Build a Business Website for less than $500

These days, having a website for your business is not optional. More and more potential customers go to the web to research every decision and purchase they intend to make and your success may very well rely on how customers perceive you online. The online world can be a tremendous stream of opportunity for your company, but it can also be extremely daunting. Costs for professional websites run thousands of dollars and large corporations can often pay in the millions for their sites, but great results can come from very small expenditures.

Your business is on a budget (or should be), so what can you do for the least amount of money and is it worth it? For many small businesses, their website has become the new business card. It tells customers who they are, what they do, and offers a price. This type of website can be done easily for well under $500. Here is a short list of how I would do it:

1. Review your competitor’s websites. What functionality do they offer? Do they have an 800 number? Email? Can you buy products on their site?
2. Buy a domain name. Often times the domain name is the same as the business name and the domain can be searched and bought through online services like GoDaddy.com for as little at $10 or $12.
3. Decide where you will host your site. This is the computer server location where your website information is stored and accessible for viewing on the web. If you are tech savvy, you may decide to host it yourself on a computer you own. If not, there are ample online services that can help. GoDaddy.com can host your domain for as little as $4.99 a month and Hostgator.com lets you host for as little as $6.95 per month.
4. Next, decide on a platform that will let you manage the website and the information you put in it. WordPress may be the most popular right now, but others that come to mind are Joomla or Drupal. For most new website owners, any of these will work fine. Costs for these services vary depending on how you use them, but you will find them to be very affordable.

At this point, your expense is still very low…probably less than $100, but the next step may have a more significant cost. Now you need to edit the platform you selected so it looks like you want and add your content. The going rate to have a local web developer do this is usually around $300 to $400. Going that route will easily have you at the $500 price tag I promised, or you can do it yourself…maybe for free. YouTube can be a great source to learn how to do some or all of the work yourself. Additionally, you may be able to learn all you need to know from the platform website. They offer pretty easy to understand guides that may get you through this step. If you have decided to accept payment over your website, consider PayPal. This can be integrated to your site for just a few dollars and may be an acceptable alternative to having a regular merchant account.

While this process never stops, this should get you on your way to developing a web presence you can be proud of and that will drive customers to your business! Good luck!

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