Ngā Toi website workshops wrap-up
The past few months saw me with the privilege of running a series of website-building workshops in partnership with Ngā Toi, supporting local creatives and small business owners to take charge of their online presence using the Rocketspark platform.
The goal? To create or refresh their websites in a simple, supported, and genuinely achievable way – even for those who didn’t think they were “techy.”
By the end of the series, eleven participants had come through the workshop doors, and already six new websites have gone live. Of those, three were brand new builds – including one full e-commerce site – and three were fresh rebuilds of existing sites.
Importantly, all participants were working towards more than just a basic one-page presence, and many received additional one-on-one support after the workshop to help bring their vision to life.
That extra support included important elements to website design like:
Design review
Setting up Google Analytics
Submitting websites to Google Search
Providing SEO tips tailored to each site
Feedback to support the project
The response from participants was incredibly heartening – with many sharing just how easy and intuitive Rocketspark felt compared to other platforms they’d tried in the past.
"After using Wordpress and Square Space I was expecting it to be tricky, but Rocketspark was so user friendly and intuitive. Your workshop was fun and informative – I would’ve happily stayed all day!"
"Kath made the whole experience incredibly clear and she made sure I understood each step. Highly recommended to anyone thinking about creating their own bit of turf on the internet – especially for artists and craftspeople."
And from my side of the room? I was just as impressed.
Everyone showed up ready to learn, and the progress made in a short space of time was amazing. One participant, who didn’t have her own computer or smartphone, managed to create and launch a beautiful e-commerce website – a powerful reminder that with the right tools and support, anything is possible.
What we learnt along the way
I believe it’s important to reflect on what worked well and where there’s room to make things even better, especially when undertaking a new project.
A few key takeaways stood out from this series:
Typed pre-workshop workbooks helped participants arrive prepared and focused.
Sketching a rough layout with pen and paper was a great way to plan content and structure before jumping online.
Design approach: pen and paper was a winner on the day for design outlines, and participants were blown away by how, with the right prompts, they could quickly use AI to meet their copy needs, all while making it SEO-friendly and capturing their brand voice .
A full-day format or a two-part workshop could give more time for deeper support and more completions.
There’s clear demand for a follow-up workshop focused on how to market a website once it’s live.
This series wasn’t just about building websites – it was about building confidence, capability, and connection. Every attendee walked away with a better understanding of what’s possible when you have the right tools and someone backing you to give it a go.
If you’re curious about running a similar workshop in your community or want help getting your own website off the ground, I’d love to chat.