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Wearing Many Hats as a Web Site Owner
discovered that the process of actually building your
site is only the beginning of your challenge in creating
a successful Web business.
It takes a lot more than knowledge of HTML to get a
successful site up and running. Veteran site owners eventually
become aware of the fact that one must excel in a number of areas
in order to earn a living on the Net.
These include:
1. You must be familiar with at least the basics of HTML and
other aspects of page building.
2. Additionally, it's important to learn the nuances of the
various search engines out there and to become familiar with
how to give your site the best exposure possible through them.
3. You must also become familiar with the Web's various revenue
opportunities and learn how to properly implement them on your
site, as well as get the most bang for your buck.
And all of this is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to
running a Web business. Depending on the format of your site,
you may also have to learn specialized tasks, ranging from how to
ensure that you have a stable hosting environment to learning how
to set up and run a database.
As time goes on, it can all seem quite overwhelming. A successful
Web site owner must indeed learn to be a jack of all trades.
I'm often asked by fellow site owners for tips and advice on how
one can juggle so many duties successfully.
It's been my experience over the years, that it's best to not try
to do everything yourself, once your site is up and going and well
established. Over the years, I've developed numerous relationships
with other Webmasters, each of whom typically excels in one area
of expertise. In effect, my colleagues and I have built up a common
pool of knowledge that we share among ourselves.
These days, I'm much more likely to farm out a given specialized
task to someone who excels in that area, rather than try to stumble
through the process myself.
It's a far cry from 1995, when I first set up shop on the Web. In
those days, I did everything myself: from writing the HTML to installing
CGI scripts to creating my own custom graphic images, etc.
So the question remains: how many hats should a Web site owner try
to wear? I think the answer lies in how far along you are in the
development of your Web business.
If you only recently started a Web site, I think it's important to
do everything yourself initially. You should become familiar with
at least the basics of every aspect of Webmastering. Even if you're
planning to farm out such work eventually, it's important for you to
at least know the basics, at the outset. It'll save you a great deal
of grief, over the long term.
This holds true, even if you have a budget and you plan to pay to
have work, such as HTML coding, done on a commercial basis.
If you know at least the basics of a given task, you're likely going
to get more bang for your buck if you pay to have someone else do it.
If the process of coding HTML (or any other aspect of Webmastering)
is a complete mystery to you, then you leave yourself wide open to
getting a poor deal, if you're paying someone to do it.
The analogy is the same as if you take your car into a garage to get
it repaired. If you're reasonably knowledgeable about the basics of auto
maintenance, the odds increase that you'll get the repair job done right,
and for a fair price.
At the same time, you should work hard to build up relationships with
other Web site owners (preferably those who are roughly at the same stage of
development with their sites as you are). As time goes on, you can
share tips and advice and even specialized tasks.
If you try your hand at all aspects of running a Web site, then in time,
you'll inevitably discover which tasks that you have a knack for.
In my case, I discovered early on that my HTML and programming skills
were mediocre---but that I had a talent for writing copy, site layout and
site promotion.
These days, I rarely write raw HTML code any more. I farm that work out to my
colleagues who are HTML gurus. In return, I can offer them my help in
tasks in the areas that I do well in.
On the other hand, I know enough about the basics of HTML to where I
can go in and make tweaks and adjustments to a page, if need be.
The bottom line is: if you want to succeed as a Web site owner, then
it's important to learn the basics of all aspects of running a site
early on.
Then, as time goes on, you can work to develop a network
of friends and colleagues that you can share tasks and projects with,
as your site grows and develops. And you'll be in much better shape
to protect yourself from being scammed if you decide to pay someone
to do Webmaster-related tasks for you.
Equally crucially, you'll know at least enough about the basics of
various Webmaster tasks that, in a pinch, you'll be able to jump in
yourself and tweak or fix things in a pinch, instead of having to rely
on someone else to get a crucial project done quickly.
About the Author
Marc McDonald is a former journalist and editor with the Fort
Worth Star-Telegram and the creator of TheFreeSite.com
as well as several other popular Web sites that have received
extensive media exposure from CNN's "Headline News," the BBC,
Fox News, ZDTV, CBS Radio, the Washington Post, and many more.
Visit the TheFreeSite.com at: http://www.thefreesite.com