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Running a business is never that easy, especially if you have a limited budget to outsource particular tasks. Taking, for instance, if you wanted to build an online presence, you might need to hire a professional web designer, and this option can be pricey. Nevertheless, it can be hard to create a website for your small business on your own.
The good thing is that creating a site is no longer a very complicated process. There are beginner-friendly platforms for website building available these days that can help you create an impressive and beautiful site even without experience. If you want to learn the easy and effective steps on how to create a site for a local business, dive in!
7 Easy Steps to Create a Site for your Small Local Business:
As soon as you have a clearer grasp on what you really want your site to achieve and accomplish, you can get started with the process of designing and building your website. The following are the steps you need to follow to create your small business website and be ready to launch and promote your business online:
Select a Site Building Platform
You must opt for a user-friendly option that helps you create a site even without in-depth knowledge. For small businesses, WordPress and hosted site builders are highly recommended. WordPress offers two versions, but WordPress.org provides you access to amazing features and full control over your site. Hosted site builders are the options if you want an all-in-one solution.
Reputable site builders like Wix and Squarespace provide a complete range of out of the box website designs that you can easily customize with drag and drop tools. However, the cost of the hosted site builder will still depend on the design that you will choose. There are also free options that you can consider, such as WordPress.
Choose a Domain Name
The domain name you should choose must complement the name of your business. In case you are not so sure of what name to choose, note that various online generators are providing some inspiration, such as the DomainWheel. There are tips that you can consider when deciding on your site address. Make sure that it is easy to spell, short, and includes keywords that are relevant to your business.
Choose Your Hosting Provider
You can just skip this step if you opt to use an all-in-one site builder but if you use WordPress, keep reading. There are some excellent and beginner-friendly hosting companies that you can work with, such as Bluehost, which is one of the highly recommended companies of WordPress.org. You can start with the basic plan. Are you just starting out with small websites? Then this is ideal. However, you can decide to upgrade as your business grows. Bluehost is known for its single-click installation and intuitive dashboard.
Choose a Template or a Theme
Squarespace and WordPress provide lots of themes and templates that you can customize easily. Many of these are free to use as well. With WordPress, you can instantly access theme options that are free of cost from your dashboard.
The moment you install and activate your chosen theme, you can customize it. You might also want to consider a paid WordPress theme for your business. These usually include features like eCommerce pages, page builder integration, and pre-built portfolios. Squarespace, on the other hand, lists all templates on its site. You can preview each template and click “Start” the moment you are happy with your choice. You will directly land into the editing area and tailor the elements of your site.
Put in your Content
While customizing your site, you likely would want to add your content as soon as possible. But before doing that, it would be best to have a structure in mind. The majority of business websites need a homepage, service, product or portfolio page, about page, contact page, and blog.
The homepage is the very first thing visitors see when they visit your site. Your homepage should offer a short service overview and must include clear navigation to other parts or sections. The product, service, or portfolio page showcases your work and tell your customers what you offer.
The about page is a section that includes your story and details about your team. The contact page includes your contact details and an enticing form for customers to get in touch with any question or concern. A blog is a must in business these days. This is proven to be an effective and powerful tool for content marketing.
Optimize Your Site for Search Engine
Making sure that people can find your content is also a crucial part of website creation. SEO or Search Engine Optimization is a strategy that helps you with this. SEO includes the practice of filtering content on SERPs. There are practices that you need to remember. You should use the right keywords in your pages and posts, optimize your site for speed, choose responsive design so your content will work on any device, and include external and internal links through your website.
Publish Your Site
As soon as your site is ready for visitors, publish it. With WordPress, expect your site to be visible to the public the moment you installed the software into your web hosting account. Make sure to do some last-minute checks before you get started with website promotion. Preview your site’s overall appearance on mobile devices and see to it that it’s readable. Read and check your content to ensure that all content is accurate and get rid of filter content from your template or theme.
To get more traffic to your new website, reach out to your existing clients, and let them know you are online. You can also consider promoting it through email or on social media.
Establishing an online presence means being able to reach more audiences. Follow these steps in creating a website, and you can expect good results in no time, not to mention the money you can save along the way. If the time comes that you will need to build an impressive portfolio website, you can also certainly use this portfolio website builder for an eye-catching and functional website for your business.
