Help please with web site

[Eclipse]

I need some help with my web site. Although it has all the useful info on it, its still missing some of the flash that some have. I have only been in business for myself for 2 years now although I have been a DJ for about 7. Most of my referals come from word of mouth or bridal mags. So I have some question about web sites.

1) How much more busines do you get from them?

2) As long as you get to the point of you business, is there a need for all the flash, or is it just for looks?

3) How expensive is it to build a good website?

For the record as far as web design I am totally lost. Some of these queston might be stupid, the reason for them is I am thinking of doing away with some of the yellow page adds and put it towards a web design. Any help someone can give me would be great.

My web site now is www.eclipsemusic.ws

Thanks for the help!!!!

[Jim Casey]

Hey Jim!

Well you've come to the right place for advice wink

Anyway, here is my take on your questions

"Most referals come from word of mouth or bridal mags. So I have some question about web sites."

If you are getting a lot of these that's great! But to increase your business and profits, website development is a great idea.

"1) How much more business do you get from them?"

I am sure that I am an anomaly, but about 70-80% of all of my business is a direct result of my website www.djmaine.com

"2) As long as you get to the point of you business, is there a need for all the flash, or is it just for looks?"

I've said it before and I will say it again...
Flahs is a waste of time, information is what counts. Here's an analogy for you:

Think of the guy in school you may have been jealous of... 6'4'' muscular, blond hair blue eyes, star QB, perfect, until you find out he is as dumb as weights he lifts daily.

Now, think of a wonderfully flashy website that tells you NOTHING about the service. It's rather irrelevant, isn't it.

"3) How expensive is it to build a good website?"

If you learn Front Page or Dreamweaver, etc...just time. It takes time to build a good website. If you don't have the time, don't do a website. If you do, make sure it is filled with useful content about you and your DJing speciality. I can't tell you how many people fell totally comfotable BEFORE they call me becuase they see the content on my site. Very easy to make a sale that way.

"For the record as far as web design I am totally lost. Some of these queston might be stupid, the reason for them is I am thinking of doing away with some of the yellow page adds and put it towards a web design. Any help someone can give me would be great."

There's no such thing as a stupid question. Always ask, never be afraid. I do web design work myself so if you need someone, please let me know. You won't get Flash from me, but a very useful website for you and your clients.

[Eclipse]

Jim
Thank you for your advise. I am looking for some help on my website. Right now I am just looking for ideas and hope to do something after the new year. I will be asking more question im sure as I try to figure out what I want to say and how I want to outline it. Again thanks for your help. I will be talking to your soon.

[diskjokk]

Jim,

I'm like you. I didn't know "diddly squat" about building a website. But I knew that it would be important to my business.

So, I went to a library and took out "Frontpage 2000 for Dummies." I read the book from cover to cover. Then I applied what I learned after "borrowing" a full-install of Frontpage 2000.

I spent some three months building the website but I think it came out ok.

So, in short, I guess I am just trying to say that I was in the same place you are now. But, IF you have the time to learn Frontpage or Dreamweaver, then you will be able to build a website as Jim described.

No, it may not look like www.cnn.com but it can be a good site, with good content, and easy to navigate through.

I hope this helps. BTW, I would be happy to help you if needed. Just let me know.

[BillyT]

Eclipse,

No matter what you decide to do I would keep the website simple. Keep graphics on the initial page to a min. You dont want your visitors waiting for a page to load.

I myself like frames, that way you can break the information down into smaller pages which, are easier to update.

I find here in my area alot of my clients have been to my website before they call me which, is great because we can cut right to the chase. Lately, I have been booking alot of weddings were the Bride & groom live 500 or 1000 miles away but are getting married in my area. So, I have broken my website down into pages like a wedding planner that they can submit to me online.

Again, I'll stress that there is no real need for flash or anything like that. Yea it looks neat and does great stuff but I have been to a few DJ websites that use flash and it took me 4 to 5 minutes for the page to load and that is with roadrunner. As a prospective client I would never wait that long for a site to load. Keep in mind that this is only my opinion.

Website design can be as cheap or expensive as you like. Go to a book store and pickup a copy of "HTML for Dummies" or something similar. You can also purchase software like CoffeeCup that will help you design and preview your site before you post it. Although, you will still have to know HTML tags and what they do.

I am certainly not a master at HTML but I made my website in about 2 hours. It's dull and not attractive but, my clients that have seen the website always seem to compliment me on its design.

Anyway if you have any specific questions about website design ask away we will try to answer your questions.

Enjoy!

[Eclipse]

Ok I have messed and messed with alot of different designs. I think I finally found one I really like. Tell me what you guys think..

[John Daniels]

Eclipse,

That looks very nice, but one thing you do not have on your home page . . . and many, many other DJs do the very same thing . . . is that you have absolutely NO location telling your potential customer where you are!

No city . . . no state . . . just a phone number!

Don't forget, search engines also look for city and state!

And so does anyone who is looking for a DJ!

They want to know where you are!

By the way . . . I made my website using Microsoft Publisher 97!

[DJMC]

Just a general geographic area would suffice.

I'm curious about the ".ws" extension---its very odd and I'm wondering if its as searchable as ".com"

the ws is a new extension "web site"

Its usually pretty cheap, but I would have rather looked for the .net or the like. If you were going for a random extension, try .tk It's free.

Second, your code is not bad, but could use some help. You will not be indexed by the big boys (yahoo, google, dmoz) and that is going to hurt your ability to pull in random visitors.

If you need help or have any questions let me know

Jake

[Eclipse]

When I signed up for my web site neither .com or .net was available. Just within the last 6 months .com came back on the market, but market price was $1900 just for the name. I am just starting out and wanted just to get a web site that I could build myself. I thank you for the information on the difference. I will keep that in mind when I start to research again, which will be soon.
What do you suggest to do to pull in the big boys? Will I need to create a new website or change my url?