Small Business | Forum « website help

website help (24 posts)

Topic tags: templates, website development

Marion Westerling said
1 year, 2 months ago:
ok, all you techies out there. I need help with my website, My husband actually hosts my website, so I don’t need hosting. I’ve been using a Site5 template from him that I absolutely hate. I can’t write code, have no knowledge of Adobe stuff and need a template that I can drag and drop and make changes easily and still host on hubby’s sites.
I just bought WebEasy 9 software and it’s not as great as I thought it might be. The templates are not very flexible. The pages can’t be extended and they’re just too small.
Can anyone help me out there in developing an easy website from a great template that will still allow my husband to do my webhosting?
@marionwesterling | # | Top
Elizabeth Horlemann said
1 year, 2 months ago:
Well I would suggest that you download the Wordpress.org templates and upload them on your webhost using FTP. This is so easy actually Word based type of website that you just type your article, upload pictures or add embedded codes and your website is up and running. I am also not a techie so this was a reall good solution. Oh, the wordpress templates are free! I’m ok if you want to touch base with me deeper so that I can help you.
@elizabethhorlemann | # | Top
Rich Brooks said
1 year, 2 months ago:
@marionwesterling
Without knowing your husband’s hosting environment, I can’t.
I can say, however, that unless your marriage depends on it, maybe you should be open to hosting on the best possible solution, regardless of whether your married to the owner or not!
My recommendation for a platform would be WordPress. Thousands of free and inexpensive templates and you can always upgrade to have someone design on for you when the time is right.
Unless your business is web design and hosting, consider outsourcing that to a person or company you trust, and focus on your core business. Don’t try and do it all yourself. The little that you save will be lost in the time you’re taking away from your profit center.
Just my .02.
@rich-brooks | # | Top
Devani Anjali Alderson said
1 year, 2 months ago:
@marionwesterling I would really suggesting using WordPress…it’s easy, user friendly, and you don’t have to mess with coding stuff. I know a lot of people host through GoDaddy or HostGator then use wordpress for all the posting etc…u might want to consider this…?
@devanianjali | # | Top
Mark Oetjens said
1 year, 2 months ago:
@marionwesterling I use WebHero, $40 per year for domain registration and hosting. Then I’m with everyone else: WordPress.
@markoetjens | # | Top
Liz Karschner said
1 year, 2 months ago:
weebly.com…It’s sad, but one of the most easy web building software I ever used. Best of all you can edit the code, so if you need something specific and know someone who knows code, they can edit the HTML and CSS. Oh, and best of all, it is completely free!
@lizkarschner | # | Top
Marion Westerling said
1 year, 2 months ago:
Does Weebly host or can I move hosting elsewhere?
@marionwesterling | # | Top
Chris Allen said
1 year, 2 months ago:
@marionwesterling Weebly provides hosting as part of their service. Much like Squarespace and other hosted web services. Its a package deal.
@sketchgraphx | # | Top
Jason Wiser said
1 year, 2 months ago:
Wordpress. You will need to buy your domain <$15 /yr. anywhere. Hosting you say is free. No ads. full access to all code HTML, CSS, Php. Even FTP which i do not think you get with weebly. Correct me if I am wrong. So once you get your site up you can move it to any hosting provider you want.
@marionwesterling Send me a PM and I will be glad to answer any questions you have.
@jasonwiser | # | Top
Nichole Schlecht said
1 year, 2 months ago:
@marionwesterling
I’d suggest doing a wordpress theme if you don’t want to have the coding issues but want something you can edit. Themeforest.net is a great site to find themes and if you need help setting it up, shoot me a message and I’ll walk you through it.
@iamconsulting | # | Top
Marion Westerling said
1 year, 2 months ago:
Thank you for all your input. I think that I will go with your suggestions and try WordPress since I can move my hosting for a small fee .
One of my son’s friends is a website designer and he has actually built some Wordpress sites for other people, so he’s going to help me get started.
But, I will definitely be in touch if I get in a pinch. Once I get it up and running, I hope that you will help me with some critiques…
Thanks again! This forum has been so valuable to me!
@marionwesterling | # | Top
Liz Karschner said
1 year, 2 months ago:
Weebly allows you to host the site on your server. It is actually very easy to set up. You can create a “temporary” site on their server to set the site the way you want it, then move it to your server to go live with your URL. You can even download the complete FTP information to upload to your server if you want to.
@lizkarschner | # | Top
Jason Wiser said
1 year, 2 months ago:
Thank you @lizkarschner for the correction. I had heard that Weebly was like Wix in the way they handled your FTP access.
I will be more careful about posting speculation and hearsay. Sorry all.
@jasonwiser | # | Top
Liz Karschner said
1 year, 2 months ago:
All good @jasonwiser
It is actually what I used to build the company site (I’m a little embarrassed about that) but it was just a pet project in the beginning. We have since moved the whole site over to HubSpot for them to host. See what you think.
http://www.sepco-solarlighting.com
I actually now use weebly to start sites, then move them elsewhere for further work. It gives you a nice start.
I have to agree though, Wordpress is a great website builder tool. I just like the WYSIWYG to start with.
@lizkarschner | # | Top
E N Brown said
1 year, 2 months ago:
Web Easy v9 is a fairly new version of the product. No need to be embarrassed by using this product. Many designers and developers alike use it and have it in their arsenal of software “wysiwyg” programs to aid in design.
