Planning to start your own news/ blog website in Ghana? In this article, I will discuss with you everything you need to know to get started with your own news/blog website in Ghana and across the globe. Starting your news website is one of the best things to do if done right.

News / Blog Website Design in Ghana

Before you start your news website, there is a couple of checklists you need to ensure you are headed for success; a lack of these is a sure way of failing in the long run. Let’s dive in;

 

How To Start a News Website

Before you start a news website there are a couple of things you need to understand. Below are the details

1. COME UP WITH A CATCHY NAME (DOMAIN NAME):

The most important of all if you ask me about starting a news or blog website is the domain name. You might have heard some stories about domains or if you are entirely new to this whole process then domain is simply the name of your website. Ideally, the domain name originates from your business/brand name. For example, Ghana Web Designs Co. Ltd’s domain is www.ghanawebseigns.com. This address/name is what users will type into the address bar to locate your news/blog website therefore it’s essential to choose a name that makes sense.

Often, the name you choose for your brand/domain depends on the niche you intend to enter into. You wouldn’t want to choose mysports.com if you intend to talk about technology or finance on your platform.  Check out our definitive guide on how to choose a domain name here. How to choose a good domain name

 

2. DECIDE WHAT AREAS AND TOPICS YOU WILL COVER:

Before you plan of starting a news website, you might have an idea of the area you wish to write about(niche). This is another important part because it will guide you in choosing the domain name for your website as mentioned earlier. When choosing the areas you wish to cover, you need to consider your experience level, interest, and target group. In order to succeed in any niche, your past experience in the specific area will give you a competitive edge while your interest in that area will be a factor when you encounter any difficulties going forward. To end, you wouldn’t want to choose an area with no potential readers, this will render your hard work and investment useless. If you wish to create a website that covers a variety of topics you can categorize them into separate sections as well. You can consider some of the topics below;

 

• Local news;
• Technology;
• Politics;
• Sports;
• Music;
• Economy;
• Events;
• Breaking news;
• Art;
• Science;
• And more.

3. CHOOSE A RELIABLE HOSTING PROVIDER

In a nutshell, web hosting is the process of renting or buying space to house a website on the World Wide Web. Website content such as HTML, CSS, and images has to be housed on a server to be viewable online.

When a hosting provider allocates space on a web server for a website to store its files, they are hosting a website. Web hosting makes the files that comprise a website (code, images, etc.) available for viewing online. Every website you’ve ever visited is hosted on a server.

The amount of space allocated on a server to a website depends on the type of hosting. The main types of hosting are shared, dedicated, VPS and reseller. They are differentiated by the kind of technology used for the server, the level of management provided, and the additional services they offer.

Each of these types of hosting has the same purpose, thus making websites accessible on the internet. The type of hosting package to choose depends on the type of project you are undertaking. For a starter, you can freely go for the shared hosting package and once your platform starts to grow then you migrate to a higher package.

The reason you need to choose a reliable provider is that there are providers that offer poor uptime, which results in your website going down most of the time. You need to choose providers that are trusty worthy and supportive in times of need. We are proud partners of the top hosting companies in the world.

4. CHOOSE A GOOD WEB PLATFORM

The main purpose of a news/blog website is to publish content, as a result, you need to choose a web publishing platform that has been tried and tested. Unless you plan to build your own platform from scratch which I will not advise you to do.  CMS(Content management system) is software that helps users create, manage, and modify content on a website without the need for specialized technical knowledge.

In simpler language, a content management system is a tool that helps you build a website without needing to write all the code from scratch (or even know how to code at all).

What Are Examples of Popular Content Management Systems?

WordPress is the best and most popular content management system. While there are certainly other content management systems in existence, WordPress maintains over a 65.1% market share on websites worldwide.

There are two types of WordPress, they are WordPress.com and  WordPress.org. We are focused on WordPress.org which is the website where the actual open-source WordPress content management system is utilized.

 

4. MAKE GOOD INTERFACE A PRIORITY

We all sometimes judge the credibility of the things we come in contact including user interfaces, products we use, etc. As the popular saying goes; good design is good business. In human-computer interaction, a good user interface goes beyond colors and nice-looking pictures.  To ensure you provide a great user experience for your readers, you need an interface that responsively adapts to all devices without compromising on quality.

The platform we’ve chosen, thus WordPress comes with a wide range of great-looking themes/interfaces that you can choose from and modify to suit your specific need without spending much time as compared to building your own from scratch.

You can head to Themeforest, a digital marketplace for creatives, and purchase a suitable theme for your news/blog website. WordPress theme directory provides thousands of equally great-looking themes but sometimes comes with limitations therefore it’s advisable to get yourself a premium theme if you have the means.

 

5. ADOPT A MARKETING STRATEGY

This part is one of the most important and has a great impact on your success.  Before you launch your news website, you need to come up with some strategies you will employ to promote your website. A website just like any business if not marketed will not attract any customer. There are several ways you can market your new website to attract your first viewers to grow your platform. Below are some of the methods;

1. Word of mouth
2. Join more related Facebook groups and share your content there.
3. Create social media pages for your website
4. Traditional advertising still works(Create banners for your website and post at vantage points in your neighborhood, cities, public transport, etc)
5. Take advantage of SEO (Search engine optimization): The best of all strategies but takes patience and is long term. More on this in another post soon.
6. Partner with other website owners/bloggers you know to share your content.
7. Email marketing (Build an email list and broadcast new updates to them)

This is brief info on how you can promote your new blog or news website to attract more readers, in-depth guide will be shared soon.

 

6. MONETIZATION – HOW TO MAKE MONEY FROM YOUR NEWS WEBSITE

After all the hard work and investment you put into your news website its fair enough to start enjoying the fruit of your labor. The question is, how can I make money from my news/ blog website in Ghana or any part of the world? The answer is you can simply sell ads, sell products, affiliate marketing, sponsored post, provide a service or offer premium content.

 

How Much Does It Cost to Start a News or Blog Website in Ghana

To build a news/blog website in Ghana, you need anywhere from Ghc1,000 – Ghc5,000+. In general, there is no set price for building a website because the cost varies for different individuals and it all boils down to what each person needs.

Having an idea about the cost of a news/blog website in Ghana will guide you in your preparation for starting your blog website.

 

What impacts the cost of the News/blog website design

Now you have an idea about the cost of a news or blog website design in Ghana and wish to know what factors affect the cost of the website. As mentioned above the things you need to start your personal news website in Ghana; these products must be purchased. For example, the average cost for a domain is about Ghc100 – Ghc 300 a year. A standard hosting account will cost not less than Ghc500. A professional theme will also cost about Ghc500 and a host of other tools that need to be acquired.

Combining all these individual items cost is what affects the final price for a news or blog website design in Ghana.

 

Final thought;

Starting a news website can be a rewarding and challenging endeavor, but with careful planning and execution, it is possible to build a successful online news platform in Ghana and across the globe.By following these steps and staying up-to-date with industry trends and changes, you can establish a strong online presence and grow your news website over time.

If you’re in need of a top-notch news website design company in Ghana, look no further than Ghana Web Designs Ltd. Our team of experienced designers and developers have a track record of creating visually appealing and user-friendly news/blog websites that drive traffic and engagement. We understand the importance of SEO in the online news industry and strive to implement best practices in all of our designs. From conducting thorough keyword research to optimizing website elements like titles and tags, we go the extra mile to ensure that your news website ranks highly in search engine results. Don’t hesitate, choose Ghana Web Designs Ltd for all of your news and standard website design needs in Ghana.

Contact Ghana Web Designs;

Email: [email protected]

Phone: 0545744420, 0200127614

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