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I Got A Website For Christmas!!!

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  • #1

    I Got A Website For Christmas!!!

    It's still under construction, but I will post the URL once its a bit more polished. I'm thrilled that I can now advertise my business on the web as well as in person. This forum has already got me a customer or two and even a couple of friends, I can't wait to see what my own website will bring.

    Any professional detailers out there want to voulenteer their website as a template? (Only as far navigation, no text or images will be even similar) Anyone have any tips on website design? Anything I need to include? Anything I should stay away from? Places where I should advertise my website?
    James - 1979 Oldsmobile Cutlass Calais
    Calais Auto Detailing
    CalaisDetails@aim.com
    www.calaisdetailing.com (under construction)
    Tags: None
  • #2
    Re: I Got A Website For Christmas!!!

    If you have little experience, don't have a lot of time to keep it updated and want to easily add more content then I'd recommend you look into using WordPress and a web site template. WordPress is blogging software but there are thousands of pre-made templates that will make it look more like a website then a blog. You pick a template and customize it a little. This same template is then the basis for all your pages. You simple use the interface to create text and add words, pictures and/or videos to the pages. You can also pick a template with columns to add side content as well as adding "widget". The widgets are scripts that add dynamic content, such as ads, weather, photos, videos, almost anything... there are thousands of widgets. You simply activate them and then drag them to where you want them displayed. You can allow people to leave comments on your pages or turn that feature off.

    If you want, you can take a look at a website I set up using WordPress (but there are many on the web):

    http://www.utahkitefliers.org

    I use WordPress as I want the site to look like it's being updated when in fact, I don't really need to do anything and also because it's so easy for me to add pages and change content whenever I want.

    Of course you host needs to support WordPress.

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    • #3
      Re: I Got A Website For Christmas!!!

      Congrads!!
      Sleepy

      Love the Classics!

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      • #4
        Re: I Got A Website For Christmas!!!

        Good news!
        The way a person treats their car is a direct reflection of how they treat themselves

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        • #5
          Re: I Got A Website For Christmas!!!

          I already have a domain with Godaddy.com, it is set; I just need to layout the pages and determine what content I will/will not include. I've been checking out a few other detailer's pages for ideas on how to lay out the navigation and what kind of content I need to include.
          James - 1979 Oldsmobile Cutlass Calais
          Calais Auto Detailing
          CalaisDetails@aim.com
          www.calaisdetailing.com (under construction)

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          • #6
            Re: I Got A Website For Christmas!!!

            That is great. Can't wait to see the finished site. Congrats.
            quality creates its own demand

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            • #7
              Re: I Got A Website For Christmas!!!

              Hi Calais,

              if you want some ideas heres my page:

              www.advancedetail.webs.com

              its in spanish tho because iam in Chile, but you get the idea, i have a home page, about me page, a benefits page, prices, FAQ, Gallery, and a sales products tab.

              Take Care!! and good luck
              Nelson Zapata - Advance Detail - Detailing and Auto Reconditioning in Santiago Chile.

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              • #8
                Re: I Got A Website For Christmas!!!

                Congrats Calais. I enjoy tinkering with my site. It works out well that you can refer a customer to it for pricing and pictures.

                GoDaddy should have plenty of templates for you to use. Have you tried their hosting and Website Tonight?

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                • #9
                  Re: I Got A Website For Christmas!!!

                  First off, congrats

                  I am not a professional designer by any stretch, but I have done several web projects over the years, and I'll give you some of the insights I've gathered.

                  1. Try to get a professional to do your site using hand coding. The WYSIWYG progrmas that come with Web Site Tonight are good and pages will look good to the eye, but the coding is often messy and search engines sometimes have a hard time with it which can impact your rankings.

                  You might be able to get a pro to take it in trade if you're light on funds.

                  2. Keep the site simple. Avoid the temptation to have too many graphics or forcing users to listen to music or watch animations/videos. These are all things I learned the hardway. Fortuantely, my brother is a web designer by trade and while he wouldn't do the work for me, he did review it and give me suggestions. These were all things he offered up.

                  Along the line of keeping it simple, just a few basic pages will be enough. There's a fine line between not enough info and too much info. You'll find that over time. Also, make sure everything is spelled correctly, subject/verb agreement is perfect and that you have used the correct form of various words (hear/here there/their etc.)

                  3. Set up a Google account and install Google Analytics on your site. In case you don't know what this is, it will give you feedback on how many times certain pages are viewed, for how long and how many unique and repeat visits your pages are getting. It will also show you how users move through the site. Once you understand all that, you can really make some good decisions about site layouyts etc.

                  4. Read a book or two on Search Engine Optimization (SEO). A properly optomized site will show up higher in the rankings and thus generates more traffic. The more you know about this, the better off you'll be. I suggest doing this before writing too much of your site's copy as you will want to put certain keywords and phrases into the text based on your optimization strategy.

                  Hopefully those tips will help you on the web side. I'll also give you my .02 on a couple business things.

                  1. Make mention early on of important things that apply to you (liscensed, insured etc.)

                  2. If you accept credit cards, let that be known as well. If you don't currently, Paypal has a pretty affordable merchant vitrual terminal that will let you process something like $5,000 a month in payments with no hardware or other complications.

                  3. List your phone number. If you haven't already, I would suggest a separate cell phone just for the business so you know when clients are calling and they can be greeted in a professional manner. Nothing bugs me more than when I call a mobile serivce provider (locksmith, mechanics etc) and they answer only "hello". I then have to ask if this is the mechanic and it simply puts me off a bit.

                  4. You might consider a coupon page that offers free service not included with the package they buy. For instance, maybe they get a full exterior package and you throw in one free stain removal from the upholstery. Free extras tend to be worth more to customers than discounted services in my mind. We all like to get more than what we pay for.

                  I'll leave you with those for now and once your site is ready, I'm sure there will be more ideas to share

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