Tag Archives: marketing

4 Proven Methods to Increase Your Website Conversions

Posted on February 21, 2019 by Hosting

The post 4 Proven Methods to Increase Your Website Conversions appeared first on HostGator Blog . Are you actively creating new content for your website or blog, only to find that you seem to be wasting more time than anything else? If so, then you will find a lot of value in today’s article. With more than a BILLION active websites and blogs on the internet today, there are a few things you need to know: There is now more competition than ever to rank in Google Every topic has already been written about a thousand times over For content to make money, it needs to have traffic and call-to-action The best business models are ones with a direct focus and need on their audience Remarketing similar products and services to your site visitors is key By reminding yourself of these five key points, you will find a lot more success in blogging and content creation . It’s also important to remember that people are using the internet for three main reasons, which are 1) to buy something, 2) to find information, 3) to be entertained. Cater to any of these needs with an ending call-to-action, and you are on the right track. At the same time, it’s extremely important to make sure you have a marketing plan in place as well. Just creating content and hoping to rank in the search results is no longer a viable plan. With all of this in mind, let’s take a look at a some of the many different ways to create valuable content and marketing methods that continues to make money time and time again. 1. Have a Great Call-To-Action on Your Main Page When you look at any of the top websites on the internet today (especially in online marketing and business services), you will see that most of them have a direct call-to-action, or CTA , on their main page. Here’s an example of HostGator’s: There are plenty of reasons for this, but two of the most obvious are that you only have a few seconds to make a great first impression and to get the user to act on whatever you have to offer. Another reason, is that simple micro-sized actions usually have much higher conversions and engagement in the long run. Let’s take a look at a couple examples of this below. With more entrepreneurs, content creators, and affiliates jumping into the world of ecommerce, there is a huge untapped market that is searching for answers daily. One of the biggest problems ecommerce sites are facing, is trying to find winning products that are in demand, have low competition, and also offer higher profit margins. All of this can be summed up nicely in the “Find products for your store in minutes” call-to-action that is found right on the home page of Oberlo . Throw in the addition of the product image and a visual on the retail price and potential profit, and you can only imagine the conversion rate on this homepage alone. At the same time, when having any type of product or service, it’s a huge benefit if your brand is actually using that same solution itself. Another example of this can be seen on OptinMonster , which is a popular WordPress plugin that has a whole collection of popup and call-to-action lead generation tools for site owners to use. Once you start to scroll away from their site and appear to close it out, they have a popup window that appears and discusses the topic of “Cart Abandonment.” For anyone already visiting the site, they are likely already interested in how to improve their business and user engagement for the better, and this is a perfect way to show not only what their service has to offer, but how it can work for other site owners and brands as well. These are just a few working examples of how to create excellent home page calls-to-action that grab the interest of your audience and make them want to convert and become a paying customer right away. 2. Focus on How To Content, Case Studies and Live Webinars When most people visit Google, they are often searching for information to solve a problem or to help them with a decision or process. By creating content that caters to this audience, gives them value, and then direction, not only will you be providing a service, you can also turn such traffic into leads and sales as well. “How To” guides and “Tutorials” are some of the best ways to accomplish this. Just think about what your service or business offers, then reverse the process and recommend it to your audience as the solution to their problem. For example, thousands of individuals and brands are starting a new website or blog for the first time. While this might seems like nothing for the majority of us, it can be quite a daunting task for anyone attempting this the first time around. HostGator has a whole slew of tutorials and reference guides on our site for how to get started, and we also offer several live webinars as well. And just like how millions of people will be starting a new website or blog today, the same is true with social media. It’s not just about how many people will actively go live on new platform, but also how they use it for their business or brand. Even if they aren’t new to the social platform, they might be new to the concept of advertising with them — and those businesses and services out there that cater to this need will continue to generate new business as well. Another example of how to use case studies and brand examples to provide new leads and sales for your business, is to show how other companies are doing something right (such as social media marketing), and then how your customers can follow along and do the same. This Zappos case study is a great example of how a site is leveraging the success and branding of another brand, then offering a relevant service to their audience — hoping to turn them into customers. Often times, these types of case studies and resource guides go into super detail on how complex and time-consuming it actually is to create a winning strategy, and then sell that formula and service instead. Again, this all goes back to knowing your target audience and catering to their needs. These are just a few examples to consider when trying to come up with new content ideas and calls-to-action for your site, while also driving new traffic and leads in the process. 