The Purpose of Your Website

Do you really need a website?

The internet is clogged with web pages and web sites that serve no purpose.

If your only purpose for a website is to share a few pictures, music clips or videos with your friends, you're probably wasting your time with a website.

Social networking websites like FaceBook are designed for this purpose. Sign up for a free page and you can post the materials you want to share and enjoy the added luxury of chat rooms. There are even features for groups.

Determine the Purpose

If you want to create a successful website, take a few minutes to think about its purpose.

I'll present a series of questions below.

The purpose of your website will determine the kind of tool you use to build it.

What do you want the website to do?

Do you simply want to present information?

You may want to create a website just to give your customers or clients a place to go to get information about you, your organization or your business.

You may want to create a family website to announce a new birth or to present the history of your ancestors.

Do you want to interact with your visitors?
Do you want them to be able to fill in a form and ask questions that you answer by phone or email?
Maybe you want your visitors to be able to participate in a forum or a group discussion where they can interact with you and other visitors.
Do you want to require a membership sign up for participation?

Do you want to sell a product or service?
Do you want to present information and prices for your product or service and then sell by phone or email?
Do you want to set up a shopping cart and sell online?

Think about what you want to do with your website. How much interaction do you want with your visitors?

Next: Choosing a Tool