Tag Archives: web hosting tips

Best Website Builder for Small Businesses

Posted on January 17, 2019 by Hosting

The post Best Website Builder for Small Businesses appeared first on HostGator Blog . Small business owners have a lot to deal with. No matter the day, you can pretty much count on an overwhelming to-do list. When it comes to building and maintaining a website for your small business, it’s hard to know how to fit it all in. You know you need one—no small business can get by these days without a website. But how are you supposed to find the time to get it done, or the budget to hire someone to do it? It doesn’t have to take as long as you may think. Small business owners can get a website ready and online with little effort by choosing a website builder . Why Small Businesses Should Use a Website Builder For small businesses with limited time and budget, a website builder is the best choice to start enjoying the benefits a website brings. There are a few solid reasons to go with a website builder: It’s fast. If you don’t have a website up yet, then you should prioritize getting one up fast. A small business website makes it easier for people to find you and gives you legitimacy in the eyes of potential customers. The longer you wait, the more business you’ll lose. With a good website builder, you can potentially have your website ready in a matter of days, or even hours. It’s easy.  You don’t have to learn to code or spend time training on how to use complicated software. The right website builder will be intuitive enough that you can figure it out as you go. And in addition to making the initial website creation process easier, a website builder makes ongoing maintenance easy as well. When you need to make updates to your site (and you will), each little tweak will be quick and easy. It’s affordable. While a good website builder will cost you money, the cost is much less than what you would spend on hiring a professional website designer to build a website. And you won’t have to worry about hiring someone to help you make changes down the line because you don’t know how. It’s effective. The best website builders supply a large number of templates that are designed to meet website best practices. That makes it easy for you to build a website that adheres to the general advice on what works well on the web, without having to learn it all yourself. And even with starting from a template, you can make all the changes you need to make sure your website is uniquely yours and does a good job of selling your business to your visitors. Once you’ve decided that a website builder is the right choice for you, it’s time to find the best website builder for your business needs .   What to Look for in a Small Business Website Builder With quite a few website builders on the market, you have to figure out which ones provide the features and functionality you need. Many options make it hard to move your website to a new builder once you’ve created it, so it’s important to make the right choice early on. For a small business website, there are a few main features you should look for in your website builder.   Many Templates Part of what makes website builders so easy to use is that you start with a template. By having a basic design and website structure in place, you don’t have to start from scratch, just make changes to what’s there to create something new. The process of building your website will be easier if you’re able to start with a template that comes close to what you want your website to look like. Make sure you go with a website builder that offers a lot of templates—at least 100. Finding one you really like will save you work and time once you start customizing it.   Branding Options Some website builders (especially free or low-cost ones) won’t allow you to remove the website builder’s branding from your site. That might not be a problem for personal websites, but for a business website, it makes you look unprofessional and distracts from your own branding. When your visitors see a logo, you want it to be yours. Another good way to differentiate your website’s brand is to include a favicon on  your website. These are the little images that show up in the browser tab when your website is open, next to your page’s title. This gives your site a little extra branding and makes it easier for visitors to find your site amongst their open tabs or in their bookmarks. Try to find a website builder that allows the option to add your own favicon and makes it easy to do so.   Security The scary part of getting a website for your small business is security concerns. We’re all used to hearing stories about high-profile security breaches. The last thing you want is for your business to be at the center of a story like that. A good website builder will help  you set up the necessary security precautions you need to keep your business and your customers safe. In particular, look for the option to easily get an SSL certificate and install compatible security software.   Mobile-Friendly Design You can’t ignore the prominence of mobile. People now use their mobile devices to access the web more often than their computers. If you build a website that doesn’t work well on mobile, a good portion of your visitors won’t be able to use it (and won’t become customers). A good website builder has to make it easy for you to create a website that will work just as well on mobile devices as it does on a full-size computer. Look for a website builder that has responsive options or, even better, responsive templates so you can start with a mobile-friendly structure and not have to do anything special to get there.   Media Options Many online marketing strategies include video and audio media. If there’s any chance you’ll be using video or audio on your website—now or ever—then you want a website builder that will make it easy to add media files and embed video on  your pages. Check what kind of media features your website builder has before committing.   Analytics Access Building a new website is just the first step. Once your website is live, you want to track how people find and interact with it to gain an understanding of what’s working and how to improve your results over time. Find out what kind of analytics your website builder will provide and if it allows you to connect the builder dashboard to Google Analytics . The easier it is to see how your website is performing, the easier it will be to make the kind of updates that help you earn more visitors and new business.   Automated Backups If you’ve ever had a computer crash, then you know how important backups are. Even though website builders make creating your website easy, it doesn’t mean you want to have to do it all over again. Manual backups can protect you some, but automated website backups mean you never have to worry about remembering to back your site up yourself. No matter what happens, you’ll always have a recent version of your site you can access and restore as needed. Find a website builder that offers automated backups to make your life easier and your site safer.   SEO Features Imagine finally getting your website out there, only for no one to find it. With as crowded as the web is today, that’s a real possibility. One of the best strategies you have to make sure people actually show up to the small business website you create is SEO (search engine optimization) . While there’s a lot to doing good SEO for a new website, one of the first parts is optimizing your individual pages for the primary keywords you want to rank for. A website builder that includes SEO features will make customizing the most important parts of the page for SEO a lot easier so you can get an edge in the search engines from day one.   eCommerce Options Not all small business websites will need this in a website builder, but if you want to sell items through your website, then it’s a necessity. eCommerce software allows you to list products on your website, provide a checkout process, and securely accept payments online . If you’ll need these features, prioritize finding a website builder that offers eCommerce options so adding them onto your website will be a simple task.   The Best Website Builder for Your Small Business Don’t drag your feet on building a website for your small business. The benefits it will bring far outweigh the time and expense involved in getting started, especially when that time and expense is cut down by using a good website builder to get your business online fast . HostGator’s website builder not only provides everything mentioned in this post, but it also comes with free website hosting, saving you a little extra on the whole deal. Find the post on the HostGator Blog Continue reading →

