Producers looking to build website// Guide on how to start your own website //

A

airmillion

New member
Hey FP,

Producers know that having an online presence is important, and even more important is having your own website. Check out our guide on how to build your own website:

Starting your own website can be a daunting task at first. With so much to remember, we provide a detailed guide on how to start a website. We let you know which host to use, how to use wordpress or any platform of your choice and how much it’s going to cost you. We attempt to break down some of the myths about search engine optimization [SEO] and how to optimize your own website for increased targeted traffic. To start your website you must begin with:

Registering for a domain

One of the most important steps when building you first website is picking the right domain name. Not only is this the pathway in which people access your website, it is also used by Google to rank you website. The domain name which you choose will play a large part in the Search Engine Optimization,or SEO, of your website. When registering a domain, there are a few things which you should consider when deciding.

  • Length: Shorter domain names are not only easier to remember but generally tend to rank better within Google.
  • Keywords: It is preferable to choose a keyword which is relevant to the niche which you are in. For example, if you are selling shoes online it would be recommended to have the keyword “shoes” in the domain name.
  • Domain Extension: For SEO purposes, a .net or .com domain should be chosen as it ranks better and appears more professional. If both .net and .com of your desired domain name are taken, a hyphenated alternative would suffice either.
  • Country: If you intend to make a website specifically for the United Kingdom market then you should consider exploring the option of a .co.uk domain extension. If a website were to be started by a french person and written in french then a .fr domain extension would work best.
After deciding on the domain name you can then go to the list below to choose from the list of the world’s leading domain registrars. These include: GoDaddy, 1&1,namecheap and name.

Web-Hosting

For a website to go live, the website and its contents must be hosted on a server provided by your chosen web-hosting service. Instead of making your own HTML files and coding them yourself, it is much easier to install WordPress on web host. WordPress is a free and open-source blogging tool and content management system (CMS). WordPress.com is a website where you can create a blog for yourself, however, it is hosted by WordPress on their server. Although this maybe sound convenient at first, it is must more expensive than hosting WordPress on your own server. WordPress.org is the stand-alone version that must be installed on your own server. To make it even easier though, some hosts such as BlueHost & HostGator offer one-click automatic installation. If you encounter difficulities when installing the program or are unsure please check out this great guide from WordPress.
After deciding on the domain name you can then go to the list below to choose from the list of the world’s leading domain registrars. These include: HostGator, FatCow, BlueHost and JustHost.

WordPress Platform

The WordPress platform is one of the world’s most loved content management systems with over 60 million website using the platform. One of the main advantages of using WordPress is that it is SEO-friendly. It also allow users to choose from or purchase from a large selection of web and mobile compatible themes which can be easily customized with any knowledge of coding or programming. The customization of these themes can be done without altering important content or the structure of the site. Themes purchased from websites such as ThemeForest can be installed under the WordPress “Appearance” administration tool. Themes can also be uploaded via FTP either. Here is a list of websites which provide free WordPress themes:

Another attractive feature of WordPress is the plugin architecture which allow users of the platform to create custom functions tailored to the specific needs of the site. Below is a list of WordPress plugin’s which we recommend installing. These can be found when searching under the “Plugins” tab in WordPress Dashboard:

  • Redirection
  • All in One SEO
  • Google Analytics
  • Tweet This
  • SEO Friendly Images
  • Contact Form7
  • Akismet
  • WP Super Cache
  • WP Auto Tagger
  • Permalink Redirect
  • WP-DB Manager
Website Content

After deciding on your keyword and what your website will be about it is now time to write content. What content your website published is what makes your website interesting and unique. In order to become popular, you must create unique content as Google loves and ranks unique content well. Once you begin ranking for certain keywords, you will begin to see a spike in traffic. Try and decide how often you are going to publish blogs also. Will you blog everyday, every week or only occasionally? Creating informative pillar blog articles such as “how to sell on eBay” will need to be published less frequently than websites that over day-day events in your chosen niche.

Another interesting way to create content is to make infographics. These are graphic visualizations of information, data or knowledge which make it easier for people to break down large chucks of information. The advantage of this variety of content is that is easily spread in a viral content marketing campaign online. Advocates of this category of marketing are Neil Patel of QuickSprout and Brian Dean from BackLinko. Many times with creating a good infographic, it is about collecting the right data and designing it in a manner which is clean and easy to understand. Check out this guide on how to create a popular infographic by Neil Patel.
Monetization

Most people who build a website hope to turn a profit from the website. When we seek to monetize a website, we wish to convert the current traffic that the website receives into revenue. Over the years, different options for monetization have become available to webmasters. Among the most popular option available is Google AdSense. This is a free, simple way for website publishers of all sizes to earn money by displaying targeted Google ads on their websites. It work by installing a unique code which is given by Google AdSense to implent a banner advert or text link. When a visitor to the website clicks on the advertising banner, resulting in Google paying the website owner. How much the website owner get depends on the niche which the website is in and the keywords which it ranks for. Their are other services similar to AdSense but none are better or more reliable than the service which they provide.

Some other options for monetization include:

  • Affiliate Marketing: This is where you monetize your traffic by selling someone else’s product or service. Whenever someone click on your affiliate link and buys the product, you will receive a commission. Commission’s range from 30% to 70% depending on the niche and the price of the product or service. Examples of affiliate marketing website include: Commission Junction, Clickbank & ShareASale.
  • Selling Ad Space: Websites which generate a high volume of traffic can expect to be able to sell banner advertising space. This is the adverts which you see on the top of website and go generate thousands every month. To sell banner advertising space, check out buysellads.
Search Engine Optimization [SEO]

Many people are confused about what SEO is or why it should have to be done to a website. Put simply, SEO is the process of optimizing you website/webpage in order to rank high within the search engine and to receive a higher volume of traffic from organic search engines. SEO is important as it makes sure you website is structured in a manner which search engines understand. Although their are hundreds of search engines, the most popular include Google, Bing & Yahoo search. The majority of web traffic is driven via these three search engines and are the primary method of navigation for web users. The advantage of being optimized for search engines is that is provides targeted traffic from search queries online. For example, if a person were to type in “Used iPhone”, they would more than likely be attempting to find a website where they could buy a used iPhone. Whoever has their website ranking for this keyword will more than likely get the sale. If you find some keywords are too competitive, prehaps a long-tail keywords [e.g. Used iPhone London] may prove to be more profitable.

This is such a complex topic where the rules change almost on a daily basis. We will recommend a list of website which you should check out to help learn some more about what SEO. From link building best practices and how to avoid a Google penalty, to how to implement the best content marketing campaign possible, check out these:

We hope you found this guide useful, if you have any question feel free to contact us!
Click to expand...


Read the article here: Air // Million
 
Decent article. One thing that I always stress is to create a brand. I've seen producers literally start all over again because they didn't have the insight to look ahead. For example, it's very easy to register a domain called hiphopbeats.com or whatever but what happens if you expand your style of producing and get into other genres like EDM? hiphopbeats.com is no longer fully relevant.

Think universal when you pick a domain name because let me tell you its a pain in the *ss having to rebrand yourself later.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top