Getting A Website?

[KELLY'S LC]

HEY GUYS, QUESTION OF THE DAY FOR ME. WHERE CAN I GET A WEBSITE DESIGNED FOR REASONABLE FEE. I REALLY WANT TO GROW MY BUSINESS AND I FEEL THIS IS A NECESSITY. ANY EXPERIENCES, GOOD OR BAD OR ADVICE YOU GUYS HAVE WOULD REALLY BE APPRECIATED.....ALSO..MESSAGE FOR SONSCAPES IN GOLDSBORO, I HAVEN'T FIGURED THIS SITE OUT YET AS FAR AS SENDING YOU A MESSAGE, BUT I WOULD LIKE THE NAME AND NUMBER FOR THE GUY IN GOLDSBORO YOU TOLD ME ABOUT CONCERNING VEHICLE LOGO, SHIRTS, CARDS etc. CAN YOU SEND IT TO ME ON THIS SITE?.. IF NOT, WOULD IT BE ALRIGHT IF I LOOKED YOU UP IN THE PHONE BOOK AND CALLED....JUST NEED TO KNOW WHO TO ASK FOR.......THANKS...

[main street lawn care]

Click on the link above for Gopher. They have all differnet templets that youcan edit and make for your self for free! With the stuff that they give you for free you don't need to pay someone. I did it with mine and it was easy. www.mainstreetlawncare.com

Call me anytime and I can fill you in on the specifics of how to do it..

Jeff

[ArizPestWeed]

http://www.geekontherun.net/
He did mine and has done many others as well .

http://www.pest-weed-free.com/
Mine is very basic , easy to navigate , it's what I wanted .

[Tony12]

HEY GUYS, QUESTION OF THE DAY FOR ME. WHERE CAN I GET A WEBSITE DESIGNED FOR REASONABLE FEE. I REALLY WANT TO GROW MY BUSINESS AND I FEEL THIS IS A NECESSITY. ANY EXPERIENCES, GOOD OR BAD OR ADVICE YOU GUYS HAVE WOULD REALLY BE APPRECIATED.....ALSO..MESSAGE FOR SONSCAPES IN GOLDSBORO, I HAVEN'T FIGURED THIS SITE OUT YET AS FAR AS SENDING YOU A MESSAGE, BUT I WOULD LIKE THE NAME AND NUMBER FOR THE GUY IN GOLDSBORO YOU TOLD ME ABOUT CONCERNING VEHICLE LOGO, SHIRTS, CARDS etc. CAN YOU SEND IT TO ME ON THIS SITE?.. IF NOT, WOULD IT BE ALRIGHT IF I LOOKED YOU UP IN THE PHONE BOOK AND CALLED....JUST NEED TO KNOW WHO TO ASK FOR.......THANKS...

What do you consider a reasonable fee? If $290 for up to 6 pages is reasonable I suggest you check out http://www.webdesign.medialinkers.com/ as they are in the process of doing my site.

[Wells]

With the stuff that they give you for free you don't need to pay someone. I did it with mine and it was easy. www.mainstreetlawncare.com

Of course it's easy if you copy the wording on your site from someone elses site. Did you get TJ's ok from JustMowing before you used his Services info?
If you did then I apologize but chances are good that just took what you wanted with no regard for the hard work of others.

Check it out for yourselves:
TJ's Services Page (http://www.justmowit.com/Just%20Mowing%20%20Details.htm)
Main Streets Services Page (http://www.frontiernet.net/~mainstreetlawncare/services.html)

[Bulletproof]

wow.... ;) BUSTED!

[freddyc]

Maybe needs a thread of its own or maybe a poll, but how much work do you guys get strictly from your website??

In other words, if you didn't have a site, would you have less business??

[YodaMouse]

My recommendation is to go to www.coolhomepages.com and look at the pre-designed templates. They cost a fraction of an originally designed site--about $40 to $90--and they are supremely beautifull.

You will need to know a little HTML/XML scripting and perhaps a little java or flash to input your information onto the template.

If you can't do it yourself, have a designer do it for you. Even if they charge you the same fee as designing a new site, I guarantee that running off the template will yield you a spectacular result.

Also, plagarism is the lifeblood of the web design industry. Without stealing ideas/content from each other inovation would stagnate in this field. Web sites are not MP3's--you can only advance your artistic skills if you build on someone else's content!

For many years I worked for a VERY well known company doing design. We spent thousands of hours poring over other people's work. I once even contacted another company and got them to send us some of their source art so we could copy it!

If you have technical questions, I don't mind giving a little free advice: arakitai@hotmail.com

[topsites]

Also, plagarism is the lifeblood of the web design industry. Without stealing ideas/content from each other inovation would stagnate in this field. Web sites are not MP3's--you can only advance your artistic skills if you build on someone else's content!

