# Business Websites- one central or many specialized **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 11, 2010, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/business-websites-one-central-or-many-specialized/546265 "2010-07-11T01:17:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/business-websites-one-central-or-many-specialized/546265/1 "2010-07-11T01:17:46Z")
So a friend is building a personal consulting service and she wants to know if it’s better to create one business site & put all her energy into that? However, she’s also heard advice about having several sites, each one attuned to a specialized service. So what does the Dopers say? I’m on the once central site side myself, tho I can see the argument for multiples. ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/business-websites-one-central-or-many-specialized/546265/2 "2010-07-11T01:27:12Z")
Also, what are some good business-oriented forums I can ask these Qs on? Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/business-websites-one-central-or-many-specialized/546265/3 "2010-07-11T02:13:15Z")
There’s a quiet trend developing to consolidate government web sites. The purpose is threefold: to reduce costs, to associate specialty content with the agency responsible for it, and to make it easier for users to find information. The [UK government began its consolidation](http://www.welchmanpierpoint.com/blog/second-revolution-why-uk-government-beats-us-government-web) in 2007. The US government through [USA.gov](http://www.usa.gov/) is just starting its efforts. Private industry in the US seems to be moving towards second tier domain names. That means if the business site is called [bigbuttbusiness.com](http://bigbuttbusiness.com), you should start seeing [sales.bigbuttbusiness.com](http://sales.bigbuttbusiness.com), [support.bigbuttbusiness.com](http://support.bigbuttbusiness.com), etc., rather than separate domain names unaffiliated with the main names, or even subdirectory names. One incentive is the coming IPv4 addressing scheme is almost full, and few places have moved to IPv6 addressing. Multiple site names for the same business means multiple paperwork, business cards, etc. Search engines might see a duplication and only serve up one name. Then there’s all the recordkeeping and maintenance for multiple sites. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 7:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/business-websites-one-central-or-many-specialized/546265/4 "2010-07-11T07:56:42Z")
In theory more is better. In reality it just confuses people. If you assemble widgets and make widgets and a person who wants widgets made comes across your site that assembles them, he’s apt to just get mad and go away. He won’t think, “maybe there’s more…” As one poster noted subdomains are a good alternative. You can have [widget.com](http://widget.com) [assemble.widget.com](http://assemble.widget.com) and [make.widget.com](http://make.widget.com) Multiple domain names are easily forwarded. Let’s see you could have [assemble.com](http://assemble.com) and [make.com](http://make.com) [assemble.com](http://assemble.com) would be forwarded to [assemble.widget.com](http://assemble.widget.com) [make.com](http://make.com) would route to [make.widget.com](http://make.widget.com) I would recommend first to visit [Dynamic Drive (dot) Com](http://www.dynamicdrive.com/). This site will give you templates and show you what it’s gonna take to build a simple yet effective website. The forums section are very helpful Then go to [Search Engine Watch (dot) Com](http://searchenginewatch.com/). This will teach you how to properly market your sites for various search engines. Just read the forums. This is not an easy thing because often desing and Serach Engine Optimizatin (SEO) conflict so you have to compromise. The most important thing is to find a domain name. It must easy to remember. It must be one that can pretty much be only spelled on way. (If not than buy both spelling of the domain and forward one to another). Remember successful online marketing campaigns are still measure in tenths of one percent. You just can’t throw up a website and get business. It’s a very important tool. But it’s only a tool. You’re friend will still have to get out and market herself in traditional ways through, ads, networking groups, associations and other methods to drum up business. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/business-websites-one-central-or-many-specialized/546265/5 "2010-07-11T14:32:28Z")
Remember folks, this isn’t a big business. This is one person putting out a shingle or shingles. My take: if the services offered are related, have one site. If they are not, have multiple. A couple months ago I ran across a site for a local business services consultant. If I remembered the name / url I’d post it for your entertainment. But I don’t so I can’t. She was evidently a secretary / “Girl Friday” who’d been laid off and was trying her hand at being a solo “your part-time secretary for hire”. She’d do internet research, make travel arrangements, update your marketing materials, maintain your paper files, etc. So far so good. Except she included pages about her selling Mary Kay. And pages about being a house cleaner. And a tutor for middle-schoolers. And … It quickly became evident that what she really was was a cluless fool with pretty severe ADD and no plan for her business. In short, not somebody you could trust to make vanilla travel arrangements. The OPs friend needs to make sure she doesn’t come across that way.