1 / 57

Web site Basics – A Primer for Hispanic Small Businesses

Web site Basics – A Primer for Hispanic Small Businesses. What is a Web site? Why do I Need a Web site? Hispanic Business Web site Examples Web site Basics What to Include in your site Domain Name / Web Hosting Options for Setting up a Web site Traditional Web site Design it Yourself

merv
Download Presentation

Web site Basics – A Primer for Hispanic Small Businesses

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Web site Basics – A Primer for Hispanic Small Businesses

  2. What is a Web site? Why do I Need a Web site? Hispanic Business Web site Examples Web site Basics What to Include in your site Domain Name / Web Hosting Options for Setting up a Web site Traditional Web site Design it Yourself Hire someone to do it for you Selling online Auctions (eBay) Online Storefronts Experimenting with Free Web Pages Content

  3. What is a Web site? • A Web site is a communication tool that allows people to share information. • For your business, it can serve as an electronic brochure that is available 24 hours a day 7 days a week!

  4. Why do I need a Web site? What are the benefits? • The main benefit of having a Web site is that your business can be found by anyone on the internet. • More people today search for businesses on the Internet than use the Yellow Pages!

  5. Why do I need a Web site? • The Internet is THE place where today’s customers go to look for information. • A Web site gives your businesses visibility and credibility. • Some Web sites can even be set up to take orders while your store is closed!

  6. Why do I need a Web site? • Regardless of your business, you want to be able to provide enhanced customer service that will give you a competitive edge in the market place. • A Web site can give you that competitive edge!

  7. Why do I need a Web site? • Cost Savings For You • Companies that provide services(catering to individuals/businesses) can benefit greatly by having their own web-site. • Provide information about what you do. • Provide information about your experience. • Save time answering questions! • A Web site is one of the most cost-effective forms of advertising.

  8. Why do I need a Web site? • Reduction of printing costs can be realized in many situations • Brochures • Newsletters • Customer information sheets • Hand outs • Many of these items are given to customers - but end up in a file or in the garbage! • Directing a customer to a link on your Web site saves time, money and can be eco-friendly.

  9. What can a Web site do for ME? • A Web site can lead to… • More customers • Increased awareness of your business • Both inside and outside of the local community! • More credibility • For today’s younger generation, having a Web site means a business is “legitimate.” • A reduction in marketing / advertising costs

  10. What type of information goeson a Web site? • Contact Information (phone number, email) • Business hours • Background information about your business • Product / Service Information • Any information that may be valuable to your customer • This enhances your image by helping your clients to better understand your business and to allow potential customers to make a more informed decision.

  11. Hispanic business Web site examples • Nuño Bros is a market in Santa Ana, CA that specializes in beef products, tortillas and specialty tacos. • Their Web site shows lots of examples of their meat and produce, and also provides a map of their location. http://www.nunobros.com/spanish/spnhome.htm

  12. Hispanic business Web site examples • Casa Ramirez is an art gallery in Texas that caters to clients who are interested in purchasing art. • They specialize in the Latino culture. • They also cater to artists who would like to display their work in their gallery. http://cr.bjakub.com/index.html

  13. Why is having a Web site important for a Hispanic small business? • As of February 2007, the Hispanic online market was BIG: 16.3 million. • The Hispanic online market has sustained strong growth: more than 1.6 million new users between February 2006 and February 2007. • It has been classified as an “upscale, mass market”: Online Hispanics are… • More affluent • More educated • More acculturated than the aggregate Hispanic population • This may indicate online Hispanics are more prone to shop because they are economically well-off.

  14. Web sites are often the 1stpoint of contact for your business • What kind of a first impression do you want to give? • Often Web sites… • have poor navigation • overpower the actual message that is trying to be delivered • look as though they were created by an amateur. • A “bad” Web site will make potential customers question your business.

  15. What makes a poor first impression? • “Traditional” advertising: • Forms that are photocopied to the point of un-readability • Brochures that were obviously quickly created in black and white and copied many times on standard copy paper • Business cards that have perforations around the edges • Web sites: • Poor quality pictures • Links that don’t work • Difficult to find information This is not the image you want to give to your customers.

