Website hosting for young artist

Questions on how we spend our money and our time - consumer goods and services, home and vehicle, leisure and recreational activities
Post Reply
Topic Author
guppyguy
Posts: 536
Joined: Tue Jan 30, 2018 3:24 pm

Website hosting for young artist

Post by guppyguy »

I know there is some real smart techies here.........

Our daughter is fresh out of art school and trying to set up a website to promote her portfolio and sell custom art to individuals.

She has been using Wix but would like to switch to a host that allows her to transfer out of easily. I know how to buy a domain and use it for email but have done zero web hosting/marketing.

1) Is it better to purchase a domain separate from the hosting service? She would like portability of her domain and content.
2) Which services should she look at? SquareSpace?

Thanks
BogleTaxPro
Posts: 821
Joined: Sat Apr 04, 2020 6:08 pm

Re: Website hosting for young artist

Post by BogleTaxPro »

There's a similar discussion going on right now here: viewtopic.php?t=434815
User avatar
_nvrltthmknwyrnxtmv
Posts: 47
Joined: Wed Aug 07, 2024 1:20 pm

Re: Website hosting for young artist

Post by _nvrltthmknwyrnxtmv »

guppyguy wrote: Mon Oct 28, 2024 11:10 am 1) Is it better to purchase a domain separate from the hosting service? She would like portability of her domain and content.
IMHO Purchase a domain separate from the hosting service so you are not locked into their service (portability) is recommended.

BUT this can be more technical.
Cloudflare for the domain. You get alot for the free tier. But again, very technical.
User avatar
FrugalProfessor
Posts: 617
Joined: Thu May 25, 2017 11:34 am
Contact:

Re: Website hosting for young artist

Post by FrugalProfessor »

* Porkbun domain (~$10.37/yr): https://porkbun.com/
* DigitalOcean Droplet (~as low as $4/mo...I pay $6/mo for my blog): https://www.digitalocean.com/pricing/droplets
* Cloudflare DNS (free): https://www.cloudflare.com/plans/

I installed WordPress on a DO Droplet using a one-click setup. Pretty easy: https://marketplace.digitalocean.com/. Not sure if WordPress would work for your daughter, but I would assume there are alternatives.

Disclaimer: if something breaks, it's on you to figure out. No hand holding. But cheap and fast.
I blog here: https://www.frugalprofessor.com/
GoDucks1988
Posts: 8
Joined: Sat Feb 11, 2023 11:07 am

Re: Website hosting for young artist

Post by GoDucks1988 »

I use squarespace for my portfolio and has been relatively easy to manage.
User avatar
Picasso
Posts: 565
Joined: Fri Feb 01, 2019 1:19 pm

Re: Website hosting for young artist

Post by Picasso »

Tell us about the art! Can we see it?
f8andbethere
Posts: 80
Joined: Tue Apr 23, 2024 12:17 pm

Re: Website hosting for young artist

Post by f8andbethere »

guppyguy wrote: Mon Oct 28, 2024 11:10 am 1) Is it better to purchase a domain separate from the hosting service? She would like portability of her domain and content.
2) Which services should she look at? SquareSpace?
I sounds like your daughter is looking for three things:
1) A domain to establish her online identity
2) A portfolio website to display a sample of her work, bio and contact info
3) An online shop/e-commerce site?

Your domain should always be portable–even if you first register it with Squarespace or Wix. The site's navigation and design likely won't be easily portable with those services–she should alway keep copies of her original content locally.

I've found Wix and Squarespace to be functionally equivalent for web hosting. You can pay less for a basic portfolio site or blog, but that likely won't offer easy integration with advanced modules like e-commerce.

Some domain registrars will have different selections of specialty top level domains available to choose from (e.g. .art). I've been a happy Hover customer for many years.

Getting a domain and basic portfolio up should be a priority. She can always add e-commerce later–even through a different service than her primary host.
Last edited by f8andbethere on Mon Oct 28, 2024 1:58 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Buying the world | Here to learn
User avatar
illumination
Posts: 3534
Joined: Tue Apr 02, 2019 6:13 pm

Re: Website hosting for young artist

Post by illumination »

Don't use GoDaddy for domain services. NameCheap is good in my experience.

Digital Ocean and BlueHost are good for hosting.

This is basically a commodity and pricing is usually pretty close. If you have a web designer, just use what they like to use would be my advice.
Dottie57
Posts: 13221
Joined: Thu May 19, 2016 5:43 pm
Location: U.S.

Re: Website hosting for young artist

Post by Dottie57 »

Why not se an existing site like etsy?

https://www.etsy.com/listing/294587341/ ... ck-3&sts=1
Life is more than grinding it out in some drab office setting for an arbitrary number. This isn't a videogame where the higher score is better. -Nathan Drake
User avatar
Tyler9000
Posts: 776
Joined: Fri Aug 21, 2015 11:57 am

Re: Website hosting for young artist

Post by Tyler9000 »

guppyguy wrote: Mon Oct 28, 2024 11:10 am Our daughter is fresh out of art school and trying to set up a website to promote her portfolio and sell custom art to individuals.
If her primary goal is to sell custom art, I would look at Fourthwall.com. Fourthwall is designed specifically for creators to monetize their work.

