Small business owners on a tight budget are often tempted by the cheap prices of inexperienced web designers or the opportunities presented by tech-savvy family members. Unfortunately my firm has recently fixed a lot of problems caused by the creation of what we refer to as backyard websites.

If you’re serious about your business but don’t know much about the web here’s what you should consider when choosing someone to build your website:

• Has this person done a number of other business websites before?
  If so, have a look at them and ask other people what they think. Typical mistakes of an inexperienced developer include flashing or blinking text, dark coloured backgrounds with white text and blurry photos. If they have no previous experience with businesses, I strongly suggest you look for another developer.
• How much will the website cost?
  This might be a really simple consideration, but I strongly advise you to get a quote in writing which outlines what you will get. Websites are custom written, so be aware if you make lots of changes this will be more expensive. Your quote should detail how much extra changes will cost, and what warrants a chargeable extra.
• Will the website be search engine friendly?
  Many less-reputable website developers don’t know much about internet marketing, so this is a sure fire way to find out if they’re worth their money! Everyone wants their site included in Google, and your web developer needs to know what stops the search engines from good rankings.

Now that everybody owns a digital camera there are a far greater number of amateur photographers who take their own photos for their website. Whilst I strongly recommend you hire a professional photographer, I realise this is cost prohibitive for many small businesses.

Here’s some tips for making your website photos look more attractive.

- Don’t ever use blurry or out of focus photos. Always reshoot these until you’ve got a crisp subject.

- When taking a series of photos of a similar theme, keep the background and lighting the same in each photo. This is particularly important when you have a shopping cart website and are displaying many products on the same page.

- Because the photos displayed on websites are quite small, less complex photos look much better. Try for shots with a single subject and a simple, plain background.

- Putting people in your photos will help your visitors put themselves in the picture. Carefully consider the age and look of your models though, as you will put some demographics offside by choosing models who your market don’t identify with.

- Include photos of you (the business owners), your team looking smart in their uniforms and your building. The internet is anonymous so photos of the management give visitors some people contact they miss from a face-to-face transaction. It also raises your credibility through recognition.

This is one of my little pet peevs, a bugbear, gets my goat sort of thing. People fall in love with some fonts, and then want to use them for everything. Some fonts were just not made for web pages though.

Have you ever sent a word document to someone and then saw it on their computer and it doesn’t look quite the same? The reason is often because they don’t have the same fonts installed as you do. The same applies to web pages, if the visitor doesn’t have the font installed, they will see it differently.

For the main text of your website use Verdana, Arial or Georgia.

When you’re planning a website, you will most likely be asked to write a design brief, or your web developer will write one for you. The process of writing your design brief is a great way to have focus the thoughts of your website project and define the goals you’re trying to achieve. Your design brief will also save you a lot of money in the long run.

Here’s the essential things you consider including in your brief:

Company Background

Write a couple of paragraphs about your business. Think about your company history, current staffing levels and how your product or services range has evolved. Your web designer will be trying to establish what type of business you are, and what style of website would suit you.

Target Market

This is an area lots of businesses struggle to define, but it is important as it sets the mood of your website. When deciding on your target market, consider the following demographics:

• Age - what age does your product or service appeal to
• Income - are your customers high earners, or of a low socio-economic background
• Occupation - which jobs are your customers likely to have
• Intelligence - what level of education do your products appeal to
• Gender - does one particular gender buy your products more than the other

Websites You Like (and Dislike)

Scour the web for similar businesses in your industry, both locally and abroad. Look for aspects of these sites that capture attention and include them in your design brief.

Be sure to pay attention to anything you don’t like, or anything that captures your attention in a negative way.

Promotional Strategy

It’s important for your web developers to know how you plan to promote your website, as they can help you track the performance of your endeavours. Consider including both online and offline promotional activities.

If you’re a bit stuck for ideas download our Website Design Brief, and just fill in the blanks.