What a day! A new client called at 9am needing to update her website urgently but was no longer in touch with her website designer, what could I suggest? Also her current hosting package was expensive could I recommend a different approach?  She had 5 pages of text and pictures and could quickly tell me what changes were needed.  I recommended I rebuild her website and reckoned I could do it in a day.

Create will host brand new websites but existing ones need to be managed elsewhere and pointed to Create's files. Not a problem, I recommend 123-reg.co.uk because they are reasonable in cost, their control panel is user-friendly and their explanation documents not too technical, so I set up a 123-reg account for her and put in train a transfer from her hosting provider to them.  This is when I found out that the registration details for the existing website were out of date and logged into the current hosting provider to get them updated - it wasn't obvious where to do this (their control panel was not user-friendly at all) but their support actioned it straightaway.

Next I took screenshots of the existing website - it's always good to have a record before making changes.

Then I set up a new Create.net account and got to work copying the style, colours and layout of the existing website as closely as possible.  We had email and phone conversations about what changes to the text were required and I added in 'Calls to action' on every page and links to other relevant websites to improve her visibility on the internet.

The replacement website is ready to publish once the domain transfer is completed and the next step will be to train her how to use Create's comprehensive facilities to update and republish the pages as and when she wants.  Or I offer affordable pay-as-you go options for my fast-turnaround assistance.

January is a quiet month for some businesses. Why not give your website a healthcheck if you have a spare hour?  Take a critical look at your website as if you were visiting it for the first time:

• Does it still reflect what your business does and how it does it?
• Has your customer base changed and would the website appeal to them?
• Have your products and prices changed?
• Is the information on your website still relevant?
• Are all the links to other sites still working? Are there any you should be adding now?
• Are the colours and design dated?  The design template and colours can be changed easily on Create.net, just at the touch of a button.
  

And there may be some features you could add now:

• How about a blog to tell your customers about your expertise or knowledge in a particular product or service?
• Is it time to set up an on-line shop? Or a search facility?

Or does all of this involve too much staring at the computer? If you would like to chat to us about how your business has changed and whether any changes to your website are appropriate, we would be delighted to check it and write you a comprehensive report of suggested changes, hints and tips tailored to your needs.

Fee: £50 (refundable against any future work on your internet marketing).

Contact us.

One of the first things to do in the New Year is to change the copyright year at the base of your website.

My clients who have a website with create.net can do this for themselves by going to 'Site Content' in the top menu then 'Edit Site Information' in the side menu.  Scroll down to the 'Page Footer' editing box where your copyright information is entered and change the year.

Remember to press 'Save Changes' at the base of the page when you have finished and republish your website - press 'Preview/Publish' in the top menu.