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The following information identifies a few important activities that should be completed if you want your own website. The intent of this page is not to overwhelm you with information but to set you in the right direction. I call it 6 Steps to Getting Started Online and as you will see my research has simplified the whole process. I include some links to companies that have serve me well. If I have helped you I only ask that you try my affiliate links. If you have any questions and/or concerns about any information I provide or my affiliates, do not hesitate to contact me using my contact form. Make sure you indicate in the contact form that you seek a reply to a question or concern. |
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Step 1 Identify Yourself! |
In real life you have an identity. Just because you enter the virtual world of the internet does not mean you should not have an identity.
The proper way to get an identity on the internet is by registering a domain name that is unique to you and/or your business. You can use
this link
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Step 2 Get Hosted! |
Now that you have your own domain name you will need a hosting company that can
serve your online needs. There are unlimited choices of companies that can host your website. Some will do it for free, or very close to free and others may charge a premium.
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Step 3 Build it! |
In some ways building a website is like building a home.
When your funds are low you will try and do as much work yourself as you possibly can. You will take as long as it takes, you will make mistakes and you will have gained lots of experience. Plus, you will have countless stories to share with fellow DIY types. It's also possible to use some type of prefabricated construction. You can use a set of tools or builder application that allows you to answer questions, pick and choose options and select predetermined layouts. The cost of this method varies from free to minimal expense. A choice that will cost a premium is to hire a professional. This gets tricky if you do not already know or have a good lead on a high quality professional. I have used pre-packaged templates, contracted professional and I have created my own site from scratch. This site is my creation. It is intended as a learning exercise so I could share information with visitors. |
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Step 4 Get Traffic! |
Traffic, Traffic, Traffic. I can't say enough about the importance of getting traffic to your website. If you spent a lot of time and money getting to this step you don't want to be discouraged because you are not seeing visitors to your site. As a website owner you need to promote your site. Even if your intentions are not focused in generating revenue, how do you expect to enjoy the value in sharing information if you don't let the world know you have something to share.
There are many ways to increase web site traffic, it involves using a number of proven techniques and sometimes an unusual method can cause a huge surge of visitors. Offline advertising, giving out business cards, joining traffic exchange programs, email lists, links from other sites, forums, blogs, search engines, pay per click programs, on and on,... |
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Step 5 Analyze This! |
Once your site is up and running you will need to look at some statistics. Your hosting company will have some tool or option that allows you to view the information that was collected from visitors to your website. Every internet surfer carries some identifying characteristic and when they click on links they leave a trail of information that is tracked by servers. Your goal is to get familiar with the data collected from your visitors and to use this data to improve your site content, service, etc. |
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Step 6 Convert Me! |
Here we are on the last step and it will become the longest and most important if you wish to be a profitable online business. You have presented your product and/or service and you want to know how well you converted a hit or better a visit to a potential sale.
If you provide a link for a visitor to send you an email and they send you an email, this represents a conversion.
For example: Please provide some feedback on 6 Steps To Getting Started Online. Go ahead and send me a quick comment so I know you spent some time here and you were not just a hit from an autosurf program. Another conversion would be having a visitor complete an online form and request additional information. You could include other interactive elements like surveys, poles, guest book and so on. Each time these elements get used you can monitor your website statistics and create a correlation. You can calculate a conversion rate by comparing the request to the number of hits and visits to your site. In time you will be able to refine your most effective method to generate a desired outcome such as a sale from your online business. Please note, I use the words hits and visits. There is an important difference here and in the near future I will add more content to address these differences. |