First Website

[muirford]

can't whitepine create a free blog on wordpress or blogger, have that come up as the 'homepage' for now and then move it to its own blogpage once they get a 'real' site going?.

can't whitepine create a free blog on wordpress or blogger, have that come up as the 'homepage' for now and then move it to its own blogpage once they get a 'real' site going?
Her server has to use wordpress in order for her to use.
I certainly am no expert on this...but....Yes, many people actually are going to the blog format for their actual web site. So they can edit it themselves. I think someone said something about concern because it is open source....so what? So many use it...I don't see it as a problem...and..don't servers have protection from these kinds of threats?
.

So many use it...I don't see it as a problem...and..don't servers have protection from these kinds of threats?

Not all of them. Our local visitors center website has been attacked twice by someone in Russia, inserting malware on event links and business links. It took about a week to get it straightened and then to get google to allow us to play again. Servers are also routinely taken down by denial-of-service attacks where they are sent so many messages that they simply overload. I don't know if wordpress is any more vulnerable than any other software, but it is a legitimate concern.

 

[white pine]

Actually, the issue is that I am in a National Wilderness Area 22 miles from the nearest small town. No one to ask except on the internet. I will start a blog on blooger, but I wanted to just put up a small webpage which could expand..

Actually, the issue is that I am in a National Wilderness Area 22 miles from the nearest small town. No one to ask except on the internet. I will start a blog on blooger, but I wanted to just put up a small webpage which could expand.

Not a bad place to be, especially once you're open and selling rooms!
whitepine, you're absolutely right to do this now. If you're not comfortable building it yourself, there are good folks out there who do just beautiful websites. A good place to start is looking at websites you really like and then you'll start to notice which web designers you really like.
Of course, if you don't mind investing the time to learn, you can build your own.
There's no right or wrong way to do this. It's really up to you. But if you do it yourself, make sure you've learned enough about SEO to get your placement right.
As for the blog, get going on it. swirt is right about the renovation stuff. Can't tell you how many blogs I've seen where folks blog about their septic problems. Don't go there.
Like you said, you know the area and there's a real need for a local area blog. Start it. And little by little, get some info in there about the coming attraction: you.
.

The only reason I picked up an alternate name is that I wanted to get going, and I got discouraged with the process through sedo. I supposedly have the winning bid on my sweet .com but still don't have an invoice to pay (only operates during office hours). I didn't really want two domain names. Just thought that as I may have two, I could get some information out to those who know the place and let them know what is going on, and maybe link it to the main site later.
The lodge is two hours from where I am now (home) in the wilds. It is not located in a wilderness area, but on a lake with cottages. Oddly, we have high speed internet here, we can't get anything except satellite service there.
I have read really bad renovation blogs too, have no interest in posting nitty gritty, unless it is actually interesting nitty gritty. We may sponsor a windows restoration workshop, and are contemplating rebuilding the 100' long porch.
I just thought I could do the template and link it later (bad idea) or get up more of a webpage (link to blog) which could be expanded later. Guess this is no good either.

 

[white pine]

white pine,
Don't feel alone, I knew nothing about it when I started either. Webmasters are purists, and there are reasons to use one (if you can afford it). I do my own site using a template program from a well known hosting company. It costs me very little, I love doing it and have learned alot over the last eight years. I see no reason to pay someone big money when I can continue to do it myself. Is it perfect...No, but then, neither am I!
Companies like godaddy or network solutions have pretty darn good website programs for very little money, and you don't need to know any computer language to build and maintain a site with them. I would suggest, though, boneing up on SEO or using a program like IBP to help improve SEO as you go.
As a side note, I'm positive that CL did not mean to sound abrupt or to offend!.

Thanks LB for the encouragement. I could use some about now. I saw godaddy's templates and they are what set this whole thing off.

 

[white pine]

white pine,
Don't feel alone, I knew nothing about it when I started either. Webmasters are purists, and there are reasons to use one (if you can afford it). I do my own site using a template program from a well known hosting company. It costs me very little, I love doing it and have learned alot over the last eight years. I see no reason to pay someone big money when I can continue to do it myself. Is it perfect...No, but then, neither am I!
Companies like godaddy or network solutions have pretty darn good website programs for very little money, and you don't need to know any computer language to build and maintain a site with them. I would suggest, though, boneing up on SEO or using a program like IBP to help improve SEO as you go.
As a side note, I'm positive that CL did not mean to sound abrupt or to offend!.

