That is an excellent question.  Many of the sites out on the Web are designed by people just like you.  You can hardly pick up a good computer magazine without finding ads and reviews of the latest software for designing and constructing web sites.  The tools are abundant and after all you're a pretty sharp person so why not?  It can't be all that hard.

Actually there are only four involved in the decision:

1. Personal Time - How much do you want to invest in the  initial learning process and then later in continuing education?
2. Money - How much do you want to invest in software and how much do you desire to continue to budget for software upgrades?
3. Startup Time - How long can you wait until your Web site is finally up and running?  What is the competition doing while you prepare to build your own site?
4. Image - Design or Appearance:  How do you want you or your company represented to the world?

At one time I thought I could be an expert in every area of the computer realm.  But in today's environment, technological changes occur so fast, if you study hard, you may be able to become an expert in just one small technological area.

Yes, you will need training to put your web site out on the World Wide Web.  You will have to spend a few hundred hours taking courses on how to use the one thousand dollar plus initial investment you are going to be making in software.  Two or three training courses should do it and they shouldn't cost more than a few thousand dollars.  After that, many hours will be spent trying different things.  But after reading three or four more books on design, editing, and probably a language or two so you can tweak you site just right, you will have it.

Now you are ready to build a few practice sites to get all those little mistakes out of your system and perfect your new technique.  Of course a good sense of color, proportion, design and a knowledge of the psyche of web surfers and what they will and will not look at for how long would be very helpful.  And then there is the study of how to get people to your site initially.  How to get search engines to identify your site as one of top sites from the many your potential customer will find.  Once you get all of this together, probably after half to three quarters of a year,  you will be ready to build a good, solid web site to introduce you or your company to the world at large.

A better way to invest your personal time, and money.  A better way to have your startup time greatly reduced.  And a better way to have your site look and feel professional.

In fact this way is a Win/Win situation.   You do what you do best, making a profit at what you are good at already - your business and deciding what you want portrayed on your web site.  And then let the developers and designers at Horizon, who have studied both the science and design of building professional web sites go to work for you.

Horizon and you, working together as a team will have your site out on the Web with a much lower investment on your part, in your valuable time and at a lower cost and with considerably less frustration.