What is the internet?
The internet is an incredibly large collection of computers that are connected to each other with the ultimate purpose of sharing information. To break it down with a simple example:
You have a document on your computer that you would like your neighbour to read. By connecting a cable from your computer to theirs, you can pass the document across this pipe, directly to their computer. In this way you have created a network.
The internet is a collection of millions of computers connected to each other in a global network that is accessible 24 hours a day.
Websites are housed on this network, and are located by a unique address in the form of a URL (usually pronounced by saying each letter but also pronounced "Earl"), for example, the South African Airways website : http://www.saa.co.za.
How are websites made?
Websites are created using a web language called HTML. HTML was created as a universal format for exchanging information on the internet, so that as long as your computer has a browser such as Internet Explorer, Netscape or Mozilla, you will be able to view web documents that are on the internet. Since the humble beginnings of HTML, many advancements have been made which allow other web languages and technologies to build on basic HTML to provide truly functional and technologically advanced websites.
How do I create a website?
Using HTML, you can write pages that include text, images, links and other content that will make up a finished web page. There are many books, and tutorials on the internet that will enable you to write your own web pages.
For a professional website, it would be better to approach a web-design or web-development company with experience in the field.
How do I get my website on to the internet?
The most common way of getting your website on the internet, is by getting it hosted by a hosting company that has many computers that are connected to the internet 24 hours a day. Hosting companies will charge you a monthly fee for hosting, and the cost will vary between companies and will depend on what hosting option you require. These normally provide you with one or more email addresses.
How do I get my website listed on search engines?
People use search engines to find information on the internet. When you enter a search term into a search engine, it will display all the pages that it deems are relevant to the term you entered. The results are displayed from the most relevant to the least relevant result, and normally with 10 or 20 results per page. A search for the term ‘sex' generates 220 million results, while a search for accommodation results in 57 million results (‘sex' is the most searched for word on the internet).
From this example it's clear that if you are in the accommodation business, you have to use some additional terms that will distinguish your site from others. For instance, if you search for ‘accommodation' ‘ south africa ', your results drop to 2.5 million. If you further refine your search to ‘accommodation' ‘ south africa ' ‘karoo' ‘springfontein', you get only 47 results. This will give you a much better chance of being found.
What this means for someone trying to get their website listed on search engines, is that they have to be listed for the right search terms. There are various ways to do this, but arguably the most important is having the right content on your website. Most search engines will scan your site for keywords and headings, and will place you in the search engine with the index it generates from ‘reading' your website. What this means, is that your text and headings must be highly targeted to what your prospective audience is going to search for.
Why get a website?
Communication of information: You provide information to potential or existing customers as a supplement to traditional marketing methods. If someone wants more information about your business, instead of posting them your latest brochure(which may already be out of date), you can give them your website address. Here they will be able to find out all they need to make an informed decision as to whether or not to give you business. The peace of mind that comes with being able to discover relevant information, see photo's of products, be it a guest house or a book, begins the building of a relationship with a potential customer, as well as building brand awareness.
Benefits:
- Providing information
- Giving a company an instant global presence and attracting people , some of whom are not your target market, but who potentially will be.
- Opening a new communication channel allowing a company to develop further relationships with customers.
- At reasonable cost.
Once you have established a web presence, you will than have a good foundation on which to build your online business in one or more of the following ways:
- Adding a content management system (CMS) which will allow you to update your website from the internet 24 hours a day. This could include the uploading of product information, photos/pictures and other files. In this way, customers will always be provided with the latest information.
- Adding a database to store customer information (such as name and email address) through allowing users to register on your site. You can also add customer information captured using other means, to your database, using the CMS. With these email addresses, you can then use email marketing to keep relationships with customers open, and in this way you will be able to remind them of your existing products, any specials you have, as well as getting feedback on products already received. This kind of marketing can be done without the costs of design, printing and postage associated with traditional direct mail, at almost no cost.
What to consider before designing a website
The most important things to consider before jumping into your website development, are:
- What is the purpose of your website?
- Who is, or who would you like to be your target market?
Once you know the answer to these crucial questions, you will be able to decide exactly what type of website you need in terms of complexity and functionality and what kind of content you should create.
Measuring the success of your website
A good business adage states: “If you can't measure it, you can't manage it”. This applies to websites too. If you can't tell how many people are using your website, if you are being found on search engines, you can't make decisions regarding the future of your website.
How do you know your website is not being visited?
A web developer can install software to monitor the usage on your website, or you can use basic website analysis tools that are often provided as part of your hosting package. Through this you can find out if your site is being discovered by people using search engines and whether or not your marketing of your website is having any effect. In this way you can make informed decisions about whether or not having a website is worth the monthly hosting fee.
Worldwide internet usage, and South African internet usage
The amount of Internet users worldwide reached an estimated 650 million people in 2002 (United Nations study), and by April 2004, this figure is reported to be 757 million (internetworldstats.com). A study by World Wide Worx estimated that by the end of 2004, 3,5 million South Africans were online. eMarketer reports that IDATE believes this figure will reach 4.7 million by 2006. In terms of age groups, internet usage is highest for those between the ages of 12 and 35, and is growing for those over 35. In time it is foreseeable that the internet will be used by the majority of people across all age groups.
It is clear that there is a worldwide and local trend towards increased internet access and usage. Can you afford to allow your business to be left behind?