I'm positive that CL did not mean to sound abrupt or to offend!
You are absolutey correct!!! No offense was intended...I was just sharing that it takes alot to learn this if you are going to do it the right way. If you have the time to learn it...please by all means do so. It is just that we here have seen many "do it yourself" web sites and they aren't pretty.

.

Many things in life are not pretty. Question is are they useful. I once had a nifty unreliable car I loved. Dad finally convinced me get what you need not what you want. I am not really so offended as I am very tired and very frustrated. I may just have to put this on the back burner for a bit. Thanks for the advice.

 

[egoodell]

white pine,
Don't feel alone, I knew nothing about it when I started either. Webmasters are purists, and there are reasons to use one (if you can afford it). I do my own site using a template program from a well known hosting company. It costs me very little, I love doing it and have learned alot over the last eight years. I see no reason to pay someone big money when I can continue to do it myself. Is it perfect...No, but then, neither am I!
Companies like godaddy or network solutions have pretty darn good website programs for very little money, and you don't need to know any computer language to build and maintain a site with them. I would suggest, though, boneing up on SEO or using a program like IBP to help improve SEO as you go.
As a side note, I'm positive that CL did not mean to sound abrupt or to offend!.

I'm positive that CL did not mean to sound abrupt or to offend!
You are absolutey correct!!! No offense was intended...I was just sharing that it takes alot to learn this if you are going to do it the right way. If you have the time to learn it...please by all means do so. It is just that we here have seen many "do it yourself" web sites and they aren't pretty.

.

Many things in life are not pretty. Question is are they useful. I once had a nifty unreliable car I loved. Dad finally convinced me get what you need not what you want. I am not really so offended as I am very tired and very frustrated. I may just have to put this on the back burner for a bit. Thanks for the advice.
.

Many things in life are not pretty. Question is are they useful. I once had a nifty unreliable car I loved. Dad finally convinced me get what you need not what you want. I am not really so offended as I am very tired and very frustrated. I may just have to put this on the back burner for a bit. Thanks for the advice.

But if she starts with the alternative just in a blog can she not have her webmaster point it to her final website once she gets it? This way she could start now and finish with her polished website with the final address.
Riki

 

[Morticia]

white pine,
Don't feel alone, I knew nothing about it when I started either. Webmasters are purists, and there are reasons to use one (if you can afford it). I do my own site using a template program from a well known hosting company. It costs me very little, I love doing it and have learned alot over the last eight years. I see no reason to pay someone big money when I can continue to do it myself. Is it perfect...No, but then, neither am I!
Companies like godaddy or network solutions have pretty darn good website programs for very little money, and you don't need to know any computer language to build and maintain a site with them. I would suggest, though, boneing up on SEO or using a program like IBP to help improve SEO as you go.
As a side note, I'm positive that CL did not mean to sound abrupt or to offend!.

Thanks LB for the encouragement. I could use some about now. I saw godaddy's templates and they are what set this whole thing off.
.

Look closely at the godaddy templates as you could end up advertising godaddy on every page of your site. So what? Well, it makes it look like you are not really a business but a hobby.
This is a big project. How about this...spend some time drawing the site out on paper. Get some sites you really like bookmarked and study why you like them. In other words, slow down a bit. Set a goal for yourself of one month to do the reviewing of what you like and why. Check out web designers in the meantime. MTLodge just had a new site built by Acorn... they do nice sites. For a simple, 2-page starter site, see what they would charge. Find out how you can make updates as you get more comfortable.
You can also start the blog so you can talk up what you're doing, what you plan to so, what the opening date is, etc.
But, you do need the site to go live to build history so next year when you're ready to reel them in, 'they' can find you.
You have a lot going on which is why I say to give yourself a month to gather info. There are a lot of parts to getting the site up and running and making it so that you don't shoot yourself in the foot later on. You've got an opportunity here that I envy...starting from scratch with nothing to 'fix'.
I think what you might try to get is something that doesn't look like a template but more like your vision. The website, your business, the rack cards, everything is all of a piece. Do it right once and you will be thankful for how easy it is to keep it going with simple changes and updates.
Because you have both domain names, you can use one to point to the other, main site. Decide which one is the main site and develop that one. You may find that innnamelakename.com is the better of the 2 domains. In which case, you point the old one to the new one.
I found that just downloading an editor left me wondering where to start so I see the allure of a template.

