YIPES! Is anyone overwhelmed!?

[deborah]

I just put together the architecture for my site. I found a cool CSS template that I have permission to use -- yay! -- and am going to town putting it together. I'm having a blast!

Now I can see all the links I'll have and, boy, do I have a lot to write -- blog, reviews, etc, etc.

For you more experienced folk, did you tend to hold back on adding all the links until you got more time...or did you find it better to take time in the beginning to get the blog up, write the reviews, articles and so on.

I'm plugging away! I'm surprised to see that this will take a LOT longer than I thought, and I'm hoping I'm wrong.

[fordio]

I am a newbie to, but have some experience of a failed site. I was in such a hurry to get my first attempt up and running that I neglected content. The site was failing to make a profit, and with hindsight, I'm not suprised.

I know you're eager to get your site up and running, but my advice, for what it's worth is take your time!

Maybe some of the more experienced guys will add to this but I feel I made a mistake worth learning from.

I'm currently working on my second attempt, and although I'm 'champing at the bit' to put it online, I'm determined to get it right. Getting it right means writing quality content and that takes time!

[Dan Reinhold]

Slow and steady is said to win the race.

Even Queen Roz advises setting up sites no more frequently than every three months!

She also said something about most things being better sloooow.

Wadya mean, Roz?

[Lowell Rieger]

Content first. SEs look for content, not site architecture. When you get some pages indexed, start adding your links.

Regards,

Lowell

[Dan Reinhold]

I'm with Lowell. You have to have something to put in it first.

Then build the barn!

[Bina]

I think the best way to start is to actually draw a simple site map on
what you plan to have on your site. You don't have to have everything
at once but it's good to know how everything will relate to each other.

Another thing that I find useful is to strcuture my site in a way that's
search engine friendly. For example, you should start with keyword
research and find 'traffic driving topics' and categorize your articles
according to these topics instead of type of content.

This will go a long way in attracting search engine traffic. For example,
instead of having a section called reviews and have reviews of many
different topics, it's better to have a section on a particular topic and
include your reviews of products in that topic in that section. Or if you have a blog, you can easily add the review to both sections.

I hope I'm making sense here.

And if there's just one thing you'd like to start off with, a blog would
probably be the best way to go because it gets indexed much faster
and has features that a normal web site would not.

Hope this helps

~ Bina.

[Elizabeth100]

Just some comments as a newbie to everything...reading Rosalinds book...had no idea "how things are done"...but trying to absorb it all....I get it...niche is sooo important, but I feel like I don't really have one...have lots of interests/hobbies, but keep coming back to one question: What could I possibly say that the whole world doesnt already know?(and I mean content wise)...I am a cook..love puttering in my garden...but I'm no Martha Stewart..... I am eager to learn; so eager to succeed in this...and then I read about someones zero profits, and start to feel discouraged...help...need a boost.

[Rosalind Gardner]

Hi all,

Deborah - Content absolutely must come first, especially if you want to sign up for some good affiliate programs later.

Affiliate managers are much more selective nowadays about who they let into their program, so you need to prove that you can add value to their program by giving your visitors something of value.

It's always a case of 'give to get'.

Elizabeth100 - You need to ignore the stuff that gets you down and discouraged. There isn't room in an entrepeneur's mindset for those feelings. That's them - not you. YOU will succeed if that's your focus.

Too, you don't need to be an expert when you are starting out. I wasn't an expert either - but I learned how to do something well and wanted to share my experience with others. It comes, but you have to find a niche that is exactly the right fit for you.

Best of success!

Cheers,
Ros