Building a good web site will take more than just tossing some money at a freelance designer, it takes having a vision and some creativity to see that vision come to life. If you need some help to get your creative juices flowing, here are a few tips:

• A good web site is well-organized. You should be able to easily navigate your web site without getting confused about where some things may be.
• Include a search feature on your web site to help your visitors that may be having trouble finding what they need.
• Your web site should be easy on the eyes. This means you should be able to view it without squinting. The best web sites have a light colored background with dark writing. This is easier than trying to read white text on a black background.
• A web site should be clean. This means you shouldn't have too much information packed onto it. Keep it simple. People like white space; it makes the site look clean and not too busy.
• Web sites should be focused on their target audience. If you are selling sports memorabilia, it's ok to talk about all the news that is happening in the sports world. It isn't ok to talk about your health care issues and other problems. Make sure your site is completely focused on your market and you will be just fine.
• Integrate a good shopping cart. For some home business, the shopping cart feature is their downfall. If you don't purchase a good program for your shopping cart, it will be difficult to understand. Try to get a standard program that is similar to easy shopping carts like Amazon.com. If you can get a shopping cart that is "known" by internet users, they won't have confusion when they are trying to checkout.
• Finally, always include an "about us" section and a "contact us" page. Your contact information really should appear on every screen at the bottom, but it is important to have a separate page for your customers that have questions or concerns. Use a contact form over email addresses because it is not uncommon for spammers to find your email address online and start sending loads of spam mail to it.

Hire a good designer to help you see your vision from start to finish. If you feel that you are being taken with the web site, tell the designer. They will probably discuss lowering their price if they are honest and dependable. There are hundreds of designers out there so you don't need to just settle for the first one that offers you a good price.

Take a look at hundreds of different web sites so you can get a good idea as to what you want your site to look like. Keep in mind that flash animations and large video files will cost more for a designer to integrate into your site. When you first start out, keep your site simple and then start expanding it over time as your business grows. Consider adding a blog to your web site so you can add more information about your company and other things. This information is great for a blog because it normally doesn't belong on a web site anyhow.