Linking With Online Pros Can Help Make Your Web Presence Felt
The Internet Professionals Network is a support organization for Web development enterprises as well as businesses that are looking to establish a presence on the Internet. The Sylmar-based group seeks to generate opportunities for businesses through online job banks and directories as well as monthly networking and educational meetings in Santa Monica, Pasadena and Irvine. President Don Baarns recently discussed some of the common questions the group receives from businesses.
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Q: Where can I find someone to help me create a Web site?
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A: If you want help getting your company on the Web, we have a free listing service on our home page. If you’re trying to find somebody to do some work for you, a high-tech professional of any sort, then you can go to our site and there’s something called a “job bank” where you can post a listing saying I’m looking for somebody with Web design skills, graphic arts skills, database skills, you name it. This is the range I’m willing to pay, and here’s my contact information.
We have some high traffic going in and looking at that job bank. It’s been up for about nine months now, and we’ve had thousands of hits. People go there looking for help to develop their Web presence or they’re looking for someone to help them market a Web site they already have.
We also have a new “intern bank.” College graduates looking to get into this industry or people transitioning from other industries who decide the best way to get involved is through a good internship . . . can post something up there. Companies around the Southland go there looking for interns, whether in Web development or graphic design. You have to get experience someplace, and one of the best ways to do that is through an internship.
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Q: How much am I going to pay for a Web site?
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A: Right now, people have no idea what it should cost for a Web site. Basically, you want to build the equivalent of an online brochure, and you’re going to spend between $10,000 to $20,000 for that site, depending on what you do with the graphic design. You’re going to spend about the same amount that you’d spend for a very high-quality brochure that you send out to 5,000 people. There’s not that much difference. Basically, you’re going to spend $6,000 to $10,000 on the graphic artwork and about the same amount building the site. And as you get fancier with database integration and interactive features, it goes up much higher.
If you don’t want to spend that kind of money, your other option is to buy one of the many page-generation programs out there, and you can build one by yourself for $500. You can buy your own clip art and paste it all up yourself. Sometimes you’ll get something that looks really good, and sometimes you’ll get something that looks like you did it yourself. But you have to look at this stuff like an investment. There’s supposed to be a return later on down the road.
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Q: Where can I find a partner for my Web-related business?
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A: There are a lot of people who have been in this business for a long time whom we’re involved with. So we tell people they should go to our meetings and get to know the folks there. If you’re an insider in the industry, you realize most of the business being done out there right now is with people you know. The business is so hot right now, people who may not be the best qualified still can do very well. So you need to get into a situation where it becomes a very personal network.
Most people who do funding get 20 to 100 deals across their desk every single day unsolicited. Therefore, the deal that’s going to get done either has to be so phenomenal that they can’t pass it up or you have to know somebody. There are a lot of events in L.A. where you can meet people. We’re one of them, but there are a lot more. You have to pick and choose and get plugged into a community somehow.
People who are serious about being successful in this business are out there building relationships. You’ve got to make sure they need you as much as you need them. We have a directory of people involved in our organization that we are currently reworking and that we’ll have up on our site by the first of the year. Our goal is to be a funnel of resources for people looking for contacts.
The Internet Professionals Network’s Web site can be found at https://www
.ipronetwork.org. E-mail can be sent to donbaarns@ipronetwork.org.
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If you have a question about how to start or operate a small business, mail it to Karen E. Klein, Los Angeles Times, 1333 S. Mayflower Ave., Suite 100, Monrovia, CA 91016, or e-mail it to kklein6349@aol.com. Include your name, address and telephone number. This column is designed to answer questions of general interest. It should not be construed as legal advice.
