YaaY!!! Thank God I'm almost there!!! Almost!!!!

My website designer just sent me my logo and I absolutely love it!!! I chose the pic and they designed my boutique name across it. I also saw a prototype of my site and I can't wait to unveil it..............in a few days. I've been working on this for five years and I'm so glad that I'm almost there - just thought I'd share....

Website Design by Travis at Origins 3 (435-650-1037) Travis and his design team are doing a fab job!! When I started out, I hired this one "nightmare" company that shall remain nameless (since I don't feel like being vindictive and posting their name). I had such an awful experience with them that I decided to just put the whole e-commerce idea to rest until I found Travis. They have been so accomodating to all my petty whims and have kept me in the loop every step of way. I really appreciate it!!! I should done more research before hiring the previous website design company, but oh well - live and learn!!!

Below is a summary of my previous post on Building A website for your Small Biz - Excerpted from Entrepreneurpress.com

What makes a good website? Before getting enmeshed in design details, get the big picture by writing a site outline. A well-thought-out site outline includes: content, structure, design, navigation and credibility.

A detailed outline to prospective web designers makes the process more efficient.

Content: The key to a successful site is content. Give site visitors a lot of interesting information, incentives to visit and buy, and ways to contact you. Once your site is up and running, continually update and add fresh content to keep people coming back for more.

Structure: Next, structure your site. Decide how many pages to have and how they'll be linked to each other. Choose graphics and icons that enhance the content.

Design: With the content and structure in place, site design comes next. Whether you're using an outside designer or doing it yourself, concentrate on simplicity, readability and consistency. Before you start using HTML tags right and left, remember what you want to accomplish.

Navigation: Make it easy and enjoyable for visitors to browse the site. Use no more than two or three links to major areas, never leave visitors at a dead end, and don't make them back up three or four links to get from one content area to another.

Credibility: This is an issue that shouldn't be lost in the bells and whistles of establishing a website. Your site should reach out to every visitor, telling her why she should buy your product or your service. It should look very professional and give potential customers the same feeling of confidence that a phone call or face-to-face visit with you would.

*Melissa Campanelli is a leading expert in small business e-commerce. She is author of Open an Online Business in 10 Days and writes the monthly "Net Profits" column for Entrepreneur magazine, offering valuable advice to online small businesses.

Sources:Open an Online Business in 10 Days and Entrepreneur.com