In the early days of the internet, it was a boring archive of text pages that public institutions and government agencies mostly used. There was hardly any personal presence. Thankfully, all that has changed, and the internet has become one large community of persons, businesses, and institutions from all over the world.
The internet hasn’t just evolved to include lots of activity and human connectivity. The websites have also evolved into different types that fulfill different purposes. While evolution is great, having multiple website types can be quite confusing, especially if you’re trying to build an online presence. Are you running a business, a personal brand, a blog, or simply want to have a place online to post your latest projects? Here are the 10 most popular website types you need to know:
e-Commerce Website
If you’ve bought anything online, you most likely used an e-commerce website. An e-commerce website is designed to be a marketplace online. On an e-commerce website, you can see a wide display of actual products on sale and place an order through your phone. After a successful order and payment on an e-commerce website, you’ll have the products delivered.
This type of website usually features different product galleries with pictures and sometimes videos of products on sale. There are also product pages on an e-commerce website that gives you more details and reviews on specific products. You can easily create an account on an e-commerce website to make your patronage easier; you get to save items for future purchases and even enjoy discounts.
Blogs
A blog is an informative website that provides the latest and trending content on a particular niche. Think of it like an online newspaper. It could be a lifestyle and travel blog, or it could be a news blog. Generally, you’ll find catalogs of articles categorized according to niche or topic and comment and subscription channels to interact and stay updated with the blog. It’s easy to create your online presence by running a blog – all you have to do is choose your niche and open a blog on any blog-building platform online.
Business Website
Every business needs an online presence, and the professional way to go is to have a business website. A business website is designed to provide all the necessary information about your business and services to help you reach clients online. It typically comes with a business “about us” page, contact details, a mission statement, and a brief explanation of the business services. It usually has a “call-to-action” (CTA) which is like a direct message or rallying call to clients to reach out to the business.
Service Provider
Service-providing websites are designed to offer a particular service to a global audience. Google, for instance, is a search engine service provider. This type of website is the ease of access tool to carry out specific activities online, e.g., streaming or research. Here, you can create and personalize your account to make your website use easier.
Portfolio Website
One of the best ways to improve your chances of being hired online is to create an online portfolio. A portfolio website serves as a platform to showcase or prove your skill. Here, you can post some of the best projects you’ve worked on, draw inspiration from others, and ultimately use it as a buffer for your resume. A portfolio website includes project samples, a brief bio, and your contact details.
Community Website
One of the strong points of humans is that we often thrive in communities. With the internet being a “global village,” you can participate in many online communities. Community websites are designed to connect with people of like minds worldwide. You can easily create your community account, share your ideas, comment on other people’s ideas, and keep in touch. Quora and Reddit are major examples of community websites.
Educational Website
Learning never ends, and one of the best uses for the internet is learning. Educational websites can be considered online schools. They provide educational content on virtually every topic and field, and in recent times there has been a major growth of associate degrees via educational websites. Websites like Coursera and edX are academic websites that offer online opportunities for learning professional skills and even obtaining an associate degree.
Content Sharing Website
Content-sharing websites are designed for sharing personalized content with a global audience. You can build your own “empire” online through these websites by sharing relatable content and getting paid for your content. Content-sharing websites are often known for publishing dedicated content. You can have a video, photo, or even textual content-sharing website. Websites such as Pinterest, Shutterstock, and Pixabay are examples of photo content-sharing websites.
Booking Website
Booking websites allow you to book appointments, hotel reservations, and even buy event tickets. They typically publish information about events and hospitality centers and provide channels for booking. Booking websites often have catalogs of events, hotels, and businesses, with brief details about their services and contact information. This way, event managers and hotels can promote their services to a global audience and outsource their booking arrangements.
Game Website
Rather than playing games on your phone or PC without much interaction, gaming websites offer you a greater challenge – play with people from all over the world. Gaming alone can quickly turn boring, but with online gaming websites, you can interact with more gamers like you, and you can even earn from playing games. You can create your game profile on such websites, engage in game forums, and receive updates on new game releases. Some gaming websites even allow you to stream your gaming adventure to a gaming audience, which also comes with an opportunity to earn.
Final Remark
Every website has a purpose. If you’re uncertain about what website would be suitable for you, all you have to do is think about what you intend to do. If you’re looking to set up your business online, it’ll be great to have a business website with sales channels or create an e-Commerce store online. You can also take advantage of the community and educational websites to hone your skills and, most importantly, have a portfolio website that showcases what you can do.
At Evolution Business, we can help you determine what website fits your business or brand. We can also position your business online to reach more people from all over the world.
