Musician Website from the Ground Up « MusicianWages.com Forums

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Latest reply from Joe Stone

(16 posts) (10 people)

Musician Website from the Ground Up

Posted 1 month ago by tcuffari

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tcuffari said 1 month ago

Happy New Year Everyone,

Of all the things that are on my long list of chores to get done for my career I have finally put creating my own personal website at the top of it. It being January 2, 2012 I feel like a dinosaur not having one.
I realize that I have a fairly successful rate of landing work when at a live audition when I'm referred to a director or company but my stuff isn't ready for "cold calls".

Here are my concerns with getting a website up and running. I'm confident that my colleagues here have all the answers I seek.

1. Best place to register for a domain name
2. I'm not only looking for a good price on web hosting, but also need an easy to use program/template for someone who doesn't speak html and is using an iMac with Lion OS. Is there a hosting company that is better at music websites than others? I would prefer to give my business to a musician who also has this kind of business on the side.
3. I'm grateful for all advice given.
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David J. Hahn said 1 month ago

Hi Tom -

I like godaddy.com, and that's what we use. It's cheap and easy.

Once you register, call the support line and ask them to install Wordpress for you in the top level directory. They'll understand that.

Then get into the world of Wordpress, which is a free, open source platform for websites. Yahoo, the NYTimes and all the websites I run (including this one) use Wordpress.

You'll need to find a "them" for your Wordpress installation. That'll be what your site looks like. Google "Wordpress themes for musicians" and you might find some stuff. My advice is to buy a premium theme for less than $50 and use that. They are generally much better.

The other alternative, if this seems overwhelming, is to go to Elance.com or odesk.com and hire a freelancer (probably from outside the US) sefer all this for you. My guess is that it would cost maybe $300 and be done in a week.

And yet another option, as you mentioned, would be to ask a web designer/musician to do it. Any takers?

Join my songwriting newsletter at Songwriter.fm
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law said 1 month ago

I would strongly recommend against GoDaddy, personally. Not only do they strike me as a tarted-up webslum of a registrar and/or hosting provider (the amount of upsell you get pitched is *staggering* in its volume and regularity, cancellation or migration away from their service is purposely designed to range from 'overly difficult' to 'nigh impossible', etc), but there's been significant criticism of their business practices lately, so far culminating in GoDaddy's support of the SOPA legislation (aka, 'The Great Firewall of America'). Hundreds of thousands of people have tried migrating away from GoDaddy just because of that, and GoDaddy seems to be resorting to every dirty trick in the book to keep customers on their service and make the migration more difficult.

I personally have been using http://www.gandi.net for all my domains for years now. They're relatively cheap, they have a hosting component that supports Wordpress (although my personal choice for hosting is either http://www.powweb.com or http://www.fatcow.com), and they make the whole process as simple and pain-free as possible.
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Joe Stone said 1 month ago

Yeah, of all the hosting and domain registrars I've encountered over my years as a web developer and since, I can't stand GoDaddy. What a confusing mess! When you go to renew your registration, they stick a page up there that makes it look like you have to buy something else. They muddle in selling you more stuff with doing what you came to do at the site every time. I have one client still on there and I'm trying to finish moving them off but they are dragging their feet.

I use http://namecheap.com for domain name registrations. They also do hosting but I cannot vouch for that as I've never used it. Check their forums and see what their users are saying.

Since you're a Mac user, I highly recommend Freeway by Softpress http://softpress.com. What David suggested above is useful if you want a dynamic site that you need to update, have a blog, post articles, etc. OTOH, many of us just want to put up a web site and change it once in a while. Something like Freeway is great for that. You can download a free trial from their web site. If the Express version is all you need, you can buy that version from the Mac App Store. It comes with some really nice templates, too (psst - even though I've been a web developer, I've used them myself!). Also, the Softpress web site has recommendations for hosting that's friendly to Freeway and Mac users who are building web sites.

