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Free Tools Are Awesome Except When It Comes To Hosting Your Website

By on September 19, 2014

You still haven’t put your own website together yet? Do you want to be seen as a professional? You may never get that first sale without having and owning your own website with your own url for people to visit.

Why? Because if your followers have to go to a website that isn’t yoursitename.com, then they will automatically think that you aren’t professional and are just around to share a fun story.

To be fair, I’m not saying that free blogging sites and social media sites are bad or evil and that you should stay away at all costs. In fact, using social media is a great way to HELP promote your website, art, and sailing tips. Social media sites and pages are great for connecting with fans, and all internet marketers and online based businesses should have some sort of social media marketing plan. But if you’re serious about getting some loyal followers, you’d better have your own website.

Ownership:

  • You don’t own anything on any of your social media sites and pages.
  • You don’t choose the ads that are shown on your social media pages.
  • How is that url listed? Probably something like…facebook.com/yourboatname or twitter.com/yourboatname or yourboatname.blogspot.com or yourboatname.wordpress.com
  • What if you pay for a premium or business WordPress.com plan that includes a custom site address? What if you’ve paid for a plan with a company that doesn’t have any of their own branding, but that company gets bought out, they cease to exist, and/or their site gets taken down? Where does all of the information and hard work that you put into your site go?
  • You own your own site when you register your own web address/url and get your own hosting.
  • Everything that you publish, post, or save on your own website can be easily backed up, stored, and is your own to use if your hosting company ever ceases to exist.

Professionalism:

“If you’re not selling tickets and t-shirts, you don’t even matter.” – Marcus Grant, Artist Manager, The Collective

This quote was actually during a discussion about how a band can get a record deal and how to get a manager. However, it goes to show that people are looking for professionals. One way to show at least a small amount of professionalism is to have your own website.

  • Are you a mechanic that wants to help maintain engines? If your website is your Facebook page or hosted somewhere that makes you have a url like www.xyz.com/yourname, I bet that you’ve lost more business than you can fathom about 5 seconds after telling a possible client where they can find information about you online.
  • Are you an expert at repairing sails? Have you been telling fellow cruisers to find you online at your Facebook or Google Pluse page? While this method may work, I just think it’s a little more professional to send them to your own website where you are sharing all of your information, blog, pictures, videos, and even have Payment Options set up.
  • Why? Because if you aren’t selling tickets and t-shirts…OR sail repairs and engine parts and you don’t even have your own website, then you don’t even matter.
  • Having your own website displays professionalism, and commitment. In all actuality, you may lack both of these characteristics. Fake it. More people will visit a website that is yourname.com. It’s easier to get to and less to type. You’ll get more sales, and you’ll get more followers. In the sailing community, the news that you are the best sail or engine repair specialist on the island will actually spread very rapidly via word of mouth. But these days, the captain that needs work done will either be on his/her laptop when he’s told about your services, or they will whip out their smart phone. The best way to find you is by you having your own website, and in a matter of seconds the captain can get confirmation that you’re great at what you do, AND your a professional.

Freedom:

  • So, you don’t want to show ads to your followers, clients, or family that is following you’re adventures? You don’t have to.
  • You have a great story about a SCUBA diving adventure that you want to share? Share it.
  • You want a way to write than just 120 characters? Write that story.
  • Publish what you want. Post what you want. Show what you want.

A Home Base of Operations. A One Stop Shop:

Immediately upon visiting your website, your friends, followers, and potential customers should be able to quickly and easily navigate to find exactly what they’re looking for. They should also be able to find exactly what you want them to find!

  • Are you a sailing musician and you want to host your media from your own website? – Do you want to put some of your music on Facebook for fans to listen to? You can’t just upload a song, but you can share a link to your music. What does that mean? That means that you have to upload and host your music somewhere first, and then share that link to that hosted music. Sure you can use services like soundcloud. What would be better? A link to the music hosted on your own website!
  • You can sell things from your website. – Do you want to sell your albums, your jewelry, your services, or any other merchandise? You need to set up a way to process payments. You can’t do this from your social media sites. You CAN do this from your own website!
  • You can share anything and everything that you want from your own website – Do you want to share photos, videos, your latest business news, your latest blog posts, your podcast, your music, and be able to market, promote, and sell it all from one spot? You can only do all of that with your own website!
  • You can direct your fans to all of your social media pages from the homepage of your website – Sure, different people have different preference about the social media platform that they use. Invest your time in a couple social media platforms that are relevant to your fan base, and let them choose how they connect with you right from the homepage of YOUR OWN WEBSITE!!!!!
  • You only have to tell your friends, fellow sailors, cruisers, captains, customers, and/or family members one place to go to check out everything that you have to share about you and your cruising business, and that should be your own website with a url  like…insertyourbandnamehere.com.

Now, is it time for you to start building YOUR website? Head on over to Bluehost, and follow along with our video about how to build your website. It’ll only take about 10 to 15 minutes to get started!

Already have your own website? Leave a comment and share a link to your homepage! We’d love to hear about your adventures!

TeddyJ

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About Teddy

I am a 37 year old that just wants to find a way to make a remote income, gather some Sail Loot and cruise the world! I have been sailing for a couple of years now, but mostly on 10 day trips as vacationing crew. I just recently took sailing to the next level by completing my Basic Keelboat, Basic Cruising, and Bareboat Cruising Certifications! I am also Vice President of a Medical Consulting Company, have a Mechanical Engineering degree from Georgia Tech, and have taken several Coding, Computing, and Online Business courses. It's time to share what I have learned!

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