Posted in HostGator, Hosting, VodaHost | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Best Website Builder for Small Businesses

How Much Does Dedicated Hosting Cost?

Posted on December 21, 2018 by Hosting

The post How Much Does Dedicated Hosting Cost? appeared first on HostGator Blog . When the time comes to choose the right kind of web hosting for your needs you’re going to have a lot of options to sort through. If you’re a beginner who’s  learning how to build a website , then shared hosting is the way to go. But, what about when your site grows beyond the initial stage? What about when you’re turning a profit and your traffic only continues to rise? If your site reaches this point then you’ll have a few different hosting options to consider. One of the main forms of hosting is dedicated hosting . But, making the decision to jump to dedicated hosting shouldn’t be taken lightly. The dedicated hosting cost  in general is one of the most expensive forms of hosting. It does bring you some serious benefits, but it’s a decision you’ll want to spend time researching. Below we look at what dedicated hosting actually is, the kind of benefits it offers your site, and which types of sites dedicated hosting is perfect for. Finally, we break down the costs for dedicated hosting and review how to get the most out of your dedicated hosting site. What is Dedicated Hosting? Dedicated hosting is a form of hosting where an entire server is dedicated to a single client or website. Contrast this with a very popular form of web hosting called shared hosting. When discussing the basics of shared hosting , it means hundreds of users and even more websites are sharing this same server’s resources. With dedicated hosting, you have full access to the server’s bandwidth, RAM, storage, and even the ability to control the software configuration. To bring this down to earth let’s take the example of housing. With a dedicated server hosting service, you’re renting an entire home. There are multiple bedrooms, no other tenants, and it’s yours to do whatever you want with. Compare that to shared hosting, which operates more like an apartment building. You have multiple tenants using the same building resources, and there are certain rules for what you can and can’t do. However, if something breaks then you’ll usually have included maintenance that will fix any issues. With dedicated server hosting services, as with a home you own, where you’re responsible for continued maintenance and fixing any issues with your server. Basically, with dedicated hosting, you have more server resources at your disposal, more control and flexibility over your setup, but you’ll generally be tasked with server maintenance as well (depending on your provider).   Linux vs. Windows Dedicated Servers The two main types of dedicated servers you’ll come across are Linux and Windows. Some hosts will specialize in one or the other, but generally, you’ll be given a choice. The server environment you choose will depend upon what programming languages you’re using or the types of databases that your website uses. The most popular form of dedicated server is a Linux server. The chances are high that this will be the type of server setup you require. Here’s how both Linux and Windows servers stack up:   1. Operating System You could probably guess that one of the main differences between the two is the type of operating system you’ll be using. Linux servers will run on Linux while Windows servers will run on Windows. With each operating system, you’ll have different layouts, functions, and commands. So, if you’re used to using one kind of OS it’s best to stick to this, especially if you aren’t going to be using an interface-based control panel to manage your server.   2. Control Panel Choice The most common control panel for Linux servers is cPanel. If you’ve used any kind of shared hosting in the past, then you’re probably familiar with this tool. With Windows, you’ll most likely be using Plesk. Overall, these two control panel’s offer pretty similar features, but if you’re used to using one over the other, then you’ll probably want to stick with it. With cPanel you can easily install a ton of different software packages, create your own MySQL databases, and program in PHP. All of these are necessities if you’re running a WordPress site. With Plesk, you’ll have a similar feature to cPanel, but you’ll also get Windows-specific features like the ability to run a LAMP stack.   3. Your Website Type If you’re choosing a Windows dedicated server you’ll usually be doing so because you need to run certain software that’s only Windows compatible. The is often the case for older, large, enterprise websites. Most website owners will probably get the most out of a Linux dedicated server. With this, you’ll get a server that’s engineered for performance. Plus, if you’re a developer you’ll be able to easily customize and configure your server environment to ensure you’re getting the highest levels of performance possible.   Benefits of Dedicated Hosting Dedicated hosting isn’t for everyone. But, this style of hosting can be incredibly advantageous for the right kind of website. Here are some of the biggest benefits dedicated hosting can offer.   1. Improved Uptime and Security One of the main reasons to upgrade to a dedicated server is if your site requires a high level of uptime. Think about it, every second your site is offline it’s potentially costing you revenue. Depending on the size of your site, this could be a lot of money. Dedicated servers are built to help ensure a high level of uptime from sites that receive a high volume of traffic, or a high level of user interaction, like an eCommerce site. Plus, nearly every dedicated server will have built-in server redundancy, so that any failures or issues with server software and hardware won’t result in your site going offline. There’s also the added benefit of not sharing the server with any other users or websites. Sometimes sharing a server with other users can lead to a loss in performance for your own site. So, any threat from these other sites, whether that’s related to your site’s performance or even it’s security, will be non-existent.   2. Unique Server Configuration With a dedicated host, you can completely customize your own server hardware and software. With something like shared hosting, you have to fit your site into preexisting hardware or software setups. You’ll be able to choose your own software setup, operating system, and even customize your server hardware to a certain extent as well. This will help with getting the highest levels of performance out of your site. Plus, with root server access it’ll be much easier to manage your site and your server. For technical users or those with a large tech team, this level of server control will be a blessing.   