Series Post #6: Choosing the Right Plan for Your Site

Welcome back to another post in the Series: How to Earn Passive Income with Affiliate Links as a Writer!

Today we’re wrapping up the section on website builders. Specifically, we’re talking about choosing the right plan for your niche site.

Choosing the Right Plan

This guide will focus on Weebly’s plans though the process can be applied to any site builder.

To choose the right plan for your site, you’ll need to access your chosen site builder’s plan and pricing page. Usually, this is easy to find on the site builder website’s home page. However, if you’re having a hard time finding it, try and few well-worded Google searches.

Similar to choosing the right site builder, picking the right plan comes down to understanding what you need to run your site. Using the plans and pricing page and your knowledge of your site necessities, you should perform a quick analysis.

1. Domain

Are you okay with a subdomain?

Subdomains are those yoursite.weebly.com addresses that come with any free plan. This is the best option if you want to create your site with no money upfront.

Do you already have a domain?

If you already own a domain, consider going with an option like Weebly’s “Connect” plan. For $5/month, you can connect your current domain with site building capabilities.

Do you need a new and unique domain?

If you aren’t cool with a subdomain but you don’t already have a domain, you will have to purchase one. Luckily, most site builders offer free domains included in their paid plans.

For example, Weebly’s “Pro” and “Business” plans include a free domain registration with their respective $12/month and $25/month plan price.

2. Ads

Ads or no ads?

“Free” and “Connect” plans usually make up for their free or low prices by featuring ads on your site. For example, Weebly ads show up as banners on your site that advertise for their services.

If you can’t stand the thought of having your site builder advertise on your blog, consider a plan without ads. Weebly offers their “Pro” and “Business” plan for $12 and $25/month respectively. These plans are ad-free.

3. Members

If you’re choosing between a median-priced plan and the high-priced plans, there are usually small differences.

The highest priced plan on WordPress, for example, allows for plug-ins. The highest priced plan on Weebly allows members to register for your site.

Member registration is great for bloggers who want to offer their audience access to special content. This adds a level of exclusivity and may allow you to monetize membership.

If you’re going through Weebly, $12/month will allow 100 people to register for a membership to your site. For $25/month, there is no limit to the number of people who can register.

4. Marketing

Do you want lead capturing capabilities?

Lead captures are forms that allow you to capture information about your audience. Think of a site that requests your email address in exchange for a free eBook.

This is especially useful for marketing campaigns and newsletters. Though you may not need to market your blog content, lead captures allow you to grow your audience contacts to market products to in the future.

Most free plans do not offer these capabilities.

So if lead capturing capabilities are a must for you, you’ll have to choose a paid plan. In Weebly’s case, however, the “Connect” plan also offers lead capture capabilities for $5/month.

SEO

Luckily, all of Weebly’s plans include the ability to search engine optimize your site.

This allows you to collect data on your audience without needing a lead capture form. For example, you can find out visitors’ location, what page they visited on your site, how they reached your site, and more.

5. Support

How much and how often do you want to get in touch with your site builder’s support team?

Free plans always offer access to a community forum where you can ask questions of fellow users. They usually also offer email and chat capabilities to get in touch with the site builder’s support team.

However, if waiting around for an online response would drive you nuts, a paid plan is best for you. Weebly’s “Pro” and “Business” plans, for example, offer phone support so you’re never left hanging.

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So there you have it! An easy way to analyze plans and pricing to choose the right plan for your site.

Leave a comment and let me know how you decided which plan to go with and stay tuned for next week’s post on designing your niche site. Happy writing!