3. Product Information, Review Articles and Testimonials Matter We already know that a ton of people are going to Google everyday to learn new things and to research processes to accomplish whatever their personal or business goals are. But what about product and service information? Sure, there are millions of websites about products and services out there, but some do it better than others. Just having a product page with generic information will get you nowhere. Instead, shopping comparison and niche review sites do this extremely well. This is something Amazon has revolutionized over the past several years. Just take a look at any product on their site, and then you will see a ton of product recommendations based on other customer viewing and purchases. Just imagine how much of an increase Amazon sees in order size, thanks to these little recommendations and ratings throughout their site. This method also works very well for affiliate marketing and commission-based lead generation as well. Since site owners and bloggers are pretty good at social media and SEO, it’s actually one of the most popular and effective ways to drive traffic and revenue to some of the top sites on the internet. A perfect example of this can be seen in this HostGator review , which highlights nearly all aspects of the hosting platform. You can bet that anyone looking for a hosting plan and coming across this page will find all of the information they need, and are most certainly ready to take action in the process. At the same time, there are also user reviews and ratings placed throughout the site as well. And with Inc.com recently reporting that “ 84 percent of people trust online reviews as much as friends ”, you can only imagine how well such testimonials and reviews work, even when we don’t actually know the individuals posting them. These examples show how product ratings and testimonials can make a huge improvement to conversions on a shopping or review site, but this method can be effective for any kind of business, from solopreneurs to small businesses . A couple more content ideas are product/service “alternatives” and “review” style posts. You can also write content on your competition and then recommend your own services or products as the better option. If you know your target audience, cater content to exactly what they are looking for, and provide them with real value — they will then likely take action while they are on your site. 4. Run Your Business with EverGreen Content Many of the methods highlighted in the points above are focused on engagement and impulse buying, while some are specifically targeted towards audiences that are already in buying mode. If someone is searching for information on an individual process or product, they are likely already in action mode. Why not create valuable content that can keep working for you for several months and years to come? This is often referred to as “ evergreen content .” In short, this means it’s something that is always in demand and won’t go out of style anytime soon. Here are a few ideas on winning evergreen topics: health/weight loss finance/making money education/employment birthdays, weddings & graduations If you have content (or a business) that caters to any of these areas, you can continually generate traffic and leads everyday of the year. This is usually easier for businesses that already have a focus in these areas, but there are also plenty of opportunities for any brand to tap into these evergreen markets as well. A winning evergreen content strategy can look something like the chart below. It’s not just about pushing out as much content as possible, but instead creating as much value within one post, which can also be promoted and referenced to time and time again. The good news is that this type of content can be created for nearly any type of business model or customer audience that you might have in place. For example, starting a new website or blog isn’t limited to just those who are tech-savvy. Through the use of articles focused on topics like “How to Lose Weight and Blog Your Journey ” or “ Create a Site for Your Upcoming Wedding! “, site owners can create compelling content for an audience, while also monetizing it through the use of HostGator and their affiliate program . Again, this goes back to the providing your audience with a “walk through,” having a call-to-action in place, and also adding in the “evergreen” component as well. How to Make a Solid Content Creation and Marketing Plan For the most part, content creation is the easy part. You can take any of the examples and concepts above, reverse engineer your end call-to-action or monetization process, and then create content around it. If you aren’t a good writer, you can simply map out these data points and then hand it off to a freelancer to complete. But as we noted, content creation is only half of the battle. With more than two million sites and blogs going live daily , you need to have an effective marketing strategy in place. It doesn’t matter if you focus on paid, SEO, or social media — as long as you have at least one in place. Before you leave this article, run through the list one more time, take some notes and then start thinking about how you can improve your business model and engagement with better main page call-to-actions, using reference guides and webinars, and also implementing evergreen content in the mix. Your competition is likely already doing many of these, and now it’s time for you to do the same. Find the post on the HostGator Blog Continue reading →

