Why should I get a professional to create my website?
So, you might be sitting there thinking…”I know computers pretty well and WordPress is free…surely I can make my own site?”
The answer…yes of course you can (you can do anything!) but can you imagine how long and painstaking it will be? You’re on a steep learning curve. You’re learning how to build a site for a one-off?!
Doesn’t it make much more sense to invest your time in what you specialise in and to pay a website expert like the The Webmistress, who has loads of experience in creating professional websites.
Will prospective clients be able to find you? Will they like what they see?
So, you’ve made your own website, or you’re thinking about doing that. Are prospective clients going to be able to find you? Is the content written with (jargon alert!) SEO in mind? Does it have correct keywords and keywords phrases, pages titles and page descriptions? Maybe your wording, your pictures or the way your site looks won’t appeal or attract the correct type of clients or any clients at all.
How do you know you are you going to put the information in the correct place, under the correct headings? Maybe you try use funky words for your sections, to be different. That will drive people away from your site as they won’t be able to find the information in the places they are looking for it. Do you know where information should go and how to structure your site so people can find it easily and won’t just get annoyed and leave you site?
How are you going to track your visitors and improve your site as the years go by?
Are you going to blog? If not, why not? Call us and well tell you why you need to be blogging!
Are you going to use social media? If not, why not?
Maybe you have more than one site? Why? Do you know that having more than one site can work against you?
Can people find your contact information easily? The harder you make it, the less clients you will generate from your site.
How will you know you’re appealing to your target market? Perhaps you’re not aware what a target market it and than you need one
Will you be able to get your content across well?
Do you know what information people will be looking for and where it should be?
Will potential clients like what they see? Will they be incited to call you, or will they think your site looks unprofessional and find someone else?
You need a professional to hold the bigger picture and tie up all the loose ends.
But there are packages other than WordPress out there…
We’ve all seen websites and ads for companies offering ‘build your own website’ packages, but again the same as before applies: steep learning curve, frustration, is it going to be right? Do you have the time and patience for it? And are you going to get the results you want and need?
WordPress is easy for you to learn and we’ll teach you how to update your website in the future so it can grow with your business.
An example that applies to us
We’re pretty au fait with the internet and computers. Does this mean we understand the ins and outs of the likes of Facebook and Twitter? Nope!
How do we know we are doing the right thing, saying the right stuff, promoting ourselves in the best way possible way on these mediums?
We go to the experts to help us to get a handle on it. Else we would have spent hours and hours trawling the internet, getting frustrated trying to understand what we are supposed to be doing…shooting in the dark and being really unsuccessful at it.
The bottom line
You are offering a professional service. You have invested time and money in yourself and your expertise. Why not spend a little more and get a professional site to promote your service? Why would you create you own website, your primary marketing tool, knowing you are not the best (wo)man for the job?
As people turn to you for your professional service, why would you not turn to a professional web designer?
Do you inspect your own teeth? Or do you let a dentist do it for you? Do you cut your own hair? How does it look?
Last bottom line example on a maximum scale
We hate to use Coca-Cola as an example, but let’s do it… just this once. Don’t tell anyone 
Coca-Cola have been around for years, decades. They know their brand. They know who they are selling to. They know how they want to be perceived.
Do they do all their advertising and web campaigns themselves? No…they let the the advertising and web agencies handle it because they’ve had years of experience and know what needs to be done.
You’re starting your own business or you need a new site.
If you do it yourself, how do you know you will get results you need?
Yes, there are a lot of questions in this Blog post…makes you think doesn’t it?
At The Webmistress we speak your language and we’ll answer your questions.
We make the process streamlined, focused and enjoyable, giving you a professional website you’ll be proud to show your clients. Call us today.
Would you like a Fast Track to Success?
Calling all women to a business workshop in London to inspire you!
Date: 30th June 2012
Location: The Sloane Club, London
What: Expert Speakers, Presentations & Lunch 11.30am to 5.30pm
Cheery on the cake: Drinks & Networking from 5.30pm to 7.30pm
Cost: Invest 1 day of your time and £90
The Foster Principles women, Liz Foster (from Liz Foster Coaching) and Luciana Cousin, are pleased to announce the launch of the Fast Track to Success programme.
“Enjoy elegant and sophisticated surroundings, luxury dining, meet other amazing women, share experiences, brainstorm with experts and get the smart solutions you need for the business and life you want to create. In an ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS and FEMININE ENVIRONMENT!”