 

[Innkeeper To Go]

white pine,
Don't feel alone, I knew nothing about it when I started either. Webmasters are purists, and there are reasons to use one (if you can afford it). I do my own site using a template program from a well known hosting company. It costs me very little, I love doing it and have learned alot over the last eight years. I see no reason to pay someone big money when I can continue to do it myself. Is it perfect...No, but then, neither am I!
Companies like godaddy or network solutions have pretty darn good website programs for very little money, and you don't need to know any computer language to build and maintain a site with them. I would suggest, though, boneing up on SEO or using a program like IBP to help improve SEO as you go.
As a side note, I'm positive that CL did not mean to sound abrupt or to offend!.

Thanks LB for the encouragement. I could use some about now. I saw godaddy's templates and they are what set this whole thing off.
.

Look closely at the godaddy templates as you could end up advertising godaddy on every page of your site. So what? Well, it makes it look like you are not really a business but a hobby.
This is a big project. How about this...spend some time drawing the site out on paper. Get some sites you really like bookmarked and study why you like them. In other words, slow down a bit. Set a goal for yourself of one month to do the reviewing of what you like and why. Check out web designers in the meantime. MTLodge just had a new site built by Acorn... they do nice sites. For a simple, 2-page starter site, see what they would charge. Find out how you can make updates as you get more comfortable.
You can also start the blog so you can talk up what you're doing, what you plan to so, what the opening date is, etc.
But, you do need the site to go live to build history so next year when you're ready to reel them in, 'they' can find you.
You have a lot going on which is why I say to give yourself a month to gather info. There are a lot of parts to getting the site up and running and making it so that you don't shoot yourself in the foot later on. You've got an opportunity here that I envy...starting from scratch with nothing to 'fix'.
I think what you might try to get is something that doesn't look like a template but more like your vision. The website, your business, the rack cards, everything is all of a piece. Do it right once and you will be thankful for how easy it is to keep it going with simple changes and updates.
Because you have both domain names, you can use one to point to the other, main site. Decide which one is the main site and develop that one. You may find that innnamelakename.com is the better of the 2 domains. In which case, you point the old one to the new one.
I found that just downloading an editor left me wondering where to start so I see the allure of a template.
.

This is a big project. How about this...spend some time drawing the site out on paper. Get some sites you really like bookmarked and study why you like them. In other words, slow down a bit. Set a goal for yourself of one month to do the reviewing of what you like and why. Check out web designers in the meantime. MTLodge just had a new site built by Acorn... they do nice sites. For a simple, 2-page starter site, see what they would charge. Find out how you can make updates as you get more comfortable.
You can also start the blog so you can talk up what you're doing, what you plan to so, what the opening date is, etc.
But, you do need the site to go live to build history so next year when you're ready to reel them in, 'they' can find you.
You have a lot going on which is why I say to give yourself a month to gather info. There are a lot of parts to getting the site up and running and making it so that you don't shoot yourself in the foot later on. You've got an opportunity here that I envy...starting from scratch with nothing to 'fix'.
I think what you might try to get is something that doesn't look like a template but more like your vision. The website, your business, the rack cards, everything is all of a piece. Do it right once and you will be thankful for how easy it is to keep it going with simple changes and updates.
Because you have both domain names, you can use one to point to the other, main site. Decide which one is the main site and develop that one. You may find that innnamelakename.com is the better of the 2 domains. In which case, you point the old one to the new one.

All very good advice.

 

[white pine]

Thanks all for the words of wisdom. I am going to stop now and think about this a bit. I need to sort out my wants and needs. Just now I need to think,

 

[Skamokawa]

Thanks all for the words of wisdom. I am going to stop now and think about this a bit. I need to sort out my wants and needs. Just now I need to think,.