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How to Use Content To Build Trust

Posted on February 1, 2019 by Hosting

The post How to Use Content To Build Trust appeared first on HostGator Blog . Running a small eCommerce business is hard. Every day it feels like competing with the big guys is a bigger challenge than ever. You can’t afford offer the convenience and low prices of businesses like Amazon and Walmart, so how are you supposed to compete? One of the areas small businesses can win on is trust. But where past generations would develop trust by getting to know the person behind the counter each time they came in to shop, today you need to figure out how to build a comparable relationship online. For most businesses, the best option is with content marketing . Why Trust is So Important to Business Consumers have limited money to go around, so every spending choice they make has to count. If you’ve ever had the experience of buying something only to realize the product didn’t perform as needed or the business didn’t offer adequate support, then you know how emotional the experience can be—it can feel like a betrayal, even if the financial cost itself was small. Consumers want to buy from brands they can trust. This is backed up by research. PwC found that 43% of consumers name trust as an important factor when choosing a brand—falling only behind price. And if anything, finding ways to build trust is even more important for eCommerce businesses, since your customers can’t see and feel the products they buy before they hand over their money. How do they know they’ll receive their order and that it will be what they need? Or if it’s not, that they can work with the company for a painless return? They have to trust you.   How Content Marketing Builds Trust If your main source of interaction with customers is your website, you have to use that space to show your customers who you are and why you’re trustworthy. And telling them they should trust you isn’t as powerful as showing them. Content marketing is how you show rather than just tell. And it works. The Content Marketing Institute’s (CMI) 2018 research found that 96% of the top performing B2B marketers say they’ve built trust with their audience, and 81% of B2C marketers that do content marketing say their audience views them as a trusted resource.   Content marketing successfully builds trust for a few main reasons.   It emphasizes helping over selling. One of the core tenets of good content marketing is that you can’t make it all about you. CMI’s research found that 90% of the businesses that are most successful in their content marketing efforts say they put their audience’s needs first . If you think about all of the people you trust in your life, you’ll probably realize that a key feature of those relationships is that they’re not all about what the other person can get from you. Good relationships include mutual care and effort. While the relationship between a business and a consumer is obviously different, this part holds true. If the only messaging your audience ever sees from you is pushing the hard sell, you’re not giving them any reason to trust you. But when you commit time and resources to creating content that’s genuinely helpful to them, you show them you care about them beyond the bottom line.   It demonstrates your expertise. This is especially important for service-based businesses. You can use content like blog posts, videos, podcasts, and ebooks to show your audience that you have the necessary skills and knowledge to do the work you want them to hire you for. Even for businesses that sell products, content gives you a chance to show your audience that you understand what they care about—a necessary step in providing products designed to better meet their needs.   It shows the humans behind the brand. People will never feel the same kind of connection to a logo or brand name that they do to another human being. But your business isn’t just a brand, it’s made up of people. Creating original content gives you the chance to show more of the people behind the business and humanize the brand for your visitors. When consumers associate names and faces with your business, as well as products, it makes you more trustworthy.   5 Tips for Creating Content that Earns Customer Trust Doing content marketing isn’t enough on its own to earn customer trust, you have to do it well . To help you put together a content strategy that will earn you the trust of your audience, here are five important strategies to employ.   