How To Build A Website For A Small Business

So, you are finally going to do it – are you? You’ve been contacted by “those” web people who offer websites, search engine optimization (SEO), and design services, but… hey, you’re just a small business owner, and you just don’t have $40K to spare – Right? Yes, I know. That’s what happened to me way back when. That’s why I took about a year off and taught myself how to code, but that’s me, …and that was then. I wasn’t about to pay someone $40K to provide me with a no-frills website that was less than ten pages. And, I’m sure you don’t want to either – not today anyway. Not when it’s so easy to do it yourself. So, here’s a great little Six Step Tutorial on how to build a website for a small business along with an offer you can’t refuse. Enjoy!

Step 1.

First things first. You’ll need a domain name if you haven’t already purchased one. A domain is the named location where your site will reside on the world wide web. Depending on where you purchase your domain name, it can range anywhere from about $11.00 per year on up. If purchasing through Wealthy Affiliate, the cost is about $13.00 per year because they automatically include the privacy option which helps to block spammers and/or solicitors from contacting you. If you want more info on domain names, you can read one of my other posts about it by clicking the blue link here: Domain Names.

You may also want to check out another post for Beginners. Ok, moving on…

Step 2.

Second, you will need a Hosting provider. This is “where” your site will reside. It’s a physical “server” and some people keep one in their basement …ahem… It’s a souped-up computer that is constantly on, and it holds all the digital files that make up a website and/or possibly infamous emails… But, you probably know that by now… 🙂

Hosting is a monthly cost that also ranges depending on where you purchase your Hosting. Hosting providers also have a variety of different features and benefits that can range from just plain hosting with zero services up through to a Hosting Provider like Wealthy Affiliate (WA) which includes all the education you’ll ever need to build your own site, maintain it, and host it as well. Wealthy Affiliate is $49.00 per month, at the time of this writing, and their Black Friday Special is usually $299.00 for the entire year which works out to be less than $25.00 per month for this first year. One other great thing to keep in mind is that with WA, you can start out for Free! Yes, WA provides you with a free seven-day trial and two free Site-Rubix (sub-domains). So, you’ll have time to evaluate it before you decide to join.

There are less expensive Hosting providers, but I haven’t found one yet that offers the all the features and benefits: the ongoing training, the forums, the live chat room, the videos, courses, lessons, support, auto back-ups for your site, etc., and just the overall help in general that WA does. But, to be fair, I will list a few below. I haven’t yet reviewed these yet, but these are some Hosting providers that you may want to check out:

Hostgator
BlueHost
HostClear
iPage
Web.com
EHost and there are lots, lots more…

Step 3.

Once you choose which Hosting provider and purchase your hosting plan, you will have to make sure to activate Word Press. Word Press is an open source platform that pretty much acts like a word processing program for your site. Many Hosting providers have downloaded the free open source version and they usually offer it through the Hosting Plan you just purchased. Using WordPress allows you to easily type your own content, upload images, and publish your pages and articles. However, many Hosting providers do not link to this platform automatically, and you will have to go into your cPanel (Nerd alert! Hosting “dashboard panel”) to enable it. But, if you are a Premium Member of WA, the Word Press (.org) platform is already there and waiting. It’s part of the premium membership!

Step 4.

Next, depending on where you purchase your domain and who is going to host your site, you have to make sure that your site is “pointed to” your hosting provider. This is usually done by pointing your domain name servers. If you don’t know what that is and don’t wish to know, any Registrar where you purchased your domain name can help you point your domain, but again… if you purchase your domain through WA, your domain is automatically pointed to WA Hosting and, as mentioned, it’s already set up for Word Press. See how easy this is!

Step 5.

Next, and for the sake of brevity, I can only choose one method to show you how simple it is to build a website for your small business. So, for the sake of this article, let’s just assume you purchased your domain through the Wealthy Affiliate link below, and let’s assume you went with WA for your hosting as well. This means that you will be a Premium Member of Wealthy Affiliate, and you will now have access to all the training, all the education, courses, lessons, tutorials, videos, and more which you’ll need to keep your site running well and up to speed – but without the huge price tag of “those” web people.

Ok, great. So, now, you log into your WA dashboard area which looks similar to this:

Step 6.