Unless you want to give your money to me, that is. I do hosting, too. I started out with getting a package since I had several of my own sites and I host a few others as well.
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RobertJ said 1 month ago

Another alternative going off of David's is to use wordpress.com. Go ahead over to the site and create a FREE website. Play around with it and se if you like it, like what it has to offer as far as looks/themes, features, etc. The hosting is free (you'll get a domain name like law.wordpress.com) and if you like it, you can upgrade within the site for something cheap like 25 bucks a year for your own domain name. You don't have to deal with a hosting company, domain register, and buying a theme--it's all together and pretty cheap.
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Studio Nine Productions said 1 month ago

I've also been using namecheap.com lately. Its costs $10.00 a year to register a domain. For websites I've been using free templates and uploading the pages to the web space included with my internet service. I use namecheap's free URL forwarding to redirect to that. So basically I get a year of website for ten bucks! Here is an example:

http://www.twoguysinacorner.com

Michael

http://www.guidetopricingmusic.com
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keyz88 said 1 month ago

Hi tcuffari,

1. Best place to register for a domain name? There are so many. The two that I mainly utilize are http://www.1and1.com and www. http://www.domains.lycos.com. I have/lease well over 100+ domain names, so I've had a little experience.

BOTTOM LINE for question #1: Expect to pay about $12.00 (US) a year... and initially no more than $20.00 (US) the first year with additional domain add-on features, and set up fees. I recommend you'll also need the following features: "Domain Masking" and "Domain Privacy" – standard on some packages.

2. You're not only looking for a good price on web hosting, but also need an easy to use program/template for someone who doesn't speak HTML and is using an iMac with Lion OS?

I use many hosting websites, but would recommend http://www.tripod.com to build and “host" your website. It has a “user friendly” online web building tool (Zeeblio). Using Mac, Windows, Linux, Android? Doesn't matter since Zeeblio is browser based. Use their sample templates (then add your text, your pictures and your media) to create your website in no time. No programs or programming experience need! Leaves more time for playing your music, n'est pas?

Before I get a lot of haters that think this is a plug or shameless advertisement... the MAIN reason why I recommend Tripod for this situation is because you can play around and "build your website for FREE" (no credit card required), then later upgrade (credit card required) to one of their monthly packages when you're ready. Please note that your free website will be functional and usable, but will contain third-party advertisements until you upgrade. As a novice with no time to spare or someone without any HTML programming experience, it's a win-win situation to try it, risk free.

BOTTOM LINE for question #2: For your situation, any basic web hosting will typically cost you about $4.95 per month. Find one with an “online” site-building feature. I've used tripod.com for over 10 years with no problems.

In closing, be sure to pick a descriptive yet simple domain name. Such an (obvious) example is http://www.RobertJohnsonPiano.com . Easy to remember and the name describes what it's about. You can also use more than one domain name to point to the same host. Note how http://www.musicmercenary.com and http://www.musicalmercenary.com also point to the the site listed in the preceding sentence.

Do a “Google” search for local solo artists in your area to see how their websites are set up. Hope that info helps. I'm sure other MusiciansWages.com forum members have weblinks to their sites you can visit. Good luck in your endeavors, tcuffari!
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tcuffari said 1 month ago

Thanks for all these options! My head is swimming.
I have registered my domain name and am looking at all the options now for hosting / web design packages. I'll let you know when it is up for some suggestions and constructive criticism.
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funkyguitar said 1 month ago

Check out Host Gator - they've got excellent customer service, fast turnaround time if/when you call in an issue. They also have a good drag and drop site builder. Definitely worth looking into.

I actually use Tripod/Zeeblio for my site, but have generally had issues with customer service there taking too long to resolve issues. If you'd like to see what it looks like check out http://www.lancevallis.com. I like their design tool quite a bit.
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alanbrown said 1 month ago

Myself I use Bluehost.com and have never ever had a problem. The system is first class, very professional, you have control over everything and their customer service is exceptional. My hosting plan allows me to host limitless names and I have as much server space and bandwidth as I want - not that I need much! Also you get Simple Scripts which allows you to add things like Wordpress, Jumbla, Noah's Classifieds etc., yourself with no need to contact customer support. I cannot recommend them too highly.
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David J. Hahn said 1 month ago

Hey Tom, just checking in. Any news on the website?