3. Incredible Performance With a dedicated server, you won’t have to compete with any other sites on the same server. This gives you complete control and use over all of your server’s resources. A dedicated server gives you access to incredibly high-bandwidth, along with the ability to use all of that bandwidth if the needs arise. Not only that, but you can fully optimize and utilize your server’s disk space.   4. Increased Ability to Scale When you’re using a dedicated server you’ll also be equipped to handle any fluctuations in traffic. When you purchase a dedicated server there will be built-in resource headroom to account for any traffic spikes, or even increased site growth. Since you have full access to your server you can also switch up the hardware or software configuration to help account for increased resource needs.   What Kind of Site Owner Should Use Dedicated Hosting? Not every type of site will need this type of dedicated hosting service.. But, for fast-growing sites, it’s one of the options you’ll want to consider. Here are a few examples of websites that can greatly benefit from using dedicated hosting:   1. High Traffic Websites When your site outgrows its current hosting setup you’ll have a few different hosting options available. As a high traffic website, you’re going to have very different needs than most other sites. A few of those considerations being, unparalleled performance, very high or perfect uptime, along with enhanced security and other features. With a dedicated server, you get all of that and more. You’ll be able to rely on your host to support your site in delivering the best possible user experience.   2. Massive eCommerce Sites With eCommerce any time your site spends offline results in a loss in sales. Finding a hosting solution that has near zero downtime is incredibly important. Plus, you’ll want to be able to handle traffic surges, when you’re running promotions, or during busy shopping times of the year, like the holiday season. With a dedicated host, you’ll have room to scale your site, plus downtime will never be an issue.   3. Agency Owners With High Profile Clients If you’re a high-end digital agency that creates, hosts and manages sites for clients, then you’re going to need a way to deliver reliable white-label hosting to your clients. If this sounds like you, then dedicated hosting is the way to go. You’ll be able to offer your clients unparalleled performance, and incredible reliability. Two things you’ll need to deliver on if you want to keep your clients for the long-term.   4. Websites With Unique Server Configurations Sometimes your site might have very unique requirements from your server. Maybe you’re running a piece of software that requires a custom setup. Or, maybe your team of engineers has found a hardware and software configuration that can help you get the highest levels of performance. With a dedicated server, you have greater control over your hardware, software, and operating system selection and setup.   5. Those Running Gaming Servers This isn’t technically related to your website, but a lot of users run into issues when they’re running an online gaming server, whether it’s for a Minecraft server , or another popular game. Most of these performance issues related to online gaming can be fixed with a dedicated server setup. Since you’ll have access to greater memory, CPU, as well as greater server customization, lag, and other gaming issues will be a thing of the past.   How Much Does Dedicated Hosting Cost ? Now, it’s time for the question you’ve been waiting for: how does much does dedicated hosting actually cost? Unfortunately, it’s not that straightforward. Like any kind of online service, there’s a range of applicable prices, depending on your service provider, the type of dedicated hosting you require, and the length of your hosting contract. As a general basis, you’ll be looking at paying at least $75+ per month, with high-level dedicated hosting being way beyond that. At HostGator, you can pick up a dedicated hosting plan for as little as $119 per month. The prices will rise depending on the level of storage and memory you require. You’ll also find pricing differences between managed and semi-managed dedicated servers. Managed dedicated servers have a more in-depth support team that can help you through any technical issues, as well as having access to more user-friendly tools like control panel installation, backups, and server optimization. Semi-managed servers require a greater level of technical skills to both manage and configure the server. For this level of dedicated server, you’ll probably want to have a technical team that can help to manage and optimize your server environment.   What to Look for in Dedicated Server Hosting When you’re looking for the perfect dedicated server hosting for you there are a few main factors you’ll want to use to compare different packages and providers. Keep these in mind throughout your search: Storage/Bandwidth – A solid amount of RAM and bandwidth available for high traffic. Hardware/Security – Up to date server hardware, the right operating system, along with regular security scale. Managed/Non-managed – If you’re non-technical you’ll need a managed dedicated server solution, or have the budget to hire a tech team to support and configure your server for you. Uptime/Reliability – Look for the highest uptime possible, along with a knowledgeable support team who can help you work through any technical issues.   Dedicated Hosting for Your Website Hopefully, you have a better understanding of what dedicated hosting actually is, the types of benefits it can bring your website, and how much it will cost for you to implement. We hope by this article you can now decide whether or not you need dedicated hosting for your website. If price is your biggest concern when it comes to upgrading to dedicated hosting, then keep in mind that the average price you should be expecting to pay is around $150. Ideally, if your site requires a dedicated host in order to operate at a higher level of performance, then you’ll be generating more than enough revenue to cover that cost. Before you decide to upgrade to a dedicated server make sure you spend your time researching the different options you have available. There are a ton of solutions available to you, some which might be better suited for your needs than others. Find the post on the HostGator Blog Continue reading →

