Layout - think about how you want the layout of your Web site to look.  Take notes of Web sites that you find appealing. Colors - Choose your colors wisely.  If you have existing marketing materials, you will want to send them to your Web designer for scanning and color sampling.  It's important to maintain your existing branding and corporate look.  We recommend choosing one color as the primary color of the site and one or two complimentary colors.  If you don't chose to have a white background, make sure your text color does not conflict with the background you select.  Navigation – Keep it simple and you won't lose your Web site visitors.  Do you like your navigation across the top?  Left side?  Right side?  Nice buttons or text links?  Fonts - Use an easy-to-read font for the majority of your text. Fancy fonts and special fonts can be used for headings, subheadings, special announcements and news.  Take note of several sites that use a font you like.

What I Don't Like

Knowing what you don't like is just as important as what you like.  Your Web designer can steer clear of practices you don't like.  Write down things you don't like about Web sites.  What don't you like about them?  Visually loud?  Difficult to read and understand? Unclear navigation?

Web Site Pages

Decide on the pages you would like to have on your Web page.  More pages can always be added later.  Here are some ideas about what kind of pages you need:

• Homepage - this is the first page of your Web site.  This page should clearly state what your site is about.  It can include a mission statement and link to your other pages for more information.  This the most important page because it is your visitors first impression they will have of you.

• About Us - This page is about you!  It may include your company history, pictures, your biography, and your service.

• Resources - All your links to other Web sites go here. It is good to trade links with other realtors but only from qualified sites. You can put in your mortgage lenders, your real estate company if applicable.

• Contact Us - Usually all your contact information goes here along with a form for your visitors to fill out. When your visitors fill out the form, it is instantly E-mailed to you.

• Testimonials -Nothing sells like existing happy clients. Show off your letters here.

• Other - The sky is the limit when it comes to thinking of all the great content you can present your visitors with. Jot down some ideas you have that weren't mentioned below.

Other Thoughts and Ideas

Write down any other thoughts and ideas that you have for your Web site. Do you want your navigation buttons to change when the mouse rolls over them? Do you want a copyright statement at the bottom of your pages (recommended)? Do you want a Flash movie added to your Web site? Message board? Polls? Other special features? Add these to your "Other Thoughts/Ideas" worksheet.

Once you have filled up your journal with your thoughts and ideas, it is time to hand it over to your designer along with the copy (text) for your pages.

Providing your designer with all of your ideas, likes, dislikes, text and pictures will help to speed up the design process and minimize the questions the designer may have. Just like creating a plan for your business strategy or marketing efforts, having a plan for the creation and design of your site is highly recommended.

You'll also need to think about:

Domain Name