The Webmistress will be there in video format. Sadly we can’t make the date in person but we will be sending the lovely Foster Principles ladies a video presentation to share with the women entrepreneurs.
Download the PDF for more information
Webmistress WordPress Blog Fiesta, Bath 11 April 2012
It’s Blog Fiesta time!
Date: Wednesday 11 April 2012
Time: 7.15pm (for 7.30pm) – 9.30pm
Place: The Practice Rooms, 26 Upper Borough Walls, Bath. BA1 1RH
Cost: free
RSVP: numbers are limited so please reserve your place ASAP, by 4 April
Please email us to be kept informed &
to reserve your place.
We are delighted to announce our 2nd Webmistress WordPress Event to help you stay engaged with your website.
This time the subject is Blogging. Everyone is welcome, whether you’re already our client or this is the first time you’ve heard of The Webmistress.
You may have heard the B-word and wondered what on earth it means. Or perhaps you’ve had your website built by us and we’ve encouraged you to blog. Or maybe you’re excited at the prospect of keeping visitors to your site up-to-date with your latest news and can’t wait to get blogging.
At this evening event, we’ll be introducing the What, Why and How of Blogging with WordPress. We’ll give you some tips get you started. Our special guest is Bo Novak, one of our super-blogging clients.
It’s going to be a sociable evening of fun and learning with an opportunity to ask questions and mingle with others from the local holistic community.
We’d love to see you there!
Some words from our Special Guest, Bo Novak – Women’s Health Blogger
Having been an avid reader of many wonderful blogs (mainly in the areas of social commentary, politics, vegan food, animal rights, health and women’s issues), I ventured into blogging myself in July 2011. PMS Warrior was set up by the Webmistress using the WordPress Twenty Ten theme. It is a niche, blog-driven website raising awareness one aspect of women’s health – Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) – and how it is connected to diet and lifestyle.
I am a longtime member of the National Association for Premenstrual Syndrome (NAPS) and have overcome PMS myself using natural methods. Through the blog, I wanted to help dispel some of the myths surrounding it, collate the available evidence, communicate with sufferers and work through my own thoughts about it. The blog is a mainly vehicle for reputation building and for building a following for when I am due to complete my formal training in nutrition. I am also an active Tweeter as @PMS_Warrior, and I maintain a PMS Warrior Facebook page too (somewhat less enthusiastically).
PMS is very common, affecting around 30% of women to a significant degree and my blog has attracted links and mentions from thefworduk.org.uk and Dr Christian Jessen (the TV doctor), and I have guest blogged for Beautiful Heart, Raw Kitchen. I was also recently quoted on www.netdoctor.co.uk which has a very high level of traffic. In the last month, 2,585 people visited my site – even though the frequency of posts I have written has reduced of late. Eight months on, I’ve learned lots of lessons about how blogging ‘works’, and have big plans for the future development of my site.
Venue
The Practice Rooms
26 Upper Borough Walls
Bath
BA1 1RH
Parking: the nearest car park is Saw Close (BA1 1EY) and Cattle Market (BA1 5BD) both pay and display and free after 8pm.
[mappress mapid="3"]
Ten Tips For A Social Media Newbie
Imogen of Social-i, our Bath-based social media partner, drew our attention to this blog via a tweet (see, social media works!).
We found the article really handy. Please do read it if you are new to Tweeting, FaceBooking and Google+1ing:
http://socialmediatoday.com/adr101/385769/ten-tips-social-media-newbie
The author makes a good point about social media and target market. We speak with our clients a lot about target market when it comes to their marketing, be it print or web. So we were interested to hear that it is just as vital when using social media as well.
Target market is King!!!
Happy tweeting!
Twitter: @the_webmistress
Visit our Facebook page and ‘Like’ us!
Webmistress WordPress Party
We are holding a Webmistress WordPress Party to help you stay engaged with your website.
It’s going to be a social evening of fun and learning with an opportunity to mingle with other local therapists and practitioners. We’d love to see you there!
We are delighted to welcome special guests Imogen and Catherine from social-i, who will be there to answer your questions on social media.
Programme for the evening:
6.30pm – 7.30pm: Question and answer session
7.30pm – 9pm: Freestyle lessons & Social time. We’ll be making our rounds to help you make quick changes on your site and to answer your ‘HOW DO I?’ questions.
Date: Thursday 1st December 2011
Time: 6.30pm – 9pm
Place: Central Bar, Bath, 10 Upper Borough Walls, Bath BA1 1RG
No charge, we’ll provide the nibbles, please buy yourself a drink at the bar.
