Know the Essentials Regarding Website Ownership and Today’s DIY Platforms
By Nora Firestone
(This article, based on several points from my "DIY Website Essentials" and other public presentations developed in early 2012, first appeared in “Inside Business” news journal, summer, 2013. It has been updated for republication here.)
The consumer (a.k.a. DIY) website trend has flourished since its circa-2006 initiation by those who recognized the growing desire for enterprising site owners to be less dependent upon busy developers and pricy hosts and more in control of the virtual branch of their businesses. Consumer website platforms, such as Wix, Weebly, WordPress and Shopify, offer an array of professional features and support search engine optimization, or SEO, all at different package price points. Generally, they’re so evolved and efficient that even professional website designers use them. It’s easy, however, for nay-sayers to debunk the DIY option based on stories of frustration and overwhelm from those who’ve “tried” but not succeeded because they lacked knowledge or got hooked on ill-suited products.
The key to successful DIY website building is the application of the right combination of knowledge, tools/products and guidance. I call it “directed DIY.” The following points from development of my “Design, Build and Manage Your Own Website” workshop, created in early 2012 to empower people to be masters of their own domains (literally), address the basics that anyone establishing a new website, especially those exploring the DIY option, should consider:
(This article, based on several points from my "DIY Website Essentials" and other public presentations developed in early 2012, first appeared in “Inside Business” news journal, summer, 2013. It has been updated for republication here.)
The consumer (a.k.a. DIY) website trend has flourished since its circa-2006 initiation by those who recognized the growing desire for enterprising site owners to be less dependent upon busy developers and pricy hosts and more in control of the virtual branch of their businesses. Consumer website platforms, such as Wix, Weebly, WordPress and Shopify, offer an array of professional features and support search engine optimization, or SEO, all at different package price points. Generally, they’re so evolved and efficient that even professional website designers use them. It’s easy, however, for nay-sayers to debunk the DIY option based on stories of frustration and overwhelm from those who’ve “tried” but not succeeded because they lacked knowledge or got hooked on ill-suited products.
The key to successful DIY website building is the application of the right combination of knowledge, tools/products and guidance. I call it “directed DIY.” The following points from development of my “Design, Build and Manage Your Own Website” workshop, created in early 2012 to empower people to be masters of their own domains (literally), address the basics that anyone establishing a new website, especially those exploring the DIY option, should consider:
Domain name selection and registration
Always register your domain (www.example.com) in your own account; don't let anyone else register it for you. Relinquishing this control would be like establishing your bank account in your accountant’s name. Register through a real registrar, not a website-building platform that also sells/brokers domain names. I use and recommend Name.com, which charges about $11 per year for the most common top-level domains, or TLDs, (other TLDs may be priced higher, according to their sponsors, which sometimes charge more). If you register at Name.com, enter my name, Nora Firestone, in the "how did you hear about us box." I don't receive compensation for the referral, but it's nice for them to know that I sent you.
Select a domain name that’s short, memorable and isn’t uncommonly prone to misspellings, as is www.theircompliments.com, or ambiguity, as in the domain www.joesexchange.com for a shop called Joe's Exchange.
Do incorporate relevant keywords or search terms that someone might use if searching for you, specifically, or for the kind of services, products or information you provide.
Compare registrars and their costs for initial registration, renewals and transfers. Know that some TLDs cost more to register or renew than others, regardless of which registrar you choose, and some increase in price from initial registration to renewal.
In general, the .com TLD is most desirable, followed, typically, by .net and .org. Anyone can use .org; it’s not reserved for nonprofits or charitable organizations, but understand that some people will presume that a .org domain is a nonprofit or charitable endeavor.
Unless it creates a very catchy and memorable domain, such as o.co or go.co, I would probably recommend steering clear of the .co TLD because it may cause confusion in the eyes, minds, and keystrokes of potential customers. It's been my experience that many people will automatically interpret .co as .com and proceed to type it that way.
Compare control you’ll have over domain name system, or DNS, record management. Some registrars charge extra for more control or limit the immediacy of your access for certain tasks; others don’t. Test-run customer support, too. Things like URL forwarding, also known as URL redirects, should not cost anything.
Select a domain name that’s short, memorable and isn’t uncommonly prone to misspellings, as is www.theircompliments.com, or ambiguity, as in the domain www.joesexchange.com for a shop called Joe's Exchange.
Do incorporate relevant keywords or search terms that someone might use if searching for you, specifically, or for the kind of services, products or information you provide.
Compare registrars and their costs for initial registration, renewals and transfers. Know that some TLDs cost more to register or renew than others, regardless of which registrar you choose, and some increase in price from initial registration to renewal.
In general, the .com TLD is most desirable, followed, typically, by .net and .org. Anyone can use .org; it’s not reserved for nonprofits or charitable organizations, but understand that some people will presume that a .org domain is a nonprofit or charitable endeavor.
Unless it creates a very catchy and memorable domain, such as o.co or go.co, I would probably recommend steering clear of the .co TLD because it may cause confusion in the eyes, minds, and keystrokes of potential customers. It's been my experience that many people will automatically interpret .co as .com and proceed to type it that way.
Compare control you’ll have over domain name system, or DNS, record management. Some registrars charge extra for more control or limit the immediacy of your access for certain tasks; others don’t. Test-run customer support, too. Things like URL forwarding, also known as URL redirects, should not cost anything.
