Mistakes Coaches Make When Setting Up a Website – Part 2

May 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Site looks perfect – how do I add a page?

Okay you have totally awesome graphics, you love the look and feel of your website! You have it uploaded to your site either as a traditional HTML website or as a custom blog design. It looks great, you are getting great comments on the look of your website. Great that is what you were hoping for…

After a few weeks you realize you need to add a page or remove a page. You need to add some sub pages that appear when you hover over the navigation tab. Then it hits you, uh oh I don’t know how to do that!

You check with the designer and you find out that your entire menu is a graphic. So in order to add a page you will need a new graphic made, have it installed and linked to the new page.

Now I am not a proponent of the coach doing it all. Coaching, website guru, designer, bookkeeping, customer service etc. In fact I think that is the fastest way to burnout. BUT I firmly believe that you the coach needs to be able to quickly and easily jump into your site to make minor changes. That sentence that you REALLY want to tweak or add a new page, drop in a video etc.

In order to get that small little thing that is staring at you from your to-do-list you need to be able to jump in and take care of it in just a couple of minutes.

Your site looks incredible… content? I don’t remember what it was about.

You have your design in place and it looks great you are getting comments on how nice your site looks… but where are the comments on your content? On the great blog post? There may be a few mentions but not nearly as many as you thought.

Take a look at you design – is it overwhelming and taking away from the content? A nicely designed, professional looking website is a must but there is also such a thing as “Simple is Best”. When your content is getting lost in the beautiful design it may be time to reconsider the design.

I have seen some gorgeous websites and I get caught up in the design details and then have to scroll down to the content.  Not good! You are establishing your online presence to have people get to know you and what you offer, not how wonderful your designer is.

Don’t get me wrong I think a designer is an important part of the team and the right designer who gets what you are trying to accomplish can create something for you that looks incredible but does not take away from your content.

What can overwhelm your content?

  • A header section that is wide and moves the content to the bottom of the screen or below it sometimes.
  • Sidebars that have huge loud graphics so that your eyes bounce from sidebar to side bar missing the juicy content in the middle.

So what do you need to consider before having a custom design created?

  • What is my message? What do I want to convey right away when a visitor arrives on my site?
  • Will my content and headlines be visible right away or does the header move it all to the bottom?
  • How many sidebars do I really need? Will 1 be enough or do I need 2? What can I do to keep the important info displayed but not overwhelm?
  • Can I add and delete pages without needing a new graphic made?
  • Are there different page styles available? Full page (no sidebars), Left or Right Sidebar only (only 1 sidebar) etc.

If you have a website for your coaching business is there anything you would love to change right now? If so what  and why?

Filed Under: Blog Design, The Blue Jeans VA Tagged With: , , ,

Mistakes Coaches Make When Setting Up A Website – Part 1

May 13, 2010 By 1 Comment

When starting your coaching practice you know one of the first things you need to to is set up your presence on the web a place to start getting your name out there. It is an important piece of the puzzle so make sure you take the time to think it through.

The All-In-One Website for Coaches

Actually, I almost have a hard time calling this one a mistake. This is a great concept and can be a very inexpensive way to get started. It will have all the features and tools you need, all under one roof.

  • Website
  • Blog
  • Shopping Cart
  • Newsletter
  • Sometimes even a membership site

And the best part? One login! Nice – that is probably my favorite part :)

But here is the bad part… as your business grows, as you expand your products and services – 9 times out of 10 this type of set up will not grow with you.  You will be limited by template options, number of pages, tool, features and bandwidth. You can always upgrade to get a bit more of what you need but by that time you are probably paying an arm and  a leg.

So next you start looking for new options for your website… here comes the ugly part.

All of a sudden you now need to go get hosting, shopping cart, newsletter service and set up a membership site. Oh but wait now you need to move all of your content over, but what about ALL your blog posts? Sorry their blog software is not compatible with WordPress, Blogger or Typepad. So either your lose all the content or start moving over each post one by one. Now you are hearing and feeling the big ouch!

So what should you do? Ask your colleagues, check on the coaching forums you visit, ask on Twitter! Find out what is working for your fellow coaches, what they like, what they don’t like, what they wish they had done different or features they find helpful. The feedback you receive will give you a starting point in your research.

Here are a few things you need to keep in mind:

  1. Scalable - will the site grow with you?
  2. Adaptable – will the site allow you to install new features and allow you to show video, podcasts, social media updates?
  3. Manageable – can you go in and change that word or sentence that is driving you nuts without waiting for your web designer or virtual assistant?
  4. Customizable – will it allow you to add color, styles, design options that fit you, your brand and speak to your target audience?

My personal bias is WordPress – scalable, adaptable, manageable and customizable.

Start with what you need:

WordPress – Free

Theme / Design – There are tons of free and low cost options available.

Hosting – You can easily can find something for under $10.00 per month.

Domain – Usually $10-15 per year.

Newsletter Service – From Free to under $25 per month, lots of options to consider.

When you are ready… you can easily add a shopping cart, membership site, forum, social network… your options are wide open.

Are you a DIYer? Check out my resource pages for recommendations and options. I’m adding more as I find tools that may help you, feel free to check back often.

Not so much a DIYer? Not to worry, feel free to contact me and we can set up a time to go over your options and figure out what will work best for you.

What questions do you have about setting up your coaching website?

Filed Under: Blog Design, Blogging, The Blue Jeans VA Tagged With: , , , , ,