1. Put the customer first. It’s human nature to think about your own needs and priorities, but when it comes to content marketing, you have to put real effort into putting your audience’s needs and interests first. Take time to understand who your audience is and what they care about. Then craft your content strategy around them . That means not centering your products and services (although you can mention them anytime doing so is useful to your audience). Focus first on providing value and building a relationship with your audience, and only later on selling. If you build trust first, you’ll be more successful when you do make the sales pitch.   2. Create unique content. This was one of the main suggestions Cathy McPhillips, Vice President of Marketing at the Content Marketing Institute, offered on a recent call. She’s noticed way too much content out there from different brands that cover all the same topics. “Why would you trust one company over another if they’re pushing out the same information?” she asks. There’s no room for differentiation if you’re repeating information someone else has already provided, and it doesn’t give your readers any good reason to trust you over another brand. So look for gaps in the information that’s out there. Or make sure that if you do tackle a topic your competitors have already covered that you bring a unique spin or angle to it.   3. Use your subject matter experts. This is another point Cathy made: marketers aren’t always the best experts on the industries they’re working in. “Just because they’re the best writers and the best communicators in the business does not mean they know their product the best,” she pointed out. But you don’t have to create content entirely on your own. “Lean on your other departments,” Cathy said. “Use all your internal resources to help you be an expert and be someone your customers trust.” As an example, she brought up  Indium , a company in the specialized and highly technical industry of solder supply. The marketing team there will never understand the products and industry as well as the engineers in the company do. So they made the engineers a part of their content by creating video interviews . The video content provides valuable information to their audience while also positioning the company as experts in the industry. 4. Be authentic. People can recognize pandering. If it looks like you’re trying too hard to relate to your audience—while they always know that just underneath your actions is the desire to sell you something—it will drive them away. That means you have to find the right mix of focusing on what they care about, while also staying true to yourself in your marketing. If your research suggests your target audience is full of people likely to love Star Trek, slipping a reference into your marketing can be a way to connect with your audience on a more human level—but only if you’re also enough of a fan to get the reference right. Do try to incorporate the language and interests of your target audience into your marketing, but only insofar as you can do so naturally. If a marketing choice feels forced, you’re probably better off not using it.   5. Be transparent. People have come to expect the worst from many companies they work with. When you hear about a big company covering up a data breach or attempting to silence employees that complain about harsh working conditions, are you ever surprised? You can set yourself apart by embracing radical honesty . Some brands are already doing this with their content marketing and seeing great success. Publishing about your failures, providing the numbers about where your earnings go, sharing employee salary information, or even highlighting use cases where your competitor’s product is a better choice are all ways to boldly tell your audience who you are. Someone who’s just as upfront about their flaws as their strengths will always be more trustworthy than someone’s who’s all bluster. If you’re not ashamed to admit the truth, even in areas where it’s not entirely flattering, that shows your audience that they can trust what you have to say.   Build Trust, Build Business For the customers that will never meet you in person, you need to find a way to still connect with them as a human being. Content marketing provides that opportunity and enables you to build relationships with your audience while demonstrating all the reasons they can trust you. That’s more valuable than just making a sale, it’s the path to creating loyal customers.   Find the post on the HostGator Blog Continue reading →

