ForumsInternet/eCommerce

It appears that you're not properly leveraging your time, and subsequently undervalue the little time you have.

Actually, that reply ("and it's coming out beautiful") captures a huge portion of why DIY can get you into so much trouble.

First, I can't see it, so I have no idea if it truly is beautiful or not. But that's beside the point - if you think it looks great, then great.

But I have to ask: how long does it take to download? Is it optimized?

And the code used: search engine friendly? I don't mean key phrases and meta tags, I mean actual code that separates structure from presentation (using CSS, not tables and inline font/styles).

Do you have embedded javascript (for rollovers or windows, or other features) in the top of every page?

How easy is it to update content? Can you update the content and not touch the design?

I'm not throwing rocks, I'm simply pointing out a handful of the ten thousand little (and big) things that I must do for my clients as a prof. web dev shop. So many times, people fall in love with what is little more than a Hollywood piece set (like in a sitcom) - looks great, but don't look behind the scenes.

Again, my post was not against DIY or learning - knock yourself out if it makes you happy, and gets you what you consider acceptable results.

Not to mention is it W3C compliant, XHTML clean coded, what about the internal link structure? Is the information architecture scalable? I think four hours is too fast by my standards, it took me weeks to do this website (http://www.sirosTV.com) and now it brings in over 400 visitors every day organically. If you run it through a text browser you'll see how search bot friendly it is. I'm not trying to pat myself on the back, but quality and compliance is far more important than looks.

I can probably build a shed if I tried, but I'm better off picking up a contractor for various reasons.

I applaud you for the work you put into the site.
I do not trust web designers.
Again, make me an offer to optimize my site and make necessary changes.

CorpCons08

Here's my point. I have a staff which includes people better than me at certain tasks than I am, so I delegate those tasks to them. I don't have time to learn how to do a new task, I have enough time to be briefed on it and that's it. That's the mindset that a business owner needs to stay in, if you can't effectively choose a designer yourself, see who your competitors use. That's it.

As for marketing and optimization, that's a whole different lexicon.

I don't care if people wish to learn, but I disagree that DIY is going to be as good as hiring a design firm. That's all. I'm done and I'm going to enjoy the evening. Night.

Oh no, I was just eating this debate up with a spoon!

So much fun, have a great week, LUCKIEST