We get this question asked all the time: “How do I get my business set up for a website and e-mails.” Are you starting a small business, home office, or side gig? Or maybe you’d like to make a little cash on the side. There are a few critical online components your business should be using if it is not already. By following the below steps, you’ll ensure that your business has the online presence and professionalism required:
1. Register a domain name. Sign up for a website (i.e. newyorkcomputerhelp.com). The name you want might be taken. An easy way to see if your website is available is by going to Register.com. If it’s not available, you’ll be provided variations that you can use as alternatives (i.e. www.manhattancomputerhelp.com).
2. Set up a website. You can have a website designer create a site for you, or you can have your site up in minutes with a pre-created template. It’s recommended to try the pre-created templates first and then if you need to tweak anything, then you can have a web designer further assist.
Site Objectives: Advertise your product or service, provide contact info, and mission statement and/or background. You might also want to include online ordering, blogs, chats, and email sign-up lists.
3. Set up an e-mail account. Don’t think of using your existing AOL, Yahoo, Hotmail, MSN, or Gmail e-mail account. Those are personal e-mail accounts and should stay that way. To show you mean business, set up an e-mail account that uses the same domain name as your website (i.e. [email protected]). It’s smart to also throw in a signature when e-mailing folks to advertise your website, location, phone, and possibly memorable slogan.
Okay, by now you’re probably wondering “How do I do this?” It is ideal to take care of these 3 tasks with one company. Nowadays, companies make it easy by lumping these 3 tasks in one package as a monthly charge starting as low as $3.99 / month. You should not only look at pricing, but also the site interface. How easy is it to get from the domain section to the e-mail portion? Further, is the website designer template easy to set up? Test out the customer service and see if they meet your standards by calling them up. Here are the recommended companies, based on the above factors, to review when getting your business online:
- 1 & 1 Internet: Starting at $3.99/month, you’re offered a lot of features. The interface is clean to navigate and design your own website.
- Register: Provides a quick way to advertise and sell products & services online.
- GoDaddy: Great customer support for those computer-illiterate. However, the site interface is difficult to navigate.
We wish you luck on getting your business online or polishing up your current company. The sky is the limit after going online!
For any questions or technical support on furthering your business online, feel free to contact New York Computer Help.