Often times those starting businesses want to cut corners and try and do everything themselves. Although this is very ambitions, with the six steps we are discussing, it would be counter-productive to become a master in all of the subjects. We reccomend leaving certain things to the pros. One of these being web design.

With our own site, we have come along way. For those of you who have been with us from the beginning know how far we have come. Click here to see what the old site looked like.

Our new site looks much better. It is up to date, follows current web standards, and we think looks pretty dang good! This time around we did it right. We hired a company that does this stuff all the time. We were able to do the things we considered ourselves experts at, and left the rest to them.

Truth is, it really wasn't that expensive either. We know of other businesses paying up to $10,000 for there simple websites, but SimpleBlue (ad shown to the right) did it for much, much less. They offer packages for business startups, online stores, custom sites. You name it. Its worth it to get an opinion from them on your next project.

Logo is everything: Having a good logo is also very important. This will be important in your corporate branding for letterheads, business cards, email campaigns, and of course your website. We reccomend www.logoworks.com to help create your logo for you. You can visit them to learn more. Click on the link above

Make sure to compare different firms. It was very common five years ago, for web design firms to charge a lot of money, because there weren't that many people in the industry. Today, web designers are more prevelant. You are sure to find one thats legit and affordable. Try researching three different companies.

There are some great sites out there for posting your project and allowing others to bid on it. Craigslist.com is free, and is very easy to use and has become a great resource. You will have people sending emails within minutes of posting. Try to be very specific in what service you are looking for. Also, specify if you want someone to live nearby to work with you. That will narrow down the amount of people who try and contact you. Honestly, if you are vague, or email inbox will be full the first day of posting. Guru.com is another great way. You can create an account for free, and post your project. Professionals will then bid on your project. You will get bids from all over the world, so again, be specific.

Make sure to ask for references and their portfolio! Ask to have have references for three other clients you can call to ask how they were. Because web design is becoming such a lucrative industry, there are many shady "professionals". Be cautious and careful before giving money away. This isn't to cause fear and have you think you should just do a site on your own, its just some guidelines to follow.

If you have any other questions, you may email us, or contact simpleBlue. They gave us permission.

Still Not Convinced? Well, there are web builders out there. With the hosting providers and domain registrars we discuss you can begin to build your own site. The way you want it? Maybe not exactly...but you will save a lot of money. Good luck!