Building A Successful Web Site
By Marc McDonald


These days, there's no shortage of "how to" guides and articles out there that purport to explain what one must do in order to become a successful Web site owner.

If you want to build a successful site, however, it's equally important that you also learn what NOT to do on the Web. Most experienced Webmasters are aware of a number of major no-nos to avoid. Examples include having a welcome page that takes forever to load. Or designing your site to accommodate only one type of browser.

However, there's a number of lesser-known, but still common, mistakes that many Webmasters consistently make. These include:

1. Not paying close attention to your visitors' feedback. Although many Webmasters don't realize it, feedback from your visitors is one of the most important sources of information you have, if you're serious about building your traffic. If a visitor has taken the time to E-mail you, you should carefully consider anything that he or she has to say, whether it's positive or negative. True, if you've worked hard on your site, it can be annoying to have a visitor write in and criticize aspects of your site. But rather than feeling slighted, you should make the most of such feedback. I've found over the years that many of the most valuable and useful features and changes on my sites were inspired by visitors' comments and critiques.

2. A second common blunder that a lot of site owners make is trying to build revenue before they've built a sizable, loyal audience. This is a bit like putting a cart before a horse. If you're trying to build your traffic, you severely damage your prospects by focusing too much on the revenue side of your operation at the outset. If your site isn't established yet, and you don't have a loyal, growing audience, then it's important to minimize your focus on making money. For example, you shouldn't be plastering banner ads all over your site - or pestering your visitors to sign up for an affiliate program. In short, forget the revenue: at least at the outset. Instead, focus exclusively on promoting, developing and fine-tuning your site. The fact is, once you have built an audience, the revenue will inevitably follow.

3. Don't just take from the Web: give something back. I'm not a starry-eyed idealist who pines for the days before the Web became commercialized. But I do firmly believe that it's important for any successful site to give something back to the cyberspace community. I'm not talking about money here: only effort. This can range from offering a useful service on your site to lending a hand to a newbie who is just starting up his site. If you earn a reputation as someone who's not just a money-grubber who's out to make a quick buck on the Web, it'll pay you back in spades for years to come. For one thing, you'll be able to build lasting, trusting, mutually-beneficial relationships with fellow Webmasters (and I regard the latter as the single most important asset that I've built up in my six years on the Web).

4. Don't be a bandwagon jumper. I've constantly been amazed over the years at how many Webmasters will embrace the latest fad, whether or not it makes sense for their sites. An example is the current fad of placing a Flash animation on one's welcome page. While I've seen a number of eye-catching and interesting Flash animations, I have seen very few sites where such content made any sense. Too many Webmasters blindly embrace the latest gimmick on the Web, simply because they've seen it on many other sites. But the fact is, unless your site specifically focuses on Flash, it doesn't make much sense to force your visitors to sit through a Flash intro every time they visit your site. For all the high-tech, multimedia potential that cutting-edge Web technology promises for the future, the vast majority of people on the Web still want one thing: information. And they want it as quickly and hassle-free as possible. And the fact is, you don't need Java applets or Flash animations or multimedia plug-ins to present information (or, for that matter, to build a successful site).

In summing up, building one's site is an ongoing learning process for any Webmaster. And just as it is important to learn what to do to ensure your success, it's equally vital to learn from your mistakes and to be aware of what NOT to do, if you're going to succeed.

About The Author
Marc McDonald is a former journalist and editor with the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and the creator of FreebieDirectory.com as well as several other popular Web sites that have received extensive media exposure from CNN's "Headline News," the BBC, Fox News, ZDTV, CBS Radio, the Washington Post, and many more. Visit the FreebieDirectory and AAAScreenSavers for great software and resources.