Posted in HostGator, Hosting, mysql, php, VodaHost | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on How Much Does Dedicated Hosting Cost?

Benefits of Using Web Hosting

Posted on November 29, 2018 by Hosting

The post Benefits of Using Web Hosting appeared first on HostGator Blog . If you want to get a website online, then you’re going to need web hosting . Without a web host, there’s no way for your visitors to actually access your website. Still, if you’re just getting started with building a website , you might be wondering exactly what web hosting is, and how it can benefit you? Besides the obvious benefit of being able to have a website, of course. Below you’ll learn how web hosting works , the distinct benefits of web hosting services , as well as the overall benefits you’ll receive when you decide to use a quality web host for your site. What is Web Hosting? Essentially, web hosting is a service offered by hosting companies. They host your website’s files so that they’re accessible on the internet. Think of it like this. You’ve got a ton of different files on your computer, and if you want to access them you just open up the file. But, if you wanted to show this file to someone else they’d have to be in the same room, of you’d have to send them the files. In this metaphor, your web hosts act as the sender. All of your site’s files are stored on your hosting company’s server. Then, whenever a visitor types in your domain name, the server sends these files to the web browser. Your website is just a collection of different files and media elements, like photos. So, you rent a space on a web server and store all of your files there. Your web host will also provide you with things like server maintenance, support, email accounts, and lot more. They’ll also provide you with tools that allow you to easily manage your server, even without technical skills. Once you’ve purchased hosting, uploaded your site’s files to the web server, and pointed your domain name towards your hosting account, you’ll have a website accessible to anyone in the world. There are multiple forms of web hosting available to you. Even though there are many types of hosting, not every style will be suited for your website. Review the following list to determine what type of web hosting you need.   Shared Hosting Shared hosting is the most popular form of hosting, and probably the best fit for most website owners. One of the biggest advantages of shared hosting is that it’s incredibly cheap. If you have little to no budget, you can still make shared hosting work for you. The reason it’s so affordable is that you’re sharing server resources with hundreds to thousands of other sites. So, instead of paying for the entire server yourself, you’ll be splitting the check. Not only is shared hosting is very easy to use, but since it’s oriented towards beginners, it’s one of the simplest hosting environments to set up.   VPS Hosting VPS hosting is a very different style of hosting. It uses a technical process called virtualization to create a virtual dedicated server. However, it still pulls resources from multiple physical servers that you’re sharing with other people. The biggest benefit of VPS hosting is that you have access to much greater levels of server resources. So, your site performance will improve across the board. Plus, you have the ability to scale your server resources up or down as you see fit.   Dedicated Hosting With dedicated hosting , you’re renting an entire physical server. This means no sharing of resources with other users. As a result, the costs of dedicated hosting will be much more expensive. But, having an entire server completely to yourself offers you incredible levels of performance and storage. Plus, you have the ability to completely customize your server to help get the most out of your website. Dedicated server hosting probably won’t make sense for most website owners until they’re getting massive volumes of traffic.   Cloud Hosting Cloud hosting is unique in that you’re using virtual hardware. Your entire hosting environment lives in the cloud. This relatively new style of hosting has immensely grown in popularity for a few reasons. To start, it’s cost-efficient. With cloud hosting, you only pay for the server resources you actually use. So, if your traffic is variable month by month, you won’t be paying for a high level of server resources when you don’t even use them. It also has incredible reliability. If a cloud server cluster isn’t functioning properly, your site will be moved to another server on the network. Essentially, cloud hosting offers you the ultimate in flexibility and cost-effectiveness. Plus, it has incredible uptime and can offer you unparalleled performance.   Managed WordPress Hosting The final type of hosting you’ll come across is WordPress hosting . It’s exactly like it sounds: hosting for WordPress websites. The most common form of WordPress hosting is WordPress managed hosting. With this, you’ll get a server environment that’s 100% optimized to run on WordPress. This has the advantage of being more secure, helping you get the best performance out of your site, without having to handle any technical maintenance tasks yourself. With WordPress managed hosting you’re essentially hiring a team of WordPress experts to manage your server for you, and help you get the best levels of performance possible. If your site runs on WordPress and you’re out of the initial growth stage, then investing in this style of hosting is a great idea.   The Benefits of Web Hosting Services The right kind of web hosting plans can offer your site a lot. Without the proper web host, you run the risk of having a site that loads slowly (or not all), ruins your chances of ranking, and a lot more. However, choosing a high-quality host can help you avoid the tragic fate above. There are many reasons why web hosting is important ; it’s a service that is high-quality, reliable, and professional . Here’s a list of the largest benefits a rock-solid hosting provider can provide for your website.   