What you need to think about before starting a web development project.

Determine what kind of interaction you want your customers to have with your website, which can include

• shopping
• registration
• requesting information
• searching a database
• downloading or uploading files
• discussion forums

Determine the expertise you need. There are two components to the creation of a website: Design and Development.  Design deals with the front end look and feel.  Development deals with the back-end functionality.

Some of the elements that you can add to your website to make it more engaging and interactive:

• Forms - visitors can easily submit or request information
• Message Boards - visitors can leave or respond to messages
• Photo Galleries - display graphical information on your products or services
• Counters - track the number of times a page has been viewed
• Flash Animation- create interesting animated content
• Search - allow visitors to search for content
• Shopping Cart - software that collects and records the purchases of your customer
• Inventory Management - automatic updating of your inventory

Planning Your Project
1. Determine the objective of your website.
2. Define your audience.
3. Determine what content you will need.
4. Look at our Design Gallery for inspiration.
5. Develop a rough storyboard for your site to ensure that you have all the components.
6. Write up a detailed project description based on the information you have gathered.

Cost to Complete a Website Development Project
Website development projects typically start at under a thousand dollars and go up to several thousand depending on the complexity and size of the site you would like.

How to Use Elance to Complete Your Web Development Project
Follow these steps to get your website developed using Elance.

1. Complete the project description with the following: form and be sure to include the following information:

• Purpose of the website
• The number of pages you will need produced
• Graphic material such as logos or images
• Functional requirements such as ecommerce, security etc.

2. Once you start receiving bids, carefully review the provider's qualifications and portfolio.

3. Choose a service provider and begin working on the project. The typical project will require the following steps:

• Information gathering on the part of the provider
• Brainstorming with the provider
• Initial draft or concept presentation
• Revisions of the concept
• Near final drafts of the website
• Revisions and completion of final versions