Website 101 Podcast

Jargon that we explain include:

• HTML, CSS, Javascript
• Theme
• User testing / usability testing
• CTA / Call to Action
• Conversion
• favicon
• Cache / cache busting
• wireframe / mockup
• Discovery
• Above the fold
• Cookie
• Remarketing
• GDPR
• The Cloud / Cloud based
• SEO / Search Engine Optimization
• 404, 301, 500 Error Pages
• URL

Jargon that we explain include:

• Host, web space & bandwidth
• Shared Hosting, VPS, Dedicated
• domain, domain registrar
• DNS, A Record, MX Record
• CMS
• SSL, HTTPS
• Accessibility
• Site map
• 404 Page
• XML site map
• Analytics
• Usability, user testing

This episode marks the beginning of Mike joining the podcast as co-host.

We start off by comparing a website to a car. This comparison works well because cars like websites have a wide range of costs and it all comes down to the number of features and quality of the final product.

We then go into all the parts of a website build that the layperson is not aware of and the opportunity costs of DIY.

Price is not the bottom line you should focus on. Your focus should be on does the web developer try to understand your business and your business goals for the website. A good developer will be able to translate all the web jargon in a way that makes it easy for you to understand and work with them.

The starting point shouldn't be technology, it should be the goals of the website.

The key takeaway from this episode is that your developer or agency should be communicative and responsive.

Nevin has been running Arcus Tech for 17 years, which makes it one of the longest running web hosting companies ever.

We talk about the various types of hosting including: shared hosting, VPS hosting, and Dedicated hosting and when to choose which option for your site.

Additionally we briefly go into website aging as it relates to hosting security. and then follow up about backing up your site using Cpanel or Plesk backups as well as other options for offsite backups.

In this espisode Sean introduces Mike Mella our new co-host for season two. We also give a brief summary of the episodes for each episode.

Finally we discuss a fun and exciting episode we have planned on the road.

Looking forward to season 2.

A summary of season 1 and a hint of what's coming up for season 2 including a release date of late June or early July.

Thank you for listening.

DIY may be unpolished and unprofessional. With an established business that doesn't already have a website, DIY is probably the wrong choice as the wrong decisions could negatively impact your business. On the other hand a newly established business with untested premises and a limited budget DIY is probably the correct choice.

Choosing the correct DIY platform: Website builder or Wordpress

What is the best ROI on your time? Is it in DIY your website or is it spent serving your clients and building yoru business. There's a lot that the DIY person may not be aware of that goes on behind the scenes including UX, SEO and technical issues that are easily misunderstood or skipped entirely. As a website novice the DIYer doesn't know what they don't know.

Hosted platforms such as Wix or Squarespace will take care of security. Self hosted such as wordpress you are responsible for security update.

Emily and Lea start off by providing a definition and example of what accessibility is related to websites. Accessibility is more than making websites accessibility and they also address isssues of why it's a good business case to ensure your website is accessible.

Some businesses are federally mandated to meet specific standards of accessibility. This will vary by country but Canada and the United States both require it in certain industries. Emily and Lea discuss the business case for accessibility - and it's a very compelling reason: Better SEO and increased customer base.

We also discuss remediation which is essentially retro-fitting a website to be accessible. This is not an easy process and there is no silver bullet that will make your website accessible at the push of a button.

Isaac defines what a landing page is and when you would create a landing page for a specific campaign or market. We also talk about what makes a successful landing page, successful.

• What is a conversion and the different typs of conversions that you may want to track.
• A/B testing
• Landing pages are best built in a landing page builder optimizer, not your website CMS
• Call to action, goal of the page