Somehow you’ve managed to come up with an idea that you should create a website. Great! Well, it’s all going to get a lot harder from now on. Whether you are thinking of creating a database of cute pictures of kittens, posting your hand-drawn weekly comic online, or even selling your products, creating a website is a really important and necessary task for establishing your online presence. The procedure is long and hard, filled with technical details most people do not know, so we are going to delve into some of them and explain what is needed for a new site to be created and, finally, accessed from the World Wide Web. You are going to need a bit of money, and a lot of patience.
10 Best Website Builders of 2019
- Wix – Best overall website builder (and best for free)
- Squarespace – Best prepackaged design
- Weebly – Easiest to use website builder
- SITE123 – Most customizable web builder
- Strikingly – Best no-frills option
- Duda – Best for writers and bloggers
- GoDaddy – Fastest for building a simple website
- WordPress.com – Best for basic e-commerce
- Jimdo Creator – Website Builder for small businesses
- SiteBuilder – Best builder for Beginners
After the initial idea, you need to put that idea into some HTML code. HTML is a sort of language created for developing web pages and all other things that you see in your browser. From pictures of cats, to audio files of their purring, it all needs to be incorporated into this HTML code. If this is the first time you are hearing this, then it is probably much simpler for you to think about something easier, like free-to-make website tools, which will help you create a modest site, without all this hassle. Of course, free to make websites are not unique, and you’ll not be able to edit them without learning about it. One of the simplest ways is to have good friends who know web developing and who owe you a favor. And once they make a website for you, with multiple galleries of cats, you can move on to the next phase. I believe that you already know that you’ll be required to update your site regularly if you want it to be a success. That means that you’ll have to post a lot of new content daily (more cats!), engage with your audience, create natural conversations between your visitors, which will make a nice atmosphere they will want to come back to. Another important thing is that you will probably need to work on your Facebook and Google+ page. Think of them as an additional advertisement to your website. You can link all the stuff you post on your website there, and people will have to click a link to see the content. Facebook is also nice for talking to the public, and it is used for fun and relaxation, so it is easy to post casual content. Ask questions that will require some feedback, create some social games, and subtly direct users to your website. People on Facebook just love cats. I know I do!
As the number of visitor increases, you’ll need to start thinking about some other factors. Where are you hosting your site, how much are you paying for it, and what are some of the special offers that the provider is offering you? All of this can be really technical in nature, but there are some specialized sites that compare all hosting companies and their quality of service, giving them a star rating. A good host provider will have excellent technical support who will be able to help you with all your requests, and he or she will also have good and reasonable terms of service (ToS) which you should read carefully, and the price of service should be within your desirable range. Not all cheap hosting companies are bad, but also not all expensive ones are good. Look up a hosting company, and see other user experiences before you sign up to anything.
So, this is pretty much it. You’ll need to come up with a good idea for a website, you’ll need to realize that idea, either using some free online website creators, or hiring a professional to do it for you. Once the site is made, it must be hosted by a reliable company, with a good price and a nice set of services and support offered to you. Use other sites dedicated to reviewing hosting companies, and then decide. Once your site is up and running, advertise using the available social networks, especially Facebook, Google+, Twitter and Pinterest. If everything goes right, pictures of your cats will be viewed all around the world.
What Are the Best Website Builders? A Side-by-Side Comparison
| Free Plan/Free Trial? | Price Range | Best For | Our Rating out of 5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wix | Free plan | $13 – $500 | Best overall website builder | 4.7 |
| Squarespace | 14-day free trial | $12 – $40 | Creative industries | 4.3 |
| Weebly | Free plan | $5 – $38 | Small businesses | 4.1 |
| SITE123 | Free plan | $12.80 – $17.40 | Help and support via live chat | 4 |
| Strikingly | Free plan | $8 – $49 | Value for money | 4 |
| Duda | 14-day free trial | $14 – $55.50 | Building multiple creative sites | 4 |
| GoDaddy | 1-month free trial | $10 – $25 | Creating a website fast | 3.8 |
| WordPress.com | Free plan | $4 – $45 | Blogging | 3.7 |
| Jimdo | Free plan | $9 – $40 | Removing adverts at a cheap price | 3.6 |
| SiteBuilder | ❌ | $11 – $20 | Beginners | 3.5 |
Thousands of texts are written about the importance of having a website and what effects it could have on your business, as well as how much it can help your online presence. Brand image and online presence are the key, and in this modern economic climate, having a website is as essential as having an email or having a mobile phone in order to communicate. Just a decade ago, websites were a privilege of the richest companies who had enough time, money, and resources to spare. Nowadays, however, things are different, and website creation is easier than ever.
Of course, there is a delicate balance, because without the knowledge of HTML coding, you are not going to be able to create a good website, and you’re going to have to outsource it, which can be quite expensive.
Friendly For New Users
To be honest, if you are older than 40, chances are that you were forced by progress to use and love computers, while children today are familiarized with how to use them before they can even speak. That is why, when searching for the best online website builder, it is important that you can easily handle everything it has to offer without getting confused. You should be able to do basic things with the least effort possible. There are many builders that use the drag and drop technology, meaning you can put all the needed elements where you want them, without having to look at all the technical stuff that makes it work – you simply click and drag it to the desired place.
