All about website and its structuring

How website works?

Welcome to this article on how websites work. We’ll run down the basics — without getting too technical, promise! — on web servers and domain names, what they do for you and how to find what you need to get started. A website is your business’s home on the Internet. It’s where potential customers can come and learn about your business and what it has to offer them. Let’s say you decide to open a bakery in the real world. First you’d have to rent a space to house it, right? A website is no different. Only you’re not renting space on a high street, you’re renting space on a server.

There are loads of services out there that take care of this automatically... but here's a quick overview so that you have an idea about what's happening behind the scenes. OK, hang with us, here comes a bit of technical information.

A server is a computer connected to the Internet, with software that allows it to store or 'host' the pieces of your website: the code, the images, the video clips and anything else that makes up your site. It’s called a server because it ‘serves’ up the right content when requested — that is, when someone wants to view a page on your website.

There are many companies and services that will rent you space on a server and host your website. Just like a brick-and-mortar shop, you pay an ongoing hosting fee, which is a bit like paying rent, leaving them to take care the technical aspects of running a server so you don’t have to.

Every single server in the world has its own address. This is called an IP address, which is short for internet protocol. All you need to know is, it’s a long string of numbers that means any device connected to the internet can talk to the server and find it. Luckily, you don’t need to understand what they’re saying to each other; all you need to do is choose a nicer name to reference that numeric IP address. Which brings us nicely to the second part of this session: the web address, or ‘domain name.’ Your domain name is how potential customers will find you, the same way people would find our real-world bakery: by the sign above its door. It’s the thing you type into the browser window to get to any website. Like www.google.co.uk or www.yourbusinessnamegoeshere.com. Let’s take a minute to break it down. Everything after the ‘WWW dot’ is actually what’s known as the domain name. It’s the part that lets people find your website, so it's pretty important. Any device that searches for this address — a tablet, a smartphone, a laptop — is communicating with the server. The server then sends that device all the correct pieces it needs to display the website — things like images and code — so that whoever is on the other end of the device can view your pages. When someone types your web address into their browser, here’s what basically happens. First, their browser figures out which server holds the content, and heads over to that server. The browser then says, “Hey, would you mind giving me all the elements I need to show a person this web page?” The Server replies, “Sure, I’m sending along 5 images, 2 scripts, and a few additional files.” The browser puts all the pieces together, and the person sees your nicely formatted web page. And that’s pretty much it, except they’d actually be talking in really confusing bits and bytes, not English. But that wouldn’t make any sense to us, so...

To sum up: Deciding to build a website for your business starts with understanding how it all works together: a server ‘hosts’ your site, and a domain name helps people find it.

Key elements of a website

Here we’ll talk you through some crucial early decisions you’ll make about your website: choosing a website name and planning how your site is structured. The goal is making it easy for customers to find their way around and get what they want. Because a happy customer equals a more successful business, right?

Ready to go?

First up, your domain name. That’s what people will type into a web browser to find you.

When choosing a domain name, you first need to check if the one you want is available. There can only be one TastyBakery.com on the web, for example, and if someone has already claimed it, you won’t be able to use it. So, how do you know if the name you want is taken? Just do a search for 'domain registrar' and click on one of the results. There should be a tool on the site that lets you see if someone is already using the name you want. And, if they are, it may suggest another similar name that’s available for you to use.

A good domain name is one that people can easily remember. Keep it as short, relevant and as to-the-point as possible.

You may be able to get a variation of the name you want by choosing a different extension, which is the fancy name for the bit at the end. You’re probably familiar with the '.com' or '.co.uk' extensions, but you might find others that are available or a better fit. For example, non-profit organizations often use '.org.' What this also means is that although 'TastyBakery.com' may be taken, 'TastyBakery.net' may still be available. OK, that’s the name sorted. Let’s have a look at some other common parts of a website, like the home page. This is the first page people see after they type in your domain name and get to your website. The home page is your shop window, where you invite people in and explain what you’re all about. A home page also directs visitors to other pages of your website through what we call 'navigation'. Your navigation headings may run across the top of a page or down the side. Either way, it’s a menu that lets people travel from one part of the site to another.

How you organise the site is very important. Start by thinking about the websites you visit regularly. How are they organised?

