Women on the Web 3
Stay-at-home mum in the Dominican Republic - working on the
web - Helen Richardson
Being a mum at home and living in the Dominican
Republic, when the opportunity arose to manage a website
about the Dominican Republic in English I literally jumped at
the chance!
 Starting
from the ground up therealdr.com was a new site and initially
required inputting lots of information regarding the island.
The main frame for the site was already up and running, it was
my job to fill in the gaps (huge ones!) The main frame was created
and maintained by one of the founders of therealdr.com who resides
in the United Kingdom, he's called Pete.
Having been resident in the DR for 11 years this initial task
was an exciting challenge. Whilst at the time I possessed only
basic computer skills (i.e. writing an article in Word) that
didn't put me off, I had tons of information, great experiences
from living in the country, knew gorgeous beaches and fabulous
places to eat off the beaten track, the Dominican Republic was
my oyster. Our dream was to create a ìvirtual encyclopedia
of the DR so subject matter was limitless and varied. We also
wanted to make our website stand out and keep it clean yet punchy,
give tourists and travelers some bare bone facts and off-road
secrets that only people living here could point out. Working
and communicating with Pete in the UK I began my "Correspondence
website management course". I had all the info for the site,
but how to put it on, load photos, edit? So my course began.
Through "crib" sheets and many Skype phone conversations,
Pete took me through the behind the scenes maze of a working
website. Although daunting at first (I had not learnt any new
skills since leaving school 25 years ago) I picked up each piece
of technical instruction and found to my amazement I was quickly
becoming a "techy junkie" and wanted to learn more!
It was incredibly satisfying to master and I am still learning.
 Eighteen
months later therealdr.com is now a working live product. I daily
check for new people who have registered on the site, I write
Dominican news related articles for the front page and travel
articles, features and facts are still on going as the Dominican
Republic is continuing to develop as a tourist destination and
almost weekly new hotels are opening - especially in the Punta
Cana region of the island. We now also sell excursions
and trips online so people can book and reserve an excursion
before they come on holiday. This is a recent addition to therealdr.com
and I look after the shop
part of the site too. I correspond with people who have bought
an excursion and complete their purchase.
We work hand in hand with an island tour operator and I communicate
all reservations with them. I maintain their purchases, keep
accounts and render off each month. The great part is that I
can genuinely recommend all the tours and trips we sell as over
the years of living in the Dominican Republic I have personally
tried and tested all our products many times with family and
friends! Our latest addition to therealdr.com is a blog which
I write titled Mango Mammas Dominican Life, a fun, forty-something
take on life out here in the Dominican Republic!
Managing therealdr.com website has enabled my personal growth,
acquiring new skills in a competitive market place and to be
proud of a great working website about the fabulous Dominican
Republic - and if anyone is passing this way for a holiday, don't
hesitate to look us up!
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