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Today’s 5 Best Free WordPress Themes for Freelancer Websites

Posted on January 29, 2019 by Hosting

The post Today’s 5 Best Free WordPress Themes for Freelancer Websites appeared first on HostGator Blog . Every freelancer needs a website for one major reason: Clients can’t find you if you don’t show up in their search results. Other reasons freelancers need websites are to show your work to prospective clients, to let prospects know which kinds of services you provide (and which you don’t), and to give people an easy way to get in touch with you. To make the most of your website, you’ll need a theme that loads fast, looks good and is easy to use on phones and computers, and establishes your professional brand . Here are five free WordPress themes that work well for different types of freelance businesses. 1. Bootstrap Journal Bootstrap Journal from Bootstrap Themes describes itself as feminine, but perhaps a better word is fun. The fonts are what give this image-heavy theme a slightly whimsical look, which can work for freelancers in businesses that require an outgoing personality, like wedding and event planners, independent travel agents, stylists, makeup artists, and hair stylists. This theme is best for freelancers who have a strong visual portfolio to display. On my laptop, the full-width header image fills the space above the fold. Beneath it are page navigation tabs and a 5-image grid with post titles over the images. Post excerpts with large images follow, and there’s a subscription box to encourage visitors to join your email list. On a smartphone, everything converts to one column. Bootstrap Journal is responsive, fast, SEO friendly and WooCommerce compatible. The pro version ($49) adds ad management tools, multiple design customization options, and an editable copyright text option.   2. Clean Fotografie Clean Fotografie from Catch Themes , as you might guess from the name, is a good choice for freelance photographers. It’s also useful for freelancers in other businesses whose portfolio is mainly visual, like makeup artists, fine artists, interior decorators, and landscape designers. Clean Fotografie’s responsive design puts images front and center on computers and phones, gives you hero image options for your home page or the entire site, a portfolio feature, full-screen HD image capabilities, and Instagram compatibility. The free version also includes customization options for text excerpts, menus, header media, and layouts. On a laptop screen, the header media includes a call-to-action button to get visitors moving through the site. Beneath the header, a three-column row of images for categories is followed by a header image and text block, featured images in another three-column row, and news items with large featured images. On a smartphone, the content shifts into a single column but keeps the focus on images rather than text. Clean Fotografie’s pro version ($55) is WooCommerce ready and adds more customization options,  featured slider tools, and font families.   3. Experon Experon from ThinkUp Themes looks like a good option for freelancers who work in a field that requires precision and a sense of understated style, thanks to the hexagonal category icons below the slider banner. Because of the design, the above-the-slider-banner tabs for pages and social media, and the three-category row just beneath the banner, Experon is a good option for a freelance agency or solo freelancer that offers multiple services they want to describe in depth on the site. Experon’s free version loads quickly, is SEO friendly, and is optimized for HD screens. It’s compatible with WooCommerce for selling on the site and Elementor for drag-and-drop page design. The free version also gives users access to regular security and feature updates. The pro version of Experon ($35) adds full-width and boxed layout options, more than 100 shortcodes to add features to the site fast, hundreds of Google Fonts, and unlimited color and sidebar options.   4. Life Coach Life Coach from Blossom Themes is a great choice for freelancers who are serious about building their email list through content marketing. Designed for—you guessed it—life coaches, this theme also works for writers, teachers, and speakers. On both laptops and smartphones, there’s a sign-up section where visitors can enter their email in exchange for a free info product (a checklist, e Book , or some other marketing content). Next comes page navigation tabs and a hero image with another subscription section. Next, there’s a social proof section for the logos of media outlets, websites, and events where your work has been featured. About, services, learn more, testimonials, and articles are next, followed by contact information and a contact form. Life Coach’s free version is fast, SEO friendly, Schema.org optimized, responsive, and WooCommerce compatible. Coach Pro ($49) adds more layout and design options as well as sections for case studies, pricing, podcasts, and events.   5. Ryan Grid Ryan Grid from ThinkUp Themes has a black-and-white palette and a focus on text blocks that’s good for writers , editors, tutors, transcription, and other freelancers whose work is based on text. On a laptop, Ryan Grid is similar to Experon, with two unobtrusive menu headers for social media icons and pages, followed by a slider header, then three category text blocks. On a smartphone, that first text block is where you’ll want to put your most important information, because it’s the most prominent element on the smartphone-screen homepage display. If you do have images to include, Ryan Grid is HD Retina-ready. The free version has an options panel for easy customization of the design and it’s Elementor-compatible for drag-and-drop page building. It’s also WooCommerce compatible, which is helpful if you have information products you want to sell on your site. Ryan Grid’s pro version ($35) adds unlimited color and sidebar options, Google Fonts, and more than 100 shortcodes for easy customization.   Choosing a WordPress Theme for Your Freelance Website Once you’ve decided on a couple of themes you like, download them and try them out with your own content to get a sense of which one will work best for you. After you make your choice, ask for feedback from your peers, clients, and prospects about how easy it is for them to find what they need on your site. If you need to make changes to your theme, or pick another theme, you’ve got lots of good free options. Find the post on the HostGator Blog Continue reading →

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How To Start An Online Business in 9 Simple Steps

