Just as a house consists of rooms varying in size and function, a website consists of webpages varying in length and purpose. Like a one-room bungalow, a budget website may have just one all-purpose page -- the homepage. However, your website will probably include several of the webpage types shown below.

NOTE:  For each type, there is a description and a miniature clickable screenshot that will take you to an example in a live site. These are actual sites, not demos, so please don't use an interactive feature (email, inquiry, guestbook, recommend, suggest, etc.) unless you really want to communicate with the website's owner.

Homepage.
This is the most important page on your website. It must load quickly, look attractive, explain the website's purpose, contain the menu (navigation) for the rest of the site, and index well in search engines and directories. A heavy burden indeed! Ron Gold says his homepage works wonders for him.
P.S. Clicking on a miniature screenshot opens the linked page in a new browser window. Don't forget to close the window when you're done!  Menu

About Us.
Unless you're Madonna or IBM, the first time visitor to your website needs a quick and easy way to find out who you are. The About Us page provides a thumbnail sketch of your history and what you do. This is the place to define your mission and explain your modus operandi. For Domus Appraisals, we used both an About Us page and Biographies for the principal appraisers.  Menu

Biography.
If your business is baking bagels or marketing Mediterranean motorcars, you probably don't need a professional biography (or resume or curriculum vitae), but if you're a professional, such as an attorney, appraiser, or anesthesiologist, a biography is de rigueur. Arleen Goscinski's covers her education, credentials, work history, and honors.  Menu

Catalog.
For retailers, wholesalers, and distributors, like JRH Equipment in Minnesota, the biggest and most important section of a website is the catalog. For JRH, we used a framing technique that permits visitors to browse pages hosted by the manufacturer, Mohawk Lifts. Want an online store? We can combine catalog pages with a live database, search engine, shopping cart technology, and a secure server to let you do business 24/7.  Menu

Services.
Sometimes we describe the services offered by a firm on its homepage. But for most professionals, we prefer a separate services page. The one for Gem Evaluation Lab tells visitors about consultations, appraisals, expert testimony, and discusses the fee structure. A services page makes it clear what you offer and what you don't!  Menu

Inquiry Form.
Nearly 90% of the visitors to the busy Balch Buyer's Realty website initiate contact with this exclusive buyer's agent by submitting the inquiry form shown at right. The Balch brokers say this lets visitors begin the relationship at a comfortable distance. And they can do it any day, any time. The late night browser won't call you at 2 a.m., but he or she will fire off an inquiry!
P.S. To put The Webshop to work on your new website, fill out our simple inquiry form.  Menu

Article or Column.
A perfect way to expose visitors to your viewpoint is to post a featured article or tips column. Do it on a regular basis and you'll generate a stream of visitors, including search engine spiders that will index your site over and over again. If you're not inclined to write the column yourself, we can do it for you -- see our Webtips column, for example -- or you can do what Best Buyer's Broker does, and buy timely, topical columns from an industry news bureau.  Menu

Newsletter.
A column is good; a newsletter is better. A monthly or quarterly newsletter has all the benefits of a column and then some. The one produced by the Long Island Chapter of the American Society of Appraisers describes upcoming events and meetings, discusses chapter business, and invites visitors to become members. Send us your newsletter copy; we'll edit it, brighten and tighten the prose, and add appropriate graphics. The Webshop: Newsletter Mavens!  Menu

Calendar of Events.
A Calendar of Events, like the one we maintain for the Raynham Hall Museum, is a powerful tool for informing members and the public about the museum's activities. Journalists subscribe to the page to find newsworthy events; members refer to it for exact times, dates, and venues; prospective members read it to get a feel for the organization. An out-of-date calendar can kill a website; an active, current calendar is a strong magnet for new and repeat traffic. Speaking of calendars, isn't it time you put a Webshop order on yours? Menu

Forum.
Another way to ratchet up traffic while getting out your message is the moderated forum. Visitors love it because it allows them to discuss topics that interest them, asking questions and getting feedback. But forums only work if they're moderated. Speed is essential in removing off-topic and off-color posts and in answering questions informatively. Besides the popular PC Forum, which we run for ourselves, we maintain and moderate forums for our real estate, automotive equipment, and history/genealogy clients. Like more traffic? Think forum!  Menu

FAQs.
A FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) section is a convenient way to provide important snippets of information that may not be central to your story. The question and answer format simulates a dialogue, and makes it easy to provide information in a relaxed, casual style. Arleen Goscinski's FAQs section uses a lefthand menu to select the questions and a righthand panel to display the answers. Our FAQs puts the questions on top and hyperlinked answers below.  Menu

Related Articles.
Another way to serve up slices of information without having to bake the cake yourself is to reprint magazine and newspaper articles from recognized local and national sources. (Be careful about the Copyrights!) Balch Buyer's Realty, a buyer's broker, has articles from Consumer Reports, Business Week, and The New York Times, among others. They cover topics like real estate trends, house-hunting online, using a buyer's broker, and tips on relocation.  Menu

Photo Gallery.
When you visit a new website and find "photo gallery" in the menu, don't you make that your first stop? Most of us do. If a picture is worth a thousand words, several dozen images can easily set the tone of your website, convey subtle aspects of your message, delight, inform, and induce multiple repeat visits. Need we say more?  Menu

Press Room.
If you have an exquisitely renovated historic bed and breakfast inn with a congenial innkeeper and all the latest high-tech goodies, it's not too hard to get written up in magazines and newspapers. So the Inn at Rose Hill Farm has some really cool write-ups in its Press Room section. But the truth is any business or organization with a will can find a way to attract press coverage. And nothing enhances your credibility like independent testimonials from a readily verifiable source. Press on!  Menu

Bookshelf.
First time visitors to a website are often "just looking" for information. If your website is the Internet equivalent of a Yellow Pages advertisement, say goodbye to these visitors -- for good. The way to keep them is to nourish them with information, and what could do that better than a reading list of recommended books?
P.S. Like the folks at Domus Appraisal, you can leave it to us to do it all -- select the books and make the list.  Menu

Weblinks.
Another webpage that nourishes visitors is one giving related websites. On first blush, you'd think it would be a bad idea to send your hard-earned visitor to another website. But if your visitor is looking for information you don't have, pointing out another nutritious website will earn you a bookmark and the high probability of a return visit.
P.S. Just nod if you want weblinks. That's what the Complete Home Buyers Agency did. We did the rest.  Menu

Searchable Database.
Want to find an appraiser in Northern New Jersey? The local chapter of the American Society of Appraisers could show you pages of appraisers, organized by discipline and specialty, then city, then name. But they chose a better way -- a searchable database that will do the lookup for you. What's really neat about the database is that members can update their records from their homes and offices at any time of day or night. Visitors always get the latest information automatically!  Menu

Work Samples.
Everyone likes to kick the tires before buying. After all, that's why you're reading this page! Sometimes it's possible to offer a free sample of your product or service by email, Internet download, or home delivery. Paul Dougherty, the President of PJ McJorma, Inc., is a real estate appraiser who makes sample appraisals available for inspection on his website. The appraisals, in PDF format, can be examined online, or printed out to share with others. Pride in workmanship is a hook you can bank on!  Menu