Home
>
Web Design
>
Mini Site or Content-based Web Site?

Mini Site or Content-based Web Site?

Are you in a dilemma whether to create a mini site or a content-based web site for your new product or service? The purpose of creating a web site should be to attract visitors and convert them to paying customers. Is a mini site with a few pages enough to do this or should you spend more time and create a content-based web site which contains many pages?

Let's look at some of the Pros and Cons:

Mini Sites

Pros

1. Easy to set up - you don't have to be a programmer these days to create a mini site. Web site templates or software allow most of the work to be done already.

2. Little time - you could create a mini site within one day if you have your entire content ready to go.

3. Laser focused on selling one product or service - a mini site can simply be one long sales page with an order button at the end.

4. No distractions - customers are distracted by other options on the web site. With no banners or links to other sites, the customer can be directed to purchase immediately.

5. Inexpensive to create - if you use a free hosting account (not recommended), you would just pay for registering a domain name. Paid hosting services for a mini site can be acquired for only $30/year.

Cons

1. Difficult for search engines to spider - a web site containing many relevant pages of content will tend to rank higher in the search engines than a one page mini site.

2. Lacks pages of content - mini sites often lack in-depth information about their product or service.

3. Difficult to increase link popularity - getting links from other web sites increases your link popularity. Webmasters form other sites want to link to a web site which contains valuable information that expands their visitors experience.

4. Less traffic - less pages means fewer chances for people to find your site in the search engines, thereby limiting the amount of traffic your web site receives.

Content-based web sites

Pros

1. Search engine friendly - creating a content-based page for every targeted keyword will enable visitors to enter from numerous points within your site.

2. Easy to acquire links from other sites - webmasters want to link to web sites that will expand their visitors experience by providing more information (ie articles) or simplify their tasks (ie software).

3. Become an authority on your product or service - adding pages of content related to your product, helps people to make an informative decision before purchasing.

4. Lots of traffic - creating lots of keyword focused pages and acquiring incoming and outgoing links to and from other sites generates lots of free traffic.

Cons

1. Too many options - customers can become indecisive if their are too many options to choose from.

2. Too many links to other web sites - this may take visitors away from your site and not return. Ideally you want to keep them at your site.

3. Can be expensive to build - content-based sites can cost thousands of dollars to develop if you take into account the cost of graphics and/or hiring someone to build it for you.

4. Takes a lot of time to develop the web site - building content-based pages takes time. It may take several years to create hundreds of content-based pages.

5. Attracts "tire kickers" - visitors want to look around to glean free information but may never buy.

Conclusion:

Before you decide on what type of web site to develop, first think of the purpose of your site. If you just need a sales page and want to drive targeted traffic to your site using paid advertising (ie paid per click search engines, ezine ads) then a mini site could be sufficient.

If you plan on becoming an authority on your product or service and want to attract lots of free search engine traffic, then a content-based web site will serve you better.

Alternatively, you may create a combination of the two ie begin with a mini site, leaving room to expand it to a larger content-based web site in the future.

Herman Drost is the Certified Internet Webmaster (CIW) owner and author of http://www.isitebuild.com Affordable Web Site Design and Low Cost Web Hosting Subscribe to his "Marketing Tips" newsletter for more original articles at:subscribe@isitebuild.com. You can read more of his in-depth articles at: http://www.isitebuild.com

no-contract cleaning service Mundelein ..

In The News:

Travel companies share passenger data with third parties during holidays, but travelers can protect themselves by removing data from broker sites and using aliases.

Xpeng's humanoid robot moves so realistically that crowds believed it was fake, marking a major advancement in robotics technology ahead of 2026 commercial launch.

Researchers discover phishing scam using invisible characters to evade email security, with protection tips including password managers and two-factor authentication.

iPhone and Android users can reduce battery drain and data usage by restricting Background App Refresh to Wi-Fi connections instead of mobile networks.

Scammers nearly stole an Apple account by exploiting the support system with authentic-looking tickets and phone calls, users can protect themselves with safety steps.

FoloToy restored sales of its AI teddy bear Kumma after a weeklong suspension following safety group findings of risky and inappropriate responses to children.

Threat intelligence firm Synthient uncovers one of the largest password exposures ever, prompting immediate security recommendations.

Viral video shared by Elon Musk shows Tesla's Optimus humanoid robots performing tasks from cooking to construction, garnering over 58.5 million views on social media.

Chinese hackers used Anthropic's Claude AI to launch autonomous cyberattacks on 30 organizations worldwide, marking a major shift in cybersecurity threats.

Apple's new Sleep Score feature gives you a rating for your nightly rest quality. Learn how to set it up on your Apple Watch and iPhone today.

Essential phone settings to enable before losing your device, including Find My network, location services and security features for iPhone and Android.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

Cybersecurity research shows weak passwords remain a major threat, with simple patterns and number sequences putting millions of accounts at risk.

New Android malware BankBot YNRK silences phones, steals banking data and drains crypto wallets automatically. Learn how this advanced threat works.

FDA approves first human trial for Paradromics' brain-computer interface that could restore speech for paralyzed patients through neural technology.

New phishing platform QRR targets Microsoft 365 users across 1,000 domains in 90 countries. Learn how to spot fake login pages and protect your accounts.

OpenTable now uses AI to track your dining habits and share insights with restaurants. Learn what data they collect and how to protect your privacy.

Google's discontinued Nest thermostats still secretly upload home data to company servers despite losing smart features, raising serious privacy concerns.

New Android malware NGate steals NFC payment codes in real-time, allowing criminals to withdraw cash from ATMs without your card. Learn protection tips.

DoorDash confirms data breach exposing customer names, emails, addresses after social engineering attack. Learn how to protect yourself from scams.

Concerned about Google's AI scanning your Gmail? Learn how to disable Gemini features that access your emails, Drive files and Chat messages for privacy.

Google warns Android users about dangerous fake VPN apps hiding malware that steals passwords, banking details and personal data from phones and tablets.

Apple's digital passport feature lets iPhone users breeze through TSA checkpoints this holiday season using Digital ID technology at 250+ airports.

A new phishing scam targets family photos with fake "Cloud Storage Full" alerts. Criminals steal credit card information through fake sites. Learn protection tips.

South Korean scientists create ultra-thin fabric muscles that turn clothes into robotic assistants, lifting 33 pounds while weighing under half an ounce.

Mini Site or Content-based Web Site?

Web Design