girlfriend pretty much only ever uses them to stand on so that she can reach the top shelf of the pantry.

Everyone searches online these days, it's as simple as that.

Here are a couple of questions to ponder.

What exactly do your customers REALLY think of your website?
After surfing around a bit, what do you REALLY think of your own website?

Of late, it has become very important to not only provide your customers with a web presence, but to also ensure that it kick's the competition, otherwise you are risking them going to somebody else.

So here are a few things to identify whether or not you need a rebuild.....

1) Branding
Is the logo on your site, the latest and greatest? Does it ooze professionalism, or does it look like it was designed in the 80's?
Probably a good time for a redesign then!

2) Contact Details
Does your site provide adequate contact details? Address, phone number, perhaps a form for people to fill out quickly if they have a question? A map so that they can navigate their trip to your office?
You don't want to give people the excuse that they couldn't find you. This is probably the most important section of a website.

3) Overall presentation
Ok so the site you had built 8 years ago, was awesome, it rocked! But where does it stand in today's advanced design world?
Have a look around at some of the sites that have been created in the last year or so. If your site looks old in comparison, it's probably time to take a look at it.
Another problem I often see, is page elements that simply do not belong. Modern developers specialise in making EVERYTHING in your site work together.
An image that doesn't belong or empty pages can drag your entire site to an unprofessional level.

4) Getting the point across
We all want visitors to know what our site is about straight away. They don't have time to figure out what you do, you have to tell them.
If your site doesn't tell them what you do, or it confuses them, it's time for a revamp.

5) Can you update it yourself?
In today's tech world, no longer are developers simply creating static pages, (well, not the good ones anyway) there are many content management systems out there.
If you still rely on a web developer to change the text or images of your site, it really is time to get your site out of the past.

6) Can you find your site on google?
This is a very common problem. I have seen many people not even be able to rank for their own business name! Having an older site, you likely have earned some trust with major search engines, a good developer can take this weight and apply it to your new branding, leaving your streets ahead of your competition.

7) How long ago was your site built?
If the answer is 'More than 5 years ago', then that is a tell tale sign that you need to upgrade. Technology standards have changed in that time, and you can suffer several negative consequences of 'not getting with the system'.
Hiring someone to update to new standards will alleviate that, and it may very well exceed all expectations with very minimal changes.

8) Pure promotion
If you have an old site, it is worth upgrading simply for the promotion. Letting people know that you have a new website for them to check out, is a very good marketing tool.
Press releases can be made and even promotional events can be created around it.

9) Have your competitors updated?
If they have, then it definately is time to compete. People look around, it's human nature to look at other companies that provide the same service. If your image is not portrayed as well as theirs you're losing business.
And that is not good.

If you are looking for an upgrade  for a free quote.

Web developers are just like any other professional.
There are varying degrees of skill level, what they can accomplish, and pricing.

So you've decided to bite the bullet, and have a website built for your business, but how do you choose someone amid the miriad of companies out there?

Here are a few factors to take into consideration.

1) Location
Are they close by? Are they close enough to organise a meeting with and chat face to face? Ultimately, this is what you want. Someone that will take time out of their day, to sit down with you and discuss every aspect of your requirements.
Sure overseas, or interstate companies can be cheaper, but you simply cannot convey your visions for your project over the phone or through emails.

2) Their Portfolio
Do they have one? How many projects have they worked on? Have you seen the work that they have done before?
This is important. You want to know that the developer you choose, can handle the task at hand.

3) How long have they been in the industry?
This is another important one. If it is less than 5 years, then move onto another company. You DONT want to hire someone who just started building websites. You are ultimately looking for someone who has worked for other companies in the past, and has experience with a multitude of environments.

4) How long will they be around for?
This is a doozy. You REALLY DONT want to hire someone who will not support you a year from now. Otherwise you will need to do your research all over again, when that time comes. Will their servers be up in 12 month's time?

5) How do they build their sites?
If the answer is, "I use frontpage", then please move on. If the answer is "Exclusively in Dreamweaver", then move on also.
While these tools can make life easier for a web developer they are riddled with bad code, that will need to be cleaned up later.
Websites should be Web Standard Compliant, so your web developer needs to be able to adhere to the standards, and understand HTML and associated web technologies thoroughly.

6) Can they build advanced functionality?
This is a very good question to ask. Most web developers worth their weight are able to offer you additional functionality for your website, not just a static page.
They specialise in a specific web language, and can build pretty much anything you want, themselves, and not rely on open source software to provide you with additional tools.

7) Do they outsource work?
Be careful with this one. Whilst there are legitimate reasons for outsourcing work, some companies outsource to poorer nations in order to lower their overhead, and increase their profibility from your project.
If they are farming your project off to someone overseas, you want to run. I'll say no more on this one.

8) Do they have experience with search engine optimisation?
You can't just build a website, and automatically have visitors. A website needs to optimised for search engines both on-site and off-site to stand a chance against the competition.
Always ask if your web developer if he/she keeps search engines in mind while building a site.

9) Can your web developer grow with your business?
There are many examples out there of businesses getting websites at a 'small business' level. But what happens when your company gets larger? Needs additional tools?
Make sure you're web developer has had experience, and is confident that he can handle higher traffic and building on a corporate level.
   
10) Can you get through to your developer at all times of the day?
Servers crash, email systems go down, accidents happen, every day, all over the world. This is normal. Make sure that your web developer is contactable at all times. If your site goes down, and it is something that you rely on for your business, you don't want it to go down for long.

11) Are they affordable?
This is a double edged sword. On one hand you can get developers cheap that are horrible, but you can also get some really good ones. It all depends on their situation.
Sometimes, it just may be worth it to spend a little more money, to get what you really want, not what that cheap developer says you can have.
If they are putting a restriction on how many pages you get, best to avoid them.

I may add more to this as they come to mind, but for your convenience I've also linked to some related articles below.

Enjoy!

Related Articles

10 Things Any Web Developer Worth Their Spit Should Know ~ search-this.com
10 Things Every Good Web Developer Should Know ~ jonraasch.com
10 Basic SEO Tips Every Web Developer Should Follow ~ devmoose.com
Key Qualities to Look for in a Web Developer / Designer ~ biznik.com
9 Signs You Shouldn't Hire THAT Web Guy ~ davidwalsh.name