Having a website may be the best way to make your organisation more visible, allowing you to provide information on the mission and vision of your organisation, as well as up to date and accurate advertising of your services and activities.
Whilst social media is a two-way communication tool, a website offers less conversation but allows you to control all of the content and therefore the message conveyed to your visitors. Most organisations use website and social media to complement each other when engaging with their communities online.
Creating a website
When looking to develop a website you can either choose to carry out the whole process yourself or work with a website developer. When weighing up your options it’s good to consider all of the elements that go into website design and if you have the right person in your organisation that could undertake this task.
DIY vs designer
Intro para about making the decision between building a site yourself and getting a designer/developer to do it for you.
DIY
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Low start-up costs If money is tight then not paying for someone to do the design for the website can be a big bonus. It also means money to be spent elsewhere in the organisation. |
Time Building a website won’t happen overnight. Consider the time needed to learn the skills and then to do the work. Could this time be better spent? |
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Control everything You have complete control of your website from the initial framework, to the content you add. Having to request changes from web designers can be slow and costly. |
Lack of expertise Although there’s reems of information online it can’t match an expert looking at your specific needs. A web designer may think of features and functions you don’t even know exist. |
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Learn a new skill Unless you’ve worked in this field before chances are building a website from scratch means you’ll pick up some new skills. They could even help you with other areas of the organisation. |
Motivation Unless it can be your number one priority from project start to finish, it’s possible your motivation will run out at some point during the build. It’s not a project to take on without the possibility to focus on its completion. |
Designer
| Pros | Cons |
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Leave it to the experts Website designers have the skills, and experience to give you the best website you can have with all the bells and whistles. The finished product will look professional and a well-designed website leads to higher engagement. |
Cost Not only will the upfront costs be more with using a website designer, but ongoing support can be costly as well. You may also have to pay for those bells and whistles functions they have provided. |
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A website is never finished Whether you decide in time to make changes to your website or your site just needs updates and maintenance, a website needs ongoing time put into it. Using a web designer frees you of this and the potential of dealing with technical issues |
Dependency on the designer Not only are you dependent on the designer if you want to make changes but if that web designer disappears you could be left with a website that you have limited access to. Be sure to talk about aftercare with your designer and have access to all elements of your site. |
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Unlimited customisation Despite the array of DIY options out there the level of customisation and personalisation of working with a designer is unmatched. A designer can build the website you want tailored to your audience. |
Time Yes, working with a designer will save you buckets of time but it’s not completely hands-off from your side. The designer will need to liaise with you throughout build and get your input as required. |
After reading these pros and cons if you’re still considering building your own site see our section on web content management system WordPress.
How to create a good website
Whether you work with someone to build your website or you do it in house, it’s important to consider some basic principles that any good website has.
A clear purpose and audience
Identify what the purpose of your website is and who it is for and then tailor the design, functionality, and content to that.
Straightforward navigation
All websites need to be clear and easy to navigate with the least number of clicks between the homepage and what information someone might want to find. Identify what pages are most important and make them the most visible. Keep page numbers to a minimum by only having the most relevant and useful information on the site where possible.
Mobile responsive site
The majority of people now access the internet using a mobile device so it’s essential to have a website that is mobile responsive. This simply means that your website layout is flexible and automatically adjusts itself depending on the size of the screen being used to view it. All the information stays the same, but the readjustment allows the user to have an easy reading an navigation experience.
Effective security
As the number of websites on the internet increases, so do the number of cyber-attacks. Good website security protects your site from attacks that could access, alter and steal your site’s content and data, as well the personal data and privacy of users of your site.
Imagery and branding
The first thing a visitor will notice when they land on your website is the design and imagery. It’s important that the colours, fonts and the look and feel are instantly recognisable as your brand, so people know they have the right site. All imagery should be high quality and meaningful – photos of your centre and people using the facilities would be great.
How to create engaging content for your website
Having a website that can be easily navigated, has great imagery and is secure is just one piece to the puzzle of creating a successful website. Having engaging content on your website will make sure that people visit your site regularly and see it as a useful tool for information about your centre.
Update it regularly
Visitors will likely come to your website looking for information about events and activities at your centre, opening times and contact details. It’s important to keep this information up to date and accurate at all times so that your website is a useful, trusted source of information with your audience.
Keep it clear and simple
Information on your website should be clear and easy to read. Write in plain English without jargon and assume that your audience knows nothing about your centre- your website could be the first impression of your organisation for someone. Always make sure grammar and spelling are correct, you want your website to look professional.
Make your content easy to scan
Most people don’t read all of the text on a website so it’s important to structure your content to it’s easily scanned. Use heading and subheadings, bullet points and highlight keywords. Using paragraphs to break up topics is also key to people understanding the message you’re trying to convey when they’re reading quickly.
Put important information first
If your centre is going to be closed unexpectedly or a class is changing this should be one of the first things visitors see when they come to your website. Important messages should always be displayed clearly at the top of the relevant page or on the front page where necessary.
Be familiar and friendly
Use case studies, an informal tone and even humour to show that your centre is inviting and friendly. The tone of your communications should reflect what your organisation is like.
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