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SMC will work with
customers to outline and develop a web site. The first step is
to decide what type of web site the customer wishes to have. Is
it informational in nature or will it be used to sell products?
Will the site be used as a forum for users to ask questions and
receive answers from other users? Will the web site be design as
a news site?
Determining the
type of web site is essential as it will establish the
underlining web server technology. As an example, a forum type
web site is generally based on a database server such as
Microsoft’s SQL or an opensoure package such as MySQL. |
Once a format has been decided on, the next step is to outline
the site. As an example, SMC will use an outline structure,
similar to the one shown below, as a starting point for web
sites that manufacture products:
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• About |
Includes
information about the company, its history, present
operations, future plans and its corporate structure. |
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• Capabilities |
Includes items
such as equipment, software, and personnel used to sell
or manufacture a product or service. |
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• Contact |
Includes
information for contacting such as phone and fax
numbers, mailing and physical address, email etc. If a
representative network is used, they are often listed
with their contact information. |
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• FAQ |
Will a
Frequently Asked Questions page on the web site resolve
customer’s questions without the need for phone calls? |
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• Industries |
Includes the
industries that are severed by the company’s products or
services. |
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• Information |
Includes areas
such as driving directions, brochures of products and/or
services, a company mission statement, etc. |
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• Legal |
Includes such
items as terms of use, liability, trademarks, privacy
statements, applicable laws, etc. |
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• News |
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• Press |
Press Releases
would include short notifications of such things as
personnel additions or changes. |
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• Quality |
Includes a
description of the equipment and/or procedures used to
provide quality products and/or services to customers. |
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Once the scope of the
web site has be established with the outline, a project time
line can be establish for gathering the content, design the
site, proofing the site and then publishing it on the web. |
