Website resources for small businesses
This is a constant work in progress, so check back often, or add me to twitter @sbwd to get notified when it’s updated. If you see something missing, shoot me an email at amy(at)amywilliamsdesign(dot)com
Client specific information
CMS/Ecommerce Clients
- Basic Website Administration
- Basic Mals-e Information
- Your Website Pages
- Product Categories
- Working with Products
- Viewing your Orders
- Managing Order and Packing Slips
- SEO part 1
- SEO part 2
- Backing up your site
WordPress CMS/Blog Clients
Social Networking & Getting your name out there
Remember that you don’t need to actively participate in all these. Make an account and add your information, including website address (link backs are so important for SEO, remember!), but concentrate on networking and getting to know people on just a couple of sites that fit you best.
Facebook: www.facebook.com
Facebook Pages: www.facebook.com/pages/create.php
(make sure you’re signed in and give your business it’s own page)
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com
Biznik: www.biznik.com
MySpace: www.myspace.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com
Orkut: www.orkut.com
Friend Connect: www.google.com/friendconnect
Squidoo: www.squidoo.com
Technorati: www.technorati.com
BlogCatalog: www.blogcatalog.com
MyBlogLog: www.mybloglog.com
Google: www.google.com/addurl
www.google.com/profiles
www.google.com/products
www.google.com/local/add (Google local listings)
Yahoo: Add your website to Yahoo
listings.local.yahoo.com (Yahoo local listings)
Bing/MSN: Add your website to Bing
ssl.bing.com/listings/ListingCenter.aspx (Bing local listings)
Craigslist
www.craigslist.com
Backpage (Craigslist alternative)
www.backpage.com
Blogging
I highly recommend a self hosted WordPress blog, but there are many options available.
Note that some of these are paid, most are free.
WordPress (self-hosted): www.wordpress.org
WordPress (they host): www.wordpress.com
Blogger: www.blogger.com
LiveJournal: www.livejournal.com
TypePad: www.typepad.com
Xanga: www.xanga.com
Enhance your website
WordPress Plugins: wordpress.org/extend/plugins
Just for women and mothers
Blogamama: blogamama.ning.com
BlogHer: www.blogher.com
WAHM.com: www.wahm.com
Hosting
Blue Host offers great service and all the options you’ll need for a price that cannot be beat. This website and many of my clients are hosting successfully with Blue Host.
Domain Name Registration only
If you aren’t quite ready for hosting but want to reserve your domain name, I recommend using www.GoDaddy.com. The domain name can be pointed to any host later on when you are ready.
