 | Getting Started Creating a Website for Your Business |
You just opened up a new business such as a restaurant, pizzeria, clothing store or auto-dealership. Now you need to advertise your business. There are many traditional ways such as telemarketing, business phone books, TV commercials, ads in magazines that are part of the industry. Well, in today's day it is very important to have an online internet presence through the use of creating a website.
Nowadays, this is almost a given in order to promote your business regardless of what it is. Most people I find are not using traditional business phone book anymore to look up a place of business. These days people simply "Google It" to find it.
Whether they type the exact name of the restaurant for location and driving information or they are simply looking for a specific style of restaurant in the area, they use the internet over traditional advertising.
Nowadays, this is almost a given in order to promote your business regardless of what it is. Most people I find are not using traditional business phone book anymore to look up a place of business. These days people simply "Google It" to find it.
Whether they type the exact name of the restaurant for location and driving information or they are simply looking for a specific style of restaurant in the area, they use the internet over traditional advertising.
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Now, traditional advertising can be quite expensive. One can pay thousands of dollars for a full page ad in traditional business phone book advertising. This expense is a monthly recurring business expense. Well, getting started in creating a website does have expenses but they are a lot less than traditional advertising.
Here are a few getting started steps:
Step 1: Register a Domain Name - A domain name is the name that is typed in the web browsers box at the top of the screen. It generally follows the concept of www.mybusinessname.com. The actual domain name is "mybusinessname.com". The "www" in front of that is how you reference the website. Generally speaking, a domain name can cost from $10.00 to $15.00 per year. That is a fairly low expense. To register a domain name you can use a domain registration service. I recommend DirectNic as a very good viable service. They don't saturate you with ads and is very reliable. Now, if you are a deli for example, you would want to get a domain name that is closely resembles your business name and location. example: joesdelibabylon.com. If you sell flowers in may be "johnsmithflorist.com". If you are unable to get "johnsmithflorist.com" because it is already being used by someone else, then you may consider adding a location to the end of the domain name as well. In this example it is "johnsmithfloristlongbeach.com". You may consider getting 2 or 3 domain names, one with the name of business and the others that describes in 2 to 3 words what your business is. So for flowers you would try to purchase something like buybeautifulflowers.com and/or gorgeousflowersonline.com as well. I will explain the reasoning to get the 2nd domain in this website optimization article. All in all, keep in mind each domain will cost you approx $15.00 per year so for 3 names, it is $45.00. This is not a very large business expense.
Step 2: Get Web Hosting - the next step is to get a web hosting. Web hosting is where your website's computer files will be stored. A typical small business web hosting cost is around $10.00 per month for $120.00 per year. Most web hosting companies make managing your website quite easily and effortlessly with the tools they use. They integrate with Wordpress, Joomla and other content management systems. However, you will need to choose the hosting packages based on your website needs. If you simply need a 5 page website to advertise your business then you can go with a cheaper plan ($5.00 per month or less). However, if you need e-commerce for a high volume of items, you may want to consider something more tailored toward your needs. There may be additional merchant costs as well as a SSL certificate for full blown e-commerce. If you plan on selling only a few items and don't need a full blown shopping cart then you can use PayPal which only charges once something is purchased. However, you can always upgrade a plan if necessary to keep the expenses to a minimum. Find out more about your web hosting options.
Step 3: Get a Logo Designed - Now here is where you may start spending a little money in getting a logo designed. A logo makes your business stand out and helps to give a good identity to your business. A professional logo would cost around $250.00 although I have seen the cost of logo's cost anywhere from $150.00 to $500.00. A logo can be used for your brochures, pamphlets and also for your website that will soon be developed. So it is important to have a nice quality logo to identify and brand your business with.
Step 4: Get the Website Developed - Now here is the bulk of your expense, getting your website developed. The price of a website can range based on your needs. A simple 5 page website can cost $500.00 to $1500.00 depending on your needs. If you provide the content (text to go one the pages), that can cut back on the costs. If you have your own images that can also cut back on the costs by a few hundred dollars as well along with if you already have your own website template (look and feel completed or pre-purchased). If you are selling items on your website, need chat rooms, bulletin boards that can be an added expense. A full blown shopping cart can also add to the cost. The point being, you may want to start off small and add to it over time to save expenses. In the end if you buy one of those $100.00 per month rentals that business phone services offer, then that is an expense that expense will not end. In 18 months you would have spend $1800.00 and still not own your website. If you plan on being in business for at least 2 to 3 years, I would suggest investing in your own website, not a rental from a business phone directory. Here is an article on elements for an effective website design and what to look for in a good website!
Step 5: Get Your Website Optimized - Now that your website is developed and complete the final thing is to tell the search engines about it. To do this there are several steps that can help. One of these is submitting to the search engines. Another is to get on blogs and forums, social websites like Facebook and tell people about them. The goal is to generate traffic and have people find you. Some techniques I have outlined in this search engine optimization article. This article can help you obtain new customers from Google searches, not simply to redirect your existing ones. I find for example that I needed tires for my car and there was a place in a specific town but I forgot the name of the company so I Googled "car tires Freeport warehouse" and finally found the phone # on their website. I called them, they offered me a good deal came in with the specific driving direction and purchased 4 new tires. So a website for me proved critical. Prices to optimize a website vary on the type and purpose of your website.