Next, you will be filling out some info to Title your new site, and you will also choose a “theme.” A theme is a template of what you wish your site to look like. Think of it as a decorative window of sorts that displays your website. It displays the layout, the colors, and any pictures you provide for your website. There are simple themes, there are themes more suited for those with lots of pictures, and there are themes that have one, two, or up to three columns wide, etc. There are literally thousands of WordPress themes to choose from. But, no worries! If you’re totally brand new to all of this, just choose a really simple theme for now until you learn more about Word Press and become familiar with this easy writing platform. So, in this next picture, you’ll see the 4 steps I went through to build my new site, Small Biz Blog Talk, and you’ll also see that I originally chose the very simple “Omega” theme which is previewed on the bottom right-hand side.

Once you click the blue “I’m Ready. Build My Website Now!” button, guess what?

Believe it or not – you now have a website! Yes, it’s true! There’s no content yet, but, it does exist, and your next step will be to begin writing some content about you, your small business, and what you offer. Specifically, you will be writing an “About you” page, about your products or services, your employees, your location, your specials, or anything you like – really. You can start out small and leave it as a small static site, or you can build an “authoritative” blog site and totally dominate your local market! It’s all up to you! And, no, you no longer need “the web people” either!

So, while logged into Wealthy Affiliate, just “mouse-over” the light blue tab on the upper left side called: Site Rubix. A menu will come up and you will click on another link named “Site Manager.” It’s there where you find your new domain and site waiting for you. Just click on the little button shown in the picture above that says “Log-in Now,” and voila – you’re in the administrative area of your brand new website! You now have the ability to write your own content, upload your own images, and begin your online web presence for your small business.

Yes, it really is as simple as that! In fact, here’s the whole process in less than 30 seconds:

Wealthy Affiliate

And, yes, your online adventure has just begun! But, do you want to know the best part?

If you join WA as my referral, you’ll automatically be assigned to (…cue the heavenly music) …MOI! This means that should you ever get stuck, you not only have the entire membership of WA at your disposal, you’ll also have the ability to send me direct messages and ask me questions too. So, yes, I come with the deal!

But Wait! …There’s More!

(Ok, I just had to get that in…)

If you’ve read anything about me, either here on this blog, BuildPassiveIncomeandWealth.com, or from my profile page at Wealthy Affiliate, you will know that I’m a Serial Entrepreneur who loves Business – especially Small Business. I hold both a B.S. in Business as well as an MBA along with a Graduate Level Marketing Certificate. I’ve always loved the entrepreneurial spirit that drives people to start and run their own business, and yes, small business is the major economic driver that keeps our U.S. economy going – keeps people setting and reaching for goals and allows people to attain a lifestyle they and their family worked for and deserve.

I know how hard it is to get started as a small business owner. I’m one myself, and I’ve worked with enough small business owners to know about the sacrifices. I know about banks, I know about SBA loans, I know about running ads and marketing, and I know about the IRS and how many get caught up with the dreaded self-employment taxes… In short, I know that small businesses need all the help they can get – especially with “exposure.”

So, here’s my offer:

If you join Wealthy Affiliate through this page and become a Premium Member, I will provide you with two Free Offers – (Updated as of 03/24/2018).

1. You will enjoy one FREE Banner Ad for one month listed on your local City or State page on another site being designed to help support local businesses. The website is:LocalAdScoop.com which is designed to help advertise small businesses. It will give you a running start with some exposure to eventually help you dominate your local market area with search engine optimization (SEO) and a web presence.
2. You will receive one month of free Twitter Ad Marketing linked to either your new website or your landing page (sold separately) in order to help drive traffic to your products or services. These two offers, combined, would be Package 2 on our Local Ad Scoop / Services Page – currently valued at $174.00.

Sound Good? Yes? …So, if this sounds like a pretty good deal, and you’d like the additional exposure along with your new website, let’s get this party started!

>>>CLICK HERE to Join Wealthy Affiliate & Get Your Local Business On The Map!<<<

Once you join, shoot me a direct message on my profile page at Wealthy Affiliate, and we’ll go from there.

If, however, you do not wish to build your own website, and would rather just hire someone else to drive traffic to your door, we can help there too! Just head on over to LocalAdScoop.com, fill out the form and process your payment. Once received, I’ll be in touch.

Either way, I look forward to working with you!

To Your Wealth!