Are Free Websites a Good Idea?

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Maybe it's the economy, but I am seeing more and more beginners attempting to use "free" sites for their Internet marketing business. Although one of the things I like about Internet marketing is its low start-up costs, there still are some areas that require some investment.

If you are new and thinking about (or already are) using free sites, I have a blog post here which might help you decide if it's a good idea or not.

Build a Website For Free?
#main internet marketing discussion forum #free #good #idea #websites
  • You really should've done some research before writing that. You can find free hosts that don't require you to put any ads on your site, allow all the scripting a newbie or intermediate webmaster could possibly need and don't prevent you from making money with them. Don't assume geocities or freewebhosts are the only type of free sites you can get.
    • [2] replies
    • Honestly, I have tried those free sites you speak of. From my experience, they are not good to host your core site with. I tried several in the past and they did not have superior up time or good tech support when needed. I'd rather pay 3 or 4 dollars a month (for shared hosting) with an established and reputable host for my main sites.
      • [2] replies
    • Until those hosts disappear in the middle of the night, or worse: change affiliate links, steal costumer information, insert invisible spam into your domain and other little schemes I've saw them doing. Hey, they have to recover their money.

      Stick with well known blog service providers or get real hosting. Not worth the trouble to save a couple bucks a month.

      Tyrus
      • [1] reply
  • To me, doing business online is still doing business, and one of the cheapest and best ways to establish your business' online presence is to get your own domain and hosting account. Relying on free sites makes a number of online endeavors difficult or impossible.
    • [1] reply
    • I love the "free sites" - I use them every single day and they are a BIG part of my SEO plan. They are the reason that for a lot of keywords, we own almost the whole first page of Google and in some cases MSN because of them.

      I don't use them because I can't afford to use a "real site" I use them because they work and work well for funneling traffic.
      • [1] reply
  • Free sites definitely have their place in our world. However I can certainly see every point made in Steve's post. The fact is they are extremely limiting, and selling from these sites is harder than from your own domain. Not to mention you are at the mercy of the companies TOS and sometimes strange policy corrections. Plus some people just don't like trusting/buying from a site that has the domain name "blogspot" or "wordpress".

    Using them as feeders is not only fine, but anyone that doesn't utilize them for that purpose is wasting free SEO and traffic help. I'll tell you this however, once a free site becomes too popular I will always move it to my own domain.

    Sure they have their place, but having your core site on a free platform? I would shake my head and pray to the internet Gods for the man trusting that much hard work on another company.
  • It depends on the money making model you use. If you're selling products and building a list then having your own domain is important. If you're building niche advertising/affiliate sites, using Blogger and other free blogs/sites works just fine.
    • [1] reply
    • Sure, the free sites are fine for such things. I use them myself like that...such as Squiddo, HubPages, etc. But for my core sites and important sales pages, I wouldn't use a free host.

      And we haven't even talked about add-on domains for your lower level sites. Heck, even add-on domains are far better than messing with the free hosts out there.

      With an add-on hosting account you can host unlimited domains for $7 or $8 dollars a month...and you'll still have real hosting support and quality up time. Maybe I'm out of touch, but even those who are on hard times can afford to begin their business with that small investment. If they can't, I don't see how they can even pay their ISP for Internet access. In the long run, having a real host it's just a much better way to go.
  • Banned
    I have used blogger blogs and free wordpress blogs for a LONG time, I like hosting domains on wordpress but I like the simplicity of blogger. The truth is that it does not matter about using free or hosted domains, good content makes all the difference.
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    Are Free Websites a Good Idea?

    Maybe it's the economy, but I am seeing more and more beginners attempting to use "free" sites for their Internet marketing business. Although one of the things I like about Internet marketing is its low start-up costs, there still are some areas that require some investment. If you are new and thinking about (or already are) using free sites, I have a blog post here which might help you decide if it's a good idea or not.