9. Planning a web site

Before you embark on building a web site, you must plan how you are going to do it. Otherwise the site might be one big mess that visitors will not come back to.

Things to consider

1. What is the purpose of the site?

Is it a personal site for amusement or does it have a serious purpose. This helps set the tone for the way it is put together.

2. How many pages are there going to be?

Draw out the site in a structure diagram so you can see where everything goes. Another way is to use 'Post-it' notes for each page and play around with their arrangement until you have a site that works for you. Then draw the layout you have come up with.

3. Colour scheme and theme

If you are creative and have the skills, you can design your own colour scheme, graphics and icons. Another way is to use a ready-designed template from the thousands available from the internet.

4. Navigation

There are many ways of providing navigation. You have to decide the types that make the most sense for your site.

5. Audience

As well as 'what' is the site for, you also have to know 'who' the site is aimed at. This affects the way you write the content. A serious site will have formal language, whilst a fun personal site can use slang and an informal tone.

Conclusion

These are the basics for planning a website. There are of course practical things such as hosting and authoring software to consider.