I have finally decided to put together a web-site for my magic business.Since I have no experience with this sort of thing,would I be better off paying the BIG bucks to have it done by a pro,or is this something that can easily be done with alittle guidance (like a web site marketing course).

Daryl,

There is a great reason that website professionals are professionals.

And no, you DON'T have to pay "the big bucks". Some definitely cost more than others without a doubt.

I would recommend you talk to Ryan Pilling. He's always around at The Dean's List and he does web design (and frankly doesn't charge enough!!! )

You can find his site at:

http://www.rjp.ca

And the Dean's List at:

http://www.thedean.net/forum

Robert Bloor

There is so much to learn in designing a website. It is no easy task. Then there is the maintenance of it. If it is static which most are, then people rarely go back to it.

One of the easiest way to learn web design is to right click on a page you like and print out the code. Study the code and you will so learn about web pages. Look at simple one first.

Take a course if you love computers and code writing, otherwise have some one do it for you.

Here are some thoughts on Web Page design. They are broken down in to groups so you can pick the ones that fit you.

Money: Income Producing Pages

• Programs Offered
  
• Services
  
• Products
  
• Store
  
• Sale Items
  
• Packages
  
• Coupons
  
• Fees
  
  Professionalism Pages
  
• Recommendation
  
• Testimonials
  
• Comments
  
• Reviews
  
• Awards
  
• Clients
  
• Affiliations
  
  About Show Page
  
• Highlights
  
• Illusions
  
• His Act
  
• Show Information
  
• Photo Gallery
  
  Technical Page
  
• Show Information
  
• Technical
  
• Guarantee
  
  Lead Generating Page
  
• Booking Information
  
• Inquire
  
• Contact
  
• Email
  
• Newsletter
  
  Busy: Active Working Page
  
• Schedule
  
• Performances
  
• Appearances
  
  Thing To-Do PAge
  
• Activities
  
• Puzzles
  
• Magic You Can Do
  
  Who Are you Page
  
• About
  
• Bio
  
• Photo Gallery
  
• Show Stars
  
  Basic Pages
  
• Home Page
  
• Splash Page
  
• Flash Page
  
• Domain Home Page
  
  Membership Page
  
• Fan Club
  
• Mambership
  
• Guest
  
• Newsletter
  
• Join
  
  Promotion Page
  
• Press Releases
  
• Newsletter
  
• Bulletin
  
• F.A.Q.
  
• Media
  
• Public Relation
  
• News
  
• Activity Page
  
• Games
  
• Puzzles
  
• Magic
  

I'd have to go with Robert on this one.

Ryan will do a fantastic job for you! He understands about marketing as a magician (very important), and about web design. Most web designers do not understand enough about marketing.

The Gr8 DonaldD.

I am happy to point you to Webtechnics, which also does sites for entertainers (and knows a thing or two about marketing).

... Doug

Here are the mistakes I have made with my site (www.funnybones.com.au) that I am now fixing:

1) Make the site easy and cheap to update. Some designers will do a cheap site but then charge a fortune to update it. I use Frontpage which is OK for me but many of the features don't work unless your ISP supports frontpage.

2) Get is proof read and edited by one professional or three friends.

3) Make the site work for people who just glance at it as well as people who commit to the site. i.e. don't bury important info.

4) Avoid flash and other bits of business that slow down your site.

5) Update it regularly.

I have put up several websites and gathered many tools to streamline your work of setting up and maintaining your website once you have authored it.

I can send you to a hosting company that will not only host your site but allow you to make extra money from the venture.

If anyone wants details PM me.

Magician Tim David also has a course on creating websites for entertainer. Not so much about programming, as about content.

Tim also has a free 5-day ecourse on creating websites (you'll see it popup). Here you go:

http://www.webdesignforentertainers.com/course.html

He also did a free teleconference on this back in the summer, but you can purchase a copy of the teleclass on cassette now for about $20. Very good information.

http://www.magicteleclasses.com/

Hope this is of help.

The Gr8 DonaldD.

There is also some great free reports and e-books that can be downloaded regarding how to make your web site work for you. These can be found at magiccoach.com or the sitesell.com. They are very good and worth looking into.

As a graphic designer, I often design many web site myself. There are many thing to keep in minf about your site. The best advice to remember is that your NOT designing the site to impress you, your friends or other magicians. Your site is out there to trty and land you more gigs from potential clients.

This means PLEASE try not to create a gallery page that has you with every magician you know that a lay person has not the faintest clue who these people are.

Thanks, this designer has seen way too much of that.

I like my web master, he has done a great job, for a great price. I have had the site for a year now and he has been a great help deciding on what to put on it.
My web masters site is
http://www.livingstudios.com
I hope this helps.
Jason
http://www.grandillusionsmagic.com

Here are a listing of just some of the more common pitfalls many people run into when designing their own web site. This is only my opinions based on my graphic design experience and knowledge. I hope it may be of help to many.

- Too many magician's forget to ask themselves who is the intended audience for their site. They try too much to make a site that only impresses themselves and other magicians but is not focused at their clients.

