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Why is a free website practical? Well, let's be honest - when you first start out on the Internet you may not know exactly where you are going! Speak to your friends and fellow business associates. I'll bet that most of them were in the same boat when they started out with business or hobby websites. Although maybe not everyone wants to admit this.

It's realistic. If you haven't got your own personal or business website yet, you're probably still on a fast learning curve yourself. Start with a free website and you'll find it's a really practical way of experimenting and giving yourself the chance to come up to speed without a huge amount of risk. Of course you'll need to invest your time to get to grips with it.

If you don't know whether a particular hobby or business venture is going to succeed, then take things slowly at first until you've found your feet. A free website will be a practical aid for you. To use a famous phrase: 'Don't give up the day job' and in these credit-crunching times - don't go investing pots of money in it either, until you're fairly sure you'll get a return on your investment. Sure, your measure of success might not be merely money. If you're creating a website for a local sports club you might be wanting publicity in the first instance, or increasing membership numbers.

Many off-the-shelf free websites are especially practical because you don't need to learn html to use them. To be able to write hyper text markup language is a very useful skill to have. I wish I could do it and it's definitely next in line on my personal learning programme. You can get by without it though. I've created three respectable looking websites already.

Please take note of the following advice if you start with a free website. Sounds strange, but even though you're in the here and now, you still need to have your longer term goals in mind. Free websites are practical, but do read through the terms and conditions very carefully. That's the bit we often skip over because it's boring, right? Well, don't. Make sure the free website is suitable for the use you want. Watch out for clauses that say 'non-commercial use only' or anything that has copyright conditions attached to it.

Also, be realistic about it. Archive your copy carefully and keep an eye on the global economy. Have you found yourself a reputable firm to host your site? Are they solvent? The company who is offering you services for free right now, may not be in a position to do so in future. If you bear all these points in mind, then a free website will be a practical tool for you.

Learn more about this author, Frances Laing.
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