That’s a good question. A website is just a collection of files – but you have to have a place to put those files before anyone can see it.

You’ll need two things besides the PLR blog to get your site up for the world to see.

  1. A domain name.
  2. A web host.

1) Domain name

A domain is a site’s “name” or “address.” It’s usually followed by .com, .net, or .org. Lots of companies can register a domain name for you. When you choose a host (discussed below) you’ll be able to register a domain name with them. Generally, it will cost between $5-$10 per year.

You can find a lot of advice about choosing a domain name for your site. I’ll just summarize it here, and you can search for more if you like.

If you are going to be telling people to visit your site, say your prospective domain name out loud. How does it sound? Is it easy to remember? What if you have to spell it? Is it easy to spell or is it sort of…clumsy?

For example, let’s say you want your site to be named: www.my-niche-blog.com. Sounds okay when you say it. But now imagine you tell someone on the phone and you have to spell it out. “Hey! visit my site at: www dot my hyphen niche hyphen blog dot com!” See? Clumsy.

Then you,ll have to deal with homonyms. If your domain is BestSeller.com you could be mistaken for a person selling underground storage (BestCellar.com) – so you’ll be spelling it. Clumsy.

Maybe you won’t ever verbally send anyone to your site. Maybe you’ll rely on the search engines, or pay-per-click ads to drive traffic. In that case, hyphens don’t matter much.

The best advice I’ve seen is:

  • Make your domain name easy to remember
  • Use relevant keywords in your name
  • Keep it short
  • Look for the .com version first, then .net and .org in that order.

2) Web hosting

A very important part of a website is the hosting company. Think of a website as a bunch of digital files, organized into folders – just like on your computer. When you use your computer to open a program, it pulls all the necessary files together to display that program for you.

A web host works in a similar way. You rent some space on the host’s hard drive. Then, you upload your website’s files to that hard drive – called a server. When someone visits your site, the server gathers the files and serves them up to the visitor’s browser. You will commonly see hosting for $3.95 to $8.95 per month.

When you choose a hosting company, don’t make the mistake of thinking cheapest is always better. It’s not. Your web host can make or break your website. There are some things to consider:

  • Does the hosting company create backups of your site? – We are dealing with a hard drive here, so crashes can happen. If there is no backup, and the server crashes, your site could simply cease to exist.
  • Is the host fast? – Slow loading times will hurt you, believe me, I’ve been there.
  • Do they have 24/7 customer service? – If there’s a problem on a Friday, will your site be down till Monday? Not good.
  • IMPORTANT: Does the host have a good plan for “Add-on domains”? – If you buy ten PLR blogs, you’ll need ten domains. Having one account that gives you access to all of your sites for billing, editing, makes life much easier and it’s much cheaper.

    An account like this may be $14 to $19 per month and can go higher. But it’s better than having ten sites at $4.95 per month!

Finally, you’ll see terms like “shared hosting,” “virtual private server,” and “dedicated server.” Nearly all beginners start with shared hosting. That means you rent some space on a server, and other people with other websites also rent space on that same server. It’s the cheapest. The downside is if one of those other websites on your shared server gets attacked, it can slow everyone else’s site down too until it’s fixed.

The VPS and dedicated servers get pretty pricey, especially if you’re just beginning. But if you actually get solid sites up and running, and earning – it would be good for you to consider to keep your income safe.

Recommendation

There are so many web hosts out there, and so many reviews – real and manufactured – I had a hard time deciding. My advice is ask someone you trust. I use InMotionHosting, and I’ve been very happy with them – especially their customer service. They also offer one free domain name when you get hosting from them. Click here to see their packages.

 

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