You're one of the few people who sees this, I see it myself... It's one of the reasons why I always thought a copyright on a Web site was absolute bogus, not to mention copyright only applies to something that never changes (such as a book, once written it stays like that word-for-word) while the entire concept of a Web site is updates, making it a dynamic environment rather than static.

Ultimately, how would a link directory get its links if it didn't find them somehow... How would a site have graphics if it didn't download them someplace? Create your own? Dream on, LOL! In the end, a site and its code is just bits and snippets of hundreds or thousands (or millions in some cases) of little working parts formed to make a whole, and all the bits and pieces have to come from somewhere.

I second the recommendation of doing it yourself, strongly. It's not about the money, it's about your site because whether you know this or not, each and every site contains a piece of the creator and so if you don't build it, then it doesn't have a part of you - It's like asking someone else to paint YOUR canvas!

Don't steal an entire site and don't copy pages in their entirety but use the bits and pieces to make it your own, and you'll do just fine. Most of my site is copy-and-paste, I found most everything my site consists of on this Internet, for free (ok some of the things cost money, but most did not). No it isn't a business site, I started it as a way to earn extra income and in the end turned it into an entertainment site because traffic on the Web doesn't really want to spend money (thou google's adsense kicks, as do places that pay 6-8 cents per thousand banner impressions when I can kick out 500k of those a month, truly free content RULES for traffic).

[topsites]

I'll evolve a bit on the Website thing... In this day and age of computers, everything is about instants and moments, and a thought today should be completely available online within hours, while nothing could be further from the truth... Had I known this, I would have saved myself a LOT of frustration, patience is key, the secret to a million hits/month site is there is no secret: Most of them have been around for years, and I mean 5 or more. It can easily take a year or two to design a really kick-azz site, and a Lawnsite that kicks azz COULD outdo paid advertising to where all you pay is server fees and your phone rings without further ado.

I was like most, figured 24-48 hours and things should be ready, right? Man, I threw more than a few fits in the time and to this day hold resentment towards the folk who post all the crap about how free and easy it is.
...
It took me six months to learn the basics of designing my own site. Once I 'got' it, it took another 90 days before I could type my own dot.com into ANY browser and see MY site onscreen. I cried that day.
It took another year to get listed on Yahoo, two more before I got into Dmoz.
Years!!! LOL!

Now some folk may understand that when I talk about one day building a business site for my lawncare operation, it's no big deal to me when I say it MAY be online next year but while some think 'yeah right,' I also know the possibility is certainly more definite than that.

Sure a designer can save you the headaches and the time, but then you have ideas, you can't make the changes. Want traffic, want this, want that? Tough, you can't do $hi7 with your OWN web site! No way, never would I let my baby in the trust of someone else's hands, thou many do.
...
I can assure you Yahoo is self-created, as is Google.
...
When you can see the soul of the person inside the site you're visiting, THAT's when you know you got it down right... Watch out, you might not always like what you see AND as humans we don't always see what we should :)

[YodaMouse]

uh, topsites, I'm not sure I agree with you on the amount of time it takes to design/deploy a site. As I've done this professionally for years I'm not sure how long it takes a newbie, but from concept to deployment I've never seen a site take more than 30 days--unless it had a crazy ASP/PHP back end with a tremendeous codebase.

Anyhow, regardless of how long a website takes to design/deploy, my recommendation is to make sure that it looks as good as the sites at www.coolhomepages.com. I know this is a high standard, but then again it's your business, right?

[kandklandscape]

www.kandklandscaping.com

That is our website, superpages.com had done it. I think it is a very nice site. First year we have had it, and about 20% of our business this year came from it, SO FAR this year...

Brandon

[Varsity L&G]

These are my sites.

www.bigbluejeep.com for sale
www.twistedintentions.com
www.shupees4x4.com
www.generalcrap.com got bored with this one
www.varsitylawnandgarden.com I hate it right now. I am working on a new one with a ton of content to get listed for everything from how to water your yard to overseding and planting flowers.

[jim d.]

Varsity Lawn, I thought you might like to know that the phone number on your services page is missing a digit. It reads 864-25-6191.

[Varsity L&G]

Yea, I was going to resolve that but decided to scrap the whole page here very soon. I noticed that the other day while browsing the site. I grabbed that page from Gopher to put up there to at least have something there.

[YodaMouse]

Here is a concept site that I'm designing for a nursery owned by my family:

http://www.paratechnet.com/eldon/

(None of the links work because this is just a concept proof.)

I would rate this concept a B-. Basically what I would consider the absolutely worst looking site that is still acceptable for a business.

I know a lot of you will disagree with this, but I very strongly believe that a web site is a crucial component of gaining legitimacy in the eyes of the customer. The site www.kandklandscaping.com would have been sufficient five years ago, but now customers are more sophisticated because sites have evolved and expectations are higher. Also, a good designer can pop that site out in less than an hour.

