Web Estate…. you know, real estate on the web! 🙂
When you are looking to buy a house, there are several things that you consider and usually where it is located will make the difference. I just had a training – sales and marketing with a social media spin with a group of Realtors the other day and made this point to them, since the price of a house has so much to do with … location, location, location! But today, I want to talk to you about your website location, your web estate.
Your website’s location
With so many different website platforms out there and so many different companies (multi-level network marketing) that provide template sites, this was such a great topic to discuss. Like I just mentioned, where you buy your house makes the difference well so does where you place your website!
WordPress.com v WordPress.org
WordPress is one of the larger blogging and website platforms and it provides two options. One is fully-hosted (by them) so your website will have their name as part of the URL and the other, WordPress.org, you have your own domain and your own hosting. Think about it, who owns the website on each of these options? Why wouldn’t you want to own your domain/URL, your hosting and thus own 100% of your own website?
Template Cookie Cutter Sites
Okay, don’t get me wrong but MLM’s and Network Marketing businesses are great. It gives many folks the opportunity to have their own business without all of the overhead, not to mention many other benefits. However, they provide you with the website that looks like everyone else in that company with the option to add your photo, contact information, maybe your own social media, some extra content about you and then maybe some options of generic content. So, what’s the big deal then?
When you house your website on someone else's real estate - they get your power! Get your own website! Click To TweetHaving your own real estate is essential
It is imperative to have your own web estate, your own website for many reasons and if the above wasn’t enough, here are a few other reasons:
- Control – You control 100% of your website, which is actually the bottom line, but I’ll go ahead and add some more commentary, but most of it all leads back to this point.
- Blogging – You can have your own blog and blogging is a great opportunity to share your knowledge not only about the products or services but have the industry as a whole.
- Don’t forget, having quality content on your site gives your site ranking authority and higher potential to be seen on search engines, which in turn enables you to be seen by potential consumers
- Don’t forget, having quality content on your site gives your site ranking authority and higher potential to be seen on search engines, which in turn enables you to be seen by potential consumers
- Stand out – It truly sets you apart. The template sites are all the same. Everyone has the same one with some options or has the ability to choose from a few templates. How is your consumer to differentiate you from another independent representative?
- On that note, if you are planning on running this business full force and will be with it until you retire, why wouldn’t you want to invest in yourself?
- Not to mention, to me, it seems as if you are potentially more serious that the next person.
- Branding – when you create your social media – the idea is to have them all mesh together with the same look and appeal so you create a similar look.
- Would you be able to find your favorite soda, food, candy bar if they completely changed the wrapping at each location you went to? What???!!! NO!
- Could you imagine that every week when you go to the grocery store that they rearranged it right before you came in each week? GASP.
- Remember, your website is to be user friendly and you don’t want them to have to work to find you or to be sure they found the right person. If it is branded across all channels and marketing, then they will recognize you when they find you.
- Content – I know I mentioned blogs but wouldn’t you rather explain the products in your own words and your own voice? Maybe add a video on how to use the product with your personal success stories, testimonials or tips? This provides so much more value to the consumer and surely sets you apart.
- Resource Power House – Now that you have everything housed on your website, your products or services, your blog, your email marketing sign up, your tools and resources, your social media and etc, it becomes your customers one stop shop. You would direct them to your website for any of their needs that you can help them with. Solid!
- YOUR Customers – consider for a second if you were ever to leave that company, that MLM or real estate agency and your hub (your website) was one of those template sites? You are basically losing all of your power and influence. When your consumers go to find you, they find someone else’s website – the MLM or real estate agency that you had no control over.
- When you have your own website, you can change you business and even change your domain name or add a redirect, your direction or focus and simply add products or remove them… the possibilities are limitless.
Bottom line….
A website is your power house which you control, don’t give it away. Own your own! Click To TweetSo remind me… why is it that you don’t have your own website? If you are ready to move forward and need a little help, please contact me as I can assist with your website, search engine optimization, blogging or social media and be your one stop shop as your business marketing consultant.
~Kristen
great post! I’m a firm believer that you should own your web estate and be 100% in control of it.
Thanks so much Gisele, I am with you! 😉
I have 2 websites, my own WP site and an affiliate site. The reason I decided to get the affiliate site is to make ordering easier for the customer and also because the people who run the affiliate site (who are not connected to YL) make sure everything is FDA-compliant, which is something I simply don’t have time to do. Pick your battles, I say.
Well Carol, I do agree with having the template site for ordering but you can explain it all on your website and then when ready to buy, they get diverted there! Great point!
Before I started my current business, I owned a franchise and had one of those websites you are talking about. I hated that we all looked the same and none of my own personality was on the site. I do understand though that they are trying to “brand”. Regardless, very glad to be on my own and have a WordPress site!!! Now I just need to learn how the heck to manage it! LOL
Great point Lisa, they all look the same. If you need help with the WP management, let me know.
I despair when I hear people getting a ‘cookie cutter’ website. Love your tweetables.
Yes, I hear you Denyse and thanks on my click to tweet, got to make it easy to share, right!?
