Becoming a Small Business Owner

I’m not real sure how much I have told you about my business ventures I have taken over the past year. As you all know, I started my blog over 6 years ago. It started as Raising My 4 Sons and was on a free blogger platform. As it grew, and the name changed to Raising My 5 Sons,  I moved to a paid blog platform (WordPress) and I got my own hosting through HostGator. I was a little confused as to how to do things in the beginning when I switched to WordPress, but it didn’t take long for me to figure it out and for my site to really start to grow. I think getting my own hosting was one of the best things I could have ever done for my blog. I am not limited to the types of monetizing I can do with my site and I set the rules of my own site. I love not having boundaries.

It doesn’t stop there though.

Last year I decided that I wanted to be a small business owner. I started researching ways to start an online clothing boutique and I got busy. After getting the correct licenses and so forth for my state, I got busy building my website. Since I was already familiar with WordPress I decided to stick with it and add an ecommerce function to my site. I had already purchased the plan with HostGator that allows me to host several sites on one plan. I was so happy to have this because it has saved me a ton of money! And the one click WordPress installs – no messy downloading and uploading of files is super convenient! With just one click you are on your way to the easy  to use website builder with drag and drop tools that make building a site super simple. I have several friends that pay monthly fees to have their sites up and running on a server that is not their own. I didn’t want to be limited and wanted to have total control over my website, and that is why I chose to have my own hosting.

HostGator has been amazing to work with! If I’ve had an issue (which very rarely happens, and is typically just something I have overlooked or not quite understood), the customer support has been great and I have been able to have answers in a very timely manner. I love that I can chat with a specialist, email or make a phone call. (Because we all know a Mom with 5 boys and a business doesn’t always have time—quiet time—to talk on the phone!)

I love that HostGator has design services as well. This is super for those that don’t want to build their own site. Why not let a pro do it for you? Also, there are marketing services as well (SEO and PPC) which can help you generate more traffic to your site. HostGator is seriously a one-stop-shop for domains!

Once my site was up and running, which was literally in ONE day, I started placing orders and building my inventory.

The biggest challenge I have had with my online business is deciding which products to carry and convincing myself that I do NOT need one of everything in my own closet!

Have you been thinking about starting your own business?

You can learn more about HostGator and sign up for 30% off web hosting services HERE.

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.