FAQ | What Do You Need for Your Web site?

Hello there! If you are new here, you might want to subscribe to the RSS feed for updates on this topic.

The first thing you need for online marketing, which I hope you should know by now, is a Web site.

It doesn’t matter how you obtain a Web site. You can design it yourself (if you have the creative and graphic skills) or choose to hire someone. If you choose to do it yourself, keep it professional. If you hire someone, compare prices. I purposely keep my prices at Tywebbin Creations for people on a budget. DO plan to include two line items in your budget. For a Web site, you need a domain name and webhosting.

DOMAIN NAME

If you do not currently have a domain name, go to GoDaddy.com (or another inexpensive company). When you find the name that you desire, purchase the name immediately to make sure you have in your possession.

The domain name is usually yourname.com. For branding purposes, it’s always best to use your name unless you are writing under a pen name. There are other extensions like “.net”, “.tv”, “.us”, etc, but most people recognize “.com” as a company and you are in a sense a company or a brand.

When you do a domain name research, sometimes the name you want may be taken so it’s good to have a list of alternatives. For example, author Monique Miller wanted moniquemiller.com for her domain name, but it was already taken. She opted for authormoniquemiller.com.

As you explore domain names think about whether people will have a hard time spelling your name or if someone shares your name. Author Tia McCollors ran into this issue and uses TiaMcCollors.com, and also TiaWrites.com. Both domain names are directed to her author Web site.

If you decide to use a free Web site service like say Blogger.com, I recommend at least purchasing the domain name so readers can find you. (Ex. RhondaMcKnight.net). Rhonda is doing an excellent job of marketing her name in preparation for her 2009 book release with Urban Christian.

WEBHOSTING

The second thing that most people don’t seem to be aware of is Webhosting. This is just as important as the domain name. Webhosting is basically renting space online for your Web site files to sit for the whole world to see. You can purchase both the domain name and webhosting at the same time on godaddy.com.

I’ve been with using American Hosting since 2000. Pretty good customer service. Like with any thing, you want to be able to contact “real people” when you have an issue.

CAN YOU DO THIS FOR ME?

There are web design companies that will take care of all of this for you, but it’s always a good idea to understand what you are purchasing and why. I always prefer clients to purchase these items on their own. You can also be sure that you are the “owner” of your domain name too, which is very important.

Remember your online presence begins with your Web site.

DOWNLOAD THE FULL GUIDE (free ebook courtesy of Tywebbin Creations)

This tip has been extracted and modified from the The Next Level of Online Marketing – Web 2.0 workshop created for BWChristianLit and presented August 21^st – 22^nd, 2008.

FREE 12 Week Course - Online Marketing Basics

If you are interested in receiving the FREE Online Marketing Basic course via email, SIGN-UP HERE.

Share This Post

No related posts.

Comments

One Response to “FAQ | What Do You Need for Your Web site?”

Joseph Hoxie on October 8th, 2008 3:13 pm

Hello -

I am a student at ASU trying to get my site off the ground but didn’t have money for a web designer so I am struggling trying to understand godaddy.com setting up the hosting and server and connecting all of this to my webpage and making it look appealing for my organization EcoAid Now.

Do you have any suggestions?

Leave a Reply