How to Build the Ultimate Band Website & Tips!

1. Home Computer or Laptop

A. The Computer has to have enough ram & hard drive space for the programs to run.

B. The Computer has to have Internet Access.

2. Web & Graphic Design Software

A.Web Expression $279 - My favorite Web design programs easy to use!

B.Dream Weaver $399 - A great web editor.

C.Macromedia Flash $699 - Get the latest high-tech flash design on your site with this software.

D.Adobe Photoshop $649 - The most professional Web Graphic Software.

E.Paint Shop Pro $99 - I love this program it is reasonable and gets the job done.

F. Generic Web Editors $Cheap - There are many free and cheap web editors out there do a search online.

G. Generic Graphic Editor $Cheap - There are many free and cheap graphic editors out there do a search online.

3. Domain & Hosting Register YourBandWebsite.com

Average Register Price: $10 to $20

A. Register your band website - Godaddy, Yahoo, Msn, There are many to choose from just do a search.

Average Hosting Price: Free to $50 a month

B. Register you're hosting for your band website this is where you will store all your web, graphics & music.

4. Design your Graphics

A. Make graphics for every page if the title is News make graphics that says News and so on.

B. Do not use fonts that are hard to use.

C. Save your graphics as .Jpg so you have quality and small image sizes.

D. Make sure you do not over do your file size or the graphic will be hard to load online.

E. There are many places that offer free custom graphics type in what you want and it's done no software needed.

5. Design your site layout.

A. There are many sites that offer free layouts for your band website.

B. Try different site colors to give your band a catching look.

C. Use the following sections, News, Pictures, Tour Dates, or Shows, Guest Book, Biography, Music, Forum, Videos, Online Store, Links.

D. Keep your personal things personal you are trying to sell your band so be as professional as possible and Do not use vulgar terms this can get your site removed by your hosting!

6. How to setup each section?

I highly recommend setting up a blog, script, or free services for each section.

A. News - Linked to your blog so you can update it whenever you feel like.

B. Pictures - Linked to a Picture site you signed up with or your blog site so you can update content.

C. Tour Dates or Shows - Again linked to your blog

D. Guest Book - linked to your blog or a free guest book service.

E. Biography - linked to your blog or band website that hosts your mp3s such as mp3, or soundclick, or MySpace.

F. Music - linked to your MySpace, mp3, soundclick site.

G. Forum - linked to your blog or free forum service.

H. Videos - linked to myspace, youtube or whatever free service.

I. Online Store - linked to cafepress or whatever free service that does your merchandise.

J. Links - linked to your blog or links page.

K. If you really want the ultimate sections build them from scratch and maintain them!

Tips on Software

Most graphic software that is expensive can be found on their website as a free demo for a certain amount of time so you can use it free for a set amount of time most websites can be done before the end of the time period! Make sure your system can handle the software before you download and install it to your system the last thing you want to do is waste 2 hours downloading and it not to work.

Tips on Domain & Hosting Services

Find a Cheap domain provider that offers great services most domain providers will give you free hosting of your site! Hosting can be expensive. So if you are not going to do your own scripts and things like that I recommend linking most your links outside of your site to your blog or act.

Tips on how to get more exposure to your site

Word of mouth is the best tell all your friends advertise it on t-shirts, business cards; just do not send spam that is bad! If your band is good they will keep telling others, you can also meet other bands and exchange links on their sites.

Tips on merchandise

There are many free services out there all you have to do is provide a logo they brand it on the t-shirt or whatever item give you a base price. They take the base price create the item send it to your fans when they order and all you do is collect the money that is over the base price. Do a search and you will find multiple companies that will provide you with their services for free!

I hope this article has been helpful for you starting your ultimate band website, just remember most of all have fun and God Bless.