Please don't misunderstand, I'm not trying to be arrogant or unnecessarily critical. I'm just stating my opinion.

[Team Gopher]

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Hi KELLY'S LC,

If you are looking to put together a site for your company fast and cheap, feel free to download any of our web templates. (http://www.gophergraphics.com/forum/cgi-bin/ikonboard.cgi?act=ST;f=15;t=898)

As main street lawn care has done.

Once you get it up and running, you can always edit it later or completely redo it.

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[YodaMouse]

And with that, let the shameless plugs commence... :o

[main street lawn care]

You are correct in the wording and that is basically word for word. And I did try to call TJ with no call back. I left a message for him. So the site sits there with no one basically seeing it except for me at this point...Reson...No customer and I have not put any effort forward yet in the business. I am not going to keep that up there with no approval from TJ, that would be wrong.

I do have regard for others and their work, but most of the internet and ideas are just copies anyway, but again that is no reason for me to do it.

So basically I am trying to take his wording and make it my own.

Ok for you?


Of course it's easy if you copy the wording on your site from someone elses site. Did you get TJ's ok from JustMowing before you used his Services info?
If you did then I apologize but chances are good that just took what you wanted with no regard for the hard work of others.

Check it out for yourselves:
TJ's Services Page (http://www.justmowit.com/Just%20Mowing%20%20Details.htm)
Main Streets Services Page (http://www.frontiernet.net/~mainstreetlawncare/services.html)

[n2h20]

i used http://www.starsnsites.com/.
did a very nice job i thought and was easy to work with. If you are in the pond business he is the best. tell him i sent you too :)
my site. www.crescentacanadaponds.com

[Ringo7]

HEY GUYS, QUESTION OF THE DAY FOR ME. WHERE CAN I GET A WEBSITE DESIGNED FOR REASONABLE FEE. I REALLY WANT TO GROW MY BUSINESS AND I FEEL THIS IS A NECESSITY. ANY EXPERIENCES, GOOD OR BAD OR ADVICE YOU GUYS HAVE WOULD REALLY BE APPRECIATED.....

Kelly, I design and build web sites on the side and can have one for you in a few days. You'll get a professional site that includes submitting it to all the major search engines.

If you want a killer site with some kick and save some money too, drop me a line: john@lullie.com or www.lullie.com

Regards. :)

John

[topsites]

uh, topsites, I'm not sure I agree with you on the amount of time it takes to design/deploy a site. As I've done this professionally for years I'm not sure how long it takes a newbie, but from concept to deployment I've never seen a site take more than 30 days--unless it had a crazy ASP/PHP back end with a tremendeous codebase.

I think it is a bit like a business, you throw it up in NO time then you keep building and you slow down a bit over the years.... I look at it like a hobby, a toy to play with like Rc-car racing, it takes a bit of time and money, then you should be straight, you can devote many years to it IF you decide, you kinda do it for the love of it all.

It depends how much background one has, it can take as little as 24 hours for a pre-fab or you can use one of those kits claim you can build a Web site in 15 minutes both is cool for starters, then a 400+ page site like mine with search software and several MMoRpg's not to mention 10 gigabytes of content falls under 'tremendeous codebase' I guess :) Ok, IF you know what you're doing you COULD throw atopqualitysite.com together in about a year, but for most of us this is a part-time thing so this means 3-4 years but it never ends, you're kinda 'done' with it at some point but as much so because you've reached certain limitations as compared to because it's finished.

As for coolhomepages I prefer my own but that's just me ... Now for a 20,000+ visitors pure html / java w3-standard compliant site for someone knows nothing about it and wants to do it themselves, the learning curve took 6 months before I had thrown together enough garbage to learn the bare bones, then another 6 months before I had it down half-way right, and once I got started, I been working on my fun site since September 2000 and it all depends how MUCH one wants... But that's for a million hits/month site.

The thing I find is REALLY cool is once a site STARTS earning money and can sustain itself for a bit, it then continues to earn said money with only the basic maintenance on your part, but whether it's worth it, that's another story.

Sure, you might not want an MMoRpg (massive multiplayer online role-playing game) on your site but maybe someone wants their customers to be able to Login so they can check/retrieve/pay their account balances via the sql-backend which is hooked up to YOUR computer and through online banking it automatically makes the deposit for you and updates their balance on your end so you don't gotta do paperwork, who knows, the possibility exists already ... Did I get someone excited? I'm sorry :)

It's all bits and pieces, it all works together but someone has to install it and configure it, you can even read docs written by the same chinese guy who wrote the instructions for your new microwave and in the end you likely do some sort of daily maintenance, like check your e-mail and load it once/day in your browser to make SURE something didn't crap out while you weren't watching...