• Why Your Business Should be on the Web
• Introduction to Digital Media Solutions Ltd
• What is the World Wide Web
• Using Technology as a marketing Tool
• Getting Connected To The World Wide Web
• How to Choose a Designer
• Internet Trends & Statistics
• Taking a Closer Look at Success
• Opportunities For Your Company on the Web
• Getting Started & Dealing with Agencies
• Ingredients For Success
• Targeting: Internet marketing
• The Proposition: Content & Copy
• The Design: Layout & Image
• 10 Steps to a Successful Site
• How We Can Help Your Business
• The Services of Digital Media Solutions Ltd

The first thing you must do when choosing a web developer is to sit down and consider exactly what you want from your site. This should be committed to paper and is known as a "design brief". The brief should answer the following questions:

What is the purpose of the site?
(e.g. on-line brochure, on-line sales, advertising, marketing etc.)

What is the target market for the site?
(e.g. what is the profile of your typical customer. Sex, age, interests etc.)

What should the site look like?
e.g. What is the character of the site: business like, fun, trendy etc.)

All these questions should be answered in detail on the brief which should be no less than a full A4 page. The brief will be used by the agency to create a site to fit your needs - so you need to give this important document some careful consideration.

WHO'S DOING WHAT?

A web site consists of many different components. The main ones are copy (text)and images (photos, logos, illustrations & diagrams) and it is the designers/developers job to make sure all these components fit together in an aesthetically pleasing way that projects your image and message in the most effective manner.

Copywriting: The text or content for the web site is usually supplied by the client. The job of a good agency is to edit this text into a sales and marketing format that effectively gets the message across and elicits a response such as an enquiry or order.

If you want the agency to do all the copywriting from scratch, you will need to provide another brief and give some background info about your company, products and services.

Images: This is usually left to the designer, as the look and feel of the site will be determined by the images. It is the job of the designer to find or create a visual image or images that represents the message that the site is trying to portray. This will be the focus of the main page. However, the rest of the site will require images to support the text - such as photos of products, key personnel, services being carried out etc. - you will need to supply these yourself.