Once your website is complete, along with optimizing it, there are other ways to promote and market your website. Doing this will surely get you some visitors which then turn into sales. If you have products to sell, you can start start making money online with your products as well!
In conclusion, these are a few basic steps and costs that are involved in creating a website. The companies I recommend above are the ones that I have been using myself for a number of years and like to report that issues are kept are a minimum and they work well.
Find out more information about our website development services.
Here are a few getting started steps:
Step 1: Register a Domain Name - A domain name is the name that is typed in the web browsers box at the top of the screen. It generally follows the concept of www.mybusinessname.com. The actual domain name is "mybusinessname.com". The "www" in front of that is how you reference the website. Generally speaking, a domain name can cost from $10.00 to $15.00 per year. That is a fairly low expense. To register a domain name you can use a domain registration service. I recommend DirectNic as a very good viable service. They don't saturate you with ads and is very reliable. Now, if you are a deli for example, you would want to get a domain name that is closely resembles your business name and location. example: joesdelibabylon.com. If you sell flowers in may be "johnsmithflorist.com". If you are unable to get "johnsmithflorist.com" because it is already being used by someone else, then you may consider adding a location to the end of the domain name as well. In this example it is "johnsmithfloristlongbeach.com". You may consider getting 2 or 3 domain names, one with the name of business and the others that describes in 2 to 3 words what your business is. So for flowers you would try to purchase something like buybeautifulflowers.com and/or gorgeousflowersonline.com as well. I will explain the reasoning to get the 2nd domain in this website optimization article. All in all, keep in mind each domain will cost you approx $15.00 per year so for 3 names, it is $45.00. This is not a very large business expense.
Step 2: Get Web Hosting - the next step is to get a web hosting. Web hosting is where your website's computer files will be stored. A typical small business web hosting cost is around $10.00 per month for $120.00 per year. Most web hosting companies make managing your website quite easily and effortlessly with the tools they use. They integrate with Wordpress, Joomla and other content management systems. However, you will need to choose the hosting packages based on your website needs. If you simply need a 5 page website to advertise your business then you can go with a cheaper plan ($5.00 per month or less). However, if you need e-commerce for a high volume of items, you may want to consider something more tailored toward your needs. There may be additional merchant costs as well as a SSL certificate for full blown e-commerce. If you plan on selling only a few items and don't need a full blown shopping cart then you can use PayPal which only charges once something is purchased. However, you can always upgrade a plan if necessary to keep the expenses to a minimum. Find out more about your web hosting options.
Step 3: Get a Logo Designed - Now here is where you may start spending a little money in getting a logo designed. A logo makes your business stand out and helps to give a good identity to your business. A professional logo would cost around $250.00 although I have seen the cost of logo's cost anywhere from $150.00 to $500.00. A logo can be used for your brochures, pamphlets and also for your website that will soon be developed. So it is important to have a nice quality logo to identify and brand your business with.
Step 4: Get the Website Developed - Now here is the bulk of your expense, getting your website developed. The price of a website can range based on your needs. A simple 5 page website can cost $500.00 to $1500.00 depending on your needs. If you provide the content (text to go one the pages), that can cut back on the costs. If you have your own images that can also cut back on the costs by a few hundred dollars as well along with if you already have your own website template (look and feel completed or pre-purchased). If you are selling items on your website, need chat rooms, bulletin boards that can be an added expense. A full blown shopping cart can also add to the cost. The point being, you may want to start off small and add to it over time to save expenses. In the end if you buy one of those $100.00 per month rentals that business phone services offer, then that is an expense that expense will not end. In 18 months you would have spend $1800.00 and still not own your website. If you plan on being in business for at least 2 to 3 years, I would suggest investing in your own website, not a rental from a business phone directory. Here is an article on elements for an effective website design and what to look for in a good website!
Step 5: Get Your Website Optimized - Now that your website is developed and complete the final thing is to tell the search engines about it. To do this there are several steps that can help. One of these is submitting to the search engines. Another is to get on blogs and forums, social websites like Facebook and tell people about them. The goal is to generate traffic and have people find you. Some techniques I have outlined in this search engine optimization article. This article can help you obtain new customers from Google searches, not simply to redirect your existing ones. I find for example that I needed tires for my car and there was a place in a specific town but I forgot the name of the company so I Googled "car tires Freeport warehouse" and finally found the phone # on their website. I called them, they offered me a good deal came in with the specific driving direction and purchased 4 new tires. So a website for me proved critical. Prices to optimize a website vary on the type and purpose of your website.
Once your website is complete, along with optimizing it, there are other ways to promote and market your website. Doing this will surely get you some visitors which then turn into sales. If you have products to sell, you can start start making money online with your products as well!
In conclusion, these are a few basic steps and costs that are involved in creating a website. The companies I recommend above are the ones that I have been using myself for a number of years and like to report that issues are kept are a minimum and they work well.
Find out more information about our website development services.