Nowadays, there hardly is a business without a website. If something is not online, it just doesn’t exist in our consumer society.
However, startups often find it challenging to put aside some cash for a shining website. And as your small business grows, its website should provide enough growth potential.
This post highlights ingenious tips and strategies one can use to build a big business website without breaking the bank.
Everything Starts with a Domain Name
Your business’s domain name is its online signature, so this is an expense you can’t go without. If your website is on another business’s domain, potential customers may become suspicious and flee.
Here are some cheap domain name providers.
- BlueHost (starting from $9.80/year)
- Namecheap (starting from $11.70/year)
- HostGator (prices start at $14/year)
- 1and1 ($15.90 for the first year)
- GoDaddy (starting from $16/year)
Find a Cheap Hosting Provider
Once your business has got a professionally-looking domain name, it’s time to think of some affordable website hosting options. No website can do without a reliable host.
Shared Hosting
If your business has the potential to grow big, the shared hosting option isn’t for you. Despite being the cheapest, it places your business on a server with many other companies. Naturally, some will get more resources from the server than others.
VPS Hosting
This hosting option lets your business use a virtual private server, which is securer and more reliable than any shared hosting plan. Here are the cheapest VPS providers we could find:
1. Hostinger.
For just under $4 per month, you’ll get 20 GB of storage, 1 TB Bandwidth, and 1 GB of memory.
2. Vultr.
Its cheapest plan costs just $2.50 per month. However, the resources are also twice smaller: 10 GB of storage, 512 GB bandwidth, and 512 GB of memory.
3. A2 Hosting.
In terms of value for money, this is the best deal. For only a dollar above Hostinger’s cheapest plan, you get 150 GB of storage, a staggering 2 TB bandwidth, and 1 GB of memory.
Dedicated Hosting.
The most expensive hosting solution is to rent a physical server for your business website only. Here are the most reasonable offers:
- Bluehost – $80/month
- GoDaddy – $96/month
- InMotion – $106/month
Let’s Get Down to Building
After choosing a domain name and a hosting provider, it’s time to get down to building your website. Here are the cheapest solutions.
Drag-and-Drop Builder.
You can quickly build a fully-functional website using a drag-and-drop builder. The cheapest offer here comes from Wix:
- Custom Domain
- 1GB bandwidth
- 500MB storage
- Price: $4.50 a month.
GoDaddy is the second cheapest deal. For just under $10/month, you get a basic website builder and unlimited storage and bandwidth.
Take Advantage of Free Themes.
Themes are an essential element of your business website’s design. They catch the visitor’s eye when they first open your webpage, and retain their attention while browsing through the different sections.
There are dedicated theme-building tools like Elementor Pro, but they aren’t cheap. Luckily, all website builders have libraries with free themes and templates.
Wix, Weebly, and Zoho have plenty of themes, while GoDaddy offers a more limited choice. Paid website themes cost between $40 and $250.
The Importance of Plug-ins.
Plug-ins allow multiple website customizations, depending on your business’s specific needs. They are critical to every WordPress website (Yoast SEO, ConstantContact), but there are also free plug-ins for music makers, for example, like Arcade and OTT.
The best thing about plug-ins is that they are contract-free, so you can add new ones or remove unused ones at any time.
Design Elements Help Your Brand Stand Out.
Not everyone can afford a professional website designer. Fortunately, free tools like Creative Market let users create fantastic website designs without spending a dime. The bundle includes free graphics drawings and illustrations.
What About Photos.
No business website is complete without some eye-catching photos to grab visitors’ attention. Pixabay is an excellent source of free pics, although the best ones can be downloaded for a small fee.
If you already have some photos at hand, you can use the free versions of Canva and PicMonkey to edit them as per your website’s overall design.
