Building Your Dream Website: Overcoming Tech Overwhelm

In this episode, Malinda tackles a daunting topic for many entrepreneurs and digital course creators: building your dream website. She starts by explaining the critical role a website plays as a business's home base, immune to the changing landscapes of social media platforms. 

Key Takeaways:

• Building a website is crucial for a stable online presence. Unlike social media, a website is a permanent digital real estate that secures your business from future disruptions.
• You don't need advanced technical skills to create a website. Platforms like WordPress, Squarespace, and Wix offer user-friendly tools suitable for beginners.
• Start with the basics and prioritize functionality over aesthetics. Focus initially on a clean homepage, an about page, and contact details to build a strong foundation.
• Overthinking and striving for perfection can hinder progress. It's important to avoid obsessing over minor design details and instead aim for getting the website live.
• Invest in a professional plan for better control and branding. Free options are limited; a paid plan allows more customization aligned with your business needs.

Episode Resources:

• Malinda's Easy Website Planner

Unlock the secrets to creating an impactful digital presence by tuning into this episode of "Get Over Your Shit." "Remember, the first version of your website doesn't have to be perfect, it just has to exist."

Additional Links & Resources:

• Stop letting content keep you stuck—jumpstart your website planning with clarity and confidence! Get your content organized in just a few hours: https://malindawatt.com/planner
• Try Siteground, my favorite website hosting company: Siteground.com
• Learn more about me and my work at malindawatt.com

Thank you for tuning in to this episode of Get Over Your Sh!t! If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to follow the podcast and leave a rating or review. Share this with someone who needs a push to start taking action—because we’re all about moving forward together!

Hosted by Malinda Watt
Edited by Chris @ Wider View Studios
Music License purchased from stockmusic.com

Transcript

0:00:00 - (Malinda Watt): Hello and welcome to Get over your Shit, the podcast dedicated to helping digital.

0:00:05 - (Malinda Watt): Course creators, entrepreneurs and small business owners stop overthinking and start executing. I'm Malinda Watt, your host and fellow overthinker, here to guide you through the maze of self doubt and procrastination that keeps us from reaching our full potential.

0:00:23 - (Malinda Watt): Today, we're diving into a topic that makes a lot of people cringe. Building your dream website. Whether you're starting a blog, launching a business, or showcasing your work, the thought of building a website can feel downright overwhelming. The tech, the tools, the design decisions. It's enough to make anyone want to throw in the towel. But here's the truth. Creating your dream website doesn't have to be a nightmare.

0:00:50 - (Malinda Watt): You don't need to be a tech wizard or spend thousands of dollars to make it happen. It's in this episode we're breaking it all down step by step to help you overcome the overwhelm and take control of your online presence. Let's get into it. So why do websites matter? Why do you even need a website? In today's digital world, the website is your home base. It's where people go to learn about you, your business or your work.

0:01:18 - (Malinda Watt): Social media is great, but it's not enough. Algorithms change, platforms fade, but your website is yours. I'll give you a quick example. I once worked with a small business owner, let's call her Sarah, who was terrified of building her own website. She thought it was too complicated, too expensive, and not something that she could handle herself. For years she relied solely on Instagram to promote her business.

0:01:43 - (Malinda Watt): Then one day, her account was hacked. She lost everything. All her followers, all her content. Gone overnight. If Sarah had a website, she would have had a safety net. A place to collect emails, showcase her work and build connections with her audience that wasn't dependent on social media. That's the power of a website. It's not just a pretty page on the Internet. It's your security blanket, your storefront, your platform to shine.

0:02:13 - (Malinda Watt): Now let's address the elephant in the room, the tech. This is where most people get stuck. The questions start to pile up. What platform should I use? Do I need to code? How much is this going to cost? And here's the good news. You don't need a computer science degree or a massive budget to build a great website. There are so many beginner friendly tools out there to help you get started. Platforms like Squarespace, Wix and WordPress are designed for non techies.

0:02:42 - (Malinda Watt): They have drag and drop editors, pre designed templates and step by step guides to walk you through the process. And yes, my preferred platform is WordPress. When you self host on your own hosting account, you have so much control over the growth and potential of your website, regardless of where you take your business, whether a membership or courses are in your future. Starting with the foundation of WordPress means you're not going to have to build from the ground up when you decide to switch platforms.

