Making your own Web site

Small business owner? Save money and learn new skills by making your own Web site.

Hiring a professional Web developer to create your Web site can potentially be very costly. Professional Web design isn’t something that every small business owner can easily afford. If your business can’t put together enough money to hire a professional Web developer, not all is lost. You can still enjoy the perks of a great business Web site if you take the time to create one yourself.

Sure, designing and coding a unique Web site isn’t quick or easy, but if you are willing to learn some of the basics, you can still create a decent looking Web site at a fairly cheap cost. The trick is to use a content management system (CMS) and install a professionally designed template. Both of these suggestions will save you a lot of time and frustration.

Content management systems are great because they don’t require you to be overly familiar with coding languages like HTML, CSS, or PHP. A basic knowledge of the three can help you to tweak your CMS to better meet your business’ needs, but is by no means required. Popular CMSs that can be downloaded and installed free of charge include Joomla, Drupal, Mambo, and WordPress.

To make your Web site more unique and give it that little bit of extra flare, the easiest option is to install a pre-made template over your current CMS. Many free templates are available online, but even the paid templates are available at reasonably low prices. Spending $50 to $100 on a template is much cheaper than the costs of hiring a professional Web developer. Just be sure that the template you choose is compatible with your CMS, because certain templates will only work with certain CMSs.

Alternatively, you can turn to one of many great do-it-yourself Web design providers out there that offer everything you'll ever need for a great Web presence in comprehensive, convenient, bundled packages at decent prices - custom domain name, hosting, template options, easy-to-use CMS, e-mail, online store, etc. Some providers that come to mind are Webs, Squarespace, GoDaddy, and Wix. If you're looking for more of a blog format for your Web site, I recommend Blogger, which is a Google product. This blog, Mr. Robertson's Corner, uses Blogger. Everything is free, except for the custom domain name, which I pay just $12 per year for.     

If you are a small business owner who hasn’t been able to afford a professionally built Web site, it’s time to consider creating your own. With so many online resources available to beginner Web masters, it’s not nearly as hard as it used to be to create a Web site.