OAO Website Creation Services
Developed and written as an e-mail vehicle for OAO Advertisers
by Richard Gabrio in 1996
ANNOUNCING OAO INTERNET HOME PAGE SERVICES
GET on the NET! Internet Home Pages are now available for advertisers
with Outdoor Adventure Online (OAO) on America Online.
An internet Home Page (also called a "Website") is a powerful
marketing tool that complements your America Online advertisement. Internet
Home Pages deliver more words, more pictures and more info to an audience
of over 40,000,000 internet users.
Upgrading your company's online presence with a Home Page is easy. We
can build your entire site for you, from start to finish, all for one, low
flat rate! Call (800) 965-0265 for more details.
We will create all the necessary components for your Web Site (HTML,
graphics) for you to host on your own server, or through the local Internet
Service Provider (ISP) you select.
INTERNET WEB SITE CREATION SERVICES: Prices are for existing advertisers
only and do NOT include hosting.
I. Basic Home Page Package $600
- 4 HTML pages, up to 3 pictures per page
- Interactive E-mail
- A link from your AOL Ad to your Website (a $300 value)
II. Deluxe Web Site Package $1000
- 10 HTML Pages, up to 3 pictures per page
- Interactive E-mail
- Hot link from your AOL Ad
Options:
- Additional HTML Pages $125 per page
- Web Site Maintenance $75 per hour
- Custom art & advanced features Prices on request
ALL PACKAGES INCLUDE:
(1) Finished, functional HTML pages ready to be hosted. For the purpose
of this offer, an HTML page can hold 250 words of text, up to 3 images or
photos and no more than 10 links (excluding navigation bars and image maps).
(2) Interactive E-mail links that let internet users send email directly
to your company.
(3) Configuration of your HTML pages for all major browsers including
Netscape, Microsoft Internet Explorer, and America Online.
(4) Real-world, hands-on testing of your Home Page using Netscape, Internet
Explorer and America Online Browsers for both Windows (Intel PC) and Apple
MacIntosh computers.
(5) Uploading of files to your chosen server with "hard copy"
delivery of web files to you on floppy diskette.
(6) Archiving of your web files on OAO's computers, ready for any changes
or updates you want.
WHAT WE WILL DO:
Basic Design Services: OAO will design and construct your web site with
words and pictures you give us. We can work from your existing brochures
or catalogs. Features can include colored backgrounds, images (GIF and JPEG),
navigation bars (text, buttons, image maps), tables, and interactive E-Mail.
OAO Maintenance Services: After your Web Site is built, we are there
to help keep it running! With our site maintenance program, billed at reasonable
hourly rates, we can modify and upgrade your Home Page whenever you want.
After you tell us what changes you want, we'll make the improvements, test
them, then upload the new HTML files to the host server you designate. We
don't leave you out in the cold!
Additional Design Services: If you want/need specialized interactive
forms, frames, Java scripts, Shockwave presentations, or other sophisticated
multimedia features, they can be provided at an additional cost (tell us
what you want and we'll give you the best price we can).
Hosting and Domain Registration: OAO will create your Internet Home
Page (Website) and upload all necessary computer files to the server you
select. OAO does not currently offer Hosting Services or Domain Registration
services.
Terms of Payment:
A. Basic Package: Full payment in Advance
B. Deluxe Package: 70% in advance; 30% when complete
C. Big Sites (20+ pages): 50% in advance; 50% on completion
D. Site Maintenance: $75 per hour
E. Custom Design & Programming: Ask for Terms
FOR MORE INFORMATION OR TO ORDER, CALL (800) 965-0265, OR E-MAIL US
at oao@aol.com
OAO WEBSITE GUIDELINES:
The following guidelines are meant to provide basic information which
will help you identify, assemble, and organize the graphic and text components
OAO will need to build your website.
I. DESIGNING YOUR SITE:
SIMPLICITY: You've heard the saying "Keep it simple . . ."
This is crucially important on the internet. Why? Because your potential
customers need to clearly and quickly understand what you're offering and
how they can respond to your offer. Time is of the essence on the web, so
if users can't readily perceive what you can give them, they won't stay
(creativity and promotions featuring discounts or giveaways are also important,
but QUICK CLARITY is the key).
ORGANIZING YOUR PAGES:
Design, in terms of orgainizing your site, means you should have a cohesive
theme -- or story -- worked out. It can be as simple as adapting your existing
brochure to the web in just a few pages, OR it may involve a more fully
developed offering, including all kinds of sub-pages (some could spotlight
owners and guides, others may feature multiple destinations with schedules,
and still others can focus on food and amenities, etc.).