Posted on January 24, 2019 by Hosting

The post How To Start An Online Business in 9 Simple Steps appeared first on HostGator Blog . Do you have an idea for starting an online business and need help getting online? In the past, all businesses needed physical locations, but as online shopping continues to rise, many people are making successful business on the internet. All you need is a good idea, some startup money, time to get started, and you can start an online business. If you’ve always wanted to be an entrepreneur, starting an online business is one of the easiest ways to get your foot in the door. And online businesses, when run well, can be extremely profitable. Ready to get started? Here are the first steps to start an online business. Start with a really great idea. Decide on a business name. Secure a domain name. Determine your income model, and develop a business plan. Select a web hosting package. Build your website. Prepare your inventory. Tell the world! Create and execute your marketing plan. Launch! Download a FREE checklist to chart your progress! Let’s dive in! 1. Start with a Really Great Idea. Since you searched for this article, chances are that you already have an idea for your online business. If you have a business or product idea that you think people will be interested in, confirm that with market research. You can get creative and do a little bit of online market research yourself. For example, a couple of businesses like Ask Your Target Market and GutCheck will connect you with members of your target audience so you can ask them questions directly and gain a better idea of what they’re likely to think of your product. If you already have an idea of your target audience, you can browse forums on Reddit to see what people are talking about. Are there hobby groups on Reddit related to your product? If so, they may talk about new products they would like to see or complaints about an old product. You can use these discussions to help refine your business idea. Or, if you’re looking for direct feedback, consider posting on Reddit about your product or idea and see how people respond to it.   Maybe you want to start an online business for some passive income, but don’t have your idea fully developed yet? That’s okay too. Start by thinking about popular products in a hobby or niche area that you’re familiar with. How can you improve on those products or create a companion product that would make the experience better? Maybe a service offering is more your speed. Consider these trendy online business ideas for your side hustle.   2. Decide on a Business Name. As you’re steadily moving toward the point of your launch, it’s time to determine how your business will appear to the world. If you’ve gotten this far without settling on a name for your online business, then now is the time to make a decision. Choosing a name for your business is hard. The name is the biggest decision to make as you work on your brand, and it’s likely the most important decision since it will set the foundation for your brand and other decisions you will make next.   First, decide what needs to be in your online business name. For example, what keywords do your competitors use in their name? Are there key terms you should use or avoid? For example, your personal training business may get more traction and recognition if “personal training” is in the name versus something vague like “Bill’s Transformations.” After you brainstorm a list of keywords to consider (and keywords to avoid), come up with half a dozen or more business name ideas with your keywords in mind. Next, you’ll need to see which business names are available. Run your list of names through the trademark database search tool at the US Patent and Trademark Office. If your business name idea (or a close variation) is already in use, remove that name from your list of options. Do a similar search on social media and on Google to be sure someone else isn’t already using the name.   3. Secure a Domain Name. You’ve decided on a business name – congrats! Now it’s time to claim your domain name. You’ve spent so much time thoughtfully deciding on the name for your online business, and you don’t want someone else to buy it before you. Even if it may be a few months before you’re ready to start a website, that’s ok. Purchase your domain now so you know it’s safe and ready when you are. Use HostGator’s domain name search tool to see if your top choice is available. Then follow the steps to purchase your domain. If your business name is unique enough, you can go straight for the most obvious choice: YourBrandName.com. If the most obvious domain is already taken, then you may have to get a little creative.  You can either go with one of the other domain extensions like .net or .me, use a hyphen or underscore between words to change things up, or add a minor addition to the name, like “go” at the beginning or a word that clarifies the industry afterward.   4. Determine Your Income Model and Develop a Business Plan. So how will you make money? Are you selling products? Are you launching a blog and need to make money through an affiliate program or referral links? Do you want to earn passive income? Maybe you need investors? The answer may determine the type of website you need (an online store and shopping cart function) or the type of partnerships you’ll need to find (sign up with a website that pays for purchases from referral links). If you need investors to make a profit, a business plan will be one of the most important tools you have for convincing them to buy in. Even if you aren’t explicitly looking for investors, creating a business plan will help you clarify your goals and figure out the specific steps you need to take to achieve them. Make sure your business plan includes an analysis of the competition and a clear positioning