1. Improved Site Performance When it comes to succeeding online your site’s performance matters a lot. In fact, you only have a few seconds to capture your visitor’s attention before they leave your site and never return again. If your site takes forever to load, then your visitors aren’t going to stick around. Not only that, but your site’s performance also affects your search engine rankings. With slow loading speeds your site will measure poorly in user experience metrics, which can influence how high your site ranks in search. With a high-quality web host, loading speeds won’t be an issue for you. Now, you could have a very high performing host and your site could be optimized poorly, but once you fix your website’s slow loading times, you should find your site loads incredibly fast.   2. Outstanding Technical Support If you’re providing products or services through your website, then you realize the importance of timely and helpful customer support. Your hosting company should be no different. Imagine you’re in the middle of a big launch; everything is going fine until your site mysteriously goes offline. What do you do now? Every moment you’re offline is costing you sales. Hopefully, you can turn to your hosting provider’s support staff and they’ll be able to bring your site back online as quickly as possible. If you don’t have the technical skills yourself, then your hosting provider will be like the technical team member you never had.   3. Domain-Associated Email Address If you want to look professional, then you’re going to need a branded email address that uses your domain name. For example, if your domain is “newdomain.com”, then you’ll want an email address that says “mark@newdomain.com”. If you’re reaching out to customers and clients via email, the last thing you want is to use your regular Gmail address. When you use a quality host service provider you’ll have the ability to create your own domain-specific email address. Some hosts limit you to one, while others will allow you to create an unlimited number of domain-specific email addresses. This allows you to look professional when reaching out to people via your website. Most hosts also have a number of email management tools built-in as well. For instance, you’ll be able to check, send, and receive emails, as well as set up email forwarders, so you can manage your emails from your preferred email provider.   4. Improved Website Security Website security is something that a lot of website owners never think about. Although having a 100% secure website is nearly impossible, you never really know where the next threat is going to come from. You can still take steps to ensure your website is as secure as possible . The foundation of your website’s security begins with your host service provider. After all, this is where all of your site’s files are going to be stored. A quality host will have multiple levels of security in place. For starters, you have the actual physical datacenter, which will be protected. Then you have any necessary firewall protection on the servers themselves. Finally, depending on what kind of web hosting services you have, you’ll have security measures in place that protect your site from other sites using the same server. As you can see that’s a lot of steps to secure your site. Then, you have everything you can do on top of that to secure your own website. This will involve things like locking down your login screen, installing spam software, changing up user permissions, or even installing one of many security plugins to help enhance your existing security. Hopefully, your host also has regular website backups in place. You might not ever need to use them, but if your site does get hacked, you can just restore to a previous version of your site, instead of having to start over from scratch. These can also come in handy if you accidentally take down your site by editing any of the core files. Instead of having to troubleshoot every little thing, you can just restore your site from a previously saved backup.   5. High Reliability and Uptime When you’re trying to find the right hosting company, you’ve probably come across the term uptime. It’s actually incredibly important. Your site’s uptime is how often your site will actually be online. You’re probably thinking, “I want it online all the time,” and that’s a natural response. However, most hosts have a clause in the hosting contract that specifies the percentage of time that your site will be online. For most hosting companies this number is 99.9%. That small percentage of time when your site is offline is when things like server repairs, updates, and maintenance are done. If you’re choosing a host because of its high uptime, you’ll want to make sure this claim is valid. The online reviews that speak to downtime will say a lot, and so will their guarantee. Some hosts will even offer payment credits for any time that your site is offline outside of the guarantee. Regardless, a hosting company with high uptime can be very beneficial to your bottom line. After all, people can’t buy your products or services when your site is offline. As you can see, the right web host can bring a lot of benefits to your website. While the wrong host will only make your success online that much more difficult.   Closing Thoughts Beyond the main benefit of helping you get your website live on the internet, web hosting carries a lot of other benefits as well. Hopefully, you have a better understanding of how you can take advantage of these by choosing a high-quality hosting provider. Keep in mind that the type of hosting you settle on should be what’s best for your current website needs. You can always switch packages, or upgrade your hosting in time. Find the post on the HostGator Blog Continue reading →