RSVP: by Friday 25th November + tell us your most burning question for The Webmistress
What to bring:
- your WordPress questions about your site
- Additions for your website on a memory stick (changes you’ve been wanting to make but don’t know how)
- Laptop, battery and power cord (if you don’t have a laptop, don’t worry, we’ll have spares)
- Friends who might be thinking about getting on line and who have questions
Look out for our next WordPress Party early next year which will be about Blogging!
We hope you’ll join us for the party and we look forward to hearing from you very soon.
New Classic WordPress package from The Webmistress
We are delighted to unveil our new Classic WordPress package
Classic is our new website package that combines the simplicity and affordability of the Quick site with the full functionality of our Custom site.
So if you’re starting out on the web and want to get a head start in search engine results and give your visitors a more interactive experience, call The Webmistress to book your Classic WordPress site.
The Classic website brings you: Continue reading
Choosing the right domain name
You’re excited about having your first website and you’ve called in The Webmistress to create a website for you. But what are you going to call it? How do you choose your domain name?
Your domain name is part of your brand so it’s worth giving it some thought. It’s like your name – one of the ways you announce yourself to prospective clients. As part of your verbal calling card it needs to glide smoothly off your tongue when you’re meeting potential clients. Let it stand proud, and be be easy to pronounce. A domain that you have to explain or spell and punctuate is going to be hard work. When you speak to potential clients about your work you will want to direct them to your website, so it’s important that your domain name sounds good when you say it and is memorable.
It’s great if your domain name reflects the service you’re offering and your location. It can be acts as a sound bite for your service e.g. massageinbath.com.
Alternatively you may be sufficiently well-known to use your own name as your brand.
It also plays a part in the search engine optimisation (SEO) of your site as the domain name is part of the Google search.
So it pays to choose a domain name that reflects your business and with whom your target market can identify. We can help you identify your target/niche market
Using keywords
- Choose a domain name that contains keywords that relate to your service and location: e.g. massageinbath.com
- This helps to get good rankings on Google. Google will show sites with the keyword in the domain name near the top of the results
- You may want to be even more specific with keywords that relate to your niche. You can then build your web site around these particular keywords in order to drive some free search engine traffic to your site: e.g. massageforbackpainbristol.com
Domain Extension
- .com, .co.uk, .org. Which one should you use?
- Simple: use the extension that matches your country.
- You can also buy the .com to match your domain and that way if someone types yourdomain.com they will still be directed to your site
- This also safeguards someone buying the .com which could result in confusion or your ‘competition’ having an almost identical domain name
Definitions
- .com – for commerce
- .org – for non-profit organizations
- .net - for network providers
- you can find out more here: internetslang.com/acronym.asp
Easy to spell and remember
- Choose something that is short (or as short as possible), easy for your visitors and clients to type – and to remember when they refer you
- This can work in your favour and you can get more keywords in your domain name
- Make sure there are no unhelpful words accidentally created in your list of keywords (e.g. keywordsuk.com = “keyworks suck” – not the message you want to be sending out there!)
Revamping lizwalton.org
Liz Walton already had a website for her therapies and training. She felt it was time for a change so she called The Webmistress.
If she wanted to make a change to her old website, she had to pay someone to do that for her and wait for that to happen. Money + Time. This can be frustrating.
So her criteria for her new site was:
‘I want to be able to input information on my site whenever I need to.’
WordPress sites are easy for you to update and we’ll show you how.
Yoga for people living with cancer
We are more than happy to announce that we’ve just finished a Quick package site for Katie White. She specialises in yoga for people living with cancer. This is for the person themselves, family members, friends and carers.
She offers classes at the Minerva Centre and Yoga Bodhi and one-to-one sessions in your home.
Katie tells me there are people saying no to Chemotherapy and other drugs and are taking a purely holistic approach to their cancer treatment…and beating it! How amazing is that?
Thanks for being a lovely client Katie! I really enjoyed creating your site with you and showing you around WordPress.
Video portrait on your website
We believe in the power of well-crafted video portrait on a website! We’ll be getting ours done as soon as we can by the lovely Alex Walker.
Alex, who has previously trained as a Reflexologist, is passionate about working with individuals to help them shine their light to a wide audience. She has made over 100 short films and helps with preparation for a photo or video shoot as well as offering tips on overcoming nerves and building confidence for presenting to camera.
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