statement of where you fit within the market. It should also include information on your target audience, which your market research should have given you a nice head start on collecting. All of that gives you the information you need to make sure your approach is solid. With that in place, you’ll have an easier time working out the chronology of what to do when and what finances and resources you’ll need to complete each step. In short, your business plan should do two key things: Make a case for why your business idea is a good one, and Provide the roadmap to turn your a good idea into something actionable. Even if you never show your business plan to someone else, a business plan can help keep you mentally organized. As your online business grows (or experiences growing pains), your business plan can remind you of your goals and be a guide as you navigate how to approach decisions for the direction of your business.   5. Select Your Web Hosting Package. Website hosting refers to the server space where you website lives. You can choose hosting based on the amount of server space that you need, how fast you want the website to load, or how private you want your online space to be. You can choose 5 main types of web hosting: Shared hosting Cloud hosting Managed hosting for WordPress Virtual Private Servers (VPS) Dedicated servers For more details on the benefits of each package, read this article titled “What type of web hosting do I need?”   or check out the infographic below: Want to share our web hosting infographic? Click to enlarge.   6. Build Your Website. For an online business, your website is everything. You need it to look good, be intuitive to navigate, and make a clear case to visitors why they should buy.  Take time to get it right, and run the finished product by some other people (ideally people in your target audience) to get feedback. Make sure the website design matches with your overall visual branding and your website copy effectively communicates your brand positioning. No previous experience building a website? No problem. HostGator has a drag-and-drop website builder that makes building a website frustration free. It comes loaded with more than 200 free, professional design templates to choose from. Better yet, HostGator’s website builder has eCommerce website functionality. If you have a little more technical knowledge and want more control of what you can do behind the scenes of your content management system, try a WordPress website . You can customize your WordPress website with many paid and free templates that are designed specifically for WordPress. If you’re selling products, don’t forget a shopping cart function.   7. Prepare Your Inventory. Now it’s time to create or stock up on whatever you’re selling. If you’re selling physical items, you want them ready to ship by the time any orders start coming in. If you’re launching a service-based business, this step is where you should clarify your process. If you’re selling digital products, like SaaS software, then you need to make sure the product is ready. Do user testing to ensure that it not only does what you’re claiming it does, but that customers will be able to use it without confusion or difficulty. Obviously this step will vary considerably depending on the type of business you’re launching. Just be sure that, before your actual launch date, you take whatever steps are necessary to ensure you’re ready to start providing what you’re selling by the time your first customer is ready to buy.   8. Tell the World! Create and Execute Your Marketing Plan. Before you actually get going, you should establish your marketing plan. Every business is different and marketing isn’t one size fits all. Because you’re starting an online business, you will want to make use of a mix of content marketing, social media promotion, and paid search promotion.   If you don’t know much about online marketing to start, this may be a step to hire out. There is a learning curve to get started and some mistakes of ignorance can cause serious consequences – you wouldn’t want to find yourself facing a Google penalty due to trying an outdated SEO strategy , for instance. If you don’t have the money for a marketing agency, you can find affordable freelancers on websites like Fiverr . If you really don’t have the funding to outsource your marketing, then take some real time to research online marketing best practices. Sites like Moz , HubSpot and Copyblogger all have good, reliable resources for beginners.   9. Launch! Launch day will be a big day for your new online business. If your website isn’t already live, then you’ll definitely want it up and running on launch day. You should put out a press release , set up any PR interviews you can get, announce the launch on social media, and start your marketing campaigns. And you should be prepared to start filling orders and fielding any questions that come through. Your first day in business is a big day, but your success will depend on what you do for every day that comes after.  Be prepared to work hard, learn as you go, and make a point of providing great customer service. Running an online business isn’t easy, but if you take the right steps and do the work, the rewards can be great.   Ready to start your online business? Step 1:  Download our FREE checklist to stay on track! Step 2: Build your website with HostGator. Step 3: Launch! Find the post on the HostGator Blog Continue reading →

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Posted on January 22, 2019 by Hosting

I’ve been looking round for a cheap hosting package for a start up site and found “ukhost4u”. Also I have heard that if we buy .uk domain fr… | Read the rest of http://www.webhostingtalk.com/showthread.php?t=1749393&goto=newpost Continue reading →

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