Every small business has one and if they don’t then they are looking for one. What is it? A website. The sad truth is, the smaller the business, the smaller the budget and that creates more need for the business owner to be a jack-of–all-trades including website designer, webmaster, copywriter and more. This post is to help identify some of the beginning tasks that your webhosting provider can do for you to help you get started on your way to a successful internet presence. It will also outline some next steps for you to take to make your online business successful.

Let’s begin with what will my webhosting provider do for me?

1) Your webhosting provider will help you register your domain name. No need to go to another site and in fact, it is easier to allow your webhosting provider to do so. That way you will avoid unnecessary transfer time.
2) Your webhosting provider will offer various hosting packages. A beginner package will most likely have a free website design template or starter package that gets you online in a day or perhaps even a matter of hours.
3) Your webhosting provider will provide technical advice. This includes learning about FTP, DNS, and other acronyms that are commonly used when publishing online.
4) Your webhosting provider provides the server where your website resides and serves as an intermediary between your business and the “cloud.”
5) Your webhosting provider will facilitate your email accounts with your personal domain name.

Let’s move on to what do I need to know to get started?

1) Choose your domain name before you sit down to register it. Give this serous thought; your domain name becomes your online sign. Choose something that resonates with the customers that you want to attract and is self explanatory to all others.
2) Decide what you hope to do with your website. Some websites sell, others provide directions or information. This is an important part of your business plan.
3) Research keywords associated with your business. Practice writing what your business is about in 100 words or less using those keywords.
4) Prepare the content of your basic pages. Know what your home page and about us page will say. Most starter websites have five pages: Home; About Us; Products; Services; and Contact Us. Some will have only three pages. All will allow you to expand, at a price.
5) Be ready and open to learn. Website design is simple and if you spend a lot of time online, it is almost second nature.

Let’s end with what comes next?

Content and Search Engine Optimization: What you say on your website and how you say it is important. Your webhosting provider will help you get started with your initial directory listings. Google and Yahoo and other search engines will be made aware that you are there, but it is up to you to write dynamic content that is search engine friendly.