Starting my first small business. How do I get a website and email?

Sandwich

Hi everyone. I'm currently completely overwhelmed with the process of starting my first business. I have a clear idea of the service I want to provide, but I need an email that looks professional (i.e., 'me@mybusiness.co.uk') and a website where I can take bookings. How do I go about getting both of those things? I've been Googling this stuff, but there's just too much info!

tifo

You need to register a domain name (example.co.uk etc) and buy hosting to be able to put a website on it. You can get hosting on offer from companies like ionos at £1 a month for 12 months. You can then create a website or have one made. You can create email addresses from the hosting account.

Sandwich

Wix (and similar) seem like a good option. They offer domain/email/site/payments in one package. Quite cheap too (£10/month). Any downside to a site like that? 

Potbellypig

I used Ionos last year for an idea which I wasn't 100% sure on. Domain registered for £1, e-commerce website for £1 per month for the first 12 months. In a few months it will go up to £22 per month but I haven't put enough time into it to make a go of it, so it'll cost me the total of £13 for a year and I'll cancel. Shopify is a safe option too as it's probably the most well known and arguably the friendliest to use.

tifo

Potbellypig said:

I used Ionos last year for an idea which I wasn't 100% sure on. Domain registered for £1, e-commerce website for £1 per month for the first 12 months. In a few months it will go up to £22 per month but I haven't put enough time into it to make a go of it, so it'll cost me the total of £13 for a year and I'll cancel. Shopify is a safe option too as it's probably the most well known and arguably the friendliest to use.

Ionos is a good start to get hosting at £1 + vat per month and a free domain with email addresses is included.

You can choose a hosting package or the website builder on offer.

Shopify is good for an ecommerce website. As you don't seem experienced in these matters i'd say go for something easier to use, shopify is not for beginners (and i've developed many websites, inc shopify, squarespace, weebly and mostly bespoke with own hosting or VPS).

Percy1983

You can get hosting for around £5 a month, wordpress might be a good platform, I have a few sites which fit you description built in wordpress.

pramsay13

I would say just start with a free email address such as mybusiness@gmail and then add your business to Google business, yell.com, Facebook pages etc.
If it works out and things are going well then pay someone to run your website. 

Paul_gorbo

It all depends on what you want to sell. Building a website is only half the battle. The second half, and the hardest part, is getting clients and advertising. You will have to advertise on YouTube, Google and social networks. This requires specialists. Look closely at your business. Perhaps you just need a personal account on Amazon or Ebey.