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Lets face it, we are becoming more and more attached to the internet. Online sales, online chat, video conferencing, these are all things that are not only common but expected. This can be scary for a small businesses and start ups as in the past getting online took a lot of time, skill, and money, but these days there are plenty of services available to save on all three. So lets go over what you need to do, and where to start, so you can move into the expanding digital market today!
Domain names #DomainNames
Before you even think about a website, apps, and the online market you need a domain name, something that makes your business stand out. Believe or not @gmail.com will land you in the spam folder frequently and get your emails ignored. Sadly free domains like this have been used by scammers for years, and as such people don't trust anything with a gmail.com domain that isn't someone they know.
So how do you get a domain name? Well its easier, and probably cheaper than you think. There are a plethora of provides like NameCheap, HostGator, GoDaddy, and more that will handle the process for you. Some website building sites, like WIX, even include a free year of domain registration in their bundles. Once you have a provider selected you need to chose your domain, this will include the name, and a TLD (Top-Level Domain) which is the .com, .net, .org, etc after your domain name. Believe it or not, even this can effect traffic to your site so be sure to do a little research before choosing or simply go with a .com. The best part is on average most domains will only cost around $10-15 a year, so there is no reason not to have a custom domain, even if just for your email!
Website
Now comes the part where you really make your business shine! A website! The online storefront of your business that tells users who you are, what you do, and why they should be a patron of your business. Time to get those creative juices flowing and get a site that has the look and feel of your business so that you are attracting and retaining the right customers, but before we get too far ahead of ourselves there are a few decisions to make here.
First you will need to find a hosting service, someone that will store your site and serve it to the internet. Luckily all the registrars names above offer this service, and despite what you may think, its not an expensive endeavor. You can get an idea of what you'll spend from Website Builder Expert, but on average you're probably looking at anywhere from $3-20 per month depending on what exactly you need. #WebsiteHosting
Next you need to build your site. Unless your experienced in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript you're going to want to look for a builder that allows you to build a nice looking site with no coding knowledge, and again all the above mentioned services, as well as most hosting services, offer this. Alternatively, you can hire someone to do this for you as well to ensure you website looks its best. All American Cyber would be happy to help in this regard if you want a site built and handed off to you for customization, or point you to a web developer if you'd prefer a fully custom site built from the ground up. #WebsiteBuilder
Once you have these steps in place its time to finalize your design and launch. Now you are on the internet and even more customers can find you! That being said, just putting a site online isn't the end. You will want to ensure you have set up a Google Business Profile and are monitoring your SEO (Search Engine Optimization) to keep your site listed high in relevant searches. Doing this ensures your customer can find you and utilize your business. #SEO
Conclusion
Even if you don't plan to conduct business online through online sales and services you need to be online to ensure you are staying competitive in the markets of today. If you're not online there is a giant swath of customers that may never find you, and with the services offered these days that make it easy and fairly inexpensive to grow your presence there is no reason not to be on the internet. Whether your a construction business, restaurant, or technology firm, you need an online presence to maximize your businesses potential! All American Cyber is happy to help guide you in this next step of your journey, we know it can be daunting to take the first steps and are happy to walk with you on your path to business success!
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