This is a very brief outline describing how ChakariNet operates and is to be used as a guideline only to the steps one should follow when deciding to go online:

1) Define your Objectives, Target Market and Budget - This is the base from which you and ChakariNet will use to build your site. List your business/company objectives and then compile a list of online objectives that support these. Your target market is self-explanatory and your online target market will be similar.

The budget is probably the most sensitive area and although it is difficult to do, this is an absolute necessity so as not to waste your time or ours. To give you an idea, a very small static site with a few pages can cost a few thousand rand whereas a more complex site with more pages and a little interactivity can cost anything from around 30 thousand rand upwards. A sophisticated top-end site with all the 'bells and whistles' can cost hundreds of thousands, even millions.

2) Meet with a ChakariNet Representative and define the areas you want to cover to support;

• Let Chakarnet draft a rough proposal and User Requirements Document and present it to yourself & any other decision-making persons;
• Accept the proposal;
• A timeline will be given to you;
• Gather supporting brochures, articles, content etc.;
• ChakariNet will, with you, finalise the Content Document once all content has been received;
• ChakariNet will present the storyboard for you to get it approved;
• Building of the site now takes place;
• Presentation of the test site;
• Sort out any finer details;
• Launch of your site i.e. Go Live!
• Final test.

Factors

There are various other factors involved in the development of your site and although ChakariNet will take care of these for you, it is important that you are aware of them and the cost implications.

Hosting - An Internet service provider (ISP) hosts your site i.e. houses your site on one of their servers in their server 'farm'. Alternatively, you can host your own site on your own in-house server should this deem necessary. This attracts a setup and monthly or annual fee. Should you want to host your site on your premises, there are obviously hardware, software and setup costs, amongst other related costs. ChakariNet offers a hosting service at reasonable rates and offers personalized back-up service. In fact, we prefer our clients to be hosted by us to ensure that your site is managed to its full potential.

Domain registration - This is essentially your site's address e.g. www.yoursite.co.za. You will retain ownership of this address and should be used on all stationary and marketed extensively. This attracts a setup and annual renewal fee. ChakariNet will register your domain name(s) on your behalf - it's a simple process of filling out a form.

Email addresses - An email address(es) that is advertised on your site is an absolute must for user's wanting to get in contact with you online. If you host with ChakariNet, you get one mail account for free.

Considerations

Once your site has been launched, it is important to bear the following in mind:

Search engines :- Search engines are highly effective gateways to achieve targeted web traffic to your company's website. The World Wide Web contains millions of pages of information on every possible topic. Fortunately, search engines and directories exist to help web users find the information they're looking for. However, no search engine keeps track of every single web site available, so it is beneficial to use more than one. ChakariNet manually loads your site onto leading worldwide search engines.

Marketing and advertising :- Simply putting up a website with valuable resources is not sufficient. These resources must be publicised, both on the Internet and in other media for the website to be effective in marketing the firm. ChakariNet has a simple simple 50-point marketing plan, which can be provided by ChakariNet, ensuring the best possible marketing and advertising opportunities for your website.

Constant maintenance and checking of the site : Once your site has been launched, it certainly doesn't end there. Constant maintenance of the site should take place and the site should constantly change and improve in terms of content and visuals where possible. A maintenance agreement is usually entered into with ChakariNet who will maintain your site and ensure that it always maintains a competitive edge.

User statistics : Website User Statistics are available which tell you how many people visit the site, when the visited, the most visited pages on the site, the least visited pages on the site etc. It is essential that a reporting system be used to evaluate the effectiveness of the site (bearing in mind that no site will ever be successful if the website address is not advertised and marketed). The provision of user statistics usually attracts a monthly fee.