Branding Your Business Online
Several weeks ago I had the pleasure of speaking on the topic, “How to showcase your brand online” for The Rising Tide Society – Tuesday’s Together Sharpsburg. While this topic was daunting, I knew that it would be so beneficial to break down all the “basics” a brand should have down pat when it comes to branding your business and online marketing. If you’re going to showcase your brand, you’re definitely going to want to have a nice website, aka the online storefront for your business.
Here are my top 5 essentials when it comes to your website:
1. DOMAIN
2. HOST
3. THEME
4. BRANDING
5. STRATEGY
Let’s talk about number one! While there are many domains you could probably think of, you want to keep things clear and concise. The easier it is for someone to remember, the better. The longer the domain, the easier it is to mis-spell or forget! My favorite domain registrar is GoDaddy. They are super affordable, (Most domains run around $12, and they’re actually running a $0.99 sale right now!) have great security features, and fabulous tech support.
Next up we have hosting. Now I want you to really think this one through, because this guy determines the look and feel your website. I have been a designer for almost 9 years now, and I have tried out just about every host you can imagine. Through all of my trials with various hosts I have narrowed down my favorites to a top 2!
My first pick is hands-down Showit 5. This platform has all of the user-friendliness of a drag and drop builder combined with advanced SEO capability, highly customizable (yet simple) design features and the best support. Why do I always take note of a great support team, because if things go sideways (let’s be real, it happens) you want to be confident in your provider and I can confidently say Showit 5 is top-notch. Most importantly, they have helped me through countless sticky situations quickly and kindly! I also love Showit because of their 14 day free trial. Wanna dig in and see if it’s the right fit, you can do so totally risk free! Need I say more?
My second pick is Squarespace. This platform has amazing e-commerce functionality, the ease of a drag and drop builder, simple styling panels, fantastic email marketing and SEO integrations and they’re also super affordable. Small business owners, I got your back 😉 Each of these platforms will run you anywhere between $20-$40 a month depending on the tier you desire / need! Not so bad, huh?
Next up, we gotta talk about copywriting. Any good website should have killer copy. It’s totally the jelly to the peanut butter sandwich. It’ll add the flavor, the sweetness, the color, the mmmm and the ahhh! Some of my favorite free resources for copywriting worksheets that make it simple to get all the jumbled thoughts out of your head and into presentable paragraphs are from Jenna Kutcher and Ashlyn Writes.
And of course, being a branding expert, we have to talk about implementing your branding into your website. Heck, implement that bad-boy everywhere! Consistency is key. From branded fonts, to your color scheme, textures, patterns and sub marks, make sure you are using all of the amazing facets you have created to showcase your personality! New to the branding world? Click here to check out our post on finding the right colors for your brand.
I can’t wait to see your business bloom!
Sarah Alisabeth
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