Thread: How to start a website to showcase and sell my work?

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In order to take the next step towards my dream job i need to set up a website. I have seen some of the websites that some of the mebers on here have and i gotta say... they are pretty awesome. I want to start up a website that i can use as a shop and also as a gallery for my work. Unfortunately i don't have a wide range of props to offer but what i do have to offer i feel is pretty good and can give some of the big boys a run for their money. Are there certain sites that offer advice on how to start up your own website? Did you pay to have your site set up? Does it take long to set a website up?

Thank you to any and all of you for your help.

Nick
1031 Props

!). If you are starting out you need to show a professional front. Don't look like a hick and people will respect your abilities without question. Look like you are in question and people will either try to take advantage of you or not give you any real consideration. If you have the talent and drive give the DO-IT-YOURSELF versions out there a try. If you are at all hesitant, get pro help, before prospective customers get the wrong idea about you I have used this guy (Alex@unstoppablestudios.net) for several things. He is already very knowledgeable about the Halloween industry. He is really helpful and professional. No I do not have a halloween website - YET! However, I do know his work. You won't be sorry!
2). If your offerings are a little slim, try partnering with other manufacturers and reselling their products on your site. It gives the impression you are bigger than you are. Be careful though. These extra products are a reflection on your name. Offer junk and that is the name you will have across the internet.
This is not groundbreaking info . I hope it is not too cheesey and helps a little.

thanks a lot

First you need to pick a website domain name, see if its available and then register it. Then you need to decide if you're going to be hosting the site (running the site off one of your computers) or having your site hosted else where. Then you have to decide if you want to create it or have someone else do it. Then you have to work at getting you site out to all the search engines, like google, yahoo, etc. If you're paying for some place to host your site or paid someone to create it, most likely they will help get your site out to the search engines. All comes down to how much you're willing to spend......

I went cheap as I'm not trying to sell anything/make money (just show off some stuff).... I use one of no-ip.com's free domain names and redirect it to my house and run my website off one of my computers. It works, doesn't cost me anything (other than running the computer 24x7 and the cable bill, but I'm paying for that already with or without the website).

I use this free site: http://members.webs.com/index.jsp
Just sign up and get started, you can make any mistake and simply correct it. Feel free to play around with it. Get creative. If you want after you have it up and running for a while you can spend the bucks on a domain name. You'll need a paypal account to sell stuff though.
Any questions PM me, you can view mine by clicking on the banner in my signature.
Good luck

webs is pretty good, though can run slow sometimes, but they do have a built in store feature. I have a webs one, but am currently designing and building my own from scratch. You get complete control when you do it that way. There are a lot of free software plugins out there that can help you.

www.morumencemetery.webs.com
www.morumencemetery.com

I use 1and1.com. They actually have a shop feature which you can add to your site. You can use this to sell your produts.

Don't know how to get a website set up but I do know some that sell thru etsy.

I use moonfruit.com. I like the "no ads" philosophy, and you can completely customize any page. has a shop feature too. Look at some of my examples (both are under construction)

ridgewoodmanor.moonfruit.com (click on "Tour" to see how you can use flash with moonfruit)
nightrideproductions.moonfruit.com

Anyway, I recommend you start with a free website until you get comfortable with developing and designing, and go from there.

If you decide to have your site hosted, I would have to suggest that you do NOT use a free hosting site. Many of them will post advertisement crap all over you site. (Not very professional if you're trying to sell something.)

If you have no experience building a website and do not know what it takes to host, purchase hosting, or just plain don't know anything, please get help. Professional help, if you want to get anywhere.