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Make your own website / have it made: (free > professional)

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Websites

Written by Niek van Son MSc on January 22, 2025

Niek van Son

Last updated January 27, 2025

Introduction

Most people looking for a product or service start their search online. Therefore, it is very important that your company is easily findable on the Internet. Your website is not only your business card, but also a potential sales channel. And you can make it as extensive as you want. In this blog post, we explain how to make a website yourself and what to look out for when you have a website made.

Why a website?

In this day and age, you need a website as a business. Your potential customers will often first search online for more information about a company, product or service. If they do not find your website, they are more likely to visit a competitor and become a customer there. A customer may also feel unreliable if there is no website for your company. Moreover, a company website is also very practical for you, because here you can quickly announce the latest news, such as opening hours during holidays, the latest collection or the best promotions.

What are the goals of a Web site?

A Web site is one of a company's most important marketing channels. It is your own environment on the Internet and this is the place to tell the world who you are, what you offer and what you stand for. A website has several purposes and functions, such as:

  • Your website as an online business card and source of information. Even if your business is already doing well, thanks to word-of-mouth advertising, for example, it is important to have a good website. You can refer interested parties to it so they can view your portfolio and offerings. Also, clients who hear about you through word of mouth are likely to look for you online first. It does not come across well if you are not findable online.
  • Your website as a sales channel. When you link a web shop to your website, you have an effective sales channel.
  • Your website as a lead to new customers. If your website is easy to find online, potential customers are more likely to come to you when they search for a particular product or service. If your site has good information, a strong message and clear contact options, the chances of a new customer will grow.
  • Your website as a tool to strengthen your brand. Make sure your website reflects exactly what you want to portray as a company. This way, your website contributes to a strong brand identity.

What do you need to start a website?

To create a Web site, you need four things:

  • Hosting (the server your website runs on).
  • A domain name, usually your company name. So for us, that's brandio.co.uk.
  • A tool to build a website with: CMS(Content Management System and is the program in which you build, manage and edit your website)
  • Website security (SSL), which is usually included with your hosting.

Create your own free website

Is your budget limited or are you handy yourself? Then you could build your own website. Below are some free content management systems you can use to get started yourself.

  • WordPress.com. If you don't have a budget, you can create a website for free with the WordPress.com tool. Through WordPress, you can register a domain name for free on a WordPress subdomain, choose a free template and create your own simple website using that template. A great first option if you want to suffice with basic information, such as a neat homepage, a page with your offerings and a contact page. The disadvantage is that the options for creating a website are quite limited and you need a domain name ending in WordPress.com. Also, like it or not, ads will be displayed on your website.
  • WordPress.org. Want to take a more professional approach and create a website with more features? Then a site through WordPress.org is a better choice. The difference between WordPress.com and WordPress.org is that with WordPress.org, you are in control of everything. You download WordPress.org and you can then install it on your own registered domain name, with your own hosting party. You can then install all the plug-ins you want, choose from an endless amount of paid and free templates. The advantages of this are that you can build a website to your own specifications. Because WordPress is the most popular CMS in the world, there are also lots of plug-ins (read functionality) available. You can also use WordPress to create a webshop for free via the plug-in WooCommerce.Moreover, you can completely customize your site to your own taste, so that it is in line with your corporate identity. WordPress is free software, but plug-ins and themes (templates) can cost money. Although WordPress is relatively user-friendly, it does have a learning curve. If you are not very handy, it is best to get professional help and have your business website created. This is definitely recommended if you want to have your site built from scratch, i.e., without using a set template. Once the site is up, you can easily make your own changes and add new content through WordPress. WordPress is maintenance-sensitive and must be updated regularly. It can be useful to hire a web developer for that.
  • Wix. Wix is a user-friendly website maker that has been on the rise in recent years. You can quickly build your own website and put it live. Wix includes hosting and if you run your website on a wix.com subdomain then this CMS is free. If you opt for a completely private domain name, then Wix does come with fees that you pay in the form of a subscription. However, Wix also comes with drawbacks. The options within Wix are quite limited and not flexible. So you can create a website within the capabilities of Wix and they are more limited than, say, WordPress. If you want to add a certain, specific feature to your website, chances are that this is not possible within Wix. With Wix you can also build a webshop, but this functionality is not available in the cheapest subscriptions.
  • Jimdo. Jimdo is a German CMS that allows you to easily build a Web site with a wizard without programming knowledge. For example, you can specify what type of business you have and provide your business address. Jimdo can use images from your Facebook or Instagram account for images. So you can create a first version of your website within minutes. However, Jimdo is also quite limited and not flexible. Also, this CMS is not very SEO-friendly. So if you want to attract visitors through Google's organic results, Jimdo is not suitable. If you are looking for a customized solution, then it is also better to choose another solution. You can run a small website on Jimdo for free, just like with Wix. You can also start a web shop with Jimdo, but not in the free version. You can find Jimdo's prices here.
  • JouwWeb is a Dutch CMS that allows you to create a free website. The free version of JouwWeb, which does not include all functionality, can be used for as long as you wish. JouwWeb also provides a wizard that allows you to quickly set up a website without any technical knowledge. Should you have any questions, it is convenient that the support is in Dutch. However, please note that JouwWeb also offers limited flexibility and functionality. Neither does JouwWeb offer an app store for adding specific functionality to your website. You can however start a webshop with JouwWeb, but this is only possible with a paid Pro subscription. See JouwWeb pricing here.

