One thing I've learned about sites that just want to showcase arty products - the photos have to be good.
I might be able to help with that 😉
Try http://cargocollective.com/
If you pay to be premium you can edit the CSS and HTML - and viola, your template is no longer a template.
The last site I build with Cargo you can see here:
I built this for a bottle of whiskey.
is also a very effective site, however I have not used it myself. Again you can customise your template to work it into a new design.
Better than hiring someone else IMO as you learn valuable web design and programming skills.
You're happy to say where others are failing but not prepared to show us how it *should* be done? Boo!!Rachel
Simply because I don't want our clients' work being openly dissected on an open forum that they could easily find out about. It just isn't professional.
🙂
Squarespace is awesome too and well worth a few quid a month. I work in an agency and tend to only work on bespoke £15k–£50k websites, for anything below that, modifying something like Squarespace is hard to beat.
And for portfolio stuff, I wouldn't be banking or even worrying about search traffic. Word of mouth and sharing it with people she meets will see vastly more useful traffic. Get a nice business card done and get her networking. She needs to be finding excuses to meet photographers and filmmakers where ever possible. Check out the events scene and make sure she's got a tablet with her site on it and some cards.
I'd also not worry about the website being too generic, less is more, don't let it get in the way. If anything I'd sink the money into getting some models sorted and getting studio shots done of your daughters work. No one is going to care about the website, just her work.
All IMO as a designer/photographer and someone who sees loads of portfolios and commissions freelancers all the time…
Some sensible advice there ^
As somebody who actually uses make up artists now and again it's word of mouth and having a gallery of images that's important.
I would ignore what the I.T. Bods are arguing about, they sell websites not commission make up artists.
I think the suggestion about a Facebook page is one of the best so far. It sounds like the sort of business you could market effectively by word of mouth on social media. Easy to set up, no cost, low risk.
Facebook marketing isn't as easy as you might think. They are changing how it works to stop it being a free ad vehicle.
I would ignore what the I.T. Bods are arguing about
I don't think there are any IT bods on here - I would suggest we are designers and developers. And why would someone who installs Windows Exchange Servers be qualified to discuss website design?
i cant answer your question as i have no idea what a windows exchange server is and i use the term 'IT bod' to cover anyone who does computer stuff that involves writing things in a language that makes things happen on a computer that i don't understand.
Actually, I once used to manage an Exchange installation before I went to work in the Comms/PR section of a major pharma company.
Having a varied experience of lots of different areas really does help when it comes to running a small web dev company. Wish I had picked up some finance somewhere, though!
Anyway, I can confirm that is it perfectly possible for an (ex) Exchange person to talk sense about implementing a client's requirements on the web. 🙂
Rachel
If it's not commercial I wouldn't pay anything, do a bit of research, you can do a lot with wordpress for nothing, with little to no technical knowledge
John Doh = mastiles fanylion at mixd?
No idea if it would be any help, but I've had http://www.1and1.co.uk/ecommerce-blog suggested to me before. It might be worth talking over with your daughter. Good luck!
Seriously, don't bother with those 1&1 websites. They're junk.
John Doh = mastiles fanylion
That’s what I thought.