Website-building hosts and platforms
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Think independently. As I first wrote back in 2012, “most popular” doesn’t necessarily mean “the best.” Most popular pertains more to the quality of a marketing campaign than to the quality of a product. Consider the following:
Very often, especially for newcomers, it's best to go directly to the website-building platform provider to build and host your site. In other words, using Weebly at www.weebly.com is often better than going through a third-party host, such as HostMonster, GoDaddy, etc., and using the Weebly platform there. Not only can the third-party host be a source of unnecessary complexity, but it can also end up costing a lot more to buy the individual site-building features through the third-party host than it would be if you'd dealt directly with the site-building service. In addition, third-party hosts' customer support may not extend to the individual site-builder service. So you'd still have to go to the site platform provider for technical help related to that. If you need a bridge between Weebly and you, consider people like me your assistants.
How user-friendly is the website builder's editing platform? Some providers offer a bigger options menu than others, but may be wrought by a steeper learning curve, creating time- and comprehension-related obstacles that can slow or derail project completion. Others offer a more intuitive, beginner-friendly menu and enable the addition of advanced features and third-party tools as you need them.
Compare features at various price tiers and consider your current budget. Does a specific platform let you export or easily redesign your site? Does it allow access to HTML/CSS for customized upgrades? Will it place ads on your site or charge its own additional fees for e-commerce? Does the platform facilitate easy implementation of meta tags and other SEO techniques? How compatible is it with third-party tools? Also compare things like storage amounts and number of pages allowed.
Very often, especially for newcomers, it's best to go directly to the website-building platform provider to build and host your site. In other words, using Weebly at www.weebly.com is often better than going through a third-party host, such as HostMonster, GoDaddy, etc., and using the Weebly platform there. Not only can the third-party host be a source of unnecessary complexity, but it can also end up costing a lot more to buy the individual site-building features through the third-party host than it would be if you'd dealt directly with the site-building service. In addition, third-party hosts' customer support may not extend to the individual site-builder service. So you'd still have to go to the site platform provider for technical help related to that. If you need a bridge between Weebly and you, consider people like me your assistants.
How user-friendly is the website builder's editing platform? Some providers offer a bigger options menu than others, but may be wrought by a steeper learning curve, creating time- and comprehension-related obstacles that can slow or derail project completion. Others offer a more intuitive, beginner-friendly menu and enable the addition of advanced features and third-party tools as you need them.
Compare features at various price tiers and consider your current budget. Does a specific platform let you export or easily redesign your site? Does it allow access to HTML/CSS for customized upgrades? Will it place ads on your site or charge its own additional fees for e-commerce? Does the platform facilitate easy implementation of meta tags and other SEO techniques? How compatible is it with third-party tools? Also compare things like storage amounts and number of pages allowed.
Your responsibilities
No matter who builds your site, you are ultimately responsible for certain elements, including, but not solely:
Note that being "ultimately responsible" for numbers 1 - 3 may mean that you choose to pay someone else to do some of it for you.
Free and easy implementation of third-party analytics tools will let you analyze traffic and health for marketing and site improvement purposes. Fear not; I’ve yet to discover a perfectly healthy site — mine’s not perfect from day to day, nor is Google’s own, and for numerous non-tragic reasons.
Overall, building and managing a basic site yourself is relatively easy and inexpensive with the step-by-step guidance of what I call “directed DIY.” With the right combination of knowledge, insights, tools and products, your site will facilitate growth and change while respecting your budget.
- Content creation/collection: This includes written copy for pages; descriptions and pricing information regarding your products and services; images and their alt text; links to videos; and more. Your written content must reflect professionalism and attention to detail. Among other things, it should contain correct use of grammar, spelling, capitalization and punctuation. Never copy the material of someone else and use it as your own. That's not only shameful behavior, but it's also illegal.
- Keyword selection and page, site and business titles and descriptions, all to be used in various ways on- and behind-page
- Ongoing SEO, promotion and content management: This typically includes use of social media and inbound links, the addition of fresh and relevant content, and overall site and content quality, authenticity and trustworthiness.
- Maintaining payment for your various site-related services
Note that being "ultimately responsible" for numbers 1 - 3 may mean that you choose to pay someone else to do some of it for you.
Free and easy implementation of third-party analytics tools will let you analyze traffic and health for marketing and site improvement purposes. Fear not; I’ve yet to discover a perfectly healthy site — mine’s not perfect from day to day, nor is Google’s own, and for numerous non-tragic reasons.
Overall, building and managing a basic site yourself is relatively easy and inexpensive with the step-by-step guidance of what I call “directed DIY.” With the right combination of knowledge, insights, tools and products, your site will facilitate growth and change while respecting your budget.
Nora Firestone is a professional writer, reporter and consumer-platform website designer who also develops and leads instructional workshops and presentations pertaining to writing for small business, media relations/outreach and DIY website design/building/management and home improvement. Based on her experience as a newspaper reporter and feature writer for home-, business-and community-related news and trends, Nora's material offers unique, original and essential insights from a journalism perspective, which is only one facet of what makes her services and instruction more valuable and rich than that of others. Contact Nora for information about presentations, workshops or writing and website services.
Copyright 2012/'13, Nora Firestone. All rights reserved.
