|
Building
& Hosting a Website
We
all know the advantages of advertising. If you want
people to know you have something to offer, then you
must let them know. We are familiar with ads on TV, on
billboards, in newspapers and magazines. But one of
the more modern ways of getting yourself known is by
using a website.
A
website is a small piece of the Internet which you own
and run. Your website can contain any type of
information, subject of course to government
regulations. You can display your last month’s
fishing trip photos, the house or car you have for
sale, the poems you write, or the fan club you always
wanted to start. The list is endless. Businesses and
organizations can use a website to display their
products, their services, how to find their office,
current promotions, or their latest industry news.
More and more businesses are even using their websites
as virtual shops, providing website visitors the
opportunity to buy their products online. The
different possibilities of a website are endless,
limited really only by your imagination.
To
own a website, you first need to select a computer
business who provides website hosting. A website
hosting business has access to the fast Internet
backbone not normally available to the public. For a
monthly fee, the hosting business provides you with
Internet space in which to build your website. Monthly
fees and hosting features vary widely, so it does pay
to shop around.
The
second thing you will need to do is select and
register a domain name. A domain name is an
easy-to-remember Internet address, which uniquely
identifies you and your site out of the many millions
available.
To
register your domain you need to contact a domain name
registrar, such as Namescout (www.namescout.com.au) or
PlanetDomain (www.planetdomain.com). These are
businesses that are government certified to sell and
manage domain names.
When
selecting your domain name, make sure it reflects the
purpose of your website. For personal websites, it
might incorporate your name, for example, ‘katiesplace’
or ‘toddsdayout’. For businesses or organizations,
the domain name should be as close to your trading
name as possible. Once you have picked a suitable
name, you will need to search the available domain
names database, accessible from your registrar’s
website, to check that your proposed name is not
already taken. If it is available, you can then
register your name. You must pay a small yearly fee to
own your particular domain name.
In
our next column we will look at building your website,
and getting it up and running. If you have any
questions, or would like help in any aspect of owning
or creating a website, we are happy to help you. You
can contact us on 0419 790 071 during business hours,
or you can email us at info@mcsyarraman.com.au
anytime. We are happy to assist you.
|
