First, like my last post, and for better or worst, most site owners or designers have fallen in love with their web site. Some times you may need a few comparisons in order to understand if your web site even needs a graphical update. Check out Web Pages That Suck and especially it's "daily sucker" page. While the WPTS site uses Google AdWords in an obnoxious perhaps even "sucky" way itself, the "daily sucker" section has links to anonymously nominated "sucky" web pages that were nominated for their design, user interface, or other shortcomings. When you visit some of these sites, does your own site seem similar?

Find a Pro or Amateur Artist.

There are many, many pro and amateur web designers that would be happy to assist you and work within a budget.

There are plenty of places where you can place a free or low cost advertisement for a designer such as Guru.com and of course you've probably heard of Monster right?. You can always post to the online version of your local news paper but it may be casting your net too wide. Why not go where the more internet savvy hang out? Try checking the jobs, gigs, or services areas of Craigslist. You can also find artists via art associations such as AIGA. If you want to give a talented amateur their big break, consider some of the "hidden" talent markets. Post your needs on the job boards and art departments of your local community colleges and universities. You can also peruse the art and contact amateur and pro graphic designers via Deviantart. Deviantart has been around for years and I would argue that it is the "myspace" for graphic designers.

A Few Tools You Might Try...

If you have a bit of time and talent, you may want to create and add graphics on your own. Even if you find that you do not have the talent required to make great graphics or designs for your site, don't write off trying. Often times creating at least a mock up of what you are shooting for can be extremely helpful to a designer. Your plans may be modest or even too grand, but a good web designer / graphic artist can often work to hone your ideas to a more manageable form.

No cost:
Paint.Net
Fauxto
Gimp
ImageMagick

Low cost:
Paint Shop Pro
LView

High Cost/Pro Tools:
From Adobe: Photo Shop, Fireworks
From Corel: CorelDRAW, Painter

Download a Tutorial.

While the ease of use and learning curve will differ with each of these programs, there are many free tutorials that can guide you through creating some some amazing special effects for graphics. If you can't find a tutorial for your specific graphics program, understand that many programs utilize different names for the same software features. As you begin to understand more about your selected software program you can then go through and follow many of the tutorials for other programs in order to create roughly the same results.

A few tutorial sites that I've found useful:
Web Design Library
CBT Cafe
SitePoint
PhotoShop Tips & Tricks

Add Some Interesting Photos and Graphics.

Some time's you have to go cheap with your graphics. If you don't have the talent for creating graphics through a free or inexpensive program, you may turn to buying clip art or using a program to modify clip art. Years ago, I was buying clip art CDs in order to quickly create graphics for web sites. Most of the inexpensive clip art CDs that I've found today, still include those same clip art files from years ago. Do you really want your site to look like it was made 10 years ago or like something newer? Forget outdated clip art CDs!

Consider using the "find" option at Creative Commons to find art, photos, or other items that you can use on your site. The licensing terms will vary but often a quick email to the license holder will clear up any questions that you might have about usage. And quite often, the CC photo authors will let you use their photos for free, as long as you reference them on your about page, copy right/privacy page, or similar.

On the other hand there are tons of online image banks that can be used. These image banks are much like the clip art CDs of years past except there are always new photos and graphics being added to the mix and you can preview the art before plunking $30-$200 into a CD collection where you might only use 1 graphic. There are sites with large selections like the well known Gettyimages, but for the license price you might also check out smaller competitors like iStockphoto. If you think stock photos can't help or look too generic, think a bit more creatively about what can be done with them. Although Kathy Sierra pretty much froze her web blog a few months ago, I'm still inspired by many of the posts on her "Creating Passionate Users" blog. With just a little bit of creativity, a post can be spiced up by a great graphic in a very positive way.

Now Go Make Something Beautiful... Need a Little More Inspiration First?

At this point you've probably picked up a few resources that you can use. Whether you are a do-it-yourselfer or you are hiring some one to help, it is great to have some inspiration and a game plan. Like many, I find that looking at what others are doing can really help. Often you can can pick out the things that you like/don't like from other sites and work some of those ideas. Into your own design plan.

If you are looking mainly for color schemes, check out Geoff Peters' "Instant Color Schemes". His tool pulls photos in from a Yahoo image search in order to create a common color palette. Some times it works really well, at other times, the results are odd. But as Yahoo's image search is constantly changing, it is always a bit different from the last time you had used the same search. Also check out one of my all time favorites Design Meltdown. DM brings together examples of various web site designs, then slices and dices common site features into categories. You can gain some inspiration from ideas like "clean" design, "orange" sites, and others. DM also runs The Daily Slurp where users submit their own suggestions for great site design. When your site starts shining after a re-design, you may want to submit it.

Before I close, understand that visually good design does not necessarily mean a well optimized or search engine friendly design. The reverse is also true, a well optimized site does not necessarily mean a visually good looking site. However a good mix of engine friendly and visually appealing techniques can be quite beneficial. There are also arguments for and against a well designed web site or an ugly design that I haven't mentioned, and I encourage you to explore those issues. And while I encourage you to review what others sites do and form your own game plan based on bits and pieces that you find and like, I don't recommend that you clone some one else's web site. Large companies may be able to get away with it, but you may or may not be able to, why take the chance? In a nut shell, whether your budget is large or small, there are lots of inexpensive ways to make your site look more professional and graphically appealing with out breaking the bank.

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