Posted in HostGator, Hosting, VodaHost, vps | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Benefits of Using Web Hosting

How to Choose the Best Website Builder for Your Business

Posted on November 19, 2018 by Hosting

The post How to Choose the Best Website Builder for Your Business appeared first on HostGator Blog . Your business needs a professional website, but you’ve been overwhelmed trying to figure out where to start . Web design looks really complicated and you find it easier to just not get started than to try to figure out everything you need to learn to build a new website. We have good news. You don’t have to understand coding or learn complex web design principles to build a good business website anymore. You can use a website builder instead. A good website builder is easy for even the newest of web design beginners to figure out and get started with. And website builders typically provide templates and features that are based on web design best practices, giving you a leg up on creating a website that gets results without having to spend as much time learning the ropes of website building . For some businesses, using a website builder vs. hiring a website designer will be a better choice . And that’s definitely true of any business that’s putting off building a website due to not knowing where to start. Every day your business goes without a website, you’re losing sales. Whether you are a large or small business owner, this article will help you choose the best website builder platform for your website.   7 Tips for Choosing Your Business Website Builder If you’ve determined that a website builder is right for you , now you just have to figure out the best website builder. There are a few important steps to take in making the right decision for your business.   1. Determine Your Budget. First things first, you have to figure out what you can afford. Start by considering the other costs involved in building your professional website.  Every website budget has to account for domain registration and hosting. And you’ll likely need to invest in images and copy for your website as well. Many website builders offer a free plan, but most charge somewhere between $5 to $40  a month for plans that provide the kind of features businesses are likely to need. If your budget is limited, you can save money by looking for plans that bundle different website services you need. For example, GATOR, our website builder here at HostGator, includes hosting with the price of your builder. You’ll have to pay for hosting anyway, so a plan that includes both services for one price removes one line item from your budget, while still providing you with everything you need.   2. Consider Your Needs and Priorities. Before you can decide on the best website builder platform, you need some idea of what you want your website to be and do. This will clarify your priorities so you know what to look for in your search. A few good questions to consider include:   What level of experience do you have in design? Most websites builders are made with inexperienced designers in mind, but some will still be easier to figure out than others. If you’ll be learning from scratch as you go, look for a builder that offers  website theme templates and drag-and-drop design options. How particular are you about getting things just right? If you want a lot of options and flexibility in designing your website, then the best website builder for you will include a lot of templates for you to choose from or more flexible editing options that allow you to make extensive changes to the design.   Do you need an online store? An ecommerce website will need to include a shopping cart and check out functionality, and it will need a design that emphasizes getting people to take that next step of making a purchase. When choosing your website builder, consider if they offer the right templates and features to enable an online store.   What types of media will you include? Will your eCommerce website include video? A photo gallery? A blog? A map that shows where your store is located? Make sure your website builder supports the types of content formats you plan to include. And no matter what, you’ll need to learn  how to make your website mobile friendly . Make sure any website builder you go with provides responsive website templates or other options that ensure you can easily make a website that works well on mobile.   3. Consider the Number of Themes. When you use a website builder, your design process starts with the themes the builder provides. You select one of the available themes and it becomes the template you customize to turn it into your unique website. You don’t want to invest in a website builder only to find that your customization options are far too limited and you don’t really like any of the themes they offer. Make sure the website builder you choose has enough themes that you’ll be able to find one that makes a good starting point for your website. Everything else will be much easier if the theme you use is a good fit for what you have in mind.   4. See How Easy It Is to Use. Any website builder you use will be much easier than building a website with coding and programming, but that doesn’t mean they’ll all be equally easy to figure out. As mentioned, a drag-and-drop functionality makes things easier. You also want to try to find a website builder that has an intuitive editor that makes each change easy to complete. Research a website builder’s reputation for ease of use. Is it okay for someone who’s never built a website before? Turn to user reviews for this. People who come to a website builder with a similar level of knowledge to yours will be your best source for the kinds of problems you’re likely to experience, if any.   5. Look for SEO Features. Once you’re done building your website, you want people to actually find it, right? For that, you need to implement SEO best practices as you design your website. A good website builder should include SEO features that make doing on-site optimization simple. Specifically, you want an easy way to update all the SEO meta elements on each page (such as the meta description and image alt tags) and to provide your sitemap to the search engines. While on-site optimization is just one part of SEO, it’s an important one and the right website builder will give you a head start in getting it done.   6. Check Out the Resources and Support. Even an intuitive website builder will require a period of learning and the more features a website builder offers, the more you’ll have to learn. Before you make a choice, check that the website builder you’re considering has resources that will help you learn all the ins and outs of how it will work. Ideally, your website builder will provide both tutorials on how to use all the different features and make the main changes you’ll need to in designing your website. If you learn better by video or text, check to see if the website builder provides resources in the format that works best for you as well. The best website builder platform for you will necessarily be one you can actually figure out how to use.     7. Research the Company’s Reputation and Customer Service. Learning how to use the website builder and making sure everything works as it should will also be a lot easier if you go with a company that has a good reputation for customer service. If something isn’t working for you, you should be able to quickly get in touch with support staff and get the help you need. Look at the reviews of the website builders you consider to see what other business owners say about the customer service they provide (and how often they need to make use of it). Your overall experience with a website builder will be much better if you can get the help you need at the time you need it.   The Best Website Builder and Hosting Plan in One We may be biased, but we can assure you that HostGator’s website builder checks all the boxes above as a reliable web hosting plan and builder for all business owners. The website builder:      Is affordable      Is extremely easy to use      Provides ecommerce options      Supports different content formats      Offers over 100 responsive themes      Has SEO features      Comes with a wealth of helpful tutorials and resources And HostGator has a great reputation for customer service . For anyone that chooses a HostGator web hosting plan, the website builder is an affordable option to help you get your website up and running faster, while being professional and functional at the same time. If you have any more questions about our services here at HostGator, contact us today for more information! Find the post on the HostGator Blog Continue reading →

Posted in HostGator, Hosting, VodaHost | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on How to Choose the Best Website Builder for Your Business

