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Marc Poirier: Website Creation 101
Visibility is clearly a crucial aspect of any creator's career. Singer-songwriters have traditionally publicized themselves through promotion and live performances, but recent technological developments have created a new range of effective career and marketing-development tools, including personal Websites.
Why have your own Website? First of all, artists can not only publicize themselves online but can also keep in close touch with their audience, thanks to the interactive aspect of a Website. Another obvious advantage is you can include MP3 files that fans can download to sample your work. This increasingly popular technology makes it possible for artists without a recording contract to do their own distribution and thus reach a wider audience. While this is particularly important for independent artists, many established composers, songwriters and performers also maintain their own Websites, which can generate lots of traffic by Web-savvy fans.
You don't need to spend a fortune to have your own home on the Net. It's relatively easy to build it yourself with a minimum amount of work and money. The three basic points to keep in mind before you start to build your Website are:
* be your own Webmaster (it's cheaper than hiring someone else);
* look for free hosting (many servers offer this service);
* don't forget that a Website is a marketing tool (design it to look good, and make sure you promote it once it's done).
Building your own site
The first thing to do is find an HTML editor, which you need to build your site. HTML, which stands for hypertext mark-up language, is the Internet's universal language: Any computer with a Web browser, such as Netscape or Explorer, can display an HTML page. You don't have to be a programmer to build your own Website, since most HTML programs offer "What-you-see-is-what-you-get" (WYSIWYG) editing. You can also find many Web-building resources on the Internet with tips and advice. To find an HTML editor, check out www.download.com, which has several free and demo programs available.
Find a good host
Once you have built your Website, your next step is to launch it into cyberspace. To do this, your site must be hosted on a server, a large computer that is connected to the Internet. Many service-providers, such as Geocities, offer hosting free of charge in return for advertising on your page.
Getting hits
Now that your site is up and running, how can you make sure it will get the kind of attention it deserves? There are several ways to achieve this: first, get listed by portal sites and search engines such as Google Canada, so fans can find you more easily simply by typing in your name. Another way is to exchange links with related sites. This way you stand a better chance of reaching the right customers.
With a little effort, a lot of research and some originality, your Website will go live and people will soon start visiting you - and hearing your music - online.
