In the year 2015, so much online commerce is taking place that it’s almost unavoidable for a business not to have a website. How easy it to build one really? Will it cost a fortune?
The long and short of it is, essentially: very easy with the right information and, no, it doesn’t necessarily have to break the bank.
Businesses in general, either large or small, will require a unique and interesting domain name first and foremost. This is your banner and call to the world, so make sure it’s something that you’re 100% behind. Not only is a memorable and snappy name necessary, but deciding upon the ‘top level domain name’ at end of your site is vital as well. On average, a .co.uk can cost around £3 a year, while a .com or increasingly popular .biz costing approximately £10 a year.
Checking whether your domain name is available will be your initial move. You can search for domain names with 1&1, giving you the chance to check availability, and then register and ultimately design and manage your own website. Sites such as theirs are offering new top level domains (TLDs) like .restaurant for roughly £30 per year.
Most website developers will tell you that constructing a website is like asking how long is a piece of string. The time and effort going into the building will affect the overall price, as with certain providers, the construction and maintenance of a site with moderate content can cost around £240 per year, with a setting up fee of roughly £125. That said, bigger companies who require a more powerful website, can expect to pay a development free of £3,000 and yearly maintenance of £1,200. The latter naturally coming with a dedicated project manager for your site.
Beginners would do well to register a domain name and get the site hosted by the same company, although you can choose to do these separately of course. For a company that requires a powerful hosting service and their own dedicated server, it’s likely that the cost will be circa £60 per month. Furthermore, if visitor traffic increases as your website grows, prices of your hosting will have to rise accordingly, as you seek to cope with an influx of hits to your site.
One of the buzzwords surrounding websites these days is ‘Pay-per-click’. Through affiliate marketing, web masters can earn money by linking to ecommerce sites. Additionally, bloggers can earn money through display ads.
Don’t forget that there are many websites that offer free services, as it’s possible to create a great looking blog from WordPress. Additionally, social media sites like Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook offer methods to expand and promote your website.
So for whatever reason you decide to build a site, be sure you look at every option available and make an informed decision as to which company is best equipped to help you build your website.
*Image sourced under creative commons license via Flickr
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