When launching your new business start-up, there are a number of considerations concerning your business's website.
First, launch your business with a website. This is critical. If I haven't stressed it enough in previous blog posts, I will do it again — your business's website is the "new" business card and I will go as far as saying that it is more important than one, also.
To start things off, if you haven't already researched potential domain names, do so now. Check for the availability of names that are an exact match to your business's name, a close match to it or an abbreviation.
A few domain recommendations/tips:
- I recommend using GoDaddy to purchase your domain name/s. They're available 24/7 and will let you revert a financial decision for up to a week after the purchase.
- If you have a long business name, shorten or abbreviate so that the domain name isn't overwhelming for the users.
- If .com and .ca are available, take both.
- If the domain name you wanted has already been taken and is being sold for an exorbitant amount of money, either change your business name (if you can at this point) or get creative and add the province, city, country to your name.
- If you've purchased a .com with GoDaddy, make sure that you also purchase the Private Domain Registration for approximately $20 more. This allows your personal information to be private. You do not have to worry about this if you purchase a .ca domain.
- Purchase an email address that matches your recently purchased domain as it helps your business look professional. And no, I'm not a sales representative for GoDaddy.
At this point, there are many other important items that are available for purchase through GoDaddy, or any other hosting platform at that rate. First, you'll need to consider a few other things. Namely, will you create your own website using a template (Squarespace, Weebly, Wix) or will you have your website custom designed and built? Let's lay out the groundwork for both options:
Template:
- Is quick
- Is relatively simple to use
- May cost more money in the long run as it has a continuous monthly fee
- May be difficult when needing technical support concerning inputting content (no phone number to call, having to do research on forums)
- It does not tell you how to input content and move content blocks around to encourage conversion (another potential loss in money)
- It does not tell you how to input keywords and meta tags
- Looks generic
- Is time consuming
Custom Designed Website:
- Generally takes longer
- Can be more complex depending on the platform it is built in
- Costs more money upfront
- Comes with unlimited customer service
- Is designed and built with conversion in mind (more conversion = more dollars in your pocket)
- Is built with Search Engine Optimization (SEO) in mind
- Is designed and built with flow, from the design to the copy and everything in between
- Looks unique
- Is easy for the client (limited work)
When considering the options, be realistic with how much time, money and effort you are willing to put in. Don't forget, you're a new business start-up and you're already being pulled in a million directions. Simplicity is key.
Assuming that you are going with GoDaddy as your hosting provider, if you choose to use a template website and input content and copy yourself, you'll need to purchase besides your domain name/s and private domain registration:
- An email address (if you haven't already)
If you choose to use a graphic designer and want to pursue a custom designed website (ahem, I can help), you'll need to purchase on top of your domain name/s and private domain registration:
- An email address (if you haven't already)
- Linux cPanel
- SSL Certificate
Once you've figured out whether you'll use a template site or designer, what your domain names will be and all of your purchases, you can start focusing on the look, feel and what type of information you want displayed on your website. Stay tuned for the next post!