Too many first-generation Web sites go up without a blueprint. Companies publish sites because their closest competitors have one, or because they feel behind the times without a URL on their corporate stationery. Launching an effective, financially successful Web site takes planning.

Here's a sample of the services I can provide to organizations that don't have a site yet but have decided to take the plunge:

• Help your organization forge both a short-term and long-term Internet strategy
• Aid your organization in determining an appropriate initial and ongoing budget for Web development
• Inform your management team about the pros and cons of using sponsorships to offset costs
• Recommend ways to incorporate online product sales--E-commerce--into your site
• Register a domain name for your new site
• Determine what Web hosting, site design and programming services you need, and find suitable vendors to provide those services
• Create content for the site, or edit text provided by your internal team
• Help your organization discern who the site's intended audience is, and then decide what information you want to convey to this group
• Plot out the way information will be organized and how visitors will navigate through the site
• Work as a project manager, handling all details involved in creating and launching your site