How to Best Get Started With Your Website

Over the years, I’ve helped people build and revamp websites, and here’s what I have seen working best for my clients. In this article, I’m spilling some beans on when and how you need to start your website.

Why should you take your website live early? 

The very first question in your mind would be, "Why not wait for everything to be perfect?" Here’s why it’s better to launch sooner rather than later:

Builds digital footprint early: Going live lets search engines index your site right away, helping you appear in search results faster. The sooner you launch, the sooner you’re visible and start building your online presence.

Learn and improve with real-time data: With your site live, you’ll get valuable insights on how users interact with your content. This data lets you make improvements based on real-world feedback, not just assumptions.

Get traffic on your site sooner: Even with just the essentials, you can start driving traffic to your site. Going live lets you engage with visitors and get the ball rolling from day one.

Go live when you have the basics ready. 

I know it can be tempting to spend weeks or even months trying to perfect everything before you go live, but the truth is, you’ll never be 100% ready. The sooner you go live, the sooner Google can start indexing your website, and that is the first step in getting traffic. Perfection can always come later, but visibility starts as soon as you go live. So, plan and go live once your basics are ready.

What are the basic things you’ll need to go live? 

Your website needs to have a foundation so everything can be built upon it. Here’s what you need:

Domain name: 

Your domain name is the address people will use to find your website online. It’s like your street address on the internet. The goal is to make it easy for your audience to find you and remember your site. When you are choosing it, pick something short, memorable, and relevant to your brand. 

Website hosting:

Website hosting is the basis of making an online presence. It is where all the files, images, and content of your website are stored. Without hosting, your site wouldn't be accessible to visitors. To keep your website running smoothly, it's crucial to choose a reliable hosting provider. Choose a good host that ensures your site loads quickly and remains online with minimal downtime, offering a seamless experience for your visitors.

Sitemap: 

A sitemap is a roadmap for your website, listing all the pages and content so search engines can easily crawl and index them. It helps search engines understand your website’s structure and how your content is connected. It boosts your SEO by ensuring all your content is accessible to search engines, helping improve your search rankings. Once your site is live, submitting your sitemap to Search Console ensures that search engines can efficiently discover and rank your pages.

Essential web pages:

When you are launching your website, you need to keep some website pages ready so they can provide essential information that visitors expect to find. Keep some main pages ready to build your brand’s credibility. You can always add more later, but these four pages should be the first to go live:

Homepage: This is the main entry point for your website. It should introduce visitors to your brand and give them a clear idea of what your business is about. Make sure it’s engaging, easy to navigate, and encourages visitors to explore more.

Product service page: If you’re offering a product or service, this page is crucial. It should provide clear, concise information about what you’re offering, how it solves your audience’s problems, and why they should buy or engage with you.

About us page: Visitors want to know who you are and what your brand stands for. Your about page should tell your story, highlight your values, and show why people should trust your business. It’s your chance to connect with your audience on a personal level.

Contact us page: Make it easy for visitors to reach out to you with a contact page. A contact page should include a form for inquiries, an email address, and a phone number. You can also include links to your social media profiles for more ways to connect.

When this is ready, your website can go live. 

Next part? Connect it to Search Engine Console.

Once your website is live, the next step is to connect it to your Search Engine Console. Connecting your website to the Search Engine Console ensures that your site is visible to search engines and can start driving organic traffic to your pages. This tool is essential for ensuring that search engines can find, crawl, and index your website. 

Without it, your site might not be discovered, and you’ll miss out on valuable traffic. By submitting your website’s sitemap to the Search Engine Console, you help search engines index your site efficiently and display it in search results. If there are any problems with crawling or indexing, the console alerts you, allowing you to resolve them and enhance your site’s performance.

Build Your Digital Presence on Other Platforms

Once your website is live, it’s time to extend your reach by building your digital presence. Start by creating accounts on key platforms like Google Business, Facebook, Instagram, and others. At this stage, don’t worry about pushing out active content just yet. The goal is to set up your presence. These platforms will help people find your website and give you an online identity. The real value comes once you start sharing content and engaging with your audience.

Building a website and establishing a strong online presence do not have to be complicated. Remember, this is a process that builds over time. You don’t need to have everything perfect right away. The most important thing is to take action and keep improving. By getting your website live, connecting it to the right tools, and consistently sharing valuable content, you’ll be on your way to growing a successful digital presence that attracts, engages, and converts.