It seems that everyone these days can make a web page, but to build a great one takes allot of time, work, and thought, and knowing the specific market of your web site. There is no hard fast rules to the internet, seems like anything goes, but some of our tips might help in building a better web site.

When the Web was young we all had dreams of attracting millions of people to our web sites with no additional advertising. But that was then and this is now.

Too many web pages are made with the thinking that "if you build it they will come". They won't.
Once you build a Web site you must give them a reason to come, and a reason to come back too.
A Web site is a passive form of marketing, providing a signboard which points visitors to your products and or services. To be most effective, a Web site should be used in conjunction with several active forms of marketing.

But first before you even start building your web site there are some things to consider, things which you should take into account, These are some general guidelines which should help in building a better web site.

Defining the purpose of your web site:
What is the purpose of your site. To attract new business or service customers? To share specialized knowledge? To pursue personal interests, or promote a pet viewpoint, project, candidate, etc.? To make a connection with others or network?

Define your goals:
Goals are more measurable than purpose, and will give you a clearer target. Write out a "mission statement". Until you clearly know your destination, you can't develop a good road map, and you'll end up all over the place.

Identify your target audience:
Friends, strangers, potential customers, repeat customers, would they just be browsing or coming for something specific, How about their age, culture, level of education, what are their goals in visiting my site,  What's In It For Them?

Understanding your goals and your audience will form the foundation for all your design decisions, the tone of your site, its structure, its graphic design, its content. If you've have all this, you're already ahead of 80% of the mishmash out there!

Setting Your Site's Overall Tone:
For a most effective web site you should decide on an overall TONE for your pages. This will not only guide the style of your content, but all your design and graphic decisions as well. You'd expect an search engine site to look and feel different from Disney Worlds Web site. Not only content, but the look: the colors, the graphics, the 'noise' of the site.
The tone of your site should be determined by your purpose (sell, convince, entertain, inform, etc.), your subject (serious, fun, technological, etc.), and your audience.
In other words, the mission statement will help determine things like:
Your color scheme, should it shout or whisper? Reflect liveliness, prestige, serenity? Wild psychedelics or conservative monotones?
Your graphics, typography, and "gimmicks", goofy entertaining site or a nature retreat?
Make your site a visual metaphor for your message and audience mood    "funky" or  "conservative".
Your consistent design elements like logo, background, navigation buttons, etc. will be easier and serve your purpose more effectively.

Page Layout & Consistent Design Elements:
People read web pages differently from print materials: they 'scan' and take 'bites'; they don't like to scroll. Provide bite-sized sections prominently marked and separated, and be consistent across the site (on each page, similar design and layout, similar items in the same place, similar graphics serving similar functions.)
Suggestions: pages just a few screens long with white spaces, graphics to set off important ideas, paragraphs designed as lists or tables, design for 640x480 monitors so it doesn't scroll sideways.

Backgrounds:
A white background increases legibility and makes the page elements stand out. Colored and patterned backgrounds can enhance a mood.
Just don't sacrifice readability, even at lower resolutions.
If you use a background image, and have changed text color to be seen against it, set the background color to match the image, to assure that "no image loading" users can still see your text.

Logo:
Design a 'logo' for your site, an identifying graphic that symbolizes your company or message. On the main page, try a larger version of this logo, maybe as part of a title banner across the top. On 'sub-pages', try a smaller version, let the pervasive presence of the logo integrates your site.

Navigation aids:
Buttons, bars, image maps, etc. They should be identical in look and placement across all the pages, and provide users a way to get around your site with out being confusing or getting lost, and at least go up to the home or index page, back to the previous page when appropriate, ahead to the next page, perhaps to other "main" pages. Place a "navigation bar" of buttons or text links on every page in the same place, or put it in an unchanging frame. (This might be one of the few valid uses for frames). Or use an image map. Don't forget to provide text alternatives for 'no image loading' users.
Always provide a way for users to know where they are. Navigation bars, maps, logo and title size all can indicate the level of the page and how it relates to others. Always provide a way out.

Writing for the Web:
This differs from writing for print. Web Publishing allows you to conveniently & cheaply make widely available accurate, up-to-date, dynamic information, in an entertaining as well as informative way. But you can not just translate printed material directly to effective Web pages.
Some Web-specific considerations are, web visitors like to skim, scan, and skip. Print readers start at the upper left; on Web pages, they see the entire screen as a whole.
Web readers prefer bite-sized chunks of information, less words, simpler sentences, more white space, less punctuation. (Tip) put  paragraphs as lists or tables.
Web users don't like scrolling. Usually keep pages to about 3-4 browser screens; use navigation to break info up into easily digested pages. Shorter pages make your web more maintainable, If you must have a longer page, provide anchors and 'return to top' buttons so the user can skip around easily.

Use an inverted pyramid structure:
Provide links to allow the user to choose if they want more background or detail. Novices will want links to basic explanations, advanced users might want more complex background.
Remember if you have a multi-page site that visitors may not start at the beginning, make sure your pages can stand alone, and that you provide easy navigation and links.
Put as much content towards the top of a hierarchy as is possible and provide useful content on each page seen by your audience (with the possible exception of an opening 'splash' screen.)

The Web is dynamic:
Keeping your material up-to-date is a must. Highlight new stuff, and/or feature it on your home page in a 'what's new' area.

Links:
Write as if there were no links, but just meaningful text. Not "click here for info on our training programs", but "our training programs have something for everyone" with the words "our training programs" a link to your catalog of programs.

Use standard link colors when possible; if you change the colors or use complicated tricks to avoid underlining, you'll confuse users.
Make it easy for your visitors to send you comments, with mail-to links and/or a feedback form. Listen to them. Then always respond!