So you want to build a web site?

I can see it now... You've been in the Craft for either a few months, or perhaps for many years, and you own a computer.

Naturally, the idea of creating a web site occurs at some point, and the beauty and tragedy in it all is that this act is all too easy.

All too often we come across web sites that should have never been built. Worse yet, they often started with a good idea, but something went wrong in the translation.

Some budding webmasters lost interest. Others hit barriers of technology or creativity and just stopped there, others just... well... are bad designs that need to be mercifully deleted, and others are nearly good, but just need artistic work and sensibilities to cap them with the stamp of excellence.

Mind you, I'm not discouraging you, but this article is a frank discussion of the reality of building a web site. The trick is that web sites are more than a one time event... They require tender loving care, planning, and an appreciation of artistic sensibilities and technology.

Thus, building a web site isn't a matter of collecting some graphics, artwork, text, and heartfelt feelings. While all of these are required, there is one other key aspect of the site to consider, before you ever lift a finger.

You need to have a message and purpose for the site.

I cannot emphasize how much personality and thought needs to go into a site. And that requires deep soul searching to reach way inside and find that meaning and purpose.

Once you have it clear in your head, you can go forward to the next stage - Planning.

So... planning a web site sounds tough eh? Well... It can be, but I have built web sites with a one page plan and they have been enourmasly successful and quickly deployed.

So you wonder how to do a site plan? Here is a list of major topics to write in when planning your web site. Don't be elaborate in your first draft - one sentence or paragraph will do nicely for each topic.

Outline for a web site plan:

1. Mission statement (What is the site going to be?)

2. Content (What will your content be and where will it be stored?)

3. Hosting (How will your site be hosted?)

4. Technology (Will your site be small, medium, large? Will it use a database or use simple static pages?, etc...)

5. Schedule (How often to maintain the site and what your realistic time limits are)

6. Lifetime (How long do you plan to keep the site up and if you lose interest in it, who can take over the site to keep it going?)

7. Meaurement (How do you plan to measure how the impact of the site and how will you know it has been successful?)

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You will know what to write right off - These are basics - The rest of the technology, specifics, and science/art will come later in the next article, but for now, you can easily see that this template is a great start to use for a basic site.

In fact, this could be a start for a major corporate web, so realize that even we professionals start simple and then work forward from the same sorts of documents!

Stay tuned for part 2 - A little more detail on how to get started, with resources to help you! Until next time! -- AJ