January 2008

Time for 2008 Housekeeping

If you're like many webmasters, the first of a new year is the time for some reflection about any changes you are planning on implementing on your web site. Before you begin making broad changes, first take the time to do a bit of housekeeping on your site using our handy checklist:

1. Check your site's copyright date and update it if necessary.
2. Check your domain name registration. Update your information (name, address, phone, email) if necessary.
3. Check your site's contact page information. Is your name, address, phone number, email address listed? If not, add the information or create a contact page for your visitors.
4. Check your site's privacy policy. If you don't have one, now is the time to make one. If you collect any information via a form or take online orders, your need to disclose how this information is used.
5. Check your site for out-of-date content. If you use terms like "we've been in business for 6 years", you may want to reword it to read "we've been in business since 1999".
6. Check your site for broken hyperlinks. You can do this by opening your site live on the server and running the various FrontPage reports. Delete or update links as needed.
7. Check your site for unused pages or images. Why use server space on pages or images you are not using. Again you can run the various FrontPage reports to find out what is not being used.
8. Check any forms on your site to ensure they are working as they should. If not, now is the time to fix them because you could be losing valuable information from your visitors. (If you need a bit of help with forms, review our Help Center article at http://www.rtbwizards.com/helpcenter/formsresults.htm)
9. Is it time for a new look? Take a good, critical look at your web site. If you've been using the same text and graphics for several years, maybe it's time to consider freshening up the look and feel of your site.
10. There's so much to learn, so make a resolution to set aside one hour each week as "personal development time." Schedule this time in on your calendar as you would any other appointment and use it to learn something new like CSS or Search Engine Optimization. It's an investment you'll be glad you made.

A Collection of Information

Tip 1:

You have worked hard to get your site up and running and you've filled it with some great products and lots of helpful information. Now ask yourself if you have also given your visitors an easy way to contact you! Sadly, if you are providing only a contact form, you are probably losing visitors and their business.

If you are like me and like to shop online, have you ever found a site but had a question or two about a product? Maybe there is a form to fill out or an email address, but you do not get a reply? Chances are I will not visit that site again.

It's easy to check a few things on your site:

• Make sure any email addresses shown on your site are valid.
• Always provide a reply within one or two business days. It's just not polite to ignore a request.
• If you use a form on your site, be sure they actually work! Test your form results on a regular basis. If you don't receive the email, you won't be getting them from your customers either.
• While an email address and possibly a form are nice, try to include a contact phone number, too. Not everyone feels comfortable with only an electronic means of contacting you. Having a phone number also adds a very professional touch.

Tip 2:

If you have a registered domain name for your site, take care that you do not lose that name. How can you lose it? By not renewing the name before it expires! Losing your domain name can be easier than you might think. Here's how to protect your name:

• Make sure that your contact information and email address is up to date with your domain name registrar.
• If you have had your domain name registered by someone else, ask that you be set as both the Administrator and Billing Contact. It's your name and you should be responsible for it.
• When you receive the renewal notice from your registrar, promptly renew your name. If you put it aside thinking to get to it in a week or two, you may forget!
• If you are on an automated renewal schedule, check that the credit card information is still correct - especially the expiration date of your card.

Unfortunately there are plenty of domain "brokers" who are just waiting for you to make a mistake so they can pick up your domain name the minute it expires. Of course, these folks will be more than happy to sell your name back to you but usually for thousands of dollars.

Tip 3:

This is a good time to remind about some simple Netiquette rules. While these basics of email manners may already be second nature to you, it never hurts to have a gentle reminder now and then.

• DON'T TYPE IN ALL CAPS! This is the digital equivalent of shouting at your recipient.
• Use an appropriate subject line in all emails. If you are asking about a product or service, add this information in the subject line. There's less chance your email will not be trapped in a spam filter than one without a subject line.
• Don't copy a lot of email addresses in your message. If you want to send an email to a group, set up a group in your email program. This is a polite spam precaution. After all, would you want your email address sent to dozens of people you don't know?
• Add your name to the bottom of your email. I cannot tell you the number of emails that I receive that do not include a name. Many of these have a rather obscure email address like Dan7732@wherever.com.
• If you are going to send a large attachment, let the person know before you send it by email. Not everyone has the mail box space or they may have a dial-up connection. It is not fun to wait an hour for a single email to be delivered.

So when contacting a web site owner, use a bit of common sense. :-)