How To Get Your Business Online With A Shoestring Budget
The economic downturn of recent times has put a strain on many bricks-and-mortar businesses.
One of the solutions to keeping the money coming is to take your business online and put your products in front of an extended audience.
The trouble is, if you are already struggling with your budget, getting online is just an extra expense, isn’t it?
Yes it certainly is, but many people do not realise how cost effective taking a business online can be. If you are interested in starting your own online business and don’t have a bricks-and-mortar store you will still find this post useful as I will explain exactly what you need to get you started.
If you have paid a lot of money for a website and hosting then this is for you.
If you do not have a website and are wondering what your options are, this is for you.
With that being said, let’s get started on the first purchase you will need to make, a…
Domain Name
Registering a domain is your first step to getting started online.
A domain is how people will find your website, this domain is www.fmsseo.com.
So how much does a domain cost?
We use NameCheap.com for the bulk of our domain purchases because they are amazingly cheap and reliable.
An available domain will cost you just $9.69 for a years registration; if you are in this for the long-haul I recommend you register your domain for as long as you can afford so that you do not have to worry about missing expiration dates.
Now you have a domain you will need…
Hosting
A hosting package is where you will store your website. A web host needs to be affordable, reliable and provide amazing customer service.
We host the bulk of our sites with HostMonster.com because they have so many features.
The winning point has to be cPanel (screenshot below), a real easy to use admin dashboard that allows you to manage every aspect of your website from your emails, add-on domains, sub-domains and the installation of extra features.
HostMonster also has Simple Scripts incorporated in their cPanel which allows you 1 click installs of many popular content management systems, shopping carts, and more.
If you already have a hosting account that has Fantastico and not Simple Scripts then you need to read this:
‘Fantastico is no longer the recommended method for script installation and upgrades. The new method, SimpleScripts, is much faster at releasing feature upgrades and important security updates.’ – you’ll see this message when you try to use Fantastico in HostMonster and it has also been mentioned in various forums dedicated to hosting.
Did I mention the customer support? If you ever have an error with your website you can access live support 24/7, meaning you’ll never feel frustrated that you do not have someone to turn to for help in your hour of need. Priceless!
A hosting package from HostMonster.com starts (currently) at $5.95 a month.
You can make savings on your hosting fees by paying for a package in advance
Now you have a domain and your hosting package is ready, you will want to decide on a…
Content Management System
There are web design companies that target small and local businesses with their website services with price tags of £1,000 for a 10 page sites and up to £5,000+ for an e-commerce site.
You really don’t need to pay that to get started online.
Depending on your needs you can get started with a CMS (content management system) for free with some of the platforms that are available inside HostMonster (using Simple Scripts).
WordPress is a popular blogging platform that is amazingly diverse and can be used as a blog, a company website, an e-commerce store and more. You can get a professional looking theme (design) for your WordPress site for as little as $19.95, you can read more about this on our previous post: Premium WordPress Themes.
You should also take a look at Joomla.org and Drupal.org.
E-commerce solutions can be found with Magento, ZenCart and osCommerce.
As you can see, with a small initial outlay you can get your business online.
An Additional But Much Needed Extra
The following is not an essential purchase in the beginning but the quicker you do the better for your business.
If you want to build a database of customers and prospects that you can email over and over again with your newsletters and promotions then you need a dedicated email service provider (ESP).
Having an ESP will allow you to put a web form on your website (real easy, just follow the instructions given by the service you choose) that will then allow your prospects or customers to add their name and email (and other information you request) to start receiving communications (emails) from you.
A great course on turning prospects into customers can be found at Get More Buyers.
The following email service providers all have introductory trials so take them for a spin and see which one works best for your needs.
AWeber – starts at $19 a month
GetResponse – starts at $18 a month
iContact – starts at $9.95 a month
Putting it all together is easy. Follow the instructions that are given with the service provider you choose for how to set up your domain name, your hosting account and how to start your email marketing campaign.
If you need something more, walk-through videos that show you exactly how to register a domain, how to sign-up for a hosting account, how to install a WordPress blog and much more, then you need to check out Dave’s Online Videos.
As you can see, getting started online can be done in a very affordable way indeed.
To your success,
Karl Foxley
Further Reading:
How To Easily Add An AWeber Opt-In Form To Your WordPress Blog
Follow Up With Prospects And Turn Prospects Into Customers On Autopilot
How To Install WordPress Using Simple Scripts
What To Consider Before You Take Your Business Online
Image: Danilo Rizzuti / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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I always find it funny when people ask me what it takes to get started with a website or a business online because I explain to them that they should create a blog.
They look at me like I’m crazy.
I explain that it’s simple and for under one hundred dollars they can have it set up in less than a day.
A domain, hosting (with cPanel) and stable platform.
Good article, man!
.-= Eric´s amazing last blog ..Pop Posts =-.
Thanks Eric. It amazes me how many people still believe that getting started online costs a lot of money, it can, but it really doesn’t have to.
If you have automatic upgrade on wordpress it notifies you of new releases as soon as they are out. I never update immediately anyway, but my host uses Fantastico and I still get the updates through WP, at least I think I do! LOL
That was the quick answer.
SimpleScripts also has more features in the ‘install’ area.
Plus, if I log into SimpleScripts on my host I can see all of my blogs and update them from there without having to do that by logging in to each blog individually, so the speed of upgrade is important there.
You can find out more about SimpleScripts from their website http://simplescripts.com/.
HOW is simple scripts better-faster than fantastico?
