Do you have a great idea for a website, but you’re not sure where to begin? Are you a new business that needs a strong digital presence?
Often we speak to people who are overwhelmed with the process of turning their idea into a live, informative, income-generating website. In an effort to help others over this hurdle, we’ve compiled information on the most common questions we get about the process.
Tip #1: Register Your Domain
Competition is tough for a good domain these days, but DomainTyper helps simplify the search by showing you the availability of a potential domain name across several popular domain extensions while also recommending similar domains to consider. You can also add extensions to the list of URLs they check (for example, .ca URLs) to broaden your search.
With all the options available now, people often wonder which domain extension they should go with — .com, .ca, .org, .online, .co, etc. Our advice is to always secure the .com if it is available. The truth is that domains really aren’t that expensive, and we think it’s best to purchase any domain you think might be relevant to your brand. For example, if you’re a Canadian company, snagging the .ca is a great idea, but if you plan to potentially reach a more international audience also having the .com (if available) is the way to go. Even if you register multiple domains, your site will ultimately live at one URL and redirects can be set at any others you’ve purchased so that traffic is still sent to your main web address.
Once you’ve selected your available domain name, you’ll want to head over to a domain registrar to purchase it.
Purchasing a Domain Name
A domain registrar is a company that manages the ownership of domain names. There are over 900 domain registrars, so to help simplify your search, we’ve compiled a list of our top three registrars we feel have fair prices, helpful support, good documentation and an easy-to-use user dashboard.
Our Recommended Domain Registrars:
**Note: Many hosting providers include a free domain registration with their plans so it is beneficial to look into hosting providers at this stage as well to potentially save a few bucks.
Tip #2: Select a Host
As noted above, your registrar and hosting provider could potentially be the same company, but it’s helpful to know the difference between the terms. While a domain registrar handles the ownership of your domain, a domain name alone is like having a building permit but no lot to build on. In this analogy, a host serves as the “lot” on which you can build your site. The host will house your site files and ultimately serve up your website at your registered domain.
We highly recommend selecting a host with helpful, easy to access customer service so that you’re not left in the lurch if you experience hosting issues. Some hosting providers we have had excellent experiences with are:
Selecting a Hosting Plan
If you are anticipating high traffic or extra security is a concern, you may want to look into private server or VPS options. However, for most customers, a shared hosting plan will cover their needs. Review the different packages available and assess which you feel is best for you. Usually the differences lie in the number of domains that can be hosted (if you’re planning to launch more than one site), the amount of storage and what type of email package is included. The agency assisting you with your site build can help you select a package that best suits your needs if you’re still unsure.
Tip #3: Choose a Content Management System (CMS)
While a static code build is always an option, businesses of all sizes find content management systems useful as they grant people greater control over their site content and its ongoing maintenance (which also helps reduce future costs). There is no shortage of CMS options out there, so we thought it would be helpful to provide our thoughts on a few popular platforms.
Wix
Wix seems to be most popular with people with less web experience who want to take a stab at building their site on their own. It offers ready-to-go templates you can choose to customize with your own content. Their drag-and-drop editor allows you to build out pages to your liking. While this is a good starting point for those going the DIY route, we often find it limited in capabilities and users often find it can’t meet some of their more advanced goals.
Squarespace
Squarespace is another content management system with ready-to-go templates that you can customize to suit your needs. Though Squarespace is a structured editor that has specific areas for content blocks compared to Wix’s drag-and-drop capabilities, users tend to find Squarespace’s themes offer more striking options than Wix.
WordPress
WordPress is our content management system of choice as we find it the most user-friendly from both a development and a content management perspective (it is also the most widely used). As with the previously mentioned platforms, you can select from a wide array of themes (both free and paid) with structured options (like Squarespace) and drag-and-drop options (like Wix). Many business owners find it helpful to work with a creative studio when getting started with WordPress to help with existing theme customizations or building an entirely custom theme. However, the right studio will be sure clients are set up to easily manage their own ongoing content needs (if desired).
It is important to note that WordPress.org and WordPress.com are different. WordPress.com is a blog hosting platform, while WordPress.org is a free open source platform used for all kinds of websites, including online stores.
Shopify
Though other platforms can accommodate e-commerce functionality via add-ons and apps (like WordPress with WooCommerce), Shopify is by far the leading e-commerce content management system. It is efficiently designed to help users get their online store up-and-running as smoothly as possible and has a large number of templates to choose from. Add-ons are available to add additional functionality to a user’s selected theme, and theme code is accessible and can be customized if desired.
Tip #4: Select a creative studio or DIY
How you proceed with actually bringing your site to life on the web is up to you — you can go the do-it-yourself route or hire a creative studio. If you decide to hire a creative studio, it’s important to select a provider who is proficient in your preferred content management system (if you have one), who understands your passion for your business and your goals, and who suits your budget.
We love helping new businesses on their web journey and are pleased to offer a New Business Package designed to help you get your idea off the ground quickly. The base package includes a logo, promotional piece and website to get the essentials ready for your new small business – on time and on budget!
