An Islandman designed website supports the following Features.
You do not need to know any of the below. You tell us what you want in plain English and we figure out how to get it done at the least cost to you. When you do compare quotes, (a good consumer usually gets 3 quotes per job) you need to compare apples to apples. This is a good place to start.
Skin / Presentation layer
Plug in Logo: Any graphic file you chose can be linked to your Logo pane (header area of your site). It is not "hard coded" into the design so changes to your images will not affect how your content is displayed or call for a total redesign of your site.
Favicon: That little graphic right in the browser window next to your website address. Immediately brands your site for site referrals bookmarks etc.
Date: Good websites show customers the current date so they know content is fresh and relevant.
Login / Register (with "remember me" ): Having visitors register to your site is very helpful if you want to want to keep a loyal customer base or for opt in options such as newsletters etc for marketing. It gives your visitors a place to interact and make a connection with you. We also support the windows passport feature, which allows you to have one login (password- username combination) for all the sites you visit. You can also give users different based roles and access permission to the site. e.g to access our Forum Page you must be a registered user on Designs by Islandman.
Built in Site Search: a very neat feature, which allows users to find information on your site by searching by keyword. We find it to be more convenient than a site map We can also incorporate an additional web control for searching the web right from your site.
Breadcrumb Trail: A breadcrumb trail (such as you are here:: Home) allows your visitors to see where they are on your site. Instead of hitting the back button on the browser, they can click on the links in the breadcrumb to return to previous pages.
Navigation Menu (left or top): You decide based on content and size. We recommended that you use consistent navigation throughout the site but changing on a moment’s notice is now not an issue.
Navigation menu at bottom of page: Similar to the breadcrumb, this is a navigation aid that allows your users to navigate without having to scroll back to the top of the page. This is especially useful on pages with a lot of content.
Language Support: If your site has international users, a usual feature is allowing your user to switch the language of your content to their native language. select from a pull down list of languages and all your content is now in a different language.
CSS driven: At any time font size, color etc can be changed throughout the site by modifying 1 line of code in one text file.
Terms of Use: A link to your terms of use page. Clearly states what you do and how information is used on your site.
Privacy Statement: Gives your customer all the legal views of how any information your site uses or collects from them is protected.
Branded Copyright: Your identity is branded page per page through your site.
Generic Modules/ Content related
Any combination of the following can be included in your site.
Text/ Html: Snippets of Text or HTML can be arranged through the site for aesthetic display of content. You are not limited to one text area. Again,your content it is not hard coded into the design so it is very easy to change and move to different areas or pages - top or bottom or to the side etc. All editing can be done right in the web browser.
Images: Any format of media can be displayed including but not limited to .png .jpeg .gif
Links: You can link text to pages, to sites, to open new windows or in the old one. Flexibility is endless. The Quick Navigation Link module at the left of this page is a good example of this module in use.
Chat Rooms: Nice if you support the social revolution on line... put a chat room complete with emoticons right on you site for your visitors to talk to each other in real time. Use it to keep in touch in real time with your users on line or as a help desk.
Email Site: A convenient way to send your site to friends or family and or colleagues from within your site. User clicks on "email to a friend" and your site is send via email. Great for informal referrals and traffic building stats.
Forums: A place for you to answer questions or post comments about whatever. Most sites use them to provide feedback on indept questions or topics. Usually not real time.
Blogs: Online editorials etc comment areas...some people use them. We include them free of charge if needed.
Contacts (Feedback): A custom built- form that quickly allows your customers to send you emails. Please note we generally do not include your email address as a static link since this is a good recipe for getting spammed.
Visitors on Line: A neat snippet of code that shows how many visitors registered or otherwise are currently on your site.
Newletters: Keep your visitors informed with up to date email listings with opt in features.
Surveys (Forms). We can custom build forms for surveys (or show you how) to get feedback from your customers.
Downloadable Documents / Media: Just about anything you can think of can be put on your page for download. We typically see word documents Excel spreadsheets, mp3 music but anything along those lines is good.
Iframes: You can display portions of another website within your pages...
Banners: You can do advertising on your site or run different banner ads or commercials.
Announcements: Have something new to tell the world? Put it in an announcement module. Can be time period controlled so it is relevant only when you want it to be.
Custom Modules
E- Commerce: If you want to sell items online, you will need to be E-Commerce enabled. We support all formats of selling (Paypal etc)
Video Displays: Show music videos, movies etc directly on your site.
Slide Shows: Show pictures as slide shows etc.
Flash: Custom flash movies, intro splash pages etc
Custom Upload Documents: Allow users to upload documents right from their desktop...No FTP requirements.
Keep Alive Script: One of the tricks used in a hosted environment. This script allows your website to stay loaded on the server so that visitors to your site get to see your pages faster. A slow loading website is among the top reasons why visitors do not return.
In addition CMS supports website stats collection. We offer a free one hour tutorial on Best Uses and Practices for your new website under the CMS guidelines. If there is something that you would like but is not listed here please let us know.
