Setting up a business web-site - how/where?

Hiya,

I used to be a web deigner (still do some from time to time), so hopefully I can help.

Setting up a website can be quite daunting if you've not done it before.

What we do is:

1) get a domain name with a domain name company. Normally these companies have an option to search to see if your domain name is avaliable. We use https://www.fasthosts.co.uk/domain-names a lot. There is a search box on the homepage for seeing in domain naes are avalible. There are lots of other companies around that do this, so have a see which you like. You rent domain names, so you'll be paying money per year untill you no longer want the domain anymore

2. rent some hosting. Hosting is basically a bit of space on someones computer. The hosting companies are organisations that just have a ton of big fancy computers and you can rent a bit of space on them to put all your website files. For hosting I would alwasy reccomend looking for reviews or going with one that someone recommends, as there can be some awful ones out there. I am currently with: http://www.csnewmedia.co.uk/ - been with them 2 years. They are good value and have had no problems with them. Once again you rent space per month/year.

3. Design your site. I'm sure if you've done some website design before you'll be familiar with building html pages then. The best thing to do is to plan your design first in a graphics program before even building the site. Play around with what you want it to look like and then build it in html. Make sure it is not too graphics intensive and that you optimise your images for the web, so that the file size is not too big - as the pages will download faster with optimised images. Also i recommend a constistant navigation (eg. the section people have with all the links 'home', 'contact', 'about us' etc) on each page. it's best if it's near the top or down the left side. This will allow users to navigate your site more easily.

4. Once you've built your site you need to upload it to your hosting via FTP, I assume you've done this before? If not, the hosting provider will give you some togin details then you will need to download a FTP program. There are many free ones. You put the details of the hosting computer into the FTP and then can upload images from your computer to the hosting.

There are lots of other things to consider such as search engine optimisation etc, but it's hard to get enough info into one message.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact me and ask them and I'll try and help.

I would say that designing a site yourself is better than no site at all - as at least if you have a web presence people can find you. But if your site doesn't look professional enough it may put people off. If you have the budget I would recommend getting a professional to create your site. If you can't afford one just get, give you're own a go and then upgrade later when you can afford it.

Good luck with you're site xx

Thanks anna belle, that's very, very helpful.

Hi PP, I had absolutely no computer knowledge at all, didnt even study it at school but set up my site from scratch and learnt as i went along. I used freewebs to set up the basic website then through them moved to a premium account (this gets rid of all the advertising etc) then through 123reg i purchased the domain name and transferred it to the account. I impressed myself and others lol but it was so easy to do and if i can help you at all in any way i will be more than happy to.

All the best

Andrea

Thanks Lilypond, that's very reassuring.

I don't know how to find the best place to host it. What should I be looking for?

I take care of my site completely alone, i havent paid a penny for someone else to do it and never would now! I thinks it terrible what some charge to do it and as i said i have no knowledge.

Feel free to email me at *************@*****.**.** and i will help you get going

Andrea

Thanks again. I'd still need a company to host it though wouldn't I? I don't trust our home computers enough to let that be the host (if that's even possible!).

Hi Purple Pixie - how you doing?

We've recently moved to Hostpapa with no problems at all (she says touching wood).

Costs us about £80 a year.

Yes you still need a hosting company, and I second the recommendation of www.123-reg.co.uk - you can buy both the domain and the hosting through them, and they have very cheap packages, you would probably only need their basic one, and can then upgrade at a later date (more storage space and bandwidth, and a few extra features).

Good luck!

Yes but as i said i use freewebs and add everything myself

Thanks everyone. That's starting to make lots of sense now.

I used 1and1.co.uk and found them to be good. 123reg, as Flump suggests, are also good.

I think it depends on what you want to achieve. I set up a perfectly reasonable 'showcase' site using the 1and1 templates - and have done my own sites in the past using Frontpage. However, I wanted something more ambitious and professional looking and, for my business, it was a worthwhile investment. If I could go back to those early days I would have invested my money in this from the start.

You're not an expert in everything, so my experience has been it's best to buy in support where you need it. For me, given that I started my business with about 50p (?) I had to earn the profit first and then invest, but time and again, buying a good service has been most economical in the long run. You just need to do your research and choose companies with a good reputation, as well as competitive price.

Thanks Clairy. I think I will probably have to do the same. Design it ourselves to start with and if it takes off then get some help.

I think it really depends on what you are doing business wise and what you want to achieve from a website. In my opinion there is a very good reason good web designers can charge a lot, there is a massive difference between a professionally built site and one that's homemade. I say this as someone who has a homemade site (I did mine in iWeb) and I know that whilst it's ok and serves the purpose it's worlds away from what a designer could do.

It sounds like you have a basic knowledge, which will serve you well but as a long term investment (and if the website will be a main point of sale) I would consider having a professionally built site when you start to make money. It's amazing the difference a good website can make.

I agree with Pooch. Mine has pretty much doubled my turnover.

The issue with a home made one is that if youre selling a product or service which has a brand element to it, or its something upmarket in any way at all, a home made site gives a mixed message, ie, look at us, we re so upmarket and amazing, but our site was done on a dining room table. doesnt work. imo its worth spending the money from day one and doing it right.

i went through about 4 before i was happy with mine ?

PP, whats the business? that will help in terms of answers.

I was about to take the piss out of Nick for being fussy, when I remembered that I had 5 designs presented before I chose the one I liked - in the end it was largely cut and paste elements from each design that I then presented back to the company - so not my design as such, but my choice of combination of elements.

I sound like I have OCD now, don't I? ?

I think it's very easy to underestimate the importance of getting your website right these days. ESPECIALLY when it comes to dull things like navigation; mine still isn't 100% right.