- Too many magicians also cram their site with a lot of content that is not directly focused at answering their clients questions and telling the clients how they can meet their performance needs. This becomes extraneous content that does not need to be on the site.

- Too many sites have gallery sections. Gallery sections are great to show scenes of your shows and performances and happy audience members. However, galleries really do not need to be a place to put you with every famous magician you know. Other then Blaine or Copperfield, a client will have no idea who the other magicians are in the first place and really could care less. This is only tooting your own horn.

- Try and stay away from loading your site with cheap animations and artwork that does not directly reflect back to your own logo and brand image. Too many sites rely on flashy animations and colored backgrounds that take way too long to download. Keep in mind that your site has about 5 seconds for it to register with a client before they venture someplace else. Do not spend this time downloading uneeded elements. Keep your site clean.

- Keep your navigation simple and consistent from page to page. This means your navigation should remain in the same place on each page and be easy enough to understand. Any client should be able to get to any page on your site from the page they are currently at.

- Streamline your content. Make sure your content is valid for getting you new business and answering the questions your clients may have. Your content shoiuld really answer the who, what, why and how that many people ask you on the phone.

- Make sure your site mataches your current brand image. Your show has an image as does the materials you send out to people. Make sure they are all consistent and look similar in style.

- Keep content on your pages concise. People do not like to read a lot and have to scroll too much.

These are just a few of the many tips I have come across over the years when designing sites and logos for other magicians. there are many more, but I will leave it as this for now.

I hope it will be of help to anyone creating their own web site or redoing one they already have.

If anyone would like to talk about this in more detail, please just PM me. I would be happy to help out.

Nicely done brother Kyle!

Thanks Dean so much for your kind words. Coming from you, this is quite a complement and an honor. I hope to see you tonight in the chat.

While we're on this topic, could someone critique my site? I'm open to any criticism, and don't care if its bad or good. I just want the best site to sell my shows. right now I have no money, so the site doesn't have its own server. that aside, on to http://jraglandmagic.cjb.net

Jimmy:
I am a graphic designer and can give you some advice just based on a design perspective and from some of the tips I mentioned above.

Overall I like your site as it has some good things going for it. Let me explain some of these:

- a consistent navigation that is easy to use and in the same location on every page. You can get to anywhere in your site from any page the viewer is at

- your content is not overloaded which would cause a viewer to have to scroll the page too much.

- you did not rely on gimmicky animations or bad background art to "jazz" up your site. You kept it very clean and very readable.

These are all very good points and I am glad to see your using them effectively.

What you may want to do is create a logo or brand image for your site and the rest of your promotions. I like the overall look of your type, but it is lacking a strong logo image that would work very nicely with your text and help brand you a bit more.

I also would like to see a larger image of you on the welcome screen. Just a nice picture so that the viewers can see who you are and relate better to you.

You may also want to include some quotes from satisfied customers somewhere in your site. Client quotes work well for anyone at your site who is thinking of possibly booking you.

You may also want to get a bit more specific in regards to the benefits your show provides to your clients. let them know how you can solve their entertainment needs.

Always make sure your site answers the basic who, what, when, why and how of the standard questions that your clients will often ask of you. the more questions your site can answer for them, the better it can work for you.

Overall I would say you have a very strong start and a decent looking site from which to build upon. If you would like further and more detailed information in regards to your site critique, please just PM me. I would be happy to go into more detail and help you in any way that I can.

While we're critiquing sites, will someone take a look at mine?

http://www.SalazarMagic.com

Salazar:
let me critique your site and give you some feedback from a designer's perspective. I hope these may help you. These are just my humble opinions so please take them for what they are worth.

Opening Screen: I like the clean look and layout of the site. I think the animated phone number is really not needed. it distracts from the site. I think you can do it better by having it on the site in a locked place and just have it flash animate a few times. This will get the person to notice it but not become annoying.

I like the clean navigation you have set up. It is easy to read and not too content heavy. I also like the quick link feature.

Having your image on the opening page works well and helps brand you in the eye of the viewer. However, I think the front page lacks a clear identity design or logo to really brand you and the site. this logo could replace where you have the words on the right side of the page.

I like your roll over effects and that works nicely to tell the viewer what each section is about.

Bio: I like how you have your image on each section and how your content is short and to the point. that works well for me.

Shows: Also very nice consistent format and great to have the hotlink buttons to take them directly to the area they are intersted in.

Frequently asked questions is a very nice section to have. I like that a lot.

Your gallery is also nicely presented and easy to use. It also loads fast which is a huge plus.

I also like how you are giving the person a lot of ways to give you feedback and contact you directly from the site.

Overall I think you have a great site that really works. I might only add in a few more quotes from clients and place these in areas that can be seen a bit better without having to scroll so much.

I hope this helps.

Oh webpage critiques. My favorite.

The Magic of Jimmy Ragland

Front Page
You have bullets for...
Bio, Services, Photos, Contact.
But you also have them on the nav bar.

There is nothing on the front page that makes me want to read more.

