In my experience, I have encountered this question more times than I can remember.  Although myself and otheres in the Tampa Web Design community have been able to enlighten some, there are still many companies that trust its web presence to the men and women of the IT department.  I am not referring to small business but to businesses with revenues in the hundreds of millions!!!  Websites that are both designed and developed by the IT department are easy to spot.  While many websites built by the IT department operate with a fair level of functionality, the vast majority lack even the most basic professional web design elements.  This is by no means an attack on the IT department as they serve a vital function.  The fact is, however, they are being asked to do something that they are not trained to do.  A successful website is a mix of web design and web development and should enlist the service of experts in each field.