Web sites

[natsel]

hello all.

I have been thinking of setting up a website for the salon I work in, anyway I have been doing lots of research on here and the net and have lots of ideas going on in my head right now feels like a BIG brain storm,

just wanted to ask a few questions to you all,

• how easy is it to maintain your website
• what % would you say of custom do you get through your site
• which company did you go with to set your website up was it a free one like freeweb etc or one with a monthly fee?
• Is there any cons to having your own website

I'm pretty self taught when it comes to using a computer so for everyone that has there own website did you find it easy to set up ,if you did it yourself, say for arguement sake take myself , I have basic knowledge of using a comp with a bit of research and forward planning nothing major could I set up one quite easily.

 

[Tracey Roberts]

hello all.

I have been thinking of setting up a website for the salon I work in, anyway I have been doing lots of research on here and the net and have lots of ideas going on in my head right now feels like a BIG brain storm,


just wanted to ask a few questions to you all,

• how easy is it to maintain your website
• what % would you say of custom do you get through your site
• which company did you go with to set your website up was it a free one like freeweb etc or one with a monthly fee?
• Is there any cons to having your own website

I'm pretty self taught when it comes to using a computer so for everyone that has there own website did you find it easy to set up ,if you did it yourself, say for arguement sake take myself , I have basic knowledge of using a comp with a bit of research and forward planning nothing major could I set up one quite easily.

Hi,
I've tried a couple of free ones, and just couldn't figure them out ? I'm a bit like you computer wise or not :lol:, I can't say about custom yet, as I bought my self a mr site from staples yesterday, for beginners, you get 5 pages, loads of templates to choose from, I finally managed to choose :lol:, the low cost lasts for a year, then you resubscribe.
you can also add additional pages, widets, and bits and bobs.
Iv'e managed to get all my text work done on it today, I just need to sort out the pics now and my email
I'm well pleased with it so far, my 8 year old could of done it, it's that easy.
oh there is also three difficulty levels, just make sure you read the manual from cover to cover. I hth :hug:

I'd post a link, but dont want to until its completely finished x

 

[emerald]

I built my own website using moonfruit.com I found it really easy to work, I am ok on computers but I wouldnt ever say im a computer wizz lol.

You can have a free site on moonfruit but it will have adverts on from other companies (and if you dont buy a domain name then your site will have .moonfruit.com instead of .co.uk etc)

I pay a monthly fee for mine of around £2.99 and I have also bought my own domain name. This is my current site: Makeup by Michelle but I am in the process of building an extra one for beauty as I am about to open a beauty room aswell. Hope this helps you.

 

[shel84]

I do my own websites, Im in the middle of doing one for my beauty work but already have one for my candle and accessories business.
www.candlesandaccessories.co.uk

I find it easier and cheaper to do it myself. I can add text/photo's whenever i want and dont have to pay anyone to do it!

 

[Violet Star]

• how easy is it to maintain your website

Very easy as i am a web designer anyway

• what % would you say of custom do you get through your site

99% of my custom is from my website or the internet

• which company did you go with to set your website up was it a free one like freeweb etc or one with a monthly fee?

I went with AK domains for my website package and domain name and this was 30.00 per year. does not come with web designing

• Is there any cons to having your own website

Not at all i LOVE my website and my business wouldnt have been a business without one! All my clients compliment my website and its easy for them to find infomation on their without me having to explain to clients every time they call. I would say that i wouldnt have any clients if it wasnt for my website.

I have answered your questions in the red

 

[Ruth Mills]

Violet Star, do you use any software for designing sites, e.g. Dreamweaver, Frontpage, etc, or do you do it the hard core geeky way by editing HTML code in a text editor?

I personally use the Eclipse IDE for Java for designing all of my recent sites, and use JSP with Apache Tiles for laying out my pages (using Tiles means that I can split each page into individual segments called tiles, and re-use these across pages as appropriate, so I only have to write things like the page header, navigation bar and footer once and then they appear on every page on the site, with just the content changing, which tends to be pulled out of a database anyway). But using JSP and Tiles is dependent on hosting the site using a Java application server, e.g. JBoss or Tomcat.
Posted via Mobile Device

 

[kelmb]

i have my own website that i did my self and it is so easy to do and to use after you have done it it shows how many people have been to my site and where in the world they were when they looked at it. my website was free for the first month and then it was nearly £11.00 a month x x my website is with vistaprint its so easy to do and im not all that on a computer. hope it works out for you x x
kelly x x

 

[Violet Star]

Violet Star, do you use any software for designing sites, e.g. Dreamweaver, Frontpage, etc, or do you do it the hard core geeky way by editing HTML code in a text editor?

