Setting up a website

Members do not see these Ads. Sign Up.

Hi,

Can anyone give me advice on setting up my first website, starting from who is best and/or cheapest to host it? Do i need a designer or can i do it myself?

Do you feel it is best to have one or are Yell/Google etc sufficient??

 

If you have the time and inclination then a DIY provider such as 1and1 or moonfruit (to name but two examples) will be the cheapest way to go. There are so many options nowadays. Wordpress powered sites are popular due to their blogging capabilities too so worth looking in to. However if you have a bit more money to invest and an idea of what you want design wise then get someone else to do it. Expect to pay anywhere between 1-2k (depending on size) and annual hosting fees of around £100ish.

In my opinion a website is the only way to go from a marketing perspective (patient demographics dependant of course). I'm not sure what you mean by asking if google is sufficient? What good is it having a google ranking if there is no site to be directed to?

 

I can only agree with what Ian has said above. His website is particularly professional and a excellent example of a quality web presence.

I used a DIY provider for my website, which gives me full control over the content and how often this content is changed.

I would also add that it is worth using a blog or news section. Regularly updated this can be very powerful in raising your awareness on google and other search engines. Look at the use of Facebook/twitter and google+ pages and they should work together.

Keep it simple, honest and professional looking and you can't go wrong.

The host I use provides me with a weekly update on the traffic to the website: where links came from, the exit page, the number of hits etc. For me this shows that google is the top referrer to my website.

I hope that helps.

Kind regards,

Dave

 

That`s a bit harsh, Dave.

 

Damn those freudian slips!

Of course the typo was only there to make sure you were paying attention. ;-)

Thanks for spotting it!

Dave

 

watching you, Dave

:drinks

 

I'm glad someone is...

 

Thanks, that's a great help.

When I refer to using google as an alternative to a website I meant google+ as a free tool, there was an article in Podiatry Now about this. Instead of directing you to a web page it directs you to your google+ page.

Which host do you use that gives you a detailed analysis of hits like that?

I think I'll go for a DIY site initially, I assume they are pretty simple to use?

Thanks again

 

Also, how do you use Facebook,twitter and blogging to your advantage? I'm not sure how this works or how it gets patients through your door?

 

Ah ok you meant google+... That makes more sense. I'm still of the opinion a full site is far superior. Of course the patients perception of you is not to be underestimated - a nice looking website as Dave mentioned will instill far more confidence than a google + page (in my opinion). You can then use other social media etc (twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn) to direct traffic to your main site.

All sites will usually provide you with a stats package. If not then just sign up to google analytics. The DIY template ones are easy - if you can work PowerPoint then you'll be fine.

 

You need to try and not think about this in terms of immediately bringing patients to your door. In the early stages just think of building a web presence. This takes time. Once this is in situ you are essentially easier to find online. The patients then flow from there...

 

Google+ is very good however, you do need to confirm your business using a postcard system via snail mail which takes a few weeks. That delays the page going live and into search results.

You'll get limited space to show your services on google, which shouldn't be a problem with a full website. You could look at alternatives like Wordpress or other free hosting sites, but IMO there's nothing quite like having a web address for your business!

I use Ipage (www.ipage.com) and have found them to be great so far. I receive a weekly email which breaks down the site information for me.

DIY sites are easy to use as long as you have some general computer knowledge and skills you should be fine.

Kind regards,

Dave

 

The greater presence you have online, the higher you appear in the search rankings. Facebook and Twitter help you to increase that presence, in a relatively quick fashion.

Kind regards,

Dave

 

I can recommend Weebly. Google rank sites built with Weebly high as they do not use flash and the finished sites render well on mobile phones and iPads etc. Very easy to use and cheap. Plus you can have a blog and also easily take payments through PayPal.

Once you have finished your website spend a little time learning how to optimise it to google - the info is all out there - and it's not that hard really.

Good luck

 

How does Wordpress work?

This also may sound like a silly question but, if I have a website built with a host such as domain express/justhost etc and also did a free website on Weebly could I direct both to the same address?

 

I'm not expert on the use of wordpress, I simply use it to increase my web presence with a blog and to support my main webpage. You may be better looking at the FAQs on the wordpress site to find out how far you can go with their options.

I think that having two different websites doubles your work load when you could focus all of that time on one very good website. I've used Weebly briefly and I found it very usable, however I have found that using a host works better IMO. You choose a URL and then you can start to use their website creation tools which designed to work seamlessly with their product.

