Are you a small business owner or solopreneur looking to get your project off the ground but don’t know where to begin? One of the most important questions that frequently comes up is whether having a website is necessary. With so many successful businesses around us not having their own websites, it can be hard to determine if you need one. 

It’s true that you certainly can make it without one.  However, there are some key benefits of owning your own website that could help take your business from simply surviving to thrive. In this blog post, we’ll explore all the aspects related to building a website for your business and how it could truly be essential for success.

Before we learn how to create a website for your business, let’s talk about the benefits of having a website as a small business owner or solopreneur.

Benefits Of Having a Website For Your Business

There are several benefits of having a website to start a business:

• A website provides a 24/7/365 marketing and advertising platform for your business. 
• It can be a powerful tool for promoting your products or services and a great way to reach new customers. 
• A website can help you build credibility and establish your brand. 
• A professional website can show potential customers that you are a serious business owner, and it can give you a competitive edge.
• It can help you stay organized and keep track of your customers and prospects. Having a central place to store your contact information, product information, and other business data can be a huge time-saver.

Steps For Creating A Website For Your Business

Decide What You Want Your Website To Do

Before you even start creating the site, decide on what its purpose should be whether it just serves as an informative space or if you want it to have other features like eCommerce capabilities, etc. This will give you an idea of the scope of the project and also helps in budgeting since different features have different costs associated with them. 

Your goal should be to create something that matches your brand’s identity while being functional and easy to use at the same time.

Choose A Domain Name

One of the first steps in creating a website is registering a domain name. This is essentially the address of your website. When choosing one, make sure it’s simple, easy to remember, and relevant to your brand/business name. With that, people can easily find it online without any confusion or difficulty.  

There are lots of domain registrar platforms available on the internet. In this article, we have highlighted some of the best domain registrar platforms where you can buy the domain for your website at affordable rates. The following are the best domain registrar platforms:

• Hostinger
• Godaddy
• Hostgator 
• Bluehost
• Namecheap

Get Web Hosting Services

Once you have chosen a domain name, you need web hosting services that essentially provide storage space for all of the information related to your website such as images, videos, text, etc. After that, make sure that it is accessible online at all times by verifying that all files are up-to-date and available when needed. 

It is important to choose one with good customer service and uptime so there are no issues with keeping things running smoothly on your site! 

Here are some best and most affordable hosting platforms that have new discount packages running almost every day, so let’s jump into it:

• Hostinger
• Godaddy
• Hostgator 
• Bluehost
• Namecheap

Design Your Site

After getting hosting services, it’s time to actually design and build the site itself! There are many different platforms available depending on what kind of features you need – some popular ones include WordPress, Joomla, WIX, etc. These builders provide templates and drag-and-drop options so anyone can easily create their websites without much technical knowledge required! If you don’t feel comfortable doing this yourself then there are plenty of web designers/developers who can do it for you at an additional cost but they usually offer great quality work worth every penny spent on them.

Building a Business Website On Different Platforms

We are going to list a couple of the best platforms where you can build your business website:

WordPress

Assuming you would like a step-by-step guide on how to create a website with WordPress: 

1. Go to wordpress.com and create an account. 
2. Choose a theme for your website. 
3. Customize your website with a header, menus, pages, and content. 
4. Choose a domain name for your website and set up hosting. 
5. Launch your website and start promoting it. 

Creating a website with WordPress is easy and anyone can do it with a little time and effort. Follow the steps above and you’ll have a website up and running in no time.

WIX

If you’re interested in creating a website with WIX, here are some things to keep in mind: 

• First, you will need to create a WIX account and log in. 
• Once you’re logged in, you’ll be able to access the WIX editor. 
• In the editor, you’ll be able to choose from a variety of templates and designs to create your website. 
• You can then add your own content, photos, and videos to make your website unique.
• Once your website is ready, you can publish it and make it live.

Joomla

Joomla is a popular content management system that helps you easily create and manage your website. Follow the step-by-step guide to creating your business website:

•  Sign up for a Joomla account by clicking on the “Create an Account” button.
•  Log into your account and access the “Site Manager” area to create your site.
• On-Site Manager, you can create your website by adding pages, content, and images. You can also add plugins and extensions to add functionality to your website.
• When you are finished creating your website click the “Publish” button to publish it. This will make your website visible to the public and allow them to easily find it.

Add Content to Your Website

After your website is built, you will need to add content to it. This includes things like text, images, videos, and documents. You can add content yourself using a content management system (CMS) such as WordPress or Squarespace, or you can hire someone to do it for you. Make sure that all of your content is high-quality and relevant to your business.

Test & Launch The Site

After building the site, make sure everything works properly by testing out each page before launching it live so there are no issues once people start visiting from around the world! Also add analytics tools like Google Analytics which track traffic data from visitors so that you know how well people are responding to certain content or campaigns etc., helping improve engagement further over time! 

Promote Your Website

Once your website is live, you will need to start promoting it to attract visitors. There are many ways to promote your websites, such as through search engine optimization (SEO), social media marketing, and pay-per-click advertising. You can also promote your website offline by distributing flyers and business cards with your website’s address on them.

Analyze Your Traffic

After you have started promoting your website, you should begin tracking your traffic using Google Analytics or another similar service. Tracking your traffic will allow you to see how many people are visiting your website and where they are coming from (e.g., organic search, direct traffic, referrals). This information can help you adjust your marketing efforts and SEO so that you are targeting the most effective channels.

Make Updates As Needed

As time goes on, you will likely need to make updates and changes to your website. Be sure to keep an eye on things like new product offerings or changes in your business hours or contact information. By keeping your site up-to-date, you will ensure that visitors always have the most accurate information about your business.

Promote Your Business with Email Marketing

Email marketing is a powerful tool to get traffic to your website and promote your business. It allows you to reach a large audience quickly and easily, and it provides a way to stay in touch with your customers and build relationships with them.

It can help you boost your sales and increase your brand awareness. It can also help you connect with your customers and create a community around your business.

Email marketing is an essential part of any marketing strategy, and it should be a part of your overall marketing plan. If you’re not using email marketing to promote your business, you’re missing out on a great opportunity to reach your customers and grow your business.

Below are some of the suggested email marketing platform you can start using as a startup business owner or solopreneur. 

• Mailerlite
• GetResponse
• MailChimp
• Active Campaign

Website Alternates, Create Landing Pages

If you’re looking to create a landing page for your GetResponse or Mailerlite email marketing campaign, Canva is a great option. With Canva, you can easily create a professional-looking landing page in minutes, without any design experience.

To get started: 

• Simply sign up for a FREE Canva account
• Select the “Create a Design” option
• Choose the “Landing Page” template from the list of options that suits your business the most.
• Customize your landing page by adding your images, text, and branding.

Once you are happy with your design, simply download it as a PDF or HTML file and upload it to your GetResponse or Mailerlite account. Your landing page will then be live and ready to start converting visitors into leads!

If you’ve been struggling to create a website up and running, you may be looking for a Web Developer. You can work with me (As a web developer or tech VA). I specialize in creating web applications and websites from concept to completion. If you are interested in working with me, just book a discovery call.