Hi there White Pine, we are one of the ones who started with a blogger blog, and 'moved up' to a do it yourself yahoo site. Nowhere near perfect, but learning as we go fits into the budget, and many here have made things MUCH better than when we started. Blogger is easy, and early on, the time I had to devote to starting from nothing was in the 2am kind of hours. Quickly found that with blogger, someone else has usually posted the answer to your googled question somewhere, such as how to personalize your template, get rid of the navbar etc....We are in a very rural area, and place well now in google, more so I think because we have so little local competition than through any particular skill. You may be in a similar space. Take care with the photos, and keep building on those small successes. Keep reading and as each SEO tip comes up that make sense to you, use it, then move on as you gain more experience. Sorry to come so late to the conversation...you really have come to the right place for cumulative wisdom. Now if I could just be more faithful about keeping the blog fresh......
-KathleenM

 

[swirt]

white pine,
Don't feel alone, I knew nothing about it when I started either. Webmasters are purists, and there are reasons to use one (if you can afford it). I do my own site using a template program from a well known hosting company. It costs me very little, I love doing it and have learned alot over the last eight years. I see no reason to pay someone big money when I can continue to do it myself. Is it perfect...No, but then, neither am I!
Companies like godaddy or network solutions have pretty darn good website programs for very little money, and you don't need to know any computer language to build and maintain a site with them. I would suggest, though, boneing up on SEO or using a program like IBP to help improve SEO as you go.
As a side note, I'm positive that CL did not mean to sound abrupt or to offend!.

I'm positive that CL did not mean to sound abrupt or to offend!
You are absolutey correct!!! No offense was intended...I was just sharing that it takes alot to learn this if you are going to do it the right way. If you have the time to learn it...please by all means do so. It is just that we here have seen many "do it yourself" web sites and they aren't pretty.

.

Many things in life are not pretty. Question is are they useful. I once had a nifty unreliable car I loved. Dad finally convinced me get what you need not what you want. I am not really so offended as I am very tired and very frustrated. I may just have to put this on the back burner for a bit. Thanks for the advice.
.

Many things in life are not pretty. Question is are they useful. I once had a nifty unreliable car I loved. Dad finally convinced me get what you need not what you want. I am not really so offended as I am very tired and very frustrated. I may just have to put this on the back burner for a bit. Thanks for the advice.

But if she starts with the alternative just in a blog can she not have her webmaster point it to her final website once she gets it? This way she could start now and finish with her polished website with the final address.
Riki
.

But if she starts with the alternative just in a blog can she not have her webmaster point it to her final website once she gets it? This way she could start now and finish with her polished website with the final address.
Riki

Pointing can be flubbed up a lot of different ways. Most of them involve the loss of history. History is the one thing you can not buy. The only way to get history...is to actually have it. For every 1 designer who will get the pointing correct and cause minimal damage, there are 50 who will mess it up, so if it can be avoided NOW, it is best/safest/wisest to do so. And the bad part is that of the 50 who will mess it up, 49 wiil say they know how to do it correctly.

 

[EmptyNest]

white pine,
Don't feel alone, I knew nothing about it when I started either. Webmasters are purists, and there are reasons to use one (if you can afford it). I do my own site using a template program from a well known hosting company. It costs me very little, I love doing it and have learned alot over the last eight years. I see no reason to pay someone big money when I can continue to do it myself. Is it perfect...No, but then, neither am I!
Companies like godaddy or network solutions have pretty darn good website programs for very little money, and you don't need to know any computer language to build and maintain a site with them. I would suggest, though, boneing up on SEO or using a program like IBP to help improve SEO as you go.
As a side note, I'm positive that CL did not mean to sound abrupt or to offend!.

Thanks LB for the encouragement. I could use some about now. I saw godaddy's templates and they are what set this whole thing off.
.

The templates I provided a link to are different than say ones offered in a package from the web hosting company. They are a separate thing. You down load them, work on them and then upload the finished product to the server with your own file names etc.
I am sorry I did not mean to discourage you. I am self taught myself..with the help of my mentor/boss way back when so many years ago. Someone way back then had faith in me because I showed an interest. I learned well and ended up teaching others for 6 years before I retired from the university. So I am not saying it can't be done..just that it take time and lots of it. Things do make it a bit easier these days with editors, templates etc we didn't have back then.
I am still learning...and even now I don't want to put in that much time to keep up with the latest and greatest.
I just figured you probably have enough on your plate dealing with renovations, getting a business up and running etc etc.
I do wish you good luck

 

[gillumhouse]

Thanks all for the words of wisdom. I am going to stop now and think about this a bit. I need to sort out my wants and needs. Just now I need to think,.

