Early in this article we established that every minute of every day there are hackers out on the internet modifying code in websites that are not theirs.\u00a0 Some do it to be malicious, some do it just to be able to say that they did.\u00a0 No matter their motive, your website needs to be secure just as you need to lock the front door of your home to discourage hackers to take their mischief to a less secure target.\u00a0 This brings me to my next point in this article.<\/p>\n

#5: Security<\/strong><\/p>\n

It important to use good secure passwords when setting up your websites.\u00a0 I once made a website for a colleague and used a very easy password for him because he would be changing it to something he could remember as soon as he logged in.\u00a0 I believed it would be 10 minutes at the most before he changed the password.\u00a0 His cat threw up on the carpet as some cats will do and he took 30 minutes to clean the carpet.\u00a0 When he tried to log in, he was unable to get into the website.\u00a0 He called me and I was also unable to log in!\u00a0 When I looked at the front end of the website, I knew immediately what had happened.\u00a0 It looked completely different than when I had set it up!\u00a0 Not only that, but there was a nice ransom note on the front of the website!\u00a0 We were able to recover the website but it required setting it up again from scratch and backup media and a MUCH more secure password.\u00a0<\/p>\n

What makes a secure password?\u00a0 It depends on who you’re securing your website from and what is being secured.\u00a0 To just keep the honest<\/em> folks honest, I suggest most passwords be at least 8 characters long, using both upper case and lower case characters and at least one symbol.\u00a0 Make it something you can remember.\u00a0 Change the password about every 6 months.<\/p>\n

You will also want to use a form of security software to discourage attacks like automated logins, SQL injection strings and other fairly easy ways of breaking into your site.\u00a0 Different platforms have different ways of dealing with this and is outside the scope of this article.<\/p>\n

#6:\u00a0 Resources and Tools<\/strong><\/p>\n

The resources and tools of the website designer can run thousands of dollars.\u00a0 Starting with the operating software of their own computer, to the graphics packages, to media rights, to security packages, to constant training, it all costs money and time to stay up to date on the craft.\u00a0 Sure there’s lots of free software out there but it still takes time to master it.\u00a0 Just as the mechanic needs the proper tools and replacement parts to work on your car, the website designer needs the proper hardware and software to be able to build your best website.\u00a0 If he or she needs to hire the skills to ensure your timeline can be met, that is another cost.<\/p>\n

The resources and tools that you have could mean that you need to restore your website from your backup copy.\u00a0 Let’s say you actually have a backup.\u00a0 Now what?\u00a0 What do you do with it?\u00a0 If you are able to get to the restore facility to do the website restore, what do you do if you don’t get a message of “restore successful” at the end of the restore wizard process?\u00a0 The answer is, it depends on what went wrong.\u00a0 An experienced professional will know what to do and where to look for the answer.\u00a0 Generally a website designer who has already worked with you, will be much more eager to jump on board during your time of need because they are already familiar with your set up rather than trying to hire someone to figure out your crisis during your crisis.<\/p>\n

#7: Search Engine Optimization<\/strong><\/p>\n

This is the long heralded holy grail of the website designer.\u00a0 It is important to know what you’re doing when you’re setting up search engine optimization.\u00a0 Having said that, it is important to have keywords used in your website so that your ideal customer can find you when they are doing a local search.\u00a0 If your website is not found on the internet, there is no way that your ideal customer will see your website.\u00a0 They would need to know your exact website address or business name before they were able to find you.\u00a0 They would need to already know your business before finding your website.\u00a0 If you’re going to have a website on the internet, wouldn’t it make sense for you to have key words on the website so that your website would be displayed when your ideal customer types in the exact product category that you business specializes in?\u00a0 For instance, if you have a newcomer to your area moving to your town and they are looking for your specialty, let’s say your specialty is diamond necklaces.\u00a0 If they type diamond necklaces and your town name into the Google search bar, would they find your business or your competitor?\u00a0 If they find your competitor first and they also give great service, you may have lost a customer for life!\u00a0 This is why search engine optimization is SO important.<\/p>\n

When you’re building your own website, you may not even know about these secrets much less be able to implement them in a timely efficient manner so that you can begin to make the money that you need.\u00a0 When you do decide to have someone else create your website for you, use this list and ask questions so that you can understand just what it is that you are paying for.\u00a0 This is an investment of your hard earned money that will pay you for many years down the road.\u00a0 If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment or use the Ask SoftwareGirl<\/a> area to contact me directly.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Early in this article we established that every minute of every day there are hackers out on the internet modifying code in websites that are not theirs.\u00a0 Some do it to be malicious, some do it just to be able to say that they did.\u00a0 No matter their motive, your website needs to be secure […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[26,369,525,15,19,537],"yoast_head":"\n