Golf fashionista Patricia Hannigan (known to many as "Golf Girl")
posted a tweet on Twitter today asking how she can best build a Web site
around her blog.
She’s in the same boat as a lot of folks with successful blogs who are now asking, "Dude, where’s my Web site?"
Many bloggers want the full Web site presence so they can have:
- A fully branded home page with room for larger than life pictures
- Pages with fixed views over products or services
- Strong and focused landing pages for online marketing promotions like Google AdWords, targeted email communications, and widget clickthroughs
How you integrate a Web site with your blog depends on:
- Type of site (e-commerce, vanity site, etc.)
- Type of blog hosting company (Blogger, TypePad, WordPress, etc.)
- Your Web site goals and objectives.
Based on limited information, I suggest Golf Girl configure her site and blog in a way similar to marketing guru Seth Godin. Godin has one of the top blogs on the Web but he also wants to promote his array of marketing books.
The following is my suggested architecture for Golf Girl:
- Leave the existing The Golf Girl blog alone except for adding a couple of links to the new Web site
- Create the main Web site which prominently includes a link to the blog. On Godin’s site you get to click on his head to jump to the blog
- Figure out what you want users to do on the site (example, buy Golf Girl’s upcoming book) then clear a path to those key actions
- Pack up your key Web site elements in a widget then make it available to the world so they can add it to their blogs and sites.
So there you have it, one way to set up a new site to support your pride and joy blog.
You can follow Patricia Hannigan on Twitter at @golfgirl.