Hi there White Pine, we are one of the ones who started with a blogger blog, and 'moved up' to a do it yourself yahoo site. Nowhere near perfect, but learning as we go fits into the budget, and many here have made things MUCH better than when we started. Blogger is easy, and early on, the time I had to devote to starting from nothing was in the 2am kind of hours. Quickly found that with blogger, someone else has usually posted the answer to your googled question somewhere, such as how to personalize your template, get rid of the navbar etc....We are in a very rural area, and place well now in google, more so I think because we have so little local competition than through any particular skill. You may be in a similar space. Take care with the photos, and keep building on those small successes. Keep reading and as each SEO tip comes up that make sense to you, use it, then move on as you gain more experience. Sorry to come so late to the conversation...you really have come to the right place for cumulative wisdom. Now if I could just be more faithful about keeping the blog fresh......
-KathleenM
.

Sidebar - kathleen, did Wheeling give you the answers you wanted/needed?

 

[white pine]

white pine,
Don't feel alone, I knew nothing about it when I started either. Webmasters are purists, and there are reasons to use one (if you can afford it). I do my own site using a template program from a well known hosting company. It costs me very little, I love doing it and have learned alot over the last eight years. I see no reason to pay someone big money when I can continue to do it myself. Is it perfect...No, but then, neither am I!
Companies like godaddy or network solutions have pretty darn good website programs for very little money, and you don't need to know any computer language to build and maintain a site with them. I would suggest, though, boneing up on SEO or using a program like IBP to help improve SEO as you go.
As a side note, I'm positive that CL did not mean to sound abrupt or to offend!.

Thanks LB for the encouragement. I could use some about now. I saw godaddy's templates and they are what set this whole thing off.
.

Look closely at the godaddy templates as you could end up advertising godaddy on every page of your site. So what? Well, it makes it look like you are not really a business but a hobby.
This is a big project. How about this...spend some time drawing the site out on paper. Get some sites you really like bookmarked and study why you like them. In other words, slow down a bit. Set a goal for yourself of one month to do the reviewing of what you like and why. Check out web designers in the meantime. MTLodge just had a new site built by Acorn... they do nice sites. For a simple, 2-page starter site, see what they would charge. Find out how you can make updates as you get more comfortable.
You can also start the blog so you can talk up what you're doing, what you plan to so, what the opening date is, etc.
But, you do need the site to go live to build history so next year when you're ready to reel them in, 'they' can find you.
You have a lot going on which is why I say to give yourself a month to gather info. There are a lot of parts to getting the site up and running and making it so that you don't shoot yourself in the foot later on. You've got an opportunity here that I envy...starting from scratch with nothing to 'fix'.
I think what you might try to get is something that doesn't look like a template but more like your vision. The website, your business, the rack cards, everything is all of a piece. Do it right once and you will be thankful for how easy it is to keep it going with simple changes and updates.
Because you have both domain names, you can use one to point to the other, main site. Decide which one is the main site and develop that one. You may find that innnamelakename.com is the better of the 2 domains. In which case, you point the old one to the new one.
I found that just downloading an editor left me wondering where to start so I see the allure of a template.
.

Just a bit of an update. Things are crazy here with the renovations on the lodge. Motel is full of workers (16 beds). I looked at lots of websites, and listed things I liked, but I don't know the difference between gee-gaws and things that matter. I am at a complete loss. Have been blogging, but it can't be found anywhere on google. I have been using google to try to use some seo, but this seems futile.
I spoke with two web designers, one does real estate and resorts nearby, He links his sites to rank highly, but It didn't sound like I would have any control on the site. I got a bid from one recommended here, at 5K + it feels like I am having to buy a car without knowing how to drive. I couldn't understand most of the break-out statement, and there were lots of TBD charges.
I just wanted one page that could be built on later as we get open. I don't have time to deal with learning this now, so I think this will go on the back burner til this winter. A pity, I really wanted to have some web visibility.

 

[jonedwste]

I would use your main website domain name that you plan to use for your business once it is open. I would use something like Wordpress(pretty simple to set up yourself and lots of templates)... I would place it at: yourbusiness.com/blog .. then, have the host forward all requests that are pointing to yourbusiness.com to yourbusiness.com/blog. Use this to promote a bit(and of course show off your improvements to a certain degree). Then, once you are ready to put your real site up, put it up.. but also link to your blog, or start a new blog within that site and keep a link to "how we got here blog", or something along those lines...
Just my opinion though.. Good luck! Sounds fun!

