How to make a website? Is it expensive?

[Pixie]

I want to make a dating/social media network for people like my parents. My mother contracted herpes when my Dad cheated on her a month ago and she's finding it really hard to find someone to date. I want to make a site solely for people who were unlucky enough to get this disease(and other diseases that can't be cuted) whether they were born with it, got it from someone they loved and thought loved them and everything else in between. I want this to be a safe haven for people with this common factor in their life.

I'm not sure if there are other sites for people like her but I want to make one that is very... modern. I want it to be a blend of CafeMom and Facebook.

Here are the features that I want:
>I want the users to be able to make groups and post... well... posts in this group that others can comment on and that only group members can see. (This is a feature on CafeMom that I really enjoy)
>I want people to be able to make a profile (Like the ones on Facebook) with their bios, what they're looking for, pictures, location and whatever else they feel they need to post.
>They should be able to make their pages private and customize it to describe their personality and style.

These are the main features I want for the site.

How much does this cost? How do I make it?
I would advertise it with pamphlets left at clinics and support groups. But how do I advertise it online?

I reeeeeally want to make this website look... Modern. I don't want it to look like some cheap forum or anything because that isn't what it is. It's a social media network that should be used to find similar friends, people to date, support groups and... well.. Help. Because everyone deserves a place where they can feel safe and not judged.

PLEASE NO BASHING COMMENTS!! I really want to make this happen.

[CmoreD]

Well you have to learn some programming first of all. You probably should take courses if you want to go that route.

[Charlie]

You would probably have to learn HTML (Internet codes and stuff) but if you just want to make a blog or website revolved around you I suggest using weebly.com they have free/paid options and it's only around 10$ a month!

[Vikram]

It is tough to build a website like that. It is very expensive to get someone to build it for you from the ground and it takes time. Months of work and testing. You can use weebly and other software to create a social network and customize it to your needs. They have their limitations but that is probably the way for you to go.

[Karen]

This is obviously an important project for you and right off the bat, I can see a few things you're going to want to look for as you search for a company or product to help you bring this vision of yours to life.

1. Security -- with individuals signing up, logging in and sharing personal data, you're going to want (need) to make sure that you offer a secure website. I'm not sure if build your own sites, such as Weebly, can provide this.

2. Discussion Groups, Forums, Chatting - self-hosted WordPress sites may offer you these features. There are hundreds (thousands?) of plugins to help you with these.

3. "Modern Look" - there are great templates out there, some customizable, but if you want to have something just your own, talk to a designer.

I have a few recommendations that may get you started in the right direction:
1. Get yourself a "real" domain name and host your own site rather
2. Look into a product called "BuddyPress" ...
3. If you need direction, some web design companies offer free consultation and talking to one may be able to give you a better idea of what's truly involved in this site and how much it could potentially cost to build.

I wish you the best of luck!

[ozier]

Its not very easy but it seems that you can make it easy for you...you have to learn few things from Webmasters...they have online classes or membership...you can join them

[Fabian]

hey there

you could go to fiverr.com and search for someone who does websites.... not sure about the quality you get because normally everything costs $5 there.... but you might be lucky...

[Lulu]

This sounds like an important subject for you. You should check out freelance.com and odesk.com. Both of these places have people that build different types of websites and most have experience to do it.

By looking at the ads and talking to other people on those sites you should be able to come up with a approximate price.

Make sure you check there references so you know that they are truthful also take a look at previous work they have done.

Explain in detail like you have done here what you want your site to be. You can place an ad for the job or you can