[djkenny]

Hey guys,

I am in the process of starting a t shirt company like everyone else. I am wondering how you guys feel about the importance of having a domain name verse having a .webs.com name? Is it worth it to buy a domain right from the start or is that something I should do once the company becomes more successful?

Also, and more importantly, I started to design a basic site through webs.com but I do not really like the structured template style. I think the site looks very cheap and not professional.

Do y'all recommend any other places to go through that will help me more customize my site and store? I have looked at wordpress and godaddy but haven't gotten to talk to anyone who personally have used them and I would like to avoid as many mistakes as possible.

And if you can't tell I am not highly skilled in web page design so I would need a site that was user friendly.

Thank you so much for any help, I hope my questions are somewhat clear!

 

[Fenrir]

Buy the domain and sit on it, even if you go with the webs.com at first because you can't afford to hire someone to build the website from scratch (there are very few "template" sites that look remotely professional to me). You don't actually have to have a website there, just own the name, and it's a lot less expensive these days. If you do take off, then someone will snap it up and try to re-sell it to you for 4-8 figures, depending.

 

[Mtnview]

If the domain name you want is available buy it through godaddy and do like Fenrir said, sit on it. Especially if there will be some time before you get the site up and running. I am not familiar with .webs.com so I can't tell you how hard or easy it is to transfer the dns settings to a new hosting service when the time comes. I use godaddy for all my domain registrations.

 

[MarStephenson761]

It really depends on if you're going into business full swing, or just dabbling on the side. Domains are not expensive, so I'd make that leap either way. A good website it another story, though. I really like the turnkey solution from deco networks - specifically designed for the T-Shirt business.

If you want to start smaller than that, you should look into a Wordpress theme and their shopping cart options - pretty easy and good looking.

 

[djkenny]

Thank you all! I think I will go ahead and get the domain name!

Has anyone used the economy package on Godaddy? Its $9.99 a month and allows up to 20 products in your store. If anyone has used it, does it give that cheap template feel?

Thanks again for all your help!

 

[printingray]

Thank you all! I think I will go ahead and get the domain name!

Has anyone used the economy package on Godaddy? Its $9.99 a month and allows up to 20 products in your store. If anyone has used it, does it give that cheap template feel?

Thanks again for all your help!

A great suggestion for you! First you need to get the idea which type of site you want, how its looks? which colors you want ? which design you want ? what is the basic structure of it? now you have question in your mind how to get idea ? Simple go to Google and search out some best t-shirt printing sites which have great sale ratio than make you mind. After getting idea about design hire a web site development company and gives you idea to them also tell them about your requirement like, you want paypal integration, back-end panel for content changing and for products adding. By this you'll represent you self a professional in this competitive market. Good luck.

 

[DarktideTees]

Just pick up the domain name, they can be as inexpensive as 4 dollars a year depending on where you go.

 

[pinelee]

Take a look at homestead.com It is quick and easy (even for someone with little to no experience creating a website) and they have tons of options and add ons for a customized site. You can even set up your store to use paypal. You will also get personalized e-mail accounts with your site (for example: sales[USER=58396]@you[/USER]rbusinessname.com or info[USER=58396]@you[/USER]rbusinessname.com) On their home page there are some examples of some of the sites made with them, and you can try it free for 30 days. You can set up your site so it re-directs from your chosen domain you may have already bought.

I have used .webs.com also and I find they are very limited in what you can do in comparison.

We have been with homestead.com for a few years now and are very pleased.

 

[madbadger]

I made a site a while back using prestashop... its free, fairly easy to use and the result looks professional. Worth checking out.