![Contact Information Brian Whitacre [email_address] (405) 744-9825 Department of Agricultural Economics Rural Development 504 Ag Hall, Stillwater, OK 74078 http://agecon.okstate.edu/broadband/](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/connecting-rural-communities3163/85/Connecting-Rural-Communities-39-320.jpg)
Connecting Rural Communities
- 1. Introduction to Setting Up a Website: Basics for Small Businesses & Communities
- 2. Introduction What is a website? A little history… Why are websites needed? Website Basics What to include in your website Domain name Web hosts Options to proceed Design-it-yourself options Microsoft Word Free sites Dreamweaver / Front Page Outsourcing options Agenda
- 3. What is a Website? A collection of web pages, images, videos, or other digital material Web page: written in html (hypertext markup language) Usually accessible over the Internet (Hopefully you already know, or this whole Centra thing would be really challenging!)
- 4. A Little History… WWW started in 1989 as a way of transferring documents Graphical web browser developed in 1993 (funding came from Al Gore’s program) Dial-up servers begin to provide access in 1994 (AOL, Prodigy) 1997: 1 million websites 2006: 100 million websites Source: Netcraft Web Server Survey
- 5. Why Are Websites Needed? Lots of Reasons! For Businesses: Reach new customers Leverage “bricks” with “clicks” Sense of Legitimacy “What’s your website?” Make / save money Keeping up / staying ahead of the competition Provide a community for your customers
- 6. Why Are Websites Needed? For Communities: Allow potential residents / businesses to find out more about you Promote local tourist attractions Contact information for public works / city council / other departments Post job opportunities Give residents a source of pride Local pictures
- 7. Some Examples Agritourism www.thetatankaranch.com Stroud, OK 1,000 acres with fishing, kayaking, horseback rides Scenic pictures List of activities Reservation rates
- 8. Some Examples Services www.jdapublishing.com Claremore, OK Professional website design Marketing assistance Search engine optimization
- 9. Some Examples Retail www.allcleansupplyonline.com Blanchard, OK Janitorial supply Online sales leveraged with brick & mortar store Targets larger metro market
- 10. Some Examples Community Sites www.cityofaltus.org Altus, OK Rotating Images on Front Page Reasons to relocate Departmental contact information
- 11. Website Basics What do you need to start a website? 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!
- 12. What to Include in Your Website Depends on the purpose of your site Information only? Communities – info on city council, economic development, schools, library… Businesses – background information, current projects Selling a few items? Selling / shipping LOTS of items? Understand your audience and what they want to see
- 13. What to Include in Your Website CONTACT INFORMATION Phone Number, address, email Nothing draws the ire of customers like not being able to find that information! Background information (“about us”) Product information Pictures!
- 14. What to Include in Your Website 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
- 15. What is a Domain Name? A DOMAIN NAME gets you the “ www.mybusiness.com ” name Is this important? YES! Put some thought into what domain name you want Most domain name providers will tell you which names are / aren’t available
- 16. What is a Domain Name? Using FREE web page creators like www.geocities.com or www.pages.google.com will NOT give distinct “ www.mybusiness.com ” names Instead, your page will be located at www.geocities.com/mybusiness or www.pages.google.com/mybusiness Doesn’t sound quite as nice! To get a www.mybusiness.com name, you will have to buy a domain name Can also use .net, .org, .biz
- 17. What is a Web Host? A WEB HOST gets you the storage space to put up your website Most sources today offer BOTH domain names and web hosting: www.godaddy.com www.register.com www.networksolutions.com
- 18. How Do I Get a Domain Name / Web Host? There are LOTS of resources online that offer these services – search around! Check out their ratings: www.webhostingratings.com (over 200 to choose from) Compare cost, data storage, visit some of their sites Most sources today offer BOTH – buy at one time
- 19. Typical Costs Domain Name Registration www.networksolutions.com : $35 / year www.godaddy.com : $10 / year www.bulkregister.com : $10 / year These companies all offer basically the same thing - with very little difference in service. It’s easiest to get a domain name and web host from the same company
- 20. Typical Costs Web Hosting Offer different levels of services (Basic, Deluxe, Premium) based on storage size and data transfer Typically you can pay by the month Service you receive will differ – who do you call if your site goes down?
- 21. So, How Do I Build a Website? Microsoft Word Free sites www.geocities.com www.pages.google.com Dedicated Software Frontpage Dreamweaver Outsource!
- 22. Build It Yourself With Microsoft Word! Can be done in simple programs like Microsoft Word Put in text, pictures, etc. File -> Save as-> Web page (Word basically converts to html) Save several pages and link them together
- 23. Build It Yourself 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
- 24. Build It Yourself With Microsoft Word! Make a few pages (Home, Background, Products) and save as web pages Link them together Highlight words Insert: Hyperlink Can also link to other webpages
- 25. Build It Yourself With Microsoft Word! 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 Internet
- 26. Build It Yourself With Microsoft Word! STILL REQUIRES purchasing a domain name and web space 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
- 27. Build It Yourself With Microsoft Word! Uploading Files Example: File Transfer Protocol as part of GoDaddy.com
- 28. FREE Sites Can also be done online - free sites like www.geocities.com www.pages.google.com www.bravenet.com
- 29. FREE Sites Free sites offer step-by-step instructions, and use general templates for their design
- 30. Pros and Cons Microsoft Word Pros Most people have general knowledge Simple to use / create Cons Lacks sophisticated techniques other software allows Still requires domain name / web host purchase Free Sites Pros They’re FREE! Allow for experimentation with different layouts, fonts, etc. Cons Limited choices Most serious businesses will want a dedicated “.com” or “.org” name
- 31. Dedicated Software Packages Most professional websites will be built with “fancier” software packages: Microsoft Frontpage (~$150) Adobe Dreamweaver (~$420) These give much more control to the designer and allow for more complex designs / features
- 32. Dedicated Software Packages Frontpage is being phased out – Microsoft now offering “SharePoint Designer” Dreamweaver seems to be what most professionals use Uses split screens to show how your text turns into HTML code Full, semester-long classes on Dreamweaver are offered Check your local technology center!
- 33. Outsourcing Most people are NOT website designers Putting together a website that reflects highly on your business requires a significant amount of time and money Lots of businesses pay others to design websites for them Can look at several different layouts / styles Review the website 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
- 34. Outsourcing 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!
- 35. SUMMARY 3 things you need to have a working website: Basic layout of a site (at least 2-3 different pages) Domain Name Web Host Design options Microsoft Word Online Do-it-yourself’ers: geocities, google pages Dedicated Software: Dreamweaver, Frontpage Pay someone else to do it
- 36. SUMMARY What you should be able to tell people who ask about websites (I hope!): What they need to get started (an idea, a domain name, and a web host) Get their plan nailed down BEFORE buying a domain name Typical costs they will encounter Options for proceeding Pros and cons of each List of resources: free pages, web hosts, examples
- 37. Any Questions?
- 38. Additional Training E-commerce Workshops 3 Topics (~1.5 hours each) Introduction to e-commerce Planning your website Marketing your website Coming to Southeastern OK in early 2008 Feb 13 – Idabel Feb 21 – Ada Mar 5 – Antlers Mar 11 – Seminole Mar 25 - Ardmore May 21 – Sulphur
- 39. Contact Information Brian Whitacre [email_address] (405) 744-9825 Department of Agricultural Economics Rural Development 504 Ag Hall, Stillwater, OK 74078 http://agecon.okstate.edu/broadband/