Join my songwriting newsletter at Songwriter.fm
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tcuffari said 1 month ago

Hi Everyone,

I purchased tomcuffari.com from namecheap as well as their hosting services. I have the template for wordpress installed and am slowly learning, mostly through youtube videos how to get everything up. It is going much slower than I anticipated but this has been long overdue. I figured since I would like to update performance schedules and other events I should learn how to do everything myself.

Actally, the hardest thing is deciding which audio and video samples to use. I'll let you know when I have more content uploaded.
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David J. Hahn said 3 weeks ago

Hey Tom -

I put together a website in one day this last Tuesday, and I thought I'd share my experience.

I decided I wanted to make a website about my songwriting, and really try to market myself more in that direction. Check it out here:

Songwriter.fm

I know a lot of people don't like GoDaddy, and certainly they have valid reasons, but I've always liked them. So I went to GoDaddy and looked for a domain name. Miraculously http://songwriter.fm was available so I snatched it quick!

I added the new domain to our hosting plan and asked GoDaddy to install Wordpress for me. I waited about 20 minutes for them to finish that.

While they were installing, I looked for themes. I went to ThemeForest.net and stumbled a theme I liked, Purity, and bought it for $35.

I connected to our hosting space using the ftp client I like, Cyberduck, and uploaded the theme to the right place in the (now finished) Wordpress installation.

I made a header image (my signature, with "New York City Songwriter" underneath) and uploaded it to the theme. I found a bunch of black and white photos to use on the site, picked out that bright pink color for the links and started uploading content.

I also went to MailChimp.com and created a new mailing list for the site. I put the sign up form on the front page in bright pink.

Altogether the site took maybe 8 hours to put together.

Then on Wednesday I went to Facebook, told everyone I was starting a new project and asked if they would sign up for my newsletter. I got some sign ups and started sending out emails today (Thursday).

Now I'm putting up some blog posts - YouTube videos of my favorite songs, mostly.

And that's it. A new musician website in a day. I hope that info is helpful for you!

Join my songwriting newsletter at Songwriter.fm
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tcuffari said 3 weeks ago

Hi Dave,

That site looks really nice. You have a lot of things on your site that I am trying to teach myself to do on Wordpress. I have been watching so many how-to videos, most of them are confusing or outdated as they apply to code writing or PC programs. I think I need to get assistance from someone who knows what they are doing. When I was back in music conservatory I wish they would have stressed the importance of learning to market yourself and get the skills to build websites. The vast majority of education I have received about surviving as a musician started after school.
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laura said 2 weeks ago

Piggybacking on tcuffari's question...I've been reading the responses to your email...for anyone who wants to answer this: is it fair to say that the templates/themes/capabilities of hosting packages are sufficient for a professional, unique-looking website with all of the bells and whistles that a musician needs? (ability to sign up for mailing lists, ability to list upcoming gig dates, blogs, etc.)

By the way, I feel tcuffari's pain! About 4 years ago I spent over a thousand dollars to have someone build my website and host it (a friend of a friend). I quickly found out that, once he got his money and had the website up, he was very hard to reach. Suddenly, emails and phonecalls to him went unanswered. So, any question I have had or changes I've wanted to make have not been done. So, buyer beware -- if you work with an individual, make sure you get several references first.

I, too, am illiterate with websites. I have now decided I need to start from scratch again instead of banging my head against the wall with the original designer.

Now I have a lot of research to do.

I am so glad I discovered this forum. You guys are great!

-Cheers,
Laura
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Joe Stone said 2 weeks ago

laura,

You could always find another web developer willing to update your site for you. I've done that for people over the years.

Unless you really think you need to have your site redone completely, this would probably be a cheaper way to go. I would suggest that you don't get your site redone because you are getting a new person to do it. Get your site redone when it's time to change it, either because you want a new look or you want new features that require enough changes that you may as well redesign it.

Look at it this way. You don't need a new kitchen if your faucet is leaking and needs to be replaced. But, if you want to add a dishwasher, a microwave, a convection oven, well then, yes, you may want to redo your kitchen then.