Layout
If there is one thing on a website that stands out to it's audience, it would definately be it's layout. There's nothing more effective than having something good to look at while you are browsing through content. An effective layout is key to creating a successful website. Why? Because if executed successfully, it appeals, pleases, and keeps the visitors eye on your domain; even makes them want to come back for more. As for finding a good layout, there are many ways to get good layouts. The two best methods and probably most commonly used are to: 1)Do it yourself -or- 2)Pay $$$$ for a quality designer to do it for you. If you're on a budget like most people, you will probably opt out of the second choice. And here is where most websites fail and succeed. Let's go into these two methods a little bit deeply:


Now that we have gone through these two methods it is definately important to mention that QUALITY is key; no matter who does the work. One simple way to check for quality is to do "blind" posting on forums; using an unrelated username to post a request for reviewon your design. Usually this is a very effective way to revise, and even optimize your design. Also, users will usually give a very honest opinion of the creation. There are many other ways to get fair reviews however, this is what has worked best for me.


Backend
Although the frontend is a major part of just having a successful web design, a backend is important for keeping that design afloat. Backends play a major role in making sure your site run smoothly, and also serve and retrieve content for your design to display. Most dynamic websites today are designed with PHP as their preferred backend. That is because PHP is a highly flexible language which can be used to create efficient backends on the web. However, it could be your worst nightmare. As with design, a backend can either be done yourself or by someone else. As the average webmaster knows his limitations, this job is usually hired out to someone else.

Picking a person or firm to create a useful backend is usually a rough task. It would be recommended that:


Content
Content completes the artwork (design,backend,con.. get it?). It is what you will actually sell to your users, the meat of the sandwich. Having good content is key and will mostly be the bringer of most visitors on your site. Rich content in the niche of your website, informative posts/updates, articulate and accurate information is the best way to help your domain to survive. There aren't many tricks to it but there is one thing that I highly suggest: to create the content or grab content to create quality content. I highly recommend NOT outsourcing content creation as 9 of 10 times it is either faulty, cheap, reused, or just plain boring. As well as concise content, be sure that you update regularly or else you risk the loss of visitors. And of coarse no one wants that.

Stay tuned for the next part of this series Part II:Exposure, in which we will cover tips and ways to attract visitors to your website.