  16. How the Web works • The address you type in to get a Web page is known as the URL (Uniform Resource Locator). • http://www.hispanicbusiness.com/magazine/ • The URL is composed of 3 parts • The Protocol • http:// • The Domain Name • www.hispanicbusiness.com • The Pathname • /magazine A Web page is written in a special code called HTML (hyper-text markup language)

  17. Web site Basics • 3 things you need: • An idea of what you want to include on the site • A “domain name” • A “Web host” • The Key Ingredient: Someone who knows how to pull all of these together!

  18. What to include in your site • Home page • Basic overview of your business • About us (background information) • Product/service Information • Contact information/maps • Pictures!

  19. What else to include in your site • What will your customers want to see? • Check out other sites on similar topics! • What do they have that you like? • What can you offer that they don’t? • Specials • Coupons • Testimonials

  20. Domain Name / Web Host • The 2 things you will need to buy: • A DOMAIN NAME gets you the www.mybusiness.com name • Ex: www.toyota.com • This is what people type in to find your Web site! • A WEB HOST gets you storage space to put up your pictures/text describing your business.

  21. Domain Name / Web Host • Most sources today offer BOTH domain names and Web Hosting: • www.godaddy.com • www.register.com • www.networksolutions.com • There are LOTS of resources on the Internet, check around: • www.webhostingratings.com(over 200 to choose from) • Compare cost, data storage, visit some of their sites • These sources will tell you which domain names are / aren’t available • This is important! Put some thought into your domain name. 3 popular options

  22. Domain Name / Web Host • COSTS • Domain names: $10 - $35 / yr • Most companies offer the same thing, very little difference in service • Web hosting: $50 - $200 / yr • Offer different levels of service based on storage size / data transfer • For most small businesses, the “basic” package is sufficient

  23. Examples of Web Host Pricing www.networksolutions.com/

  24. Web Host Examples www.register.com www.godaddy.com

  25. Options for setting up a Web site • Traditional Web site • Design it yourself • Microsoft Word / PowerPoint / Other software • Online Templates • Have someone design it for you • Selling online • Auction Sites (Ebay) • Online Storefronts (just selling items, no information about company)

  26. Some sites offer packages for ALL different options • Web sites like www.netsol.comoffer packages that allow freedom on how you build your Web site. • Do It Yourself Web Site $9.95 per month with an annual purchase • Do It For Me Web Site $11.95 per month with a $499 design fee (they will design, copywrite and update your Web site) • E-Commerce Web Site $49.95 per month with a $49 set up fee (Sell online with no transaction fees. Integration with PayPal® for financial transactions included).

  27. Traditional Web site • Design the site yourself • Need to be familiar with the computer • Need to purchase domain name • Need to purchase Web host • How do you design a Web site? • Microsoft Word (or PowerPoint, Publisher) • online Templates • Don’t need too much computer knowledge for this option • Other software (Dreamweaver, Sharepoint) • Takes a while to learn

  28. Building a Web site with Microsoft Word • Put in text, pictures, etc. • File -> Save as-> Web page (Word basically converts to html) • Save several pages and link them together

  29. Building a Web site with Microsoft Word • Make sure you save your “Home” page as “index.htm” • This ensures that this page opens when someone browses to your site

  30. Building a Web site with Microsoft Word • Make a few pages (Home, Background, Products) and save as Web pages • Link them together • Highlight words • Insert: Hyperlink (A hyperlink is a section of content that is clickable and brings you to another place, or performs some action, when you click it) • Can also link to other web pages

  31. Building a Web site with Microsoft Word • STILL REQUIRES purchasing a domain name and Web host in order to upload • Uploading instructions will be sent by Web host • Typically involve logging onto your account and selecting which files are involved • Most sites use FTP: File Transfer Protocol • Similar to Windows Explorer: Click & Drag which files you want to upload

  32. Building a Web site with Microsoft Word • Uploading Files Example: • File Transfer Protocol as part of GoDaddy.com

  33. Building a Web site with Microsoft Word • Some helpful hints: • Keep all files used (pictures, pages, any logos) in the SAME FOLDER • This will save a lot of time when you “upload” your files to the Web host