Updates new releases within 24 hours, important for security patches. Fantastico can take up to 2-3 weeks to update a new release of, say, WordPress whereas SimpleScripts will have it up and ready to upgrade soon after it is rolled out.
Hi Karl,
This is a very nice post and its important for every newbie. Definitely i bookmark this post and share it with my friends.
Few services are new to me and i am about to try that soon. Why we need to use getresponse service? what is the purpose of that?
.-= Deepika´s amazing last blog ..How To Lead Stress-Free Blogging Life =-.
GetRepsonse is the same as AWeber and iContact in that they are email service providers but they all operate a little differently. If you visit the site you will see the features they offer through their homepage video.
Additionally, if you click on the ‘email marketing’ tab above in the categories navigation, you will find more articles related to email marketing that you may find useful.
Thanks Deepika,
Karl
Hi Karl,
This is one of those posts that every newbie should read. The step by step flow of it is definitely something I wish I had when just starting out.
I am still struggling with building my list; the monthly expense is not justifiable at such an early stage of my blog.
I was using MailChimp which is free up to a specified number of subscribers then they start charging, but the design is not as eye catching.
.-= Ms. Freeman´s amazing last blog ..Error-Your Database Cannot Be Reached! =-.
Hi Ms. Freeman, MailChimp is a good service but I found them the hardest to get to grips with. AWeber, GetResponse and iContact are really intuitive to get going with.
Blogs are notoriously poor for web form sign-ups from what we’ve tested and learned from quite a few leading ‘lead conversion’ articles I’ve read.
I’ve found our squeeze pages always do well and need a lot less ‘selling’ than our blog newsletter does (not currently active as we are moving provider).
Karl
You just saved a lot of bloggers some serious time with this post, I know that I constantly have people asking me for business blogging tips in my area. How to do this or that, and honestly I rarely have eneough time to write what I already do, finding time to write the entire book of starting an online business just doesn’t fit my schedule.
Now I can refer people to this bad boy, this will be in my Sunday Smash
.-= Extreme John´s amazing last blog ..5 Reasons Google Page Rank Drops =-.
Always great news. Thanks John.
Thanks Karl,
I’ll check them out.
.-= Ileane´s amazing last blog ..Say Goodbye to Family, Friends and A Good Night’s Sleep! =-.
Hi Karl, This is a very comprehensive post that really has me thinking. I have so many questions, I think I’d better just pick one, here goes. I hear so much about Drupal and Joomla, but I really don’t know which sites are running on these platforms. I guess I’m so familiar with WordPress that I never pay attention. Do you know of any popular blogs that are running either of these platforms?
Thanks for stirring up so many ideas.
@Ileane
.-= Ileane´s amazing last blog ..So You Want To Start Blogging =-.
@Ileane,
I have found a few sites that link to quite a few sites so you can explore the look and feel.
Drupal
http://www.drupalsites.net/categories/blog
http://sixrevisions.com/web_design/31-drupal-content-management-system-cms/
Joomla
http://www.bestofjoomla.com/component/option,com_bestoftemplate/Itemid,46/
http://www.joomlawards.com/
http://community.joomla.org/showcase/
Hope that helps. I will have to start looking at all the blogs I read and see what they are powered by and share my finds here.
Karl
My first business site I paid a designer $1500 for a custom WP design and install, had I only known it was so easy to do myself! At the time I was new, and I was very pleased with the site as well.
Hey Keith, that’s exactly what I’m talking about. If you are never told how cheaply you can do things then you’ll never know. I was talking to a local business owner the other day who has just forked out £5,000 for an e-commerce site. The CMS is an inhouse built monster of poor coding that is a horror to optimise.
Kelly and I talk to a lot of local business owners who want a website but have no idea how to get started, what costs are involved and what is available to them.
I think paying out a lot of money for a custom design that is specifically tailored to your needs is fine (along with a decent CMS) but to test if being online is something you wish to pursue for the long-term then the above will be a much cheaper option.
One of the biggest mistakes I made (not so costly but still a waste of money) was when I took my first website online and then purchased additional hosting for my second website; I had no clue about sub-domains or add-on domains.
Always great to see you here Keith.
Ahh, so you’re writing this for your clients, not random blog visitors? That explains it…though poses questions such as mine above.
I’ve added some further reading to the end of the post to hopefully answer some of those questions.
As for WordPress vs Joomla vs Drupal, that may be something for another day but the trouble with such a post is that it really depends on what a person wants from their website (in my opinion).
Additionally, this post is for clients and ‘random blog visitors’ because not everyone knows the cost involved in starting an online business and often, mistakenly, think that you need to spend a lot of money, again, the post clearly answers this and fits our core readership.
I’m curious why you provide a lot of WHAT but very little WHY or HOW. Maybe Part 2?
For instance, the benefits of WordPress over Joomla over Drupal, or why one may want an email newsletter, etc.
.-= Ari Herzog´s amazing last blog ..Why Do You Subscribe to Blog Comments? =-.
The post is about the services that you can use to get online on a budget. No part 2!
The post is not about the comparison between WordPress, Joomla or Drupal as they all have their merits and someone would have to decide what would fit their needs.
The post is to share how to start your business online on a budget and I think it answered that.
Further to what you said ‘why one may want an email newsletter’, that again is clearly answered ‘If you want to build a database of customers and prospects that you can email over and over again with your newsletters and promotions then you need a dedicated email service provider (ESP).’
So, the how in this article is ‘by using cost effective services’ that many of my clients have not been exposed to before.