Website & Blog terminology and hierarchy- need some help understanding the process...

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Andy Traub on May 9, 2009 at 3:28pm

Here's my two cents...

1. Domain provider - They sell you the name for your web site. The most popular is GoDaddy.
2. Host - They are where your web site CONTENT is parked. Your domain provider (GoDaddy) can point your name to any host...such as Moonfruit.com.
3. Builder - Hosts often have building tools for web site creation.
4. Blog - Many web site builders and hosts have blogs built into their templates. MoonFruit has crummy blogs but is incredibly easy to build a site with for instance.

Here are a few different set up options that may help clarify your possibilities:

You could...
Buy your domain at GoDaddy
Build your site and have it hosted at MoonFruit
Build your blog and have it hosted at WordPress but have your MoonFruit site linked to your Blog so when people are on your main page built with Moonfruit they simply click on your Blog button and it takes them off of your Moonfruit site and to your blog.

Or there are sites like Ning, the platform that 48days.net and my site NowYouExist.com is built on. That is MUCH simpler because I bought a domain at GoDaddy and then my HOST, web site BUILDER and BLOG are all on NING. You can get your RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feed is a way for people to subscribe to your blog when it is updated. There are all sorts of RSS feeds that are automatically created on NING. For instance, this conversation has a RSS feed that you can subscribe to. Just click on the RSS link that looks like a square with a satellite signal growing from the bottom left corner and you'll subscribe to the changes on the conversation or blog.

I hope that's helpful. If not I'll make a video explaining it and post it here and on my community as well.

Great question though...

Permalink Reply by Susanne B on May 9, 2009 at 3:55pm

Thanks, Andy. This is kind of what I thought happened, but all the different choices and combinations seem overwhelming and quickly get me confused.

If I had my WordPress blog linked to my MoonFruit site and someone clicks on it, then they're no longer really on my website, right? How do they get back? Does it get confusing to the consumer?

I googled NING- it is a social network and not a website? From what I understood that you wrote above is that you built your website there also. What's the difference between a social network and website then? The social network sounds like an optional component of a website. Now I'm confused again as to how you merge a social network with a website and in what business circumstances that would be useful/necessary?

I'm a perfectionist and it really slows me down because I want to launch my website AFTER I understand all my options and have it as user-friendly, content filled and "add-on" filled (blogs, social networks, newsletters, etc.) as it should to be successful. My fear is that I will build a website that will not grab the appropriate people immediately because I have not utilized it appropriately, then I won't get that second chance. I would really like to build my web presence so that it is as user-friendly for me to maintain as it is for the consumer to navigate. Oh- and I'd like to stay sane while simultaneously accomplishing that!

Also, people talk about spending thousands, even tens of thousands of dollars on building their website. Is it realistic to think I, personally, could build an awesome website with the help of a site like MoonFruit? Or does the real money come from hiring someone to help me navigate my way around, customize and load it appropriately?

Permalink Reply by Andy Traub on May 9, 2009 at 4:08pm

Warning...perfectionist often build web pages but they rarely maximize web pages because web pages are always a work in progress. They should never be left alone to stand as is so beware of being paralyzed by the options and by perfection...

If someone clicks on a link on your page built with Moonfruit and they go to your blog on Wordpress they are no longer on your Moonfruit site. But, they are still on a site that you built and can help them navigate back to the main pages. You can also set up your links to open in a NEW WINDOW so your main page will still be open even when they close your blog window.

NING is a website formatted as a social network. It is also a blog, chat room, video hosting site and lots of other things! Too many for me to cover in a short time. NING is a great format if you want to build a following and are going to push out new content on a consistent basis. Compare 48days.com to 48days.net and you'll notice the difference. One is a billboard with little new information on a daily basis (48days.com) and the other is constantly growing in users, depth and purpose. There are restricted pages on 48days.net (like the 212 page that can only be accessed with permission and a monthly subscription). 48days.com is completely open. They have very different purposes so they have very different looks.

My new business is built on the NING platform because I want to help a community of people to serve and connect to one another (a lot like 48days.net) around the area of technology in small businesses. If I just wanted to sell a product and not have members or discussions then I'd have a normal web page. Nothing wrong with that...it just doesn't fit my purpose enough. So, you have to know what the end goal is before you decide on your format (NING, MoonFruit etc.). LukasCoaching.com is Justin Lukasavige's web page but he also has a community on NING at www.beyondpastdue.ning.com. They serve different purposes...so what's your purpose? Who's your audience? These are questions only you can answer. My passion is connecting people and doing that in a social network format works best for me.

Hope that helps...let me know if you have other questions. Blessings - Andy - Don't know if you're in the 212 group but we talked about this VERY TOPIC on our call this week. When you become a member you get access to all of the old calls. Worth EVERY PENNY.

Permalink Reply by Susanne B on May 9, 2009 at 4:17pm

Andy,
Thanks so much. This really clarified it for me. I need a normal web page. Whew!! What a load off my shoulders!!
Also, thanks for the advice on being paralyzed by perfectionism. That's a real problem for me and I'm making great strides to work through it lately.
Also, you apparently replied while I was editing my comment above. Can you look at it again and see if you can add any more insight for me?
I am a 212 member and was actually just downloading the call when I got the notice you had replied to my question... so I've gotten side-tracked.

Permalink Reply by Eli Salem on May 9, 2009 at 9:02pm

Great stuff Andy! Clarification on what we want to do is a major part in being able to move forward. But moving forward should never be stopped. It is like walking through a dense forest trying to find your way out. You find a trail but it is so covered with leaves and most of the trees are hanging over the trail making it hard to see. But if you keep moving (even though slowly) eventually it starts to clear up as you get closer to the edge of the forest. Things become clearer as you move forward especially when you are trying to be an entrepreneur. Why? I think because we have to make most of the decisions. We don't have a boss anymore telling us what to do. We just have to DO!

To moving forward!

Eli
www.tribestrategies.com (coming soon and after a year in the making with a lot of MOVING FORWARD)

Permalink Reply by Greg Gearlds on June 2, 2009 at 2:44pm

Great discussion everyone. Thanks

But.....here is a point of clarification that I could use. I had a site with Volusion that was built around a shopping cart (this business is no longer with us, moment of silence please....ok) so I uderstand shopping cart, merchant account and all of that. Where I get lost is the technolgy around selling things like eBooks and photos. Where a user picks what they want (eBook), adds it to a cart, pays and then has the ability to download their item. Then it also holds that item in a "cart" like place where the user can download it again if needed, maybe having 3 attempts to download.

What is that called? And, is there a specific Widget or something that allows that functionality on a site?

Thanks

Permalink Reply by Steve Kennard on June 6, 2009 at 10:40pm

Here are some links to check for more info: http://computer.howstuffworks.com/web-page.htm

http://computer.howstuffworks.com/blog.htm

http://communication.howstuffworks.com/ecommerce.htm
Steve




Greg Gearlds said:

Great discussion everyone. Thanks

But.....here is a point of clarification that I could use. I had a site with Volusion that was built around a shopping cart (this business is no longer with us, moment of silence please....ok) so I uderstand shopping cart, merchant account and all of that. Where I get lost is the technolgy around selling things like eBooks and photos. Where a user picks what they want (eBook), adds it to a cart, pays and then has the ability to download their item. Then it also holds that item in a "cart" like place where the user can download it again if needed, maybe having 3 attempts to download.

What is that called? And, is there a specific Widget or something that allows that functionality on a site?

Thanks