So, you have a band and you need a web site?  You want it all...videos, streaming music, mp3 downloads, travel blog, lyrics, bios, merchandise sales and calendar.  No problem...you know what you want, so now you just go get it.

Easier said than done. I have spoken to so many bands and web site designers about this subject and heard headache story after headache story on both ends.  The number one problem?  Artistic differences of course.  

JoeHajek.net

Once in a while you'll find a great designer who just knows exactly what you're talking about.

Once in a while you'll find a great band who just wants that designer to do what they want without too much hassle.

But for the most part, it's a real struggle to get a site done for artists.

Which brings us to the price.  What is a good price for something like this?  Well, if you wanted to just price out the functionality of such a site with all the bells and whistles mentioned above, you'd probably find it running upwards of $1,500 - $5,000 depending on the web site builder (there is a large difference in price between design firms and free-lance web designers such as myself...much more overhead involved to rent an office and carry employees--workman's comp, benefits--utilities, advertising...you get the idea).

And that's just for the functionality, not for the design.  The designing is honestly the most difficult and time-consuming part of any band, artist, singer/songwriter, actor, actress web site.  For beginning web site designers, it's not such a bad thing...new projects are fun and it's a great feeling to know that someone out there wants your services.  But that soon fades when you begin to realize they don't want your style, they want your function, with their style...you are no longer an artist because you are dealing with an artist...now, you are merely a tool...tech support for their online presence.  

And vice versa...the band wants to have their image portrayed in a certain way to appeal to the fan base they are trying to reach.  It's more than understandable, it's expected and it's half the job of becoming successful.  Then they find a web site designer...a friend of the band perhaps that knows how to do flyers or has his/her own web site/myspace and they start working together, but he/she just doesn't have the technical skills to give you the functions you really need and want to have in this site. 

It's all part of the business really and it takes time to make everyone happy...or at least, not upset.  So, when you are looking for a good web site designer, understand, there is a lot that goes into making that site perfect for you.  Time is money.  You get what you pay for. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder...you know, the cliches...oh, now there's a good band name.

I'll give you my quote right now, for the starter package for a band, including a myspace layout to match the site design --  $2,500 out the door. 

I will host you for $4/month (12 month minimum purchase - no refunds). 

Contact me with any questions.  I'll work with you.

- Jonathan Loudon 

Joomla!

I have to admit, I have an aversion to names that have an exclamation point at the end of them.  Maybe it's a vexation to my quiet nature or maybe it's just the bad grammar (you can't use a punctuation in a name...you just can't).  But Yahoo! did it, the Library! in Boise Idaho did it, and now there is Joomla!   But, I have to say, of the three, I think that Joomla! is the most deserving of the attention grabbing mark.

Library! in Boise

So far I have used Joomla for 7 different sites, including the one you are currently viewing.  I love it.  I mean, really I LOVE IT!  But it wasn't love at first site.  It took some time to warm up to for sure.  It has also come a long way in the past couple years and it's been amazing to see how it has grown and developed into the powerful content management system it is today.  

There are so many amazing resources out there for Joomla! now...3rd party developers (3PD) have really helped push this baby into the mainstream.  One of my favorite communities to find templates is Joomlahacks.com ...a really good and ever-growing collection of Joomla! templates can be found there.  You have to become a member to gain access but it's free, and they hardly ever bother you with emails.

Another great site that developed the Community Builder Joomla! component and extension is Joomlapolis.com  where you can find the latest updates and plugins for the amazing community builder.

As a long time HTML guy, it took me a while to really appreciate Joomla for what it is and what it can do.  I felt for a long time that cms (content management systems) were only for those who could not code or for large online ezines (redundant? - online and ezine? yeah, but who cares, it's my blog). 

But no longer do I believe that.  Now, I'm not going to go the other way and say that they are for everyone either.  There will always be a need for those static placeholder sites that need only to serve as a communication gateway to the owner.  But those are diminishing rapidly as well.  

As the enigmatic veil of confusion is beginning to be lifted on Search Engine Optimization by amazing companies like Google, it will become increasingly clear that nearly ANYONE who has a website and wants it to stay in the  main flow of traffic, will no longer be able to keep up with a stale static site.  And the ease and simplicity of publishing new articles with this amazing content management system is just too enticing to ignore both for web masters as well as website owners.  For that ultimately is what keeps you in the running with other competition...keeping fresh and new...just like the "real world" businesses, the internet is a place where you can continue to work and grow or choose to settle down and be comfortable with the humdrum life of stale sitedeness.

Joomla is where it's at.  I'm sorry, I mean JOOMLA! is where it's at. joomla.org  

So I just went and signed up for Google Ad Words! 

It's my first ever attempt at advertising for what I've been doing for the past 10 years (not counting business cards and flyers).

I don't expect it to bring me a ton of clients but I do expect it to make a difference in the traffic to my site.  And with my account at Google Analytics, I will know for sure what kind of difference it makes.

As a long time web site guy and internet fan, I never imagined there would be a day when there were so many FREE online tools available to any one who wants them.  Google has really truly turned the internet on it's head.  It took the power that was previously exclusive only to companies with large budgets and crazy programmers and given it to the public.

And it's not a "lite" version of the products either...it's all inclusive...traffic facts, history, page hits, time visited, key words...it's all there for you to view.  Very impressive.

So, I am now offering these helpful tools to my clients, free of charge also.  It makes my value and their trust both grow simultaneously.  

What more could I ask for?  Well...don't get me started.  I'm happy.  And that's always a good place to be. 

Let me be your web site's custodian.  Internet house keeper.  WWW Janitor.  Virtual Maid...kinda...not really a maid...more like a grounds keeper and scoreboard guy for your proverbial ball park...in other words, I can help you maintain your static site for just $20/month. . . .

Well, if you're like 95% of most small business owners, you just like to know it's out there...it looks good on your business card and in your yellow page ad.  But without proper upkeep, your site will diminish in value to your potential and current customers, clients and fans.