First off, you can make the page any size, including the template pages, by learning the software. Learning the software takes more than a few hours. Like anything worthwhile you have to put in the effort to learn to have an output that is worth anything and winds up being what you want. This is true with any software. Web Easy is very powerful and better than most others out there so don’t give up so fast.
You can also make your own templates fairly easily however you do have to have some knowledge of how to do that. Again, take time to LEARN.
Nothing will come overnight. Don’t be disappointed in the software, the software is awesome.
.02
@supereb | # | Top
Jason Wiser said
1 year, 2 months ago:
Hubspot you say? Are you using their metrics software or just hosting. @supereb
Come to this topic and give us your input on Hubspot http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/clubs/small-business/forum/topic/what-tools-do-you-use-for-metrics-management/
@jasonwiser | # | Top
Dea Irby said
1 year, 2 months ago:
I’m not a techie but I love wordpress. @marionwesterling
@deairby | # | Top
Jennifer Paganessi – Graphic Designer said
1 year, 2 months ago:
It looks like you went with Wordpress which I think is good.
For anyone else viewing this thread….
Weebly I think is good for ‘brochure’ sites. It does have a very easy to use wysiwyg interface. Their templates are easily customized.
Wordpress has a lot more expandability with all the plugins available. Depending on your template it might be a little more difficult to set up.
I also think Wordpress does a better job at SEO… I have had sites with both and I think the Wordpress code is better, although I am sure this will depend on your template and the plugins you are using. I mostly use premium ones.
@jenniferwashlow-pag | # | Top
E N Brown said
1 year, 2 months ago:
Just so you know – WordPress and the others are CMS (content management systems) and with Web Easy you are getting an HTML with CSS or XHTML clean code website build. There is a difference and once you know something about SEO, you could be all set.
There will be a learning curve to all, but probably a longer learning curve with Web Easy – it all depends on what you want.
There are also other choices out there. “WYSIWYG Web Builder” is one and another is “WebPlus Essentials” by Serif. I happen to have these in addition to Web Easy (all versions since v5). They are all good and each has some points better than others. All are good software choices.
For those who just want a web presence and don’t care about the nuts and bolts, a CMS (like WordPress, which is a great platform) can get you there.
There will be a learning curve with any choice you make. CMS however, has a shorter time for that, and your website will look professional (most of the time) in the end.
@supereb | # | Top
Moin Shaikh said
1 year, 2 months ago:
@marionwesterling agree to most suggestions here. Two great options for the start off : Wordpress suggested by @devanianjali and Weebly as suggested by @lizkarschner
@moinshaikh | # | Top
Aloysius De Klerk said
1 year, 2 months ago:
Hi There
I don’t know what features your husbands hosting have, but I might be able to assist you. I am a big Joomla fan, so if you want, I can see what I can do for you and then show you how to make changes to your content. Let me know.
@aloysiusdeklerk | # | Top
Scott Prock said
1 year, 2 months ago:
@aloysiusdeklerk just had to chime in here regarding Joomla … I come from a web development background and in the last 6 years the three top cms’s have been Wordpress, Drupal, and Joomla with Wordpress only recently (as of 3.0) been advanced enough to be classified as a cms and not just a blogging platform.
With that, I wouldn’t recommend Joomla for novice users. I was a die hard Wordpress user until I revisited Drupal about 2 years ago and now I prefer Drupal. Although I prefer Drupal I never start someone out with Drupal unless the site would be better suited for Drupal. Wordpress is by far the easiest of them all, and in my opinion Joomla never recovered a clear easy interface due to their system being built from a Mambo core. Joomla’s admin is confusing and not very intuitive, and that’s coming from any user I have come across who has experience with Joomla and Wordpress or Drupal.
All the best … Scott
@scottprock | # | Top
Aloysius De Klerk said
1 year, 2 months ago:
Hi Scott
You know we have a tendency to stick to what we like. Wordpress is not too bad, but I think it’s way better than Joomla for SEO. Am I right? Joomla is soo hard to get SEO right. I’ll have a look at Drupal Seeing that you like it so much. I assume it’s easier than Joomla you say? I’d love to see the design capabilities. Perhaps you can send me a few links to sites you did in Drupal. Thanks for the input.
@aloysiusdeklerk | # | Top
E N Brown said
1 year, 2 months ago:
@Marion Westerling
Back to the original question – Web Easy v9. Marion, I can help you learn to use Web Easy, if that is what you need.
Here are a few examples of websites built with the Web Easy Professional Software:
Air Capital Roofing
Wichita Counseling Pros
Buddy SEO Service
Hypertech Computer Solutions
Buddy Bulletin Newspapers
Prairieland Food Derby
It’s easy, as the name states. No CMS to come between you and what you need to get done.
I have clients that utilize Joomla, Drupal, and Wordpress. At least half of those would be much better off with something that did not take them a year or more to learn the back end. Lots of those folks hire someone else to run their websites as they simply don’t have the time to spend. THEY have a business to run.
Owning a website and being able to keep it current are two distinctly different things. Many of my clients have hired a webmaster to take care of their websites. However, there are some, like you perhaps, who see the value in a DIY program, like Web Easy. Once you know the software, you know exactly how to make the changes necessary without a huge admin area to learn, update and relearn.
@supereb | # | Top