Own a small business and need a website? Join the club. Have a small budget? You aren’t alone.
While having a website is just one part of the digital marketing puzzle, it is a necessity. It serves as your home base. It allows people to find you, or at least takes the first step towards findability.
In the “old days”, if you wanted a website you had limited options:
- Build a crappy looking site on a free server like GeoCities
- Pay your cousins, neighbor’s nephew to build you a crappy looking site
- Spend a small fortune
Today, you have more options. Technology is changing at break-neck speed and more tools become available everyday that allow you to DIY. From video and photo editing, to whipping together a simplistic website.
While these do not present the best possible solution, they can at least help you begin down the digital marketing path.
- Weebly
- LifeYo
- WordPress, with tips for a self-hosted version
These tools have limitations. Everything that is too easy to be true, usually is. Here are a few tips, that will help you lay a foundation using these tools
- Take some time in selecting a domain name
- Unless it is an absolutely unavoidable situation use yourdomain.com
- Take advantage of every SEO (Search Engine Optimization) opportunity you can
- Keep your content fresh
Good luck in building a digital marketing home base.