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Audio Visual Integration
Internet Services: FAQs
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Website
Development Frequently Asked Questions
Domain Name/Hosting Frequently Asked Questions
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Why do I need a domain name?
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A domain name is your http
address or URL (universal/uniform resource locator). Without a domain
name, your site would have to be located in another domain or reached
by IP address. While this works, it is difficult for the general
public to find your site or remember your URL. E-Mail services also
run through a domain. The way an e-mail address works is user name
@(at) Domain Name . extension.
| user name @ |
domain name. |
extension
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| john @
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domain. |
com |
so this e-mail address is
john@domain.com
Hosting is the service of
taking your domain name and making it available to the internet 24
hours a day, seven days a week. This requires not only very large
(and very expensive) phone lines, but also special software and
computers.
When you request a website
address, (http://www.yahoo.com) that request goes to internic and gets
forwarded out to a system running DNS (Domain Name Services). From
there it gets pointed to a computer that "hosts" the website and
retrieves the file you requested or the default file for that domain
name such as index.htm or home.html.
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What is a T-1, ISDN or DSL?
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These are high bandwidth
products provided by telephone companies over pots (plain old
telephone) lines. Each of the products above can provide different features,
depending on your need.
SSL, or secured socket
layer is the technology used to encrypt data so that it can be
transferred across the internet and stay secure. This is used for any
data that may be considered sensitive information such as personal
information, or credit card information. There can be many layers of
encryption depending on the sensitivity of the information involved.
"The act of conducting
business on the internet" would be the definition most given, but it
is most widely applied to shopping cart systems that are capable of
conducting transactions on the web.
Website
Development Frequently Asked Questions
1) What do I
need to start my website?
2) Can I start with a small
site and add on to it later?
3) Should I advertise my
website in traditional mediums?
4) What is meant by making
my website "sticky"?
5) I already have a
website, what can you do to help me?
6) How do I get my site
listed in search engines?
7) How do I make money off
my website?
8) How much does a website
cost?
9) How long will it take
you to build my website?
10) How do I use video on
my website?
11) How can I update my
website?
1)
What do I need to start my
website?
If your company has a standard
brochure, that would be perfect to start with. I suggest you include:
- your logo - or we can create one for
you,
- a full list of products and services
offered,
- company history,
- awards and credentials,
- any trade organizations in your
field that you may belong to,
- pictures of employees/building
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2) Can I start with a small site
and add on to it later?
Yes. Websites are not like a
traditional advertising medium, you can expand on your site at any
time. We would suggest you start with no less than 3 to 5 pages,
depending on the services you offer.
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3) Should I advertise my website in
traditional mediums?
Very defiantly! Put your URL
(Uniform Resource Locator or "your http address") anywhere and
everywhere you would put your phone number. Business cards, letter
head, phone books, snail mailers, t-shirts, ect... The bigger your
website, the more you should spend. Industry standards suggest you
take the cost of your website and multiply that times three. That's
how much advertising you should devote to the launch of your
website. Many on line ventures fail because the businesses do not
advertise their website.
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4) What is meant by making my website
"sticky"?
This term "sticky" is used to describe
websites that offer new content on a regular basis that gives visitors
a reason to come back. Content can include local weather magnets,
news feeds, contests and give-aways, weekly or monthly updated
columns, free expert advise, ect...
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5) I already have a website, what
can you do to help me?
We re-design many sites for different
reasons. Perhaps your original webmaster didn't build your site to
accomplish your goals. Maybe you weren't familiar enough with the web
to know what to ask for. Either way, we can show you what you can
accomplish and counsel you as to how the internet can assist your
business.
Maybe you have a good site, you just
need to update it to include new products or services. We can
re-design your website with "include files" that will allow you to
easily update your site navigation on all pages by adding links to
just a few pages.
Bandwidth speed is constantly
increasing and technology doubles itself every 18 months. This means
many websites are simply out of date with today's internet technology.
With high profile industries such as radio and tv, we suggest
re-working the website once or twice a year to keep everything fresh.
Contact us
and we can bring your site up to date with current technology (flash,
audio/video, database interactivity, shopping cart systems, ect..)
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6) How do I get my
site listed in search engines?
At least 40% of your traffic should
come from search engines. Because of this fact, Audio Visual
Integration automatically sets meta tags and submits sites designed by
us to the top 10 free search engines and registration services. AVI
has the perfect product to further help you market your site to search
engines. Our Search Engine Registration Program
start out at $249.00 per year and submits your site to many different
engines including pay engine groups such as The Excite Group (Webcrawler,
Excite, Netscape, NBC, ect...) and your site gets resubmitted each and
every month to help you maintain your ranking.
If you are looking for further
exposure, our Extended Search Engine Program will submit you to over
1000 different engines with monthly resubmission. The E.S.E.P. costs
$499.00 annually and can expose your site to an additional 35 million
surfers.
If you wish to take care of search
engine submission yourself, make sure you have your meta tags in place
before doing so. Meta tags are lines of code built into the header of
your web pages. These tags contain key words and descriptions for the
search engine spiders to find.
Example:
<title>audio visual
integration is an industry leader in corporate theatre, event
production, and state of the art audio visual equipment</title>
<meta name="description" content="audio visual integration is an
industry leader in corporate theatre, event production, and state of
the art audio visual equipment">
<meta name="keywords" content="audio, visual, integration, avi, fort
wayne, indiana, ">
There are many ways to help and hinder
your search engine ranking. If you are unsure how to work with meta
tags, then please give us a call. Audio Visual Integration offers
special services to help you get your site closer to the top of the
list. Key word targeting can be very effective at driving traffic to
your website. If this is a service you think you may be interested
in, please
contact us.
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7) How do I make money
off my website?
There are many different ways to make
money from your website.
Shopping cart
systems can easily be implemented to retail products or services.
If you are in a service oriented industry, you may be able to sell
reports in your field. Referral Programs and Solicited E-Mail Lists
are a good way to make some spare change with very little elbow
grease. Contact
us to find out how your site can create additional income for you
and your business.
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8) How much does a
website cost?
The easiest answer we can give for this
one is "depends". AVI designs each website from scratch to meet the
specific needs and goals of our clients. We consult with our clients
and structure a bid for them. Our bids are based on an hourly rate
and any materials needed. We guarantee to be within ten percent of our
bid for all work outlined in the proposal. Small sites can be as low
as under $500.00. Larger sites with shopping cart features and
database programming will cost more.
Contact us
for more information.
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9) How long will it take
you to build my website?
Audio Visual Integration strives for a
30 to 60 day turn around on most projects. We will give you a
schedule for completion at the time we bid your project.
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10) How do I use
audio or video on my website?
We can take TV commercials or video
tutorials from your business and format them to streamed across the
internet in Real (*.rm, *.rpm, *.ram, *.smil) or Windows Media
(*.mpeg, *.mpg, *.asf, *. wma, *.wmv) format. The majority of the
internet users already have Real Player or Windows Media Player
installed on their machines. With higher bandwidth connections quickly
becoming common place such as cable modems and dsl technology, look
for audio/video to become more and more popular.
Contact us
today to get video integrated into your internet presence.
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11) How can I update
my website?
Audio Visual Integration bills in 15
minute increments for website updates. Most quick updates can be done
within 15 minutes. If you would like to maintain your own website, or
designate someone in your organization to do small updates to your
site, we suggest using Microsoft FrontPage. AVI offers 2 hours of
training with every website we construct.
Outside
training is available in the local area and phone consultation can
be helpful for businesses outside our geographic area.
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