Setting up a tarot website

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 29 Sep 2004, and now archived in the Forum Library.

acolyte	29 Sep 2004
how much would it cost in a place like the U.S to set up a site to advertise your services for readings?Nothing fancy like flash on the site but something good looking and presentable?How much did it cost those of you who are now on-line and how long did it take?

dadsnook2000	29 Sep 2004
I'm in the process of setting up my own website to sell tarot products that I produce. Typically, the following costs seem to be available: * Domain Name: $8 to $12 to acquire, the same for an annual renewal. * Host Site: Low end cost (probably little or no support) can run from $5 to $10 monthly. Mid-range cost would be $15 to $30 monthly. Support varies considerably depending upon the type of host you select. If you are using a standard web-development tool such as Microsoft FrontPage, $15 to $20 can give you coaching support to help you get set up and to update the site. If you are using a web-host that offers their own system and page templates then the monthly cost and some support may be a little higher -- I believe that Yahoo, for example, charges about $35 to $40 monthly. And, of course, if you are using DreamWeaver or another high-end web-site development tool then the host site and support costs will often be higher. * Payment for your servies: This is a cost area that seems to be all over the map in terms of up-front costs, transaction fees, additional service costs -- but most of all there can be hidden problems. You need to investigate this area carefully. A) On-line information from PayPal suggests that there offering is both simple to apply and to use. But, there are counter-claims all over the web about PayPal's highly disruptive practices that often freeze your bank account when there is a credit card transaction that doesn't process correctly. B) There may be conditions, depending on what you offer, that permit you to use other billing process such as electronic bank transfers. I'm just starting to investigate these so I can't direct you towards a "best" answer. I just feel that great care has to be taken in making a choice in this area. * Taxes: How are you going to deal with state sales taxes or local taxes? All of the above issues go into the "product" or "service" costs that determine your pricing schedule. You can be successful in selling through your site yet lose money. Good luck, Dave.

dadsnook2000	29 Sep 2004
Acolyte, there is one other major issue which occurs to me; the cost of web-site development software. There are two approaches that you can consider. Buying your own software: Microsoft FrontPage probably costs about $150 unless you can get a student copy or use a copy at/from work. Dreamweaver or other high-end software packages can cost up to $700 or more. Using a host-provider's templates: Yahoo and other hosting companies offer pre-built templates that can be altered in terms of colors, graphics or choices of formats, along with the content that you put into them. Using these saves you the cost of buying software but adds a higher monthly cost to the hosting service. Consideration, therefore, has to include 1) are you capable of developing a web-site from scratch, 2) do you have the time to that, 3) is the use of a pre-built template attractive to you, 4) is there a chance that you may not continue with your web business if it doesn't work out well in a few months time, 5) do you want to avoid selecting and setting up a payment method and system and wish to to use that which the host-site provides (this will likely cost extra). Dave.

WolfyJames	29 Sep 2004
There are a lot of free softwares out there that can help you build your website. I suggest you check them out before shelling out a big 150$ from your pockets. There are some well-renown sharewares too on the web for less than that. Mathiza Sublime is the free software I use, but I tested many other free softwares as well and I chose to keep this one. If you want to know more about HTML, CSS and tables, I suggest you pay a visit to Lissa's website for children, her explanations are clear and simple to grasp. This place offers good price for hosting, 45$CA for a year (35$US). The website is in French for me but it might be in English for you. This one offers 10$US for the annual price for the domain name; they also offer hosting.

blackroseivy	29 Sep 2004
I am having it done rock-bottom by my own sister for free - I'm lucky in a way, but it is also taking *FOREVER*!!! I am being hosted on *free* tripod.net; don't even *look* at what I have now, it sucks. I need to finish this up within the month with my sister, then it's going to be a bare-bones but pleasant site. I am going to sell hand-blended essential-oil fragrances & eventually incense & potpourri; I want to invent a historically-purist Gothic cosmetics line; I am also going into business with a friend & my mother to make bags & spreadcloths. Then, I am taking every deck I have & displaying it, with links to *this* wonderful site & a couple of other places; I am going to have a picture of the reading for each client. THEN: the ADVERTISING. I am going to run an expensive but *worth it* ad in Magickal Blend magazine; this is the metaphysical mag with the highest circulation of any - it's worldwide & *very* popular! It's only a classified ad, but I *know* it will bring traffic. I need to pop for $50 for that as it is! Well, these are *my* tricks to the trade - let's hope they work!

Vilyariel	30 Sep 2004
I own a site design, well, site. It's not that hard to set up an attractive site on a free hosting service. It's a little more pricey if you decide to go with a domain name of your own, or if you pay someone to make you a site, but i would be willing to do a site for you for free [to add to my portfolio page]. check out my work on http://www.vonstolzdesign.com

acolyte	30 Sep 2004
It's always good to hear from those who have tried it for themselves.Thnx

isthmus nekoi	01 Oct 2004
Hi acolyte, Having a domain name is particularly helpful and yes, will cost roughly $8-12/year. I am hosting w/a company that offers a free hosting plan. Yes, free and no advertisments - but the bandwidth is very low - hey, you get what you pay for! You could get around that by having really small graphics and keeping the information all in text. Be hardcore and code everything by hand! :D The host btw, is http://www.hostforfree.ca

The Setting up a tarot website thread was originally posted on 29 Sep 2004 in the Talking Tarot board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Talking Tarot, or read more archived threads.