If you want to create a simple website quickly, Wix, Jimdo and JouwWeb will probably suffice for you. However, if you want to create a website completely to your liking or add custom functionality, then the WordPress.org recommend. Also keep in mind that the subscription prices of Wix, Jimdo and JouwWeb increase if you have a larger website with many pages. Therefore, for a large website, WordPress may be cheaper than the other content management systems.

Can I create my own website?

Through some of the above content management systems, you can create your own website without technical knowledge. However, make no mistake about the time that goes into it. It can be a frustrating process. How do you make sure everything looks and works the way you envision? You probably also lack the expertise on structure, navigation and ease of use. As every business owner knows: time is money. This can be a reason to outsource creating your website. In addition, there are more reasons to have business website created by a professional website builder.

Why have a business website created?

Creating a business website yourself is one thing, but getting it to perform optimally is quite another. If you really want to get it right, have a website created by a professional. These are the advantages of having a website made:

  • The right techniques are used to be findable and visible online. This will help you outsmart your competitors and expand your customer base. A professional will make sure your website is SEO-friendly.
  • Much attention is paid to user-friendly design (UX). This ensures the fewest possible hurdles and obstacles between a customer and a purchase. You do not want a customer to drop out of frustration because your website is not clear enough or contact you frequently because they cannot find what they are looking for.
  • To keep up, your business website should continuously measure and report results so that optimizations can be made and you can stay on top of trends. This is included as standard these days when companies have their business website created.
  • Even with a business website, the first impression has to be good. When you create your own website, you can choose from a number of standard designs and fonts. When you decide to have your business website made, you can choose the most creative design, an eye-catching font and a corporate identity that fits your company and message. Plus, a unique website sets you apart!
  • Customization is possible. Doing a major or minor modification to a standard website or plug-in is probably quite a puzzle for you that takes a lot of time, if at all. For a professional, it's daily work, allowing you to quickly implement all your ideas.
  • There are so many privacy rules, cookies and security regulations you must comply with that you may not see the forest for the trees. A professional will make sure security and privacy are taken care of.
  • An outside company will also ensure proper backup, regular updates and website speed.

Maybe the price of having a website made stops you, but remember that time is money and you will probably spend ten times as much time doing it yourself. Also, you will make more money from your website if you have it created by a good website builder. As a result, the net price of having a website built is not that bad!

How much does it cost to have a website created?

There are many factors involved in the cost of having a Web site created, including design, development, hosting, maintenance and other services. The cost of building a Web site can range from a few hundred dollars to thousands of dollars and more, depending on your needs. Hosting provider TransIP writes the following about the cost of having a website created:

  • Simple standard website: € 500 to € 1500
  • Custom professional website: € 1500 to € 5000
  • Full customized website: €5,000 to €50,000
  • Standard webshop: € 3500 to € 7500
  • Extensive webshop: € 7500 to € 75,000

What it costs to have a website built: The cost items

So there is no one-size-fits-all answer to the question of how much it costs to have a website made. To help you understand what the cost of creating a website consists of, we list the cost items.

Hosting

Hosting is a major factor in the cost of building a Web site. Hosting costs can range from a few dollars a month for simple shared hosting to hundreds of dollars for dedicated hosting. Depending on your needs, you may also need to purchase additional services, such as a domain name, e-mail hosting and SSL certificates.

Website design

When it comes to Web site design, there are several factors that can affect cost. These include the complexity of the site, the number of pages, the type of content and the level of customization required.

  • A basic website with a few pages, some basic content and a basic design can cost as little as a few hundred euros.
  • However, if you need something more complex, such as an e-commerce site, custom design or development, the cost can increase dramatically.

Website development

When it comes to development, costs can vary based on the complexity of the site, the technology used and the amount of work required.

  • A simple website with a few pages and some basic content can cost a few hundred euros.
  • A more complex site with custom coding, interactive features and other advanced functions can cost thousands of dollars or more.

Website maintenance

The cost of maintaining a website can also add up over time. This includes:

  • Updating content.
  • Fixing broken-links.
  • Making sure the site is secure.

Depending on the complexity of the site, the cost of ongoing maintenance can range from a few dollars per month to thousands of dollars per year.

Get Started: Roadmap for creating a website

With the information in this article, we provide the following roadmap for creating your website.

  1. Determine the purpose of your website: what do you want to achieve with it? Is some basic information enough or do you want to turn it into a real sales channel?
  2. Choose your hosting and register your domain name.
  3. Decide whether you will do it yourself or outsource the entire process. In the latter case, look for a good designer and copywriter to work with. If you're going to do it yourself, choose a user-friendly CMS to create your website with.
  4. Is your website ready? Then let your clients and other contacts know about it. This way, you will attract visitors to your site and you can once again highlight your services.
  5. Keep your site alive. A static site offers no reasons for visitors to come back. Therefore, start a blog with news items, tips or columns, organize promotions or regularly update your portfolio. You can do anything with a website.
  6. Do you want your site to get really big reach? Then you can also start advertising in Google or through social media channels like Facebook and Instagram. With a website, the sky is the limit.

Still unsure which e-commerce platform is best for your shop? Then also read our article comparing the platforms WooCommerce and Shopify.

Niek van Son
THE AUTHOR

Niek van Son MSc

Marketing Management (MSc, University of Tilburg). 10+ years of experience as an online marketing consultant (SEO - SEA). Occasionally writes articles for Frankwatching, Marketingfacts and B2bmarketeers.nl.

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