Website Resources

Hosting Your Website

The most important website resources include hosting providers.  When creating a website, you’ll need to host your website with a hosting company. When choosing a hosting company, look for one that offers: nightly backups, security, and awesome customer support. Websites can get tricky really fast which is why it’s important to use a company that isn’t going to waste your time or money, and continue to ask you to upgrade your service. 

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Flywheel

I recommend using Flywheel because they offer the best customer support. They usually can solve your problem in 20 minutes or less because their team specializes in WordPress.

Creating Your Website

Content Management Systems

A Content Management System (or CMS) is the place you store all your information, media, and content.  It makes it simple to create a website that can be easily updated without too much fuss.  There are many CMSs out there but just a few power the majority of the internet.  They are tried and true, and I use the below to build all my websites.

For (Almost) Everyone:

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WordPress.org

Your website is often the face of your business. Investing into a platform that is going to grow with your business is important, as well as it saving you money in the long run. Don’t try to cheap out on this because I promise you, you’ll regret it.  There is a big difference between WordPress.com and WordPress.org....  You'll want to make sure you sign up for the .org version for long-term benefits.

For the E-Commerce Business:

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Shopify

For sites that are just selling a couple products here and there, I recommend WordPress with the free WooCommerce plug-in.  However, if your business is solely e-commerce and you sell 50+ types of products, Shopify is the ideal platform to keep up with your business.  I highly recommend this content management system to track your product sales and shipping. 

Building Your Website

Page Builders

There are many “themes” that you can use to create your website via WordPress. Although some themes don’t provide a lot of technical support so when you are looking to download one, keep this in mind. The more documentation or videos that company provides for their themes, the better. I recommend Elementor or Divi as great website resources for building your site with no knowledge of code.

If You Like Flexibility:

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Elementor

Using the Elementor plugin with the free Hello Elementor child theme is a great way to gain complete control over the look and feel of your website. Create custom templates for any pages on your site, including the header and footer, using Elementor Pro.

If You Like Templates:

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Divi

Divi is both a theme and a plug-in by Elegant Themes that comes with many templates and lots of how-tos. Pay per year or splurge on lifetime access; this is an unlimited websites license.

The Legal Stuff

Do you have a form on your website? Have Google Analytics installed? Sell products? Do users opt in to your newsletter?  Then you need a privacy policy! If you own a website that collects any kind of information from visitors is legally required to have a privacy policy. This will help cover your business, so take the time to properly create one and put it one your website!

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Termageddon

Termageddon makes the process of creating a privacy policy quick, easy, and even a little bit fun. They also provide options for Terms of Services and Disclaimers which may be legally necessary for your type of business.

Email Marketing Resources

For the Beginner ( < 2000 contacts ):

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Mailchimp

If you are just starting to collect email addresses, and want to use a free platform, then Mailchimp is for you. You get the basics for free up to 2000 contacts, and can upgrade to the paid version when your business is ready for growth.

For the Pro:

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Active Campaign

If you are just starting to collect email addresses, and want to use a free platform, then Mailchimp is for you. You get the basics for free up to 2000 contacts, and can upgrade to the paid version when your business is ready for growth.

Don't Want to DIY?

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