Having a website opens your business to various internet opportunities, especially when it comes to gaining more customers and sales. In the US alone online revenue is expected to surpass $740 billion by 2023, which shows how big of a potential market online retail is.
However, creating your first business website can seem overwhelming, especially if you don’t have any web design experience. Various elements need to be considered when crafting a website, something a newbie may not realize.
But you don’t have to worry. This article will help you figure out the elements you need to consider while building your first site.
So without further ado, let’s see what you need to know before you begin building your first business website.
1. Purpose of the Website
One of the most important factors to consider when creating your first website is how it will serve your business. Are you planning to create a business website that explains what your business is about, along with some description of your products or services? Or do you plan on selling your products or services through your website?
The two options mean different methods of creating the website. For a simple website, you can use a website builder to set everything up quickly and easily. At the same time, an eCommerce website may require some extra customization and potentially even coding to set up.
2. Web Hosting
Your website will need web hosting for businesses to store all its data and make it available to the public online. While it is expensive and tricky to host a website independently, going to a web hosting provider is a more affordable and straightforward option.
But there are many web hosting providers out there, and you might be confused about which one to choose from. So here are some factors to consider when choosing the right web host:
- What are the offered server response time and page load times?
- Is there ample storage and bandwidth?
- Does it come with excellent uptime?
- Is it easy to scale?
- Does it provide 24/7 customer support?
- Does it offer extra security measures?
You’ll also want to make sure that the web hosting of your choice offers multiple hosting plans. Ideally, the plans should include a shared, VPS, cloud, and dedicated hosting plan. This will make it easier for you to scale your business when you inevitably outgrow the resources provided with the shared hosting plan.
3. Domain Name
For people to find your website on the internet, you’ll need to register a domain name. It’s essentially the name and address of your website online or you can pay.
To register a domain name, you’ll need to go to a domain name registrar. Some hosting providers include a domain registrar as one of their services. Some will require you to go to a separate service, like NameCheap.com.
So, when creating a domain name, there are a few things you should consider:
- Make it brandable.
- Keep it short and straightforward.
- Make it easy to spell and memorize.
- Avoid hyphens, numbers, and double letters.
- Avoid slang.
Keep in mind that your domain name should represent your business and your brand. Therefore, avoid using random words and make them sound professional.
4. Website-Building Platform
Once you’ve got all the necessities mentioned above set up, it’s time to create the website. There are two general ways to do this, either use a website builder or a content management system like WordPress.
A website builder is a shorter route to creating a website, as it’s primarily aimed at beginners with no technical expertise. Some hosting providers also provide this as one of their services.
A CMS is software that runs on a web server independently of other services. You’ll need to find your hosting provider separately and do all the maintenance, updates, security, and customization on your own.
5. Website Security
The internet is filled with potential dangers that can bring great devastation to your website if left unchecked. That’s why you must have the essential security measures on your website.
Your hosting provider should provide you with at least five security measures:
- Advanced firewall protection.
- Antivirus and malware scanning and removal.
- A free SSL certificate.
- Distributed denial of service (DDoS)
- Automatic, frequent backups of your website’s data.
Other security measures you should consider adding to the website are multi-factor authentication, regular training for your team, and strict staff security policies.
6. Website Design and Content
After you’ve chosen a website-building platform, now’s the time to customize every element on your site. Use the drag-and-drop feature to add new elements, change the colors and fonts, and resize the various details.
Here are some things to consider when designing your website:
- Keep your homepage free of clutter – you can try a minimalistic approach.
- Create a navigation bar or menu.
- Ensure that it’s mobile-friendly.
- Place call-to-action buttons.
- Insert social sharing and follow buttons.
Afterward, you can start filling your website with content that includes your company information and other valuable and relatable stuff.
Here are some tips to consider when creating content:
- Write short and simple sentences.
- Know your audience and niche.
- Make the text scannable.
- Use images to illustrate your message.
- Use an active voice.
7. Marketing
Once everything is ready, you can go ahead and launch your website. Now you won’t immediately gain traffic and sales. For that to happen, you need to do some marketing and promotion first.
Here are some marketing strategies you can consider:
- Create valuable and informative content. People looking for information on similar products might come to your site and decide to purchase from you.
- Promote special launch discounts.
- Use Google Ads. Bid for keywords to appear on top of search engine results.
- Increase your digital engagement through social media. Use hashtags and existing social media pages.
8. SEO
After launching your website, your focus shouldn’t just be on promoting your website but also on standing out from the competition. One of the ways to stand out is to rank high on search engine results pages (SERPs). To do that, you’ll need to conduct search engine optimization (SEO).
Here are some KPIs you should consider monitoring to know what you can improve:
Conclusion
When you’re creating your first business website, there are various things you should consider. With the vast number of websites existing online, you need to be sure about the website you’re creating and design it in a way that compliments your business.
Let’s recap on the eight things you should consider:
- Purpose of the website
- Web hosting
- Domain name
- Website-building platform
- Website security
- Website design and content
- Marketing
- SEO
By considering these factors, you should be able to create a website that’s well-optimized, secure, and helps you stand out from the competition.
Good luck!