She can build a simple website for free, and very easily sell digital art, print-on-demand products like clothes and framed prints, or even her own commissioned work. Fourthwall not only handles fulfillment and customer service but also all global sales taxes. And costs are based solely on a percentage of the products sold, so it's totally free to get ramped up. It's a really good service.
Topic Author
guppyguy
Posts: 536
Joined: Tue Jan 30, 2018 3:24 pm

Re: Website hosting for young artist

Post by guppyguy »

Picasso wrote: Mon Oct 28, 2024 11:56 am Tell us about the art! Can we see it?
Absolutely, I'll post something as soon as I can figure out how!
She's a very talented background artist, recent SCAD grad. Just trying to get going.
Topic Author
guppyguy
Posts: 536
Joined: Tue Jan 30, 2018 3:24 pm

Re: Website hosting for young artist

Post by guppyguy »

Dottie57 wrote: Mon Oct 28, 2024 3:22 pm Why not se an existing site like etsy?

https://www.etsy.com/listing/294587341/ ... ck-3&sts=1
I haven't used Etsy much. This would be in addition to a website hosted somewhere, right?
User avatar
RickBoglehead
Posts: 8391
Joined: Wed Feb 14, 2018 8:10 am
Location: In a house

Re: Website hosting for young artist

Post by RickBoglehead »

Dottie57 wrote: Mon Oct 28, 2024 3:22 pm Why not se an existing site like etsy?

https://www.etsy.com/listing/294587341/ ... ck-3&sts=1
Fees...
Avid user of forums on variety of interests-financial, home brewing, EVs (1005 EV), etc. Enjoy learning & passing on knowledge. It's PRINCIPAL, not PRINCIPLE. I ADVISE you to seek ADVICE.
Dottie57
Posts: 13221
Joined: Thu May 19, 2016 5:43 pm
Location: U.S.

Re: Website hosting for young artist

Post by Dottie57 »

guppyguy wrote: Mon Oct 28, 2024 6:44 pm
Dottie57 wrote: Mon Oct 28, 2024 3:22 pm Why not se an existing site like etsy?

https://www.etsy.com/listing/294587341/ ... ck-3&sts=1
I haven't used Etsy much. This would be in addition to a website hosted somewhere, right?
I think etsy is a great place to try selling with a fairly low start up cost. If you aren’t willing to pay 4k for a web site , then you sound like this is more of a hobby - a fun adventure.

Do a lot more research to find out what setting up a good website costs. Think through how ordering of your brand of coffee will flow in a system. How will it impact accounting, order fulfillment, shipping costs, sales tax. How will you know when more coffee needs to be roasted. Are you targeting home users, small coffee shops - who is your customer?. Your customer will help you determine volume. Will you need employees? A lot to think about BEFORE you start spending money.


Others say you need a business plan. I agree. Maybe look for resources at small business administration and also localgo ernment.
Life is more than grinding it out in some drab office setting for an arbitrary number. This isn't a videogame where the higher score is better. -Nathan Drake
Strummer
Posts: 175
Joined: Thu Dec 28, 2017 3:15 pm

Re: Website hosting for young artist

Post by Strummer »

A couple things:

- Buying a domain name can be a separate transaction from hosting. You can buy a domain name from any registrar, and you can host your site with anyone who offers hosting by changing the settings on your domain at your registrar. Namecheap.com is my domain registrar of choice but you can also register at places like Go Daddy or Network Solutions. As long as you pay your domain registration fees every year, the domain belongs to you and you can change hosts whenever you like.

- Portability of content is tricky. If you build a web site with something like WordPress, it's fairly easy to move to another WordPress host. If you want to move from a WordPress site to, say, Squarespace, it's unlikely to be so simple unless Squarespace (or whoever it is you want to host the site) has a specific WordPress import tool. As long as you're using some sort of intermediate software to generate the code that the site runs on, whether it's WordPress or Squarespace or WIX or whomever — you're always going to be tied to that intermediary. The alternative, unless she wants to learn to write code, would be to hire someone to design a portable site, but that's going to be much more expensive than the DIY approach.

- One important consideration is how much work she anticipates selling. If this site isn't intended as her sole source of income, using a service like Etsy would be a simple way of creating an online storefront without doing a lot of work on the technical side. This would allow her to start building an audience/customer base, to get a taste of how much of her work she might be able to sell, and what prices to charge. Yes, Etsy charges fees to sellers, but it might be useful to get some experience selling online before diving into the much bigger project of setting up her own site.

- In any case, I would recommend that she register her domain sooner rather than later, even if she doesn't use it right away. That way, it will be there when she needs it, and at $15 or so per year, it's not a big cost.

Good luck!
Post Reply