Creating a Website

I have been working on our website for about a year now -- it is challenging to say the least. If you don't' already have a website, you might be thinking of setting one up before the holiday rush sets in right after summer. So a few tips I have learned along the path that might make your lives less frustrating.
1- Find a good carrier for your site - I use Pappa Shop

• they are reliable
• they are cheap
• their free templates are,well.. free (just load in your Etsy banner and you are good to go)
• the cart they use hooks to paypal without any hassle
  
• they have an order tracking system for your customers
• you can run your blog right from your site if you choose
• easy to use data feed for google search
  

2- Get help when you need it (I hate to ask for help, but this project has cured me of that!)

Web Designers can give you a fancier look - check on Etsy or here are two of my favorites:

Wild Oak Design - I have used them on other projects - very good!
Avalon Rose - She does fabulous work!

Web Product Imput - this is a very time consuming part of having a website - loading in new products. But I have found a gal who will do it for you and she is very reasonably priced. She can take your info and photos right from your Etsy shop and give you a fabulously full website. She is the Web Contessa.

3- Advertise free. Once your site is up, you will have an email address that links to your site - start using it. Add your new website to all your invoices from other sites to get the word out. And use the google data feed to get your products listed in the search engines for free.

I hope this helps someone - if you have any other tips, please feel free to post them in the comments for everyone to benefit from - craft on!

If you want to check out our website you can visit it here.