Whatever the scope of your site, you essentially have text and graphics
to work with on the web. One efficient way to order this information is
to pose the 6 "Classic Questions:" WHO? WHAT? WHERE? WHEN? WHY?
and HOW? Notice how easy it is to ANSWER these questions -- which you've
done a thousand times for your customers -- in terms of what graphics and
text you need for your web pages:
1. WHO? Your company, of course. Here you can use a logo,
photo, or illustration for your graphic elements, and then compose the text
-- including biographical and/or historical info and key benefits your company
offers.
2. WHAT? The adventures and tours you offer, and on what
basis (skill levels and packages). You need an image (or images) which captures
the essence of the adventure you provide, accompanied by crisp, colorful,
text, making the experience attractive to a potential customer.
3. WHERE? The destinations or geographical locales you service
(where you raft, bike, climb, hike, sail, ride, etc.). You've got lots of
great shots of these places, and probably plenty of text you can create
to describe them.
4. WHEN? Your schedule and/or season. Use some explanatory
text to introduce how your season works, then put the trip/tour data into
a few columns of information (trips, departure dates, times, etc.). If you
have a lot of this kind of information to deliver, a table or tables can
be created.
5. WHY? This is the result your client expects/wants: It
boils down to the fun, satisfaction, reward, and fulfillment your client
gets from the experience you've provided. Pictures can range from happy
customers to shots of what it is they will experience, etc. The accompanying
text will be easy enough to create.
6. HOW? The easiest of all to answer: How does a potential
customer get in touch with YOU to get more information and/or to book a
trip? A simple "Contact Page" (or area on a page), linkable from
all the others, should display your basic contact information and include
an interactive E-Mail response feature.
THE "LOOK" OF YOUR PAGES:
Another design consideration is the "look" of your site. It
should be attractive AND as simple and uncluttered as possible. You should
strive for clean pictures clearly displaying what you offer, keeping the
text crisp and concise. Background colors or bitmaped tiles should be neutral
so text can be read easily. Links (including image maps and navigation buttons/bars)
should be used sparingly, taking users to places or pages where they can
quickly get important information (make them count).
AVOID the temptation to crowd too many images and/or too much text on
a page (this includes overuse of buttons, bars, and horizontal rules, etc.).
If your site features either very large pictures or too many graphics on
a page, it will download very slowly: Users won't "stick around"
to find out what you have to say or offer.
II. ASSEMBLING YOUR PACKAGE
GRAPHICS:
OAO offers full-service scanning of all photos and slides. For photo
images 35 mm slides are the preferred format, rendering the sharpest, most
color-saturated images. Prints (3 x 5) are also acceptable. We can also
scan line art if you have a company logo or other artwork you would like
included in your web page. We can also accept any form of digital artwork.
Each web page can have up to three photos per page. In many cases there
will be additional graphical elements on each page including buttons, icons,
background images, and logos. A photo collage may also be considered a single
photo.
WHAT MAKES A GOOD PHOTO? There are a few basic criteria for what makes
a good online photo image. Because images must be low resolution avoid photos
with excessive detail. Keep the action, particularly people, close to the
foreground. We suggest you select images that fit into one of the three
following categories:
1. Action: Show your guests/clients participating in some activity such
as rafting or horseback riding.
2. Scenery: What prospective clients can expect to see on a trip with
your company. Subjects with limited detail such as a lake backdropped by
a mountain range work best.
3. Fun/Comfort: Show your guests relaxing around a campfire or in a
lodge, at mealtime, when family and friends come together to share food
and conversation. Photos that display accommodations or special amenities
a guest/client can expect also fit into this category.
All of your photos and slides should be labeled corresponding to the
placement of the photos within the website. This can be a simple as labeling
them "1A, 1B, 2A, 2B . . ."
TEXT: Each web page can have up to 250 words of text. You should try
to make your text clear, concise and descriptive. All text must be submitted
both on diskette as plain text files and printed out as hard copy. Each
page should be saved as a separate file and named according to its placement
within the web site.
FLOW CHART: To facilitate combining your text and images into a logical
organized structure, we will provide you with simple flow charts to follow
and fill out with the appropriate file names and labels you have assigned
to your slides and prints. Most web sites will follow a simple two-level,
or possibly three-level hierarchy, beginning with a simple Home Page at
the top level then expanding out to various Sub-Pages on the next level
down.
More complex sites could use the David Siegel "third generation"
site design model featuring a splash page/entry tunnel page/s, core page,
core sub-pages, exit tunnel, and exit page. Depending on what you have to
offer or what you would like to emphasize we can help you decide on the
design that will work best.
CHECKLIST: We will also provide you with a simple itemized list organized
by pages, identifying the text and graphics which are to appear on each
page. As you write your text and select your photos you can fill out the
checklist so that you know your materials will be complete as possible.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL (800) 965-0265, OR E-MAIL US at oao@aol.com