  34. Online Templates • Most sources offer templates so that you can design your Web site with very little computer knowledge. • No need to know HTML or even Microsoft – just choose and type what you want to be on your site

  35. Online Template Examples www.godaddy.com • Choose a theme • Choose the type of layout you want • Choose your fonts • Choose your images

  36. Online Template Examples www.smallbusiness.yahoo.com • Choose a design • Choose the type of layout you want • Personalize • Choose your pages / enter text

  37. Do-It-Yourself Web site Development Tools Graphics Clip ArtCreate a banner, logo or button with free or fee online graphics generators • 3DTextMaker.com • CoolText.com • QuickBanner.com

  38. Dedicated Software Packages • Most professional Web sites will be built with “fancier” software packages: • Microsoft Sharepoint Designer (~$150) • Adobe Dreamweaver (~$420) • These give much more control to the designer and allow for more complex designs / features

  39. Cost Summary for a Traditional Web site • Design it yourself • Domain Name: $10-$35/yr • Web Host: $50-$200/yr • Template: Free-$200 • Dedicated Software: $150- $450 • What about having someone else build a site for you?

  40. Having Someone Else Build Your Site • Most people are NOT Web site designers • Putting together a Web site that reflects highly on your business requires a significant amount of time and money • Lots of businesses pay others to design Web sites for them • Can look at several different layouts / styles • Review the Web site before it goes “live” • They are probably more artistic than you! • Costs • Can be all over the place! • Some ballpark estimates: $300 for a home page, $100 for each additional page

  41. Having Someone Else Build Your Site • Who are you hiring? • Evaluate sites they’ve worked on • Speak to clients and see how they were to work with • Is it worth it to hire your nephew, cousin, etc.? They can probably do the job fairly cheaply, but will they be around when you need to update the site TODAY? • A good Web developer can save you time and money – and headaches!

  42. Options for setting up a Web site • Traditional Web site • Design it yourself  • Microsoft Word / PowerPoint / Other software • Online Templates • Have someone design it for you • Selling online • Auction Sites (eBay) • Online Storefronts (comprehensive Web site / e-commerce solution)

  43. Auction Sites • If you are only selling 5-10 items, auctions are a good choice! • Participants bid for products and services over the Internet. • eBay, the world's largest online auction site, is a great example of online auctioning. • Allows you to place your item up for bid • You provide pictures / description (need a digital camera!) • People from all over the world can bid • When it sells, you ship it and pay a small fee to eBay (4-5%)

  44. Online Auctions Mexican & Spanish Art: eBay Stores

  45. Online AuctionsMexican Antiques on eBay

  46. Selling Items on eBay • What does it cost to sell on eBay? • eBay charges fees to list and sell your item on their site. The cost depends on total of fees calculated based on… • Starting price • Selling price • Selling format • Optional listing upgrades • Items can be listed for as little as $0.20 • eBay will keep between 1.5% and 5.25% of the final price

  47. Selling Items on eBay • How do you get paid? • Most people use PayPal • Lets you accept credit cards, bank transfers, debit cards from customers • No monthly, startup, or cancellation fees • No need for your customers to have a PayPal account • PayPal’s commission is 4.9% + $0.30 • Deposited immediately to your PayPal account • Easy to withdraw / transfer • Item can then be shipped • Sign-up takes only 5 minutes!

  48. Benefits of Online Auctions • No time constraints • Bids can be placed at any time of the day and any day of the year • No geographical constraints • Sellers/bidders can participate from anywhere that has Internet access • Intensity of social interactions • The social interactions involved in the bidding process are very similar to gambling. The bidders wait in anticipation of "winning" • Large number of bidders & large number of sellers • The probability of someone seeing your product and wanting to buy the product is high. Competition is vital, this will allow customers to see that you have good affordable prices.

  49. Online Storefronts • Everything you need in one place • Yahoo! Small Business Ecommerce • Design a store • Add products • Set up payment methods • Set up shipping / sales tax http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/ecommerce

  50. Online Storefronts • Another example • Prostores: • e-commerce solution by eBay • Design a store • Add Products • Add Payment Methods • Set up shipping http://prostores.com/online_store.html

More Related