Now, decide what kind of content you want to offer, and then group it together in ways that make sense. Incidentally, many website-building tools offer business website templates that can help you get started.

One easy place to start? The pages and sections you see on most websites: things like 'About' and 'Contact' pages. Your website’s Contact page might include your address, phone number, email and a map with directions.

The About page might tell the story of your business and include photos of some of your best work. There’s no right or wrong way to organise a site, but you’ll always want to put yourself in your visitor’s shoes. What’s he or she looking for? What are they trying to accomplish on the website?

Now, you want to set things up so it’s super-easy for visitors to find the information they need, like the bakery’s working hours, or complete important goals, like submitting an online order.
Let’s check out what you’ll see on the pages themselves.

First, you’ll notice those navigation signposts, like the About and Contact headings. They should appear on every page of your site so that people can always get to where they want to go, or back to where they’ve been.

Of course, there will also be words, or text: headlines, paragraphs, bulleted lists. And you might also have things like images and video.

Text and images can also be set up to link to other pages on the Internet when they’re clicked. These are known as 'hyperlinks', or shortcuts to other pages either on your site or elsewhere on the web. Many websites also invite customers to interact, with features like forms to submit questions, maps with turn-by-turn directions to your store or shopping baskets to buy products directly. Your website — your digital storefront — is a great opportunity to connect with customers. Choosing the right domain name, organising the site logically and including nifty features can help your visitors find exactly what they’re looking for.

Website designing do's and don'ts

You’ve heard the expression “you only get one chance to make a first impression,” right? Well, it holds true online, too.

This can help you avoid common mistakes in your website design that can drive visitors away. We’ll cover how to make sure your pages load fast, making your site mobile friendly, general accessibility and the quality of your content.

First, you need speed. Internet users aren’t famous for patience, and if your pages take too long to load, they’ll leave.

There are lots of technical things that you, or whoever builds your website, can do to speed things up, like choosing the right technologies and hosting solutions. But there are also some simple fixes.

If you have images on your pages, use the smallest ones you need. Ditch large, high-resolution files if they’re only going to appear as thumbnails. Plenty of software programs can resize or compress images to make them smaller, and this translates to faster loading times.

Simplify your design. Generally, the more you limit what your visitors’ browsers have to download and re-use, the faster pages will load. Use the same background image across many pages, and ask whoever is building your website to be efficient with code and scripts. If you want to test how you’re doing, try opening the site on your mobile - using a data connection, not WiFi - and see how quickly it loads.

Next, make sure your website is easy to use on a mobile. More and more people are using their smartphones as their primary device for browsing the web, and if your site is difficult to use on these devices, you’ll potentially lose customers.

The easiest way to have a mobile-friendly website is to build it that way from the start, using an approach like “responsive design,” which automatically detects the type of screen being used and displays the site accordingly—doing things like stacking text and photos vertically on a smartphone being held upright.

If you want to get a sense for whether your site is mobile-friendly, try Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test tool.

Keep in mind things like swiping or tapping, which are unique to touchscreens. Be sure the components of your website respond properly to these kinds of “inputs.”
Using widely recognised icons and making content clear and well organised will help visitors using smaller screens to find what they need.

Next, make it easy to find your address and phone number. Many devices are equipped with GPS and mapping features, which can help visitor on-the-go. And of course, when accessing your website from a mobile, it should be easy for visitors to give you a ring.

You’ll also want to remember that people will be viewing your site on different browsers—like Chrome or Firefox—and different platforms, like Windows or Mac. Do a test run from as many computers, devices and browsers as you can. Does your site look right in every case? Are you prompted to download plug-ins? That’s an extra step that may send visitors away.

Last, remember that your website is not just for selling—it’s for solving.

Imagine you’re a visitor. Ask yourself, why am I here? What am I trying to do? What problem am I trying to solve?

For example, if you own a bakery that makes custom cakes, someone is probably visiting your site because they need one. You could write pages about your decorating style and inspirations. But a testimonial and photos from a real-life customer might be a better bet.

So those are some common mistakes that trip up many websites. To avoid them, make sure your pages load quickly, and look and behave properly, no matter what device and browser a visitor uses.

And think of your customers when you create content. Answer their needs, and you have the best chance of bringing them in.