Practical Advice on Building your Website

Phase2.com How we launched

Adam SmithDecember 2nd 2008smitha@phase2.com

“the Talk I Wish I

Heard 2 Years Ago”

Concept<<Clear/Unique

Suggestion 1: Follow trends, read TechCrunch

Suggestion 2: Laser focus on your value proposition

Concept<<Wireframe

Suggestion 1: Draw out every detail

Suggestion 2: Pen and paper, then PowerPoint is fine

Design<<Branding

Suggestion 1: Hire the Best

Suggestion 2: Stay Consistent

Build<<Division of Labor

Job Importance SuggestionDesigner Go Big Review 100+ portfolios

HTML/CSS Commodity Elance.com

Backend Coding Depends

QA Don’t overlook uTest.com

Hosting Commodity Amazon or Rackspace

Build<<Tech Choice

Suggestion 1: MSFT vs Open Source >> Doesn’t matter, use what your team members know best

Suggestion 2: CMS if large, diverse inventory or SEO is a priority

Build<<Billing

Suggestion 1: If subscription based: Aria Systems

Suggestion 2: sitepoint.com/article/ecommerce-seven-carts-reviewed

Test<<A/B

Suggestion 1: Google Analytics

Suggestion 2: Determine 1 or 2 goals to track

Test<<Focus Group

Suggestion 1: Watch how people interact with your site

Suggestion 2: Ask them to perform 3 tasks and observe

Channels<<Partner

Suggestion 1: Establish a partner program

Suggestion 2: Enroll in affiliate programs and Amazon.com Marketplace

Promote<<Search Ads

Suggestion 1: Get really good at Google AdWords

Suggestion 2: Forget Yahoo, MSN, and the rest

Promote<<Blog

Suggestion 1: Integrate a blog in your site

Suggestion 2: Write high-quality content at regular intervals

Promote<<SEO

Suggestion 1: Make pages search-engine friendly

Suggestion 2: No shortcuts. Get links from high-quality sites

Suggestion 3: Sticky or useful content

Promote<<SEO

Suggestion 1: Make pages search-engine friendly

Suggestion 2: No shortcuts. Get links from high-quality sites

Suggestion 3: Sticky or useful content

Promote<<Video

Suggestion 1: Viral videos = Swinging for a homerun

Suggestion 2: Create instructional videos on YouTube and embed in your site

Network<<Social Sites

Suggestion 1: Create a Facebook, LinkedIn, and MySpace page

Suggestion 2: Build a Facebook/OpenSocial App

Network<<Participate

Suggestion 1: Respond to LinkedIn Questions

Suggestion 2: A good write-up from a respected blogger is better then $50,000 in advertising.

Get in Touch

Adam Smithsmitha@phase2.com

808 292 5726