Designing Your Website – First Steps with XSitePro
While speaking mainly about XSitePro here, because this is the first website building software I used, the planning and concepts will be the same, regardless of your software.
Step 5: Download XSitePro2, and DO THE TUTORIAL – DON’T SHORTCUT THIS STEP
Devoting 2 hours to this tutorial will save you hours of heartache down the line. Armed with XSitePro and the XSPCheat Sheet, all you need is your own material and imagination to begin assembling your Website pages.
After doing the Tutorial, you will be able to build a website from scratch – no problem. And its a good exercise to do this. But know also that XSitePro has some great templates that are ready to go – really you just “fill in the gaps”.
It is a good idea to put together a ‘mind map’ or just write down what you want your website to say, whether the objective is to get a message across, or to sell a product. It is so easy for your enthusiasm and ideas to carry you towards making your first website all-inclusive. But you will soon see how complex and fragmented your website becomes if you attempt to include too many diverse topics.
I have approached kerryfinchwriting.com as my business website, after setting up a personal site, one for writing services, and several other related sites. I am bringing everything related to my writing services and training business back to this site alone. I have pared back dramatically from my original sites – learning that “Less is More”.
Choose your website building software – The big step!
Step 3 is really empowering – you CAN build a website with the right tools:
Choose Your Web Design Software ($US197)
Again, I really had no idea, and so I took advice from my mentor, James Schramko (see below). His recommendation was XSitePro which I have since found to be fantastic – great 
tutorial and clear instructions. By all means, ask around and take advice from someone who has actually USED the software they are recommending.
All I can say is that I am delighted with XSitePro, the program designed specifically for website marketers. It served me well as a novice, and as my skills develop, I am able to implement its other features and tools. Powerful stuff.
I have put the current price (February 2009) and its a real bargain, if when you read this it is still at this price I recommend you GRAB IT. If its not, then too bad – you missed out! But even at its full regular price of $US297 – it is a great value product. And the support and help you get from staff and other users via the Forum is worth gold. Buy XSitePro2 now.
Take a look at this >> video << on the features of XSitePro2 to get an overview!
Step 4: Enlist the help of James Schramko’s XSP Cheat Sheet (Free Bonus)
Now this is a real, genuine bonus for you if you purchase your copy of XSitePro through one of the links above. Here’s the background:
A chance meeting with James Shramko gave me the confidence to set up my own website and start my own online business. His guidance has been invaluable, and I am sure you will find that the knowledge he shares through this XSP Cheat Sheet will greatly enhance your XSitePro experience.
“Cheat Sheet” gives the impression of maybe one or two pages – but this document is over 80 pages in length, and if you are planning a marketing website, it will become your Bible. He tackles issues like importing videos, Search Engine Optimization, Keywords, and so many tricks and tweaks that he has gathered throughout his long involvement in the use of XSitePro.
If this sounds like a foreign language at this stage, don’t worry. I promise you it will become clear – and you will learn, as I have, the value of the XSP Cheat Sheet.I have been so impressed with James’ enthusiasm and integrity, that I invite you all to learn more about his expertise in web design and marketing.
His XSP Cheat SheetTM has become my constant companion and will certainly make a HUGE difference to those using the fabulous XSitePro to design their website.
Take a look at this Cheat Sheet but don’t buy it for $39.95! Once you have purchased your copy of XSitePro2, send me a message with your details and after I verify the sale, I will ask James to send it to you FREE.
>> Learn more about XSitePro2 Features
Building Your First Website
The Real Basics
Over the next few posts I’ll attempt to document my journey through the sometimes confusing basics of setting up my first websites. Putting together a website for the first time can be VERY daunting. Whether you are a stay at home mom, retiree, student, potential internet entrepreneur, or anyone who just wants to learn a new skill, it is difficult to know where to start.
Now I don’t profess to be an expert – but starting from scratch is still fresh in my mind – 25websites in 18 months later! So I might just be able to cover more of the real basics that the more experienced guys just skip over – and give it to you in plain English.
I am also going to try to give you as many links as I can to the sites that you will need, and an approximate of how much each step will cost you. Some you will need to lay out straight away (your software, purchase of your domain name and your web hosting service), some are free (your PayPal account) and others can wait until you decide if you need them or not. This will depend on the purpose of the site.
If its just for information, you probably won’t need any more. If you are planning to sell a downloadable product or get into affiliate marketing (all will be revealed!) then you will certainly need some more tools.
So here we go:
Step 1: If you don’t have one, set up a PayPal Account.
You will need this for transactions over the internet including for the next two steps. If you have had experience with eBay you may already have set up a PayPal Account – great! That’s Step 1 taken care of. By using this payment method, you are not divulging your credit card details to each merchant with whom you trade (not advisable, and most merchants prefer to transact via PayPal). AND having all transactions recorded at a central point, makes for much easier account management.
Learn more or sign up for a personal PayPal account (non-merchant)
If you are planning to sell products online, then I recommend you set up a PayPal Merchant’s Account – there a lot more benefits.
Step 2: Register Your Domain Name (approx. $US9/year)
Having set up your PayPal account your next step is to register a Domain Name, i.e. your own dot com. It can cost as little as $US9 to register a domain name – I was amazed at this low cost (but then I really had NO IDEA)!
But before you get too carried away with clever names, register your own name as a dot com first. This is so when you become rich and famous (if you’re not already), you won’t find someone else cashing in on your celebrity by registering a dot com in your name – Yes, they can! as many high-profile people have discovered.
I wanted to register KerryFinch.com, but found there was a journalist/politician in Tasmania, Australia, with that name who had already registered the domain name. So I am KerryAnneFinch.com. I have registered this, and several other domain names with one company, GoDaddy, and a few others with NameCheap as I wanted to compare their support and service.
More coming…………
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Valued Clients
"Kerry Finch has been helping me with content and articles for a long time. I can highly recommend her services, and if you’re looking to learn how to become an article writer just like Kerry, then I recommend her information products. She has great information, she knows exactly what she’s doing, she’s researched it – she does this for a living, and she’s damn good at it. So make sure you take Kerry up on her writing and coaching offers - she’s really good, and I highly recommend her services."
"My partner and I own and operate a small gym in the centre of Sydney - a very competitive market to say the least! We had spoken to so-called SEO and Google experts for months and they told it would take months to get the first page of Google for our keywords.
Well now they have not met Kerry Finch. Using Kerry's article writing and distribution service we hit page one within 3 weeks and we had not use any other SEO strategy at all.
To top that, she is a wonderful lady and so, so, so helpful.
My advice stick to what you know or what you do best, and let others do what they do best.
I very highly recommend Kerry to anyone looking to kick butt in any market on the net.
"
"I’m thrilled to tell you that your advice has made a huge increase in my income! You know that I had already fumbled around and found some useful information on my own, and had some money dribbling in.
But with just a few nuggets of your wisdom and advice, I’ve landed two long-term writing projects just this week! (I equate everything to bills- so these two projects
will pay our mortgage payment)
My next goal is to re-read Overnight Writing Income and find more golden nuggets to put to use padding my bank account!""
"I am new to internet marketing and needed some good articles and blog posts to get me started. Kerry was incredibly helpful, and her service was exceptional. Her articles and posts were not only well written but covered different aspects of the topic incredibly well. Publishing the articles according to Kerry’s suggestions has resulted in driving extra traffic to my site, resulting in increased sales of my eBooks. I couldn’t have asked for more! If you are looking for high quality articles, great service and speedy response, then Kerry is your gal!"
