| Q. |
Why do I need a website? |
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| A. |
Websites are about communication. If you have something to say or information to share then a website is one of the
best 24 hours a day, 7 days a week vehicle for doing so. From a business perspective it is like having an advertisement
in every paper, a brochure delivered to every house. For a business a website is about branding, about promotion and
about continuous client and potential client contact. In todays Internet age a website is an absolute must for any business!
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| Q. |
What is a website? |
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| A. |
A website consists of text, pictures, graphics etc arranged in computer files
in the formats readable by the various browser software (MSIE, Netscape etc). Website design and construction requires
technical skills. These can be developed by yourself if you have the time and inclination. Usually, however, one would
obtain the services of a professional web designer/developer to create your website.
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| Q. |
What is hosting? |
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| A. |
A host is a physical computer (server) in which your website is stored that is accessible by the internet. Theoretically,
you could host your own site on your own computer, however, it is technically demanding and more often than not prohibited by
most internet service providers (ISP). Again, you would generally purchase space and access for hosting your website from a
dedicated hosting provider.
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| Q. |
What is a domain name? |
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| A. |
A domain name is the address by which visitors can find your website amongst the millions of others out there in
the world wide web. Domain names can come in many forms such as; 'www.yourname.co.nz' or 'www.yourname.anothername.co.nz'. Many different
suffixes are available eg '.co.nz', '.com' etc. Domain names are obtained through a domain name registrar and are 'leased' for periods of time
at a cost. Selection of a domain name is a critical decision in site development as the name becomes the key branding of your website.
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| Q. |
How do I get my email from my new website and domain name? |
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| A. |
Email is the all important method by which a message can be passed from one internet user to another. To have email you
need an email account which comprises an email address, unique to you, and some online storage to handle incoming email.
Usually an email account will be provided when you purchase internet access from an Internet Service Provider (ISP). Email
accounts can also be obtained from such free sources as 'msn'. Your email address will be in the form 'youruniquename@isp.co.nz'.
When you own a domain name such as 'youruniquename.co.nz' then you will be able to have email addresses such as 'mary@youruniquename.co.nz"
or 'sales@youruniquename.co.nz'. However to handle such email you will either need to purchase an email account as part of your domain hosting
or have the emails redirected to your ISP provided email account. The latter is a cheaper and often overlooked method of email
handling. Setting up email processing can be a little tricky and perhaps best handled by your website developer.
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| Q. |
OK, so I've got my website - what now? |
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| A. |
Websites, unlike their printed counterparts can be easily and immediately updated. So the first thing you might consider
with your new website is to establish a regular review of content and keep it fresh - nothing worse than a site that has
out of date content or remains unchanged year after year.
Beyond this basic maintenance, you should ensure your site grows as your business needs grow. You may start with a basic
brochure style website that has essentially static content, as your budget and requirements dictate you may consider some
of the following enhancements:
- adding more content, more pages, more menu options
- adding more exciting content; animated graphics, panoramic photographs, audio, video
- adding visitor interactivity; online forms, surveys, feedback, forums, mailing lists
- controlling the content yourself with a content management database
- adding a shopping cart or other online sales capabilities
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