5 Benefits of Using a Website Builder for Blogs

Posted on November 13, 2018 by Hosting

The post 5 Benefits of Using a Website Builder for Blogs appeared first on HostGator Blog . Website builders for blogs make it easy to publish your content. As a blogger, you’re already tasked with creating and promoting your work. The last thing you want to worry about is building your website from scratch. Haris Bacic , a Forbes contributor, writes: “Creating a website for your business doesn’t have to be a headache and it certainly doesn’t require hiring an expensive design agency to create it for you. Depending on the type of business you own, there are several quick and affordable solutions.” Should you use a website builder for your blog? Here are five benefits to consider right now.   1. Quick Setup A blogger’s focus is creating compelling content for their readers. You need to craft creative topics, design beautiful images, and maybe even record a video (or two).   Your time is limited, and you shouldn’t waste it constructing a site. With website builders, you don’t have to learn how to code or hire a website designer . Website builders cater to first-time site owners and beginners. There’s no stressing about fixing  a HTML error. You could literally set up your site during a lunch break. For example, HostGator’s setup is simple and quick. You can either register a new domain or enter an existing one. Then, you can select a hosting plan and any additional services, like hack alert monitoring or site backup . Website builders also make it effortless to brand your blog. You can add a favicon—a branded icon—in the address bar and browser tab for your visitors to see. It’s a clever way to give your blog a more professional look. If you sign up with HostGator, you’ll also receive 24/7/365 support. The friendly support team will answer your questions and help you resolve any issues. A quick setup means more time doing what you love. Website builders for blogs decrease the technical difficulty.   2 Affordability Whether you’re a seasoned or novice blogger, you don’t need to bruise your bank account to create a website. Your goal is to find an affordable option that will help you communicate with your audience. A few decades ago, developing a website required a tech guru. You would book an appointment with an agency, go to the business’s downtown offices, and talk with their experts about the look and feel of your desired site. This complicated process meant expensive rates. The professionals even charged you for making monthly updates. Bloggers depleted a lot resources to exist on the World Wide Web. With website builders, you’re in control. Now, it doesn’t make sense to squander your time and money with an overpriced specialist. It’s worth it to utilize a website builder . “Be realistic with what’s essential for your website…A DIY website builder will more than suffice. A majority of individuals and businesses looking to build a website will fall into this category…Rest assured, building your website is affordable and doesn’t have to break the bank,” writes Entrepreneur contributor Ana R. Alvarado . When comparing website builders, go beyond primary features. Figure out if the hosting provider offers multiple email accounts, a one-click application installation, or a money-back guarantee.   3. Pre-Designed Templates Visuals are a key component when developing your website. You want an eye-catching design that sparks visitors’ interests. Then, you can lure them in with your original content. The cost of hiring a website designer can get pricey, ranging anywhere from $300 to $5,000. It can take several weeks to produce a custom design that fits your business’s needs. The whole process also can leave you overwhelmed. Pre-designed templates remove that anxiety. You don’t have to constantly contact someone to make simple changes. You can modify the color scheme, font choice, and images when you see fit. Check out the pre-designed