0:03:14 - (Malinda Watt): No matter which platform you choose, the key is to start simple. You don't need every bell and whistle on Day one. Focus on the basics. A clean homepage, an about page, and a way for people to contact you. Bonus Getting an email list set up. You want to install a form on your website that will capture someone's email address if they choose to add themselves to your email list. So let's talk about what trips people up when building a website, one of the biggest mistakes is trying to make it perfect from the start. You might spend hours obsessing over fonts, colors and layouts, but here's the thing, your website will evolve over time.

0:03:55 - (Malinda Watt): Done is better than perfect. Another pitfall? Overcomplicating it. Some people try to cram every feature into their site popups, animations, fancy widgets. But that often leads to confusion and slow loading times. Keep it simple. A clean, easy to navigate website will always win over a cluttered one. Finally, don't skip the backend basics. That means setting up your domain, securing your site with an SSL certificate generally included on all hosting packages at this point, and optimizing it for mobile.

0:04:32 - (Malinda Watt): Most website builders have tools to help you with these, so don't be afraid to explore their tutorials or support pages. If you're feeling paralyzed by tech overwhelm, here are a few tips to get you unstuck. 1. Start with a plan. Before you even touch a website builder, map out what you need. This is the piece that I find clients always struggle with and I've been building websites for 20 years. People always get hung up on the words to put on the pages.

0:05:01 - (Malinda Watt): Write down the pages that you want, the content that you'll include, and the features that you need. If you need some help, you can go to Malindawatt.com planner and you can get my Easy Website Planner that will walk you through this process.

0:05:17 - (Malinda Watt): Okay?

0:05:17 - (Malinda Watt): Number two Set a timer. Give yourself small, focused chunks of time to work on your site. One hour today to set up your homepage. Another hour tomorrow to create your about page. Breaking it into smaller tasks make it more manageable. 3. Ask for help if you're really struggling, consider hiring a freelancer or using a platform like Fiverr or Upwork. You can find incredibly affordable help for one off tasks without breaking the bank.

0:05:48 - (Malinda Watt): 4. Don't overthink it. Remember, your first version doesn't have to be perfect, it just has to exist. And five don't underestimate the power of just a single page. A single website page might be all that you actually need to get up right now so that you can check build website off your list and move forward in your other marketing strategies. Now I know you've got questions, so let's tackle a few common ones.

0:06:17 - (Malinda Watt): Do I really need to pay for a website or can I use a free option? Free options are fine for testing the waters, but they often come with limitations, ads, lack of customization, and no professional domain name. If you're serious about your website, invest in a paid plan. It is worth it. I recommend purchasing a domain name and purchasing your website hosting and then building out at the minimum a single one page website.

0:06:46 - (Malinda Watt): And make sure that you integrate an option to be able to collect people's email addresses that you are sending there. What if I'm not good at design? No problem. Most website builders have beautiful ready to use templates. Pick one you like, swap out the text and the images and you're good to go. Really, don't overthink this. If you look at a template and you know that you have three images that you can use to fill in the spaces where those three images appear and then you add your text, that's all you need to do. You don't need to over complicate the process by deciding that you want the picture on the left versus the right, deciding you want a list over here instead of over here.

0:07:26 - (Malinda Watt): You really can just keep it simple. Use the template as your guide. Write the content to suit the template so that you're not trying to reinvent the wheel. How much time does it take to build a website? Honestly, it depends on the complexity of your site, but for the basic setup you can have something live in just a weekend. Something you'll want to keep in mind is that the domain name? When you point it to the hosting account that you've purchased, it can take 24 to 48 hours for that to resolve properly.

0:07:57 - (Malinda Watt): It's not an instant thing, so give yourself a little bit of leeway in making sure that your domain is pointed to your hosting account and give yourself at least a couple of days before it's then time to sit down and work on your website. And there you have it. Building your dream website doesn't have to be overwhelming. With the right tools, a clear plan, and a little patience, you can create a site that reflects your vision and helps you achieve your goals.

0:08:23 - (Malinda Watt): Thank you for tuning in to this episode of get over your Shit.

0:08:26 - (Malinda Watt): If you found this helpful, be sure to subscribe, share this episode with a fellow overthinker and leave a review. Your feedback helps the podcast grow and reach more people who need to hear this message. Until next time, remember, progress over perfection. You've got this.