The Ultimate Guide to Building the First Website for Your Small Business
If you have any chance of snagging your market share, you need to run your business with a web presence. Even if it’s a brick and motor kind of business, creating a website gives you an edge over your competition. And despite all other marketing methods, having a website will make it easier for potential customers to find you.
Today, consumers tend to turn to the internet for everything. Ranging from their product research to operating hours and finding the location of individual businesses. That said, if you don’t already have an online presence for your small business, you need to act quickly. Every day that passes without a website, you are losing out to your competition.
Your website is like your online storefront, and that is why even a simple website is still way better than no website at all. With that in mind, in this article, we will cover the ultimate guide to building your first website. For your small business to thrive, people need to find you with ease. And a website will give you just the exposure you need. Without further ado, let’s get to it!
1. First Determine the Purpose of Your Website
Before you quickly jump in to start building your website, it’s essential that you first know exactly what you want the website to do for your small business. Essentially, a well-designed website doesn’t start with a beautiful layout or catchy content but rather the clarity of purpose.
You need to figure out what you want potential customers to do once they get to your website. The sooner you get this together, the more time and headache you will save yourself once you start the website building process. What’s more, the purpose of your website will influence the design of the site.
Some of the common goals you can have for your website include; increasing your business profits. However, it would be best if you were a little more specific. For instance, raising your brand awareness or driving more traffic to your store.
While most people will build a website with the thought that they at least need an online presence, that’s not reason enough for you to invest in building a website for your small business. You are not making a website just to sit there and look pretty. Your website should have a purpose that adds value to your business.
2. Choose a Domain Name
Choosing a domain name can be a challenging task. Considering that there are already millions of websites, a lot of options you have in mind might be already taken. That’s why choosing a domain for your website is just like naming a baby. It would be best if you made sure that the name fits, makes sense for the business, visitors can easily remember, and most importantly, is available.
Remember, your domain will essentially be the URL you share with both current and potential customers and even promote on social media platforms. That is why when choosing a domain name, you always need to keep it short and avoid abbreviations, numbers, and acronyms. Essentially, avoid anything that might be potentially confusing to your customers.
Once you are sure about your domain name, you need to confirm availability then purchase through a domain registrar like Websitebuilder.co.za. And just to recap, the best way to steer your customers from your competitor is by choosing a domain that’s directly reflective of your business.
3. Find a Reliable Hosting Company
A proper domain name won’t be of help if you have no way of showing it off. That’s why you will need a reliable hosting company that will connect your website to the internet. The hosting company will act as the hard drive to your business. You could also host your own website, but since we are talking of small businesses, that will be too large of an expense.
You could go with dedicated hosting or shared hosting, depending on your budgetary needs. Websitebuilder.co.za offers the best hosting plan with top-notch customer support, enough space for your site, and proper support for your blog.
4. Build Your Pages and Organise Your Site
Even with the right design, your website needs the right organisation for visitors to navigate with ease. You need your website to be intuitive to your users and eligible for SEO. That said, before you get to the design and structure, think about the main pages and categories you need for your website.
Your main menu should include all the essential pages to provide easy navigation to your visitors. With informative and engaging webpages, you will offer your visitors a positive experience. And with a strategic call to action button, you will encourage your visitors to engage in specific behaviours that may lead to sales.
5. Develop Your Web Content
Sometimes, building content for your website can be the hardest part. That is because any information your upload needs to not only be compelling to your audience but also convey information that will capture the attention of your visitors. Therefore, when writing content for your website, make sure that it adds value to your audience; otherwise, your visitors might end up quickly moving on to the next site.
What’s more, you need to supplement your content with images. Visual impact and appeal also play a vital role in the success of your website and small business. That may include pictures of your products, headshots of your team members, or stock art graphics. Essentially, the graphics need to illustrate your approach to your service delivery.
In Summary
Well, now, there you have it; The ultimate guide to building your first website for your small business! However, a successful website is not all about what you do during the building process. But instead, what you do after launching.
That said, while you build the most fantastic website, ensure you have a plan on how to promote it beyond the launch day. That is how you will achieve success. With that in mind, go to websitebuilder.co.za and build the dream website for your small business today!