You have "No performances right now" on your front page.
Unless you have a FULL schedule, DO NOT include a schedule on your page. Period. Anywhere. Not front page. Not a sub page.
No shows? No schedule. Simple.

Your first major navigation link is to your Biography.
Who cares! That doesn't help SELL your show.

Two types of websites. Those that SELL and those that TELL. Yours tells.

Your services...the most important page of your current website is 4 sentences. That leaves way too many questions in the mind of the buyer.

That said let me ask you, how are you driving people to your website? Are you hoping they type your name into a search engine and find it? That won't work effectively.
Do you have an ad in the newspaper or other medium that drives people to the site?

Photo gallery page: Lose it.
Your photos should be mixed into your entire website to achieve the correct balance between visual and text.

One other thing. You have a picture where you're pulling the boxer shorts from the kids pants....

Two Words: Michael Jackson

I'd lose that picture from the site entirely.

Those are some ideas right off the top of my head. Think SELLING!

And buy Dave Dee's Ultimate Insiders Course. It'll give you killer tips into formatting a sales letter (and ultimately your website).

Salazar Magic

Lose the animated 800#.

I like the look of your site when I first open it. By what does the front page just say, "Salazar Magic"? That doesn't tell me squat. A great headline and letter from you should be right there. Also include testimonials on that front page.

Why is your biography the first thing on your nav bar? That should be near the bottom. Order of importance.

One of Robert's Pet Peeve's...
On your bio page you wrote...
"Soon, he would go on to win awards and competitions with his sleight-of-hand magic."

Did you win class clown?
My biggest pet peeve is "The Award Winning Magic of" blah blah blah. What good do your awards do if you don't talk about them.

And while we're on it, only list awards that people might actually know about. If your club awards you, "Best Move With A Svengali Deck That No One Has Ever Seen Before", don't put it on your site.

All your show types are all mixed up. Purchase multiple domains and put like programs together. Corporate shows do not belong on the same page with birthday party shows.

Corporate groups pay magicians thousands of dollars to entertain their companies. They do not pay $200 birthday party magicians to do the same.

Can you do both...absolutely!
But get seperate websites so that they don't send mixed messages.

"Click for our Special Offer"
AWESOME IDEA! Already they're going to save money! I like this!

Ugh! The testimonial at the bottom of the Shows page...did you make that up!?!?
Only put testimonials up on a website if you've got a persons name/title/company with it.
Otherwise it looks fake.

Your client list...
Alright, gonna write this one in bold because I'm really dying for an answer.
Did you actually perform FOR everyone of those casinos?
Or did you perform a show for another company AT those casinos?

Another uncredited testimonial on your client list.

Dude! What is the deal on the arrival guide! I scroll down to the bottom and find this link marked "K"...

Never mix business with pleasure. You're using your business site to send love notes to your girlfriend?

Your photo gallery...
Where are the pictures of your audiences? All your satisfied companies you perform for?
All I see are shots of you. As a buyer, that doesn't tell me a thing.

And like I said earlier, you should have pictures through your whole site that blend together with your text to SELL you services.

I'm not sure why you have a report card on your website. If it serves the purpose of providing accountability to your clients, the information gathered can be easily forged. I'm not saying you would do that. But in the eyes of your clients, they might. I'd get a hard copy rather than an E-version.

Again, tellin' or sellin'?

Robert Bloor

I agree I need something better on the first page.

I actually had someone else write my bio for me. (I just have trouble with tooting my own horn)

The report card is one of the ways I get feedback from my clients. After the show, I send them an email directing them to the page asking them to tell me what they thought of the show.

Yes, I have performed FOR everyone of those casinos. Either in the showrooms, Special Events shows, or as a roving entertainer. This list is only for shows I do when hired by the entertainment department of the casinos to entertain their clientele. If I happen to perform for a company event being held AT the casino, it is listed under the Company's name not the casino's.

Thanks for reminding me about the K. I forgot to take it off.

If you want a great example of a well done site to model on check out this: http://www.robertbloor.com

I once had a site with several pages. One page with testiomonials, one page for a submission form, one with photos, one with a blurb about what I did & one home page with just links. What heppens if you use that format is that most viewers miss most of it because they won't read every page.

The best advise I could give is write you web site like you would a sales letter. Include a USP attention grabbing headline, testimonials (within the copy), list the benifits of your show & include some type of call to action or response devise. Photos should highlight the benifits of your show. Try & get photos of crowd reactions rather than of you posing in a studio. A good resource for designing an effective web site is the e-book 'Killer Mini Sites', If anyone wants a copy just PM me & I can send one to you.

Salazar Magic looking at your site it is not really clear what your name is. People not being clear about what their name is, is a pet peive of mine. It is not obvious that your name is Anthony Salazar. I only know Salazar is your surname from other posts in the Café. I could not see 'Anthony Salazar' anywhere on your site. I still don't know what you like to be known as, Anthony or Salazar or Salazar Magic??? If my given name was Anthony Salazar I would want to be known as Tony Salazar. If you happened to have a simple single syllable surname, then I would stick with Anthony. Salazar sounds so magicial but from the web site it is not really obvious that it is your actual real name.