I cannot see it is worthwhile creating your own website - it is like bricklaying - I COULD learn how to do it if I wanted to build a wall, but it would be easier and a WHOLE lot quicker to get someone else to do it, while I concentrate on something I am good at.

Now I just have to find that something...

L
xx

To be fair though, Lois, I think it depends on the scale of the business. You Nick and I all run full time businesses (that we hope will grow, I am assuming. Well, I hope mine will anyway ?) If PP is hoping to set up a business, say, making jewellery as a sideline, I doubt the expense of a professionally made site would be worth it. I guess we need to wait until PP confirms the nature of the business.

However, all things being equal, my experience would lead me to agree with you completely. Especially with the finding something I am good at bit ?

There are plenty of off the shelf websites that you can use if it's a small business though, aren't there?

L
xx

Mine is actually done from the coffee table not the dining room table because I can't watch the tv from there!

However, I would say that I was taught Dreamweaver at my final job as I ran the company website, so I personally resent money paid out for controlling/designing my website - in face when we had someone in to have a look recently to redesign, he said it was a waste of time as it was already running well.

On the downside of doing it yourself, sometimes it has to take a back burner whilst I am working on other parts of the business. Our business isn't run from home, we have a retail shop to look after too.

Sorry, been out all evening.

The business is going to be cakes (mainly birthday cakes) and chocolates.

It's only going to be a small scale part-time thing.

Thanks for all the advice everyone, I really appreciate it.

I dont want mine to grow though clairy ?

so pp, for what you want, i d say you need a GOOD and professionally done site, with some fantastic and professionally shot images ie no compacts at home, no cobbling together. there are specialist food photographers and in fact, titchbunny is a food stylist and i m sure can assist you in terms of possible photographers etc, and style.

And can i offer to taste the chocolates and cakes and then I can write you some customer quotes saying how good they all are!

? You're not the first to offer that anna belle.

Thanks again everyone. Lots of good advice and some things I hadn't even thought about.

Hiya PP

I'm a web developer and I'd pretty much agree with what everyone else says, it does really depend on what you want. Professionally built websites are an investment and for some companies are a major part of their marketing strategy so worth investing in but if you are just starting out and testing the water so to speak then there is no harm in building one yourself to start with and then if things take off you could look into getting a professional involved.

Not all web design companies charge a fortune, there are a lot of different types of web designers aiming a different markets so a small one man band would charge you a lot less than a swanky design agency.

Just to add some recommendations, 123-reg are really good, I tend to use them for domain names and I use a company called catalyst2.com for hosting, their basic package is all you would need and that is £14.99 a year inc vat. Their support is fab, if I send in a support ticket I've never had to wait more than an hour for it to be dealt with. Once you buy the domain name and the hosting you would then need to point the domain name to the hosting, this is done using nameservers, catalyst2 shows me the nameservers and I enter them in the appropriate boxes at 123-reg and it's then all done and ready to go.

If you need any further help please don't hesitate to pm me, I don't mind helping out a fellow hitcher.

Krissi

Thanks Krissi. Lots more great advice there, may well give you a shout in the future.

I'd second what Nick says about professional photography - it's so important. It needn't cost the earth either.

I know a good photographer who charges £100 for an hour's commercial shoot with all the images on CD. I must add the caveat that we are in one of the cheapest parts of the country, but that was far less than I imagined it would be.

I'm just waiting for Nick and Lois to tell me that it'll cost far more ? <creep> good photography is seriously worth paying for, it'll make a huge difference to your business and the way people perceive your products or services </creep> Creeping aside, I do really mean that actually.

Nick, fair enough, you can send your unused growing power over to me then ? Oh, and any extra spare hours in the day ?

Clairy, if theyre doing that it either means that they are doing virtually no processing at all, and if they are, theyre woefully undercharging. food photography is highly specialised, and for what PP is talking about, it needs a food photographer, not just a general commercial photographer. TB would be able to help with this i m sure.

I also do the £100 an hour with a CD for commercial shoots, but it tends to be just plain product shots (I light them well, so i don't need to do much post processing).

I have done some food photography and it is harder to make look perfect (although my customers were very happy ? ). Many people hire a food stylist as well as a photographer, so the food stylist is in charge of the look of the food and the photographer lights it and takes the shot.

It is extra expense, but if your products look yummy it'll really attract people to buy them.

Nick, you're right on most counts. She's not a food specialist, but has done an excellent job of the shots I have seen (to my untrained eye, but then I guess most of PP customers will also be untrained.) She doesn't do much post production but it still looks good. Also, we're in a cheap part of the world and it's a heavily discounted rate to try to attract more commercial clients - the majority of her clients are families.

I can completely see where you're coming from - it's ideal to have really good photography and a professionally produced website from the start. In fact, if I could have my time again, it's certainly what I would have done. However, I can understand that PP wants to economise, certainly at the beginning when she doesn't know whether the business will be a success. Having said that, I think her success is largely dependent on how professional her service looks, so it's a moot point really. PP has to take the plunge in a way she's most comfortable with.

FWIW, in my experience, women tend to start businesses with far fewer funds than men and take fewer financial risks, especially at the beginning. I wonder how much further most would be if they did? I try to bear this in mind, but still find financial risk very scary.

The problem is though that if youre offering an expensive service, and saying how wonderful a nd professional you are, a dining room table website just doesnt reflect that, and it confuses people. which i think is the reason why there seem to be so many little businesses which dont ever go anywhere because of problems with pricing versus image. i d suggest that these days, ignoring salaries, whilst you can start a business with nothing, realisitically you need a minimum of ten grand, preferably double that or more.