My advice would be to work towards a professional looking website with a good URL and then support with all the other features mentioned above.

Kind regards,

Dave

 

We use wordpress which we can update alter ourselves, very easy to do. I'm not techie and manage it. You can use wordpress.org for free or wordpress.com and pay for it, or vice versa??
Google+ isnt used much in europe, facebook is and you can link this from your webpage easily. We get our patient to like it so that they can get regular updates to their facebook page.
Lastly consider setting up your own youtube channel linked to your site to demonstrate exercises video blog etc. Patients love video exercises.
Our site is www.achillescliniccork.com and in total cost about €800 with yearly fees of about €100.

good luck.

 

I have made a couple of blog posts about setting up a website for your clinic, they may be of help:

This one is about terminology... http://www.cliniko.com/blog/67/tips-for-improving-the-website-for-your-practice-part-1/

This one is about content... http://www.cliniko.com/blog/106/tips-for-improving-the-website-for-your-practice-part-2-content/

As for what I would recommend, if you can afford someone to build you one for 1k - 2k, then that will give you the best result. If that's not what you want to spend, I would get a Wordpress website hosted somewhere and find a template you like for the look/feel of it. This place is great for wordpress templates http://themeforest.net/category/wordpress.

I may have jumped a step though about what Wordpress is. Wordpress is a content management system. It basically means it is no only a website, but also has an administrative interface you can log into that lets you change the content of your website without knowing how to code. You just log straight into your website online to make the changes.

Setting up a wordpress site with a host and getting your domain name to point to it is a bit technically challenging, I would recommend find someone that can do that for you. Also choose the theme you like before hand and get them to install that for you too.

It should take them just a few hours. Wordpress is free. The theme will cost around $30. Your domain name will cost around $20 p/year. The hosting should cost no more than $100 p/year That's all the costs.

(My numbers are based on australian dollars)

I hope that helps!

 

Good point, Ian. However there are ways of speeding this up.

 

I've created a video for podiatrists, where I discuss some easy tips on how to use your website to connect with more clients and grow your business.

Check it out here.

I'm interested to hear what all the PA crew think - let me know!

Kable.

 

Hi Kable
Just been having a nosey at your portfolio. I must say, I do love the videos. Especially the one for correct personal training. At first I thought the video of the co-owner looked a little 'misty' but realised that it was part of the style. The editing is great. I qualified as a podiatrist, but am currently a stay at home mum, so of course spend far too much of my time on the net (!) especially youtube, and am therefore qualified to add my twopenneth. I love the way you feature on the videos; your distinctive look almost becoming your trademark. I am slowly making my way through your posts; making notes and pinching ideas from the websites you have created (sorry). You are so right about the need for the phone number/contact number being on the header page, and for the need for the sites to be functional on phones and the like. Good stuff.

 

Hi Claire! Thanks for your kind words. I work hard to make sure my clients get the best possible results from working with me.

Feel free to learn from my work - it's part of how we all learn!

You should put a link to your website here, we can review it together.

 

Hi
I will when I get one.

 

New Podiatry Website up.

www.bodycaresolutions.com.au

Next up for this clinic...
-SEO (Google rankings)
-Smart phone version of website

Any podiatrists out there who are considering designing, coding and building your own website, feel free to steal ideas from this site (or any of my other sites)!

 

For anyone still looking for a bit of assistance, we've recently written some articles on our blog about helping you to set up the right website for your private practice, which you can view here:

http://www.writeupp.com/blog/setting-up-the-right-website-for-your-private-practice/

It covers a few of the different options, ranging from bespoke work, through to "off-the-shelf" sites and free platforms. Each have their pros and cons, so you just need to assess them and make sure your selection is within your budget. It should also provide a little information about domain names and suffixes.

I hope it's helpful!

Nat
www.writeupp.com

 

Hi,

Hopefully someone reasonably technical can help me....

I have attempted to build my own site and having difficulty with the social media thing.....everytime i try to put the URL for my facebook or google plus into the builder what it does is provide a link from my site to my actual social media page with my admin panel etc.....how do i get the right URL or someway to direct people to the public view of my pages?

Cheers

 

email me: c.payne@latrobe.edu.au with the details and I take a look (rather than post the info pubicaly)