Advanced Options
Just because a website builder should be friendly to new users, it doesn’t mean that it should be limited, in case you ever needed some more advanced options. Naturally, over the course of time, and the more you learn, you’ll want to customize something in greater details, and a good website builder will provide you with those advanced options. This will help you make a website that is truly yours, and you will want to adjust the theme and the color palette so that it matches the overall aesthetics. Some website builders offer these options but only to premium users, which means you’ll have to pay in order to unlock them, but even that is cheaper than hiring a professional.
Price
The price is also one of the most important factors, and there are many free versions which have more premium content. WordPress is quite popular among bloggers around the world, although it can be very confusing, especially for new users. On the other hand, IMCreator offers a much more easy-to-use platform that provides quick solutions and preset themes. If you are on a tight budget, and you’re really not looking for a way to spend a lot of money, you should probably think about these two services. Don’t be afraid to pay even for their premium service, which will add a lot of functionality. Either way, you’ll save money just by not having to pay a professional for that. All the money invested will certainly be worth it, and in return, you’ll get a personalized site that you deserve.
Mobility
It is very important to mention the importance of making your website accessible over mobile phones and a different variety of mobile devices, and not to mention operating systems. Most of these website builders already have an inbuilt accessibility tools which will allow you to see how your website will look on a specific device, so that you can further customize it to your liking. Another important thing is that your website must be connected with social networks so that, while browsing, people will be able to easily share whatever content you post on all other networks. This way, you can engage your visitors and widen your audience, so that they can effortlessly share their opinions and experiences. Word of mouth is an extremely good way of advertising, so whatever website builder you might select, make sure that it supports the implementation of social media sharing buttons, which are essential.
Expand Your Business – Think Global
In the modern world, there is a lot of talk about globalization in general and it is of great importance for you to go global as well. This is the best kind of marketing if you wish your business to expand and succeed in other regions besides your own. Today, people think differently, unlike in the centuries that have come to pass. You have an open market, so to say. Basically, the whole world is striving to be connected in every possible aspect, especially in business. Everyone wants to earn more money and there is no better way to do this than to work with the entire world. If the market is big, the overall profit will be big, and that is something most businessmen would tell you.
The Internet And Its Wonders
Globalization works better and faster with the development of different technologies, all of which strive towards a better connection with the world. The technology that works wonders is certainly the World Wide Web. With the development of the Internet, any kind of connection with anyone in the world becomes possible and it opens a lot of doors that can lead you to success.
Most people have understood the benefits of the Web. This is why every company strives to promote itself on the Internet – to bring their products closer to the majority of people. With so many Internet users today, this is certainly a good thing to do. In plain words, you cannot go wrong with such an investment. You should do this because this is the best way to promote your business online. There are other ways as well, but the best thing to do, and the safest one as well, is for you to have your own piece of the Web.
Going Global Via The Web
Like we previously said, owning a website is an investment, and it is not really a big investment, since you need, roughly, a hundred dollars per year. This money includes a paid and owned .com domain and a hosting account; which is basically all you need.
A website for your business can work in the same way as promotion and promotional products. You invest some money in order to promote what you are offering, in both cases. A website will be a better way of promotion, due to the vastness of the internet population. So, if you are to choose between the two, you realize which one is the better choice. A big part of the puzzle is social media, which is crucial to your business’ marketing campaign, so you need to consider establishing your social presence.
If you are more of a traditional person, you would certainly think that a tangible promotional product is a better way to be seen by many people, but that is not the case today. For example, a single picture of your product on the Internet will be seen by many people and thus it will attract many potential customers, much more than hundreds of promotional products that have your logo printed on them. Besides this, your main goal is to use your website to go global, and no other kind of promotion will be as good for achieving that.
The Important Things To Know When Creating A Website
Before you get on with the creation of your site, you need to find where you are going to “put it”. To be more precise, you need to choose a web host – a company that offers services connected to placing all the data from the entire site on a specific server. They will find a place for your website and then connect it to the rest of the Web. All in all, it is their job to put you online. After that, you will be able to do whatever you wish to do with your site and, in time, people will visit, click and purchase your product. After all of that, the world is in your hands!
There are many web hosting companies online; you can choose the one that best suits you. You need to be careful with this – you should first know your web hosting demands, depending on what you want from your website. You should also think about server uptimes, since each company is different, depending on the servers they have. This should be very important to you if you wish to have a website that is up and running 24/7.
The company you choose should be able to offer you a package with various server upgrades and, since each company offers something different, you should consider your options. You need to worry about your funding as well. Some hosts tend to be a bit too expensive, but there are some that offer excellent services for reasonable prices. These are some of the most important things to keep in mind when you choose your web host.
When you look at it, web hosting can become a very important thing for your business, not just for going global with your company, but for your overall promotion as well. Your website is also important in order for you to keep up with the modern times and expose yourself to a wider population. Find a good web host to promote and expand your business and you will be on the right path to success.