 

[swirt]

white pine,
Don't feel alone, I knew nothing about it when I started either. Webmasters are purists, and there are reasons to use one (if you can afford it). I do my own site using a template program from a well known hosting company. It costs me very little, I love doing it and have learned alot over the last eight years. I see no reason to pay someone big money when I can continue to do it myself. Is it perfect...No, but then, neither am I!
Companies like godaddy or network solutions have pretty darn good website programs for very little money, and you don't need to know any computer language to build and maintain a site with them. I would suggest, though, boneing up on SEO or using a program like IBP to help improve SEO as you go.
As a side note, I'm positive that CL did not mean to sound abrupt or to offend!.

Thanks LB for the encouragement. I could use some about now. I saw godaddy's templates and they are what set this whole thing off.
.

Look closely at the godaddy templates as you could end up advertising godaddy on every page of your site. So what? Well, it makes it look like you are not really a business but a hobby.
This is a big project. How about this...spend some time drawing the site out on paper. Get some sites you really like bookmarked and study why you like them. In other words, slow down a bit. Set a goal for yourself of one month to do the reviewing of what you like and why. Check out web designers in the meantime. MTLodge just had a new site built by Acorn... they do nice sites. For a simple, 2-page starter site, see what they would charge. Find out how you can make updates as you get more comfortable.
You can also start the blog so you can talk up what you're doing, what you plan to so, what the opening date is, etc.
But, you do need the site to go live to build history so next year when you're ready to reel them in, 'they' can find you.
You have a lot going on which is why I say to give yourself a month to gather info. There are a lot of parts to getting the site up and running and making it so that you don't shoot yourself in the foot later on. You've got an opportunity here that I envy...starting from scratch with nothing to 'fix'.
I think what you might try to get is something that doesn't look like a template but more like your vision. The website, your business, the rack cards, everything is all of a piece. Do it right once and you will be thankful for how easy it is to keep it going with simple changes and updates.
Because you have both domain names, you can use one to point to the other, main site. Decide which one is the main site and develop that one. You may find that innnamelakename.com is the better of the 2 domains. In which case, you point the old one to the new one.
I found that just downloading an editor left me wondering where to start so I see the allure of a template.
.

Just a bit of an update. Things are crazy here with the renovations on the lodge. Motel is full of workers (16 beds). I looked at lots of websites, and listed things I liked, but I don't know the difference between gee-gaws and things that matter. I am at a complete loss. Have been blogging, but it can't be found anywhere on google. I have been using google to try to use some seo, but this seems futile.
I spoke with two web designers, one does real estate and resorts nearby, He links his sites to rank highly, but It didn't sound like I would have any control on the site. I got a bid from one recommended here, at 5K + it feels like I am having to buy a car without knowing how to drive. I couldn't understand most of the break-out statement, and there were lots of TBD charges.
I just wanted one page that could be built on later as we get open. I don't have time to deal with learning this now, so I think this will go on the back burner til this winter. A pity, I really wanted to have some web visibility.
.

He links his sites to rank highly...
They all say that. No web designer for hire is going to say, "I haven't got a clue about how to get you to show up well." The proof is in the details of how they will do that.

 

[swirt]

I would use your main website domain name that you plan to use for your business once it is open. I would use something like Wordpress(pretty simple to set up yourself and lots of templates)... I would place it at: yourbusiness.com/blog .. then, have the host forward all requests that are pointing to yourbusiness.com to yourbusiness.com/blog. Use this to promote a bit(and of course show off your improvements to a certain degree). Then, once you are ready to put your real site up, put it up.. but also link to your blog, or start a new blog within that site and keep a link to "how we got here blog", or something along those lines...
Just my opinion though.. Good luck! Sounds fun!.

I would place it at: yourbusiness.com/blog .. then, have the host forward all requests that are pointing to yourbusiness.com to yourbusiness.com/blog.
A better approach is to not have them redirect it, but to simply have some of the content be on the home page with a clear indication to go to the blog. That way the home page starts building history from day 1 rather than waiting to build history when they open.

 

[egoodell]

white pine,
Don't feel alone, I knew nothing about it when I started either. Webmasters are purists, and there are reasons to use one (if you can afford it). I do my own site using a template program from a well known hosting company. It costs me very little, I love doing it and have learned alot over the last eight years. I see no reason to pay someone big money when I can continue to do it myself. Is it perfect...No, but then, neither am I!
Companies like godaddy or network solutions have pretty darn good website programs for very little money, and you don't need to know any computer language to build and maintain a site with them. I would suggest, though, boneing up on SEO or using a program like IBP to help improve SEO as you go.
As a side note, I'm positive that CL did not mean to sound abrupt or to offend!.