I personally use the Eclipse IDE for Java for designing all of my recent sites, and use JSP with Apache Tiles for laying out my pages (using Tiles means that I can split each page into individual segments called tiles, and re-use these across pages as appropriate, so I only have to write things like the page header, navigation bar and footer once and then they appear on every page on the site, with just the content changing, which tends to be pulled out of a database anyway). But using JSP and Tiles is dependent on hosting the site using a Java application server, e.g. JBoss or Tomcat.
Posted via Mobile Device

I'm a complete lover of front page i have tried to use Dreamweaver but couldn't get to grips with it! But with what i do I'm a great graphic designer possibly a better graphic designer than a web designer. I use paint shop pro to do all my graphic designs! its brilliant
xx

 

[Ruth Mills]

Oh yes, Paint Shop Pro is fab, I use that too for graphics stuff a fair bit too. It's great for things like backgrounds that fade from one colour to another and whatnot.
Posted via Mobile Device

 

[prettymiss]

i have my own website that i did my self and it is so easy to do and to use after you have done it it shows how many people have been to my site and where in the world they were when they looked at it. my website was free for the first month and then it was nearly £11.00 a month x x my website is with vistaprint its so easy to do and im not all that on a computer. hope it works out for you x x
kelly x x

I use Vista Print too! They designed a logo for me and everything (im guessing your salon may already have some kind of logo to use?) but the website is so easy to use. Ive only got the 3 page package at the moment cos its only £3 something a month and I thought I'd try it out, but im going to upgrade to the £11 something one cos I want a Gallery page too.

Tried Freewebs a little while back and it is easy to use, and free (as the name suggests!), but between the two, I'd choose Vista Print.

Hope that helps. Sorry if its a bit waffley!!

xxxx

 

[Ruth Mills]

I use Vista Print too! They designed a logo for me and everything (im guessing your salon may already have some kind of logo to use?) but the website is so easy to use. Ive only got the 3 page package at the moment cos its only £3 something a month and I thought I'd try it out, but im going to upgrade to the £11 something one cos I want a Gallery page too.

Tried Freewebs a little while back and it is easy to use, and free (as the name suggests!), but between the two, I'd choose Vista Print.

Hope that helps. Sorry if its a bit waffley!!

xxxx

What is the gallery like with the 11 quid package from vista print? Does it do fancy stuff like animated slide shows? And what else do you get with the package?
Posted via Mobile Device

 

[femmefan]

I use a program called ewisoft to create and maintain my website. There are no extra fees unless you want to buy different templates other than the built in ones. It's very easy to use and I get a lot of business from it. Many people search the internet and look on listing sites such as yell.com but the website link gives greater visibility and makes the client more confident in contacting you to make an appointment.

 

[Sassy32]

I've just bought a website template from UK Website Design Wales | Web Design Aberystwyth, Wales UK | Affordable, Accessible Website Design and it was around £36 and then there are no fees to pay e'g monthly or annually. My cousin how is up on this kind of stuff is gonna get me started but think it looks fairly easy and you are able to change things on it yourself

 

[Ruth Mills]

I've just bought a website template from UK Website Design Wales | Web Design Aberystwyth, Wales UK | Affordable, Accessible Website Design and it was around £36 and then there are no fees to pay e'g monthly or annually. My cousin how is up on this kind of stuff is gonna get me started but think it looks fairly easy and you are able to change things on it yourself

Does that include web hosting though, or do you have to arrange that yourself? 36 quid for a website with indefinite hosting seems incredibly cheap to me.
Posted via Mobile Device

 

[Sassy32]

To be honest i'm not sure until my cousin gets here to sort me out!!! I already have my domain name and then I presume I will have to pay a hosting fee to someone else. Is that right?

 

[Ruth Mills]

That would normally be the case, e.g. companies such as 123-reg, 1and1 etc offer hosting packages, where you get an amount of web space on a server for hosting your sites, and usually a maximum amount of data transfer (bandwidth) that you are allowed per month. So I guess shop around and find a package that provides what you need at a reasonable price.
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[Sassy32]

Thanks for that Ruth, my cousin is coming on Wednesday so will hopefully get started!!

 

[Ruth Mills]

Thanks for that Ruth, my cousin is coming on Wednesday so will hopefully get started!!

Cool, good luck with it
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[Peggy69]

I contacted www.bimbodesign.co.uk, and Lynsey there is so helpful and very eager to help out people like me, who are just starting out and, frankly a bit useless at designing websites! No finished article as yet (I'll let you know next week), but she's been most generous with her time.

 

[siana]

Hi

The website I use is very easy to maintain - you just sign in and change/add what you like.

I am now getting a lot of extra business from my site - people buying gift vouchers for local relatives has been a big bonus and local people are finding me too. I'd say nearly all of my new business is from my site.

I used a company called Healthhosts (wesites for therapists). You just pick a design and package that suits you and as soon as you have entered all your information the company submits you site to all the search engines and keeps everything ticking over. You just update when you want. It costs me £4.95 per month and was very easy to do. If I did get stuck they are on the end of the phone to talk you through any problems. I also used the option to have my own colours and logo uploaded for a one off fee of £15.

There have been no cons for me - just pro's!

Have a look at mine to see what you think - there is a link for healthosts at the bottom of my welcome page - you can go in and have a look at what they offer. I have to say it's the best thing I have done for my business yet!