Why And How To Start Your Website With A Good Foundation
Starting with a good foundation for your website is like anything else, the stronger the foundation the better and easier to build. Whether you are a local business with a store front or a local contracting business without an office the same holds true. Starting with a good foundation is always your best opportunity. But what is the best foundation? Knowing that 97% of customers search for businesses online and that the online world keeps changing how do you know what the best foundation will be? The best foundation will be a website that changes with the ever changing needs of Google, Local Search, Design and of course your business changes and growth.
A good Foundation Starts with:
Domain Name
Host
Platform
Theme
Your Domain Name – should be yours! Purchase your domain name so that it will always belong to you and your business. Do not have it part of your set up package or designing plan. You can purchase a domain name at several places including GoDaddy for about $10 a year. What we recommend is to purchase the domain and during the payment process when they ask you to upgrade with all kinds of extras – say no to all of the extras (you can add anything you need later). Next you will need a host – not GoDaddy hosting.
Your host is where your site will live. Your website will need to be stored on the Internet so that everyone can view your site at anytime. With this in mind you want a reliable host. What are your hosting needs?
- Great support and customer service! A great hosting company can be accessed 4/7 by phone, email and live chat. Being able to access your hosting company the way you need to and when you need to is essential. Make sure there is not an overly long wait time as well.
- Uptime reliability. This is the time in which your site is fully operational.
- Security features needed Make sure your host provides daily backups, spam protection, and user authentication.
My personal choice right now is BlueHost. I have used others but have found BlueHost to be the most reliable and for me they seem to have the best customer support.
Your Platform is what you choose to use to build your site.
Many companies that offer domain names, such as Go Daddy or 1-on-1, also offer hosting and website design packages. You can also find low-cost design options with Yahoo or Weebly. While these packages do a job of getting a website up quickly and cheaply, they do not offer a Good Website Foundation for years of growth.
What is the best website platform? Knowing that Google and Bing are looking for GREAT Content means you need a content management system. And the leading content management system or CMS is WordPress.
WordPress is the leading Content Management System
WordPress websites grow with you and your business. WordPress sites are coded in the back that make them friendly to search engines. Within WordPress you will be able to choose many options. The most important option for a local contractor business is the theme option. The theme is more than just your websites look. The theme is about function and search engine optimization.
A Theme Built For Local Search
Within the world of small business website themes, one of the best options used to be Expand2 Web’s SmallBiz Theme. Now with so many changes almost any theme can be supplied with Plugins (code that enhances your website with various functions). These plugins can boost your Search Engine Optimization, add forms to your website, and keep your site secure.
Greencastle Web Design
We will find create a WordPress website with a great theme and/or customized theme, add the correct plugins for the functions you need to be successful, for your business.
Call us today!