10 Things to Know About Websites
What You Need To Know Before Creating a Website For Your Business
Creating a website is essential to the success of any business these days. In fact many consumers will decide whether or not to purchase a service or product based on a business' online presence. The question in web is not, "do I need a website", but rather, how would I like my customers to experience my business online. If your a business owner and currently facing these questions, here are some technology basics to know before getting started.
What is a website?
According to Dictionary.com a website "is a location connected to the Internet that maintains one or more pages on the World Wide Web". To simplify things a bit, a website is a series of files, located on a server which can be read with the use of an internet browser.
How does the internet browser read the files?
There are a variety of coding languages internet browsers, such as Chrome, Edge, Firefox & Safari, can read. Some of the more well known file types used in web design are HTML, CSS, Javascript, and Bootstrap.
Example of HTML Code Language (Back-End View):
HTML Code (Live Website View) :
This is a Large Heading Tag
This is a body copy or paragraph tag
Example of HTML Code with Inline CSS Styling Added (Back-End View):
HTML Code with Inline CSS Styling Added (Live Website View) :
This is A Large Heading Tag In Pink
This is a body copy in yellow
10 Terms You Should Know:
#1. User Experience (UX): The interaction a user has with an interface. Typically the User Experienced is defined during the wireframing process or through workflows ... but every aspect of the web design and development process effects the user experience. Including the initial load-time, flow of pages, overall page design and programming of the website.
#2. Site Map: This is the outline of pages or blueprint of the website. A site map helps in the organization of a website's content and helps determine part of the overall user experience. This is why one of my first design processes is to create the site map. It is difficult to design or build without a plan in place.
#3. Wireframes or Mock-Up: This is the basic layout and work flow of the website. During this part of the design process you define most of the user experience, by determining what content and how it will be displayed on each page. This starts to define the general layout of the website.
#4. Mobile First or Responsive Design: Due to a variety of devices users can view your website, it is important to make sure your website looks good on every type of device. This can be achieved in a variety of ways, but one of the most preferred ways is to create one website that automatically changes the display based on the size screen a user is viewing the website one.
#5. Call- To-Action: A vital part of your website because these are the actions a website requests a user to complete. Whether the call-to-action is "Add to Cart", "Schedule An Appointment" or simple "Contact Us", these call-to-actions direct users where to click for more or to buy.
#6. Content Management System (CMS): A Content Management System is software system that is used to edit the content on your website. This allows you to login into the “backend” of your website to edit the text and images. Some examples include DNN, WordPress and Wix. A CMS is designed to simplify the publication of website content, without requiring technical knowledge of code.
#7. SSL Certificate: SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) is a standard security protocol necessary for establishing encrypted communication between a web browser and a website. When a site has an SSL certificate, HTTPS (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol Secure) appears in the URL and the site displays as secure. The details of the certificate can be viewed by clicking on the lock symbol which appears next to the URL on the browser bar.
#8. Registrar: The company used to register your domain name. An example includes GoDaddy.
#9. SEO (Search Engine Optimization): SEO concerns increasing your site’s likelihood of being served up to web browsers that query relevant keywords. SEO ranking can be improved by helping search engines understand the information on your website in order to rank higher in organic search results. This includes having title tags, meta descriptions and ALT tags for images on your website.
#10. Hosting: The web servers where your website files are housed, served, and maintained. A web server is a computer running web server software connected to the internet that allows visitors to access a website through an Internet-connected web browser or mobile device.
Conclusion
We all know a website is an essential marketing tool for every business. If you are a business owner, I hope you have learned a little more about what a website is, what goes into creating one and what keywords you should know before starting the process to build a website.