Thanks LB for the encouragement. I could use some about now. I saw godaddy's templates and they are what set this whole thing off.
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Look closely at the godaddy templates as you could end up advertising godaddy on every page of your site. So what? Well, it makes it look like you are not really a business but a hobby.
This is a big project. How about this...spend some time drawing the site out on paper. Get some sites you really like bookmarked and study why you like them. In other words, slow down a bit. Set a goal for yourself of one month to do the reviewing of what you like and why. Check out web designers in the meantime. MTLodge just had a new site built by Acorn... they do nice sites. For a simple, 2-page starter site, see what they would charge. Find out how you can make updates as you get more comfortable.
You can also start the blog so you can talk up what you're doing, what you plan to so, what the opening date is, etc.
But, you do need the site to go live to build history so next year when you're ready to reel them in, 'they' can find you.
You have a lot going on which is why I say to give yourself a month to gather info. There are a lot of parts to getting the site up and running and making it so that you don't shoot yourself in the foot later on. You've got an opportunity here that I envy...starting from scratch with nothing to 'fix'.
I think what you might try to get is something that doesn't look like a template but more like your vision. The website, your business, the rack cards, everything is all of a piece. Do it right once and you will be thankful for how easy it is to keep it going with simple changes and updates.
Because you have both domain names, you can use one to point to the other, main site. Decide which one is the main site and develop that one. You may find that innnamelakename.com is the better of the 2 domains. In which case, you point the old one to the new one.
I found that just downloading an editor left me wondering where to start so I see the allure of a template.
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Just a bit of an update. Things are crazy here with the renovations on the lodge. Motel is full of workers (16 beds). I looked at lots of websites, and listed things I liked, but I don't know the difference between gee-gaws and things that matter. I am at a complete loss. Have been blogging, but it can't be found anywhere on google. I have been using google to try to use some seo, but this seems futile.
I spoke with two web designers, one does real estate and resorts nearby, He links his sites to rank highly, but It didn't sound like I would have any control on the site. I got a bid from one recommended here, at 5K + it feels like I am having to buy a car without knowing how to drive. I couldn't understand most of the break-out statement, and there were lots of TBD charges.
I just wanted one page that could be built on later as we get open. I don't have time to deal with learning this now, so I think this will go on the back burner til this winter. A pity, I really wanted to have some web visibility.
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Just a bit of an update. Things are crazy here with the renovations on the lodge. Motel is full of workers (16 beds). I looked at lots of websites, and listed things I liked, but I don't know the difference between gee-gaws and things that matter. I am at a complete loss. Have been blogging, but it can't be found anywhere on google. I have been using google to try to use some seo, but this seems futile.
I spoke with two web designers, one does real estate and resorts nearby, He links his sites to rank highly, but It didn't sound like I would have any control on the site. I got a bid from one recommended here, at 5K + it feels like I am having to buy a car without knowing how to drive. I couldn't understand most of the break-out statement, and there were lots of TBD charges.
I just wanted one page that could be built on later as we get open. I don't have time to deal with learning this now, so I think this will go on the back burner til this winter. A pity, I really wanted to have some web visibility.

Have you gone and listed your business on Google? It does not take long and will give you some visability. For instance, when you google "Wine tour charlottesville" we show up on the side of the map. You register, and give them a phone number. They call you with a code and that activates it. If you do that you'll show up for your town when someone googles it for a B&B or whatever.
RIki

 

[wendydk]

IF I remember correctly, you're here in Michigan? Be sure to visit my site www.michiganinnguide.com and sign up for at least a free listing. Under the Innkeepers tab, you will also find an entire page of links where you can go and add your Inn at no charge, including the official Michigan Travel site at www.michigan.org.

 

[white pine]

IF I remember correctly, you're here in Michigan? Be sure to visit my site www.michiganinnguide.com and sign up for at least a free listing. Under the Innkeepers tab, you will also find an entire page of links where you can go and add your Inn at no charge, including the official Michigan Travel site at www.michigan.org..

Thanks very much Little Blue, I will check it out!
Yup, we are in north of you. Feels like fall is beginning, workers are in crazy mode trying to get the outside painted, and the windows which are being restored reinstalled ahead of the weather. Roof is on!