Karaoke Forums

In another thread a lot of folks were asking questions about websites.  I can't really advise anyone on where to get help on creating a site or having it hosted.  But what I do want to point out is that one should carefully think through what you're willing to spend and what you hope to accomplish.  Websites can serve several purposes.

Since DJ/KJ'ing is a service, the ability to have consumers purchase merchandise at your site is superfluous.  You don't need shopping carts or PAYPAL.  

One participant in the thread suggested he wanted a website as a place to send people.  For sure, as a tool for educating and informing potential customers, websites can do a wonderful job.  If that is all you desire from your site, try putting the site together on your own.  Yahoo, for example, can provide the means for doing so and will host the site as well.  There are many different software tools for developing website and forums connected to each.

If, however, you want your website to be a means by which people first find and are introduced to your services, you'll probably need the help of a Pro.  Make sure in that regard, that the "Pro" can show you proven results about his/her ability to maximize your exposure on search engines.  And checkout the positioning of his clients on Google, MSN and Yahoo (they'll vary).  All too many of the "Pros" like to show you how attractive their designs are but can't do a thing to gain you the exposure you want.  If you can't find someone to do that, I recommend you try doing it youself.

Personally, I was more concerned about being found on the internet than how beautiful my site would be!

Valid points. I carry mine a step further, though. The site better look good. If it looks like no thought was put into tis design, I tend to wonder how much thought the company puts into other things. Part of that is the visual impact, of course, but when I see spelling or grammatical errors, I also see a lack of attention to detail.

With tools such as those Yahoo provides, anyone can create a clean, professional site. Spend time, not money. Oh, remember that search engines pick up on the descriptive words on your page, so use good ones!

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[glow=darkorchid]Musica delenit bestiam feram[/glow]

I'm currently working on selling discs online so I will need the shopping cart & PayPal/Credit Card feature.  But have had people ask if they could pay with a credit card before, luckily I had a merchant service account that allowed that, but if I had it incorporated in the website, they could have paid online.

I agree with the look of a site, it it looks like crap, chances are your shows reflect it.  I list my books online & have printable request slips, MANY times I have people walking in with their slips in their hand already printed out - some have actually printed out the entire book for themselves & highlight the songs they want to try & mark them for key changes if necessary or never to try again.  I get MANY out of area visitors because of the site.  I have affiliate sites which people click through & if they buy anything I get commission off of those sales - which isn't a bad monthly deal considering you are just putting up a link.  Made a couple hundred bucks in one month JUST having a link!  They automatically deposit the money into my account when it hits a certain amount.  The photo gallery is standard, people like to look at themselves & their friends.  Am working on a revamp right now, changing look & design.

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LIKE Lonman on Facebook - Lonman Productions Karaoke & my main site via my profile!

I found Angelfire, and have been using them for a long time. They are also free to build and host. For a minimal amount of money, they eliminate ads and give you more memory to work with. I just used their Photo gallery for the 1st time and it looks nice and was easy to use.

I also registered my www with godaddy. I was paying $25 p/yr and found out I could do it for $7.95 a year. No brainer. All I do is have them "mask" out the long angelfire URL and it keeps my regular url at the top the whole time.

I use the site as a marketing tool for both shows and private parties. It is simple, but professional. I firmly believe it accounts for 85% of my private party business- because if someone is looking for karaoke/DJ and they are on a listing site, something has to grab their attention so they choose you over that other guy.

My  :2cents:

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Let's Kick the Tires and Light the Fires!

dj.net has a nice & easy set up as well that is completely free.  I have one there as well.  http://www.dj.net/members/dj235/index.php as well as my MySpace site & several other sites I get to plug the show/club for free & of course my regular site.

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LIKE Lonman on Facebook - Lonman Productions Karaoke & my main site via my profile!

Hey Lonnie---another link you could put up on your site is to post pics you take of people or events at T BIrd on one of those sites where people can click in and then pay for prints of their event. I do that when I shoot some of these larger events. Post up the pics of people and then they can click in and order what they want then pay and then the website forwards my cut of the sale either to direct deposit or via check.

http://www.dotphoto.com/Gallery.asp

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"You know that I sing the Blues and I do not suffer fools. When I'm on that silver mic, it's gonna cut ya, just like a knife"-The SWINGCAT