DOMAIN NAME REGISTRATION
What is a Domain Name?
- Domain Name System, or DNS, is a recognized system for assigning addresses to Internet web servers. It can be compared to an international phone number. In other words, the domain name helps to give every Internet Server a unique and easy-to-spell address.
- Domain name must be re-registered every year.
- Your hosting company will check for you if the domain name you want is available. If this name has already been taken by someone else, you will have to look for a variation that is still available.
- If you are a South African company, you should choose the .co.za domain name ending as this shows searchers on line where you are based
Choosing a Domain Name
It is always wise to consult with your hosting company before registering your domain name on line.
- Try to choose a domain name that is:
- Short
- Easily spelt
- Uses a search term:eg, melslodge as part of the domain name. (search term : lodge)
WEB HOSTING
- Web Hosters have nothing to do with how the website is found by search engines. They simply rent out the space.
It's like renting a postbox. The fee that you pay for web hosting each month does not include the fee for changes to the website. The web designer is entitled to charge for the time he spends on a website effecting changes.
- When your website has been completed, it will need to be uploaded to the World Wide Web. The letters www will be added to the front of your domain name : www.yourname.co.za
- A domain name is commonly part of a larger Internet address called a "URL" (Uniform Resource Locator ). Your URL will look like this : http://www.yourname.co.za.
- In order for your website to be found, it needs to be stored in space on a server that will "hold" your content so that it can be publically accessed. For a hosting fees, you are actually renting space on a bank of computers with connectivity to the Internet.
- Your website files are upload to this space via File Transfer Protocol (FTP) or a Web Interface.
WEB DESIGN
Web Design is far more than "just another pretty face". While the focus is on having a really smart website - and this IS important - it must be remembered that a Website these days should actually be one of the many business tools that are used.
Here are some tips on Web Design
- Keep it simple - Don't clutter it up with all sorts of "gadgets" and moving parts. Remember that in today's busy world, time is money. While the initial reaction should be WOW, potential customers are not there to just admire the view.
- Make it user-friendly. People should be able to find the information they require on your website with no more than 2 or 3 clicks.
- Make sure that the web designer you choose (or yourself if you are a DIY fan) knows the difference between graphic design and web design. They are not the same thing. A true web designer will "build in" the SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) so that your website will have a better chance of being listed on the results pages.
- Your web designer will also resize your pictures on the website correctly, so that they download quickly. People searching on the internet are impatient, and should your website download too slowly, they will simply move on to another website.
SO WHAT EXACTLY IS SEO?
SEO stands for “search engine optimization.” It is the process of getting traffic to your website from the “organic,” or “natural” listings on search engines. All major search engines such as Google, Yahoo and Bing have such results, where web pages and other content such as videos or local listings are shown and ranked based on what the search engine considers most relevant to users. Payment isn’t involved, as it is with paid search ads.
Remember : no one can accurately predict what the search engines are looking for, and no-one can GUARANTEE that you will be found and rated No 1 on Google! The only way to do this is by taking a paid advert on Google search engine - and this can be expensive! However, it undoubtably does produce results!
SEO should include factors such as :
- Textual information should be well written and concern the subject matter you have selected in your keywords. There should be far more text than pictures. Remember that pictures are no more than "eye candy". These images are necessary to show potential clients what your product is all about, but they do not have a huge impact on the search engines.
- Your keywords need to reflect what people will be looking for on your website. You can't just include keywords "willy-nilly"!! If you website doesn't mention the selected keywords in all that you have written about, then it's just a waste of time.
- Links should be a guideline to the search engines as to where your pages are located on the website.
- Yoyr website should have a site map, in order to assist the search engines
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