The amount of people who are going self-employed and seeking to make a career for themselves based on their passions and interests is growing each year. This means that more men than ever are their own boss but this can also mean you have to try doing things that you have maybe never done before. The classic example is building a website for your fledgeling business – so what components are essential to be included on your first website?
The building blocks
You can use any one of several website builder companies to create a website or you can use the famous WordPress to build your site. You do need to buy a domain name to build your site – a virtual address that usually ends with .com or one of the newer variations.
WordPress is a popular option for lots of reasons but the simplicity of their system is one of them – you use two main building blocks to create the content on your website: pages and posts. For example, you would have a homepage that would be the first thing people saw when they arrive on your website. This is a page while a blog post talking about the launch of your new business would be a post.
Important pages
As well as the homepage, there are a few other important pages to create depending on what you do. For example, if you offer services such as content writing or web design, then a services page is something you need to create, detailing what you do. You can also create pages for the different events you might be organizing if this is your business and use an event registration template to add a form to the page that allows people to sign up or register their interest.
In the same way, if you sell products, then you would create pages for those products. You can also use systems such as WooCommerce or Shopify to create a shop within your website if you sell lots of products and find it easier to list them in a way similar to other online stores.
Image by Free-Photos from PixabayConnecting with visitors
You should always have some variation of the About Us or About Me page on your website to connect with visitors. This tells them who you are, what you do and shows your products or services in the light of how they can solve problems for your clients. You can include a contact form on the page or sometimes create a separate one with a simple form on it to allow people to get in touch.
The blog is one of the best ways to bring traffic to your website and this uses posts rather than pages for each entry. Blogging has come a long way from the days of people it as an online diary to tell the world what they are doing. It is now an important part of connecting with website visitors, showcasing your expertise and bringing traffic to the site.
Little touches
You will find that creating your first DIY website is an ongoing process as you discover new elements to include and new ways to style them. But by having the basic elements in place with good forms and clear products or services, you can start to connect with customers. And don’t forget to include sign up forms for your email list – another vital element in building your business.
Featured Image by dozemode from Pixabay