Many people who are involved with relationship marketing companies do indeed have their own websites, where they craft and design the site to represent them. Like Carol mentioned, the ease of ordering is very key and there are always ways to link from an original site to the master site. Having spent so much time and energy on designing my current site, the trials and glitches were definitely worth it. And designing your brand so it looks consistent everywhere, is an absolute. Both online and off. I guess for some people, Kristen, the ease of getting a cookie-cutter website they can get up in a weekend, is more important than looking original and defining themselves to stand out. The word I keep hearing is that WordPress is just a stepping stone to actually having an HTML site, which really puts you in the big leagues as far as having full control of your site. I moved from an HTML site and migrated the WordPress blog that was attached to it, so that I could somewhat manage my entire site without a full time web person. It was a great decision, although an HTML definitely has its own appeal.
I totally agree with the ordering on the template, as it can’t really be done from your own… but it links there and you have the ability to see the product in YOUR words. I would disagree with you on the HTML.. more and more sites are converting from HTML to WP and similar sites.
I know a lot of bloggers, especially in the beginning, who feel like they don’t want to pay for self-hosting but I don’t get it. It is well worth the few dollars a month to own your site and never worry that your content could one day disappear.
I don’t get it either Beth! Crazy huh?
Great post. Exactly that’s why I have an issue with popular templates that become hype like OptimizePress was a year or two ago, now it’s LeadPages…. It’s not that I have anything against these brands, they do provide a value for business owners creating beautiful landing pages in minutes, but for me, despite some customization, they all look the same. I so much started to dislike them that after I while I didn’t even opt in when an opt-in page designed with one of these came up. For me that person is looking for an easy solution, without taking a minimum time to at least customize their template…
Lead Pages can be great, I however haven’t gotten on the bandwagon, why can’t we have it on our site, or our page?
Great post. We must always remember that people buy us first and then our stuff second. We must therefore find a way to stand out from the crowd. MLM is no different. You’ve got it made easy if you’re involved with an MLM because a lot of the work is done for you. It is however, a mistake if you allow yourself to blend in the background with all the other reps. Be bold, stand out and have a professional image.
That’s an excellent point Clive… the relationship comes first.. so our own site gives us the opportunity to sell ourselves first.
Thanks, as always very good advice…and I just got my own ‘house’…:-)…still under development though, hopefully soon it will all be done.
So proud of you Katarina for having your own house, once it is done I am sure you will be ecstatic and yet relieved! lol
Having your own website is key. It’s good to have your own touch and control of what is on your site too. Standing out fr,m others is so important with all the competition out there
Yes, thanks Mike!
I agree and I actually just launched my own website for the reason of branding myself. You are so right, no one wants a tract house so we really don’t want to opt for a cookie-cutter website. Your blog post is great affirmation for me as I’m new to the online world but I think I’m on the right track. Thank you!
Great correlation Vanessa, the tract homes! thanks and yes, you are on the right path, not tract! LOL
Lov’en your “web estate” phrase. I may have to borrow it!
I’ve got all the pain you’re talking about. My website was a custom-made site but the blog was wp.com.
So, now I can’t do a single thing without finding web designer for help…and the blog is limiting.
I need to strike the whole thing down, now, and invest in an entirely new home base.
That might take a while, though.
Thanks Sharon.. you may borrow it… just attribute! LOL Yep, that’s the catch, it’s not user friendly if you can’t manage it yourself. Starting over is tough… wonder if you can just move your static stuff over to the blog site?
Love this post. Really great information. Best of luck to you!
Thanks LeAnn, you as well!
“Web estate” is exactly what having your own website means. Thanks for sharing this valuable information Kristen.
Exactly Cassandra and thank you!
A question I am frequently asked is why do I have my own website and not be on Etsy? Hah- Answer is so simple & you covered it all- cookie cutter look alikes. No way to individualize & they own you. We love the look of our site even though currently exploring some changes.
Love your tweet this & of course your blog. Have a great mini vacay.
Nothing wrong with being on those other… but even better is to drive that traffic over to your website too… huge win for you. Thanks and I did have a great vaca! 😉
As obvious as it is that one should own their webestate, I still see small business owners venture into the rent-a-web platform to save money. The headache sometimes to transfer the information to wordpress and the cost associated makes saving the money at the beginning not such a good idea. I am 100% with you that one should own their web-estate.
I hear you but is it really a savings in the long run… not having it and dealing with that headache, like you mentioned? Thanks!
I love the analogy to buying a house and that location is an influence it is so true. I have currently signed up with an MLM company and I’m currently looking to set this up on my current site partly because in the Uk I don’t have access to the generic one and partly because I want to have the control and the ability to build the relationship through my blog.
All the effort you put into growing your business you want to have the security of knowing that someone can’t come and take it away.
Excellent Julie and thanks so much. Good luck on the new site, let me know if you do need help.
I’ve had business people come to me after getting “free” or hosted websites elsewhere, moaning and complaining how they can’t update, that they have no control, that the host’s name is in the URL, blah blah blah. You’re absolutely correct: Get your own domain name. Get your own website, professionally built, and then hire someone fabulous — like Kristen Wilson — to get you going on SEO, keywords and the rest of it. (P.S. You can pay me the 20 bucks at your leisure; I trust you. 😉 xxoo
Check is in the mail Jack! LOL Thanks so much and you got it.. spot on sista!
And here I was, thinking that this secret was between you and me, Cupcake! Gasp! Now everyone will be buying web estate! I may have peeps in front of my Windows ( I know, bad pun there). Thank you again for reiterating what you told me the first time we “chatted” about my site. You are awesome! 🙂
It is a secret.. nobody else here but us cupcakes! LOL You are welcome sprinkley cupcake!