FAQ

What types of website can I make?

The following websites are all easy to build and everything you need to know about how to build and manage it is covered in the course.

• A standard Business Brochure Website
• A website that sells products – Yes. If you sell a product then there are lots of options available that will enable you to sell those products from your website. You can create your own ecommerce store within wordpress very easily and accept payment online using a variety of payment methods.
• A Portfolio Website that Lists Projects, Your Work or your Products – You may wish to list previous projects that you worked on, or products that you sell in a portfolio-style website. This is very easy indeed.
• An Article Website (or Blog) – Whether you want your site to look like a serious newspaper or a lighthearted blog – making a website to list and display articles is what WordPress was designed to do.
• A Directory Website – Setting up the directory is just a matter of a few clicks and you will be taken through the process step by step. To see an example of how the directory plugin works with wordpress click here.
• A Membership Site – Yes. You can have a site just like ebusinessmatter.com that restricts full access for certain pages to paying customers. There are many plugins available that will enable you to do this – with 2 or 3 main contenders. They are all very easy to use and can be setup in minutes.
• A Website that Sells Virtual Products – like software or ebooks – Yes. Just like selling a physical product you can sell virtual products with a number of great plugins to choose from. Your website will be able to accept payment then send out an email to the customer containing information on how they can download your product. Setting everything up is straightforward
• A website that takes bookings for events or accommodation – Yes. There are a number of powerful wordpress plugins that will enable an online booking service for your site. Visitors to your site will be able to check availability of apartments, houses, hotel rooms, or services you offer. They can also make reservations and appointments with the ability to choose from multi-day, single day, or by the hour booking. Your clients can even view and register for upcoming events. With integrated Paypal support your clients can pay online!

Other types of website WordPress can handle include

• Facebook clone
• Forums
• Newsletter
• Wiki
• Customer Relationship Management System
• Invoicing system
• Project management system
• Calendar system
• E-commerce website
• Job board
• Classified board
• Real estate listing site
• Business directory
• Auctions website
• Review website

How many hours work are involved?

The course runs for 12 weeks – and there is approximately 2 hours work to be completed each week.

That’s a total of 24 hours work (approximately).

24 hours should be enough for most students to build a website and develop an Internet marketing strategy for getting visitors and achieving business objectives.

Of course, running a website is an ongoing task.

Who is this course for?

This course is for anyone who wants to learn how to build and manage a website.

Previous students have included restaurant owners, dentists, business consultants, bloggers, affiliate marketers, owners of classified ad sites and budding entrepreneurs with various ideas for making money online.

Our students, an equal mix of male and female, come from all backgrounds, and all age groups.

The course is hands-on; which means that students should be prepared to build a website in order to get the maximum benefits.

If you don’t already have an idea for a website then we suggest building an affiliate marketing site – or an online CV.

How is e-learning different from classroom-based learning?

Most student have “learned to learn” in a classroom based environment. The classroom is a social environment where students can easily ask for guidance – and also interact and compete with other students.

Until recently the technology needed to replicate this “social” learning environment has been largely unavailable.

However, recent progress in technology and the widespread adoption of high-speed Internet connectivity -  means that students engaged in the e-learning environment can now enjoy all the benefits of their classroom-based counterparts.

Some courses are better suited to an online learning environment than others – none more so than this one.

Pro’s of doing an online course

• No travel time to class
• You can do your work anywhere, anytime – which means you can choose to study at times of peak concentration
• You’re already online – which is where you need to be when running a website
• While teachers were previously relied upon to deliver practical, in-class demonstrations – these demonstrations  can now be viewed in video (which can be paused and played back)
• Students can interact with the tutor and other students in the discussion forum associated with each lesson
• Students can stay abreast of how others are getting on and communicate informally with the tutor with short profile updates and private messages (similar to Twitter and Facebook)

If you don’t understand concepts such as discussion forums, and have never used Facebook or Twitter – then rest assured they are easy to use, & surely now is a good time to learn?

Con’s of doing an online course

• You have to be motivated yourself, without a daily schedule enforced on you, to do your work

How much does it cost to build my own website?

Our aim is to teach students how to build a high-quality website at absolute minimum cost.

The software and services we recommend are used by some of the most successful website on the Internet – and most are free.

Although it is possible to build a complete website for absolutely no cost whatsoever – we strongly recommend paying for certain services which will make your life much easier and your site more reliable.

Additional Student Costs include:

• A recognizable Domain Name (E.g .com, .net, .co.uk, .com.au = USD$10)
• Secure, Reliable Web Hosting (approximate cost = €50 yearly)
• Professional Web Design with Technical Support  (approximate cost = €35)

We also recommend that some students invest in a business logo, and sometimes stock photography. There is a complete lesson on where to find the best deals on such services and overseas outsourcing.

Approximate cost for professionally produced graphics is zero for many students but approximately €90 for students in need of a logo and stock photos.

How much previous IT experience do I need to do this course?

Although this course is designed for students with no previous web or IT experience – it is recommended that students have a basic understanding of how to operate a computer.

Students should be able to manage (copy, delete, rename) files and browse the Internet.

What software will I learn to use?

WordPress
The software you will use to manage your website is called WordPress. It’s free, it’s flexible – and we have hours of video lessons that will step you through performing all the tasks necessary to manage your WordPress site like a professional. WordPress is used by many of the worlds leading websites including Sony, Ford, The Wallstreet Journal, Digital Marketing Institute and this one.

Google Analytics
You will learn to use Google analytics to measure the performance of both your website design and your Internet marketing efforts. Google Analytics is free, industry-standard software – used by top professionals and leading companies around the world.

The Internet
You will learn how to use the web to get the best deals on the technical things you need to build your website. You will learn how to outsource overseas to get the best deals on complex tasks (such as web design and graphic design )and manage freelance professionals to get make sure you get what you want – at astoundingly cheap prices.

Internet Marketing Tools and Resources
You will learn to use and get the most out of freely available online resources that will help you to research your online market (both customers and competitors). Freely available software tools will help you to see how many people are searching for keywords relating to your business, which other companies you are competing with – and how to outrank these competing sites on the Google search results.