Getting your business online
What a small business actually needs to get online, what it costs, and what you can skip.
- What you need for a business website
A checklist of what is required, recommended and optional, with what each item costs.
- LLC, EIN and domain name: what has to match
What must match your LLC exactly (the EIN), what doesn't (your domain), domain modifiers that leave the legal name alone, and the order to register.
- Is a Facebook page enough for your business?
Why a Facebook page alone puts your business at risk, and how a domain, a simple website and business email give you a base you control.
- What a small business website costs
The real monthly and yearly cost of a small business website: domain, email, builder or WordPress, optional add-ons, and DIY vs. hiring a designer.
Getting online in five minutes
Most small businesses need three things: a domain, an email address on that domain, and a website with somewhere to host it. Everything else is optional until it solves a problem you actually have.
Do it in this order
- Check that the name is available with your state and as a domain, then register the domain as soon as the checks pass, so nobody takes it while the paperwork moves. Your domain doesn't have to match your LLC name; here is what does have to match.
- Set up business email so you write from you@yourbusiness.com.
- Build the website yourself, or have it built for you.
What it costs
A .com domain, one Professional Email Light inbox and WordPress Basic hosting add up to $240.75 a year at our storefront list prices as of , before taxes and fees. The full cost guide covers builder plans, add-ons and design.
Is a Facebook page enough?
Keep the page, but don't make it your only home online. You don't own it, and Meta decides who sees your posts. Use it to point customers to your own domain, website and email. Read why.
Getting online questions
What is the minimum my business needs to get online?
A domain and an email address on that domain. Add a website when you are ready; the domain works on its own until then.
Does my domain have to match my LLC name?
No. Your EIN must use your LLC's exact legal name, but your domain can be shorter or different, for example by adding what you do or where you work.
Should I register the domain before I form my LLC?
Register it as soon as you have checked that the name is available, so nobody takes it while the paperwork moves. You can form the LLC and get the EIN after that.
Do I have to build the website myself?
No. You can build it with a website builder or WordPress, or we can build it for you for a fixed price you see in a written quote before work starts.
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