template below. HostGator provides a selection of more than 100   mobile-friendly website themes , plus an image library. The drag and drop functionality makes it trouble-free for non-coders. With pre-built sections and pages, you have an array of customization options so you can fully customize and categorize your site. There are no limits on how to develop a site suitable for your audience. Test out your design to ensure it’s delivering the right message. You can run a beta test asking a few consumers for their opinions via a short survey. Then, you can use that input to make improvements. Website builders help you skip the drama when it comes to design. Pre-designed templates offer bloggers the convenience to choose what’s best for them.   4. SEO Tools Getting your website up and running is only the beginning. The next step is to draw attention to your blog and persuade users to actually visit. Search engine optimization (SEO) is one method of earning more visitors. By raising your organic search traffic, you can convert the occasional visitor into a frequent blog reader. HostGator’s SEO tools can provide you with easy-to-follow insights and analytics that help improve your search rankings, boost your website traffic, and monitor local competition. “The best way to start is to build a website that is SEO-friendly. Website-building software that caters to this will help your site rankings to be boosted through allowing you to add and edit title tags, meta tags, and meta descriptions, at a bare minimum,” states Inc. contributor Bubba Page . SEO is more than stuffing keywords into a blog post. It involves doing research to find relevant keywords, optimizing your images, and linking to authoritative sources. Also, consider the permalink structure —how visitors locate your blog and its internal blog posts. After your blog setup, be sure to do experiments and measure the results. SEO isn’t a one-time tactic; it’s an ongoing strategy that needs fine-tuning. Focusing on SEO is essential for growing your readership.   5. Ecommerce Shopping Cart Some bloggers don’t set out to make money with their words. And that’s fine. It starts as a hobby and surprisingly leads to a full-time business. Statista reports that an estimated 1.66 billion users worldwide purchased goods online in 2017. eCommerce opens doors for small businesses to market their products to a global audience. If you’re expanding into eCommerce, one of the first steps is to decide what you will sell to your readers. As a food blogger , you might sell your latest cookbook. A lifestyle blogger may sell unique jewelry. It’s really up to your imagination and the purchasing desires of your shoppers. HostGator makes it painless to manage your store. With a convenient dashboard, you can view recent orders and total monthly sales. Before launching your eCommerce store, you’ll also want to think about how you will ship your products, payment options for customers, and your refund policy. These factors play a critical role in how you run your business.   Starting can be a fun adventure, but if you ever feel exhausted, find ecommerce communities online.  Your local library may be a powerful resource, too. When you’re ready, you can turn your blog into a business. Use the eCommerce shopping cart add-on to monitor your incoming sales.   Blogging with a Website Builder Creating a site shouldn’t be a worry for bloggers. Website builders exist to make the process of publishing content easier. Look for a website builder for blogs that offers quick setup. You want pre-designed templates, so you don’t have to spend money on hiring a web designer. The e-commerce shopping cart also lets you expand your blogging into a business. Start your blog today. Choose HostGator as your website builder. Find the post on the HostGator Blog Continue reading →

Posted in HostGator, Hosting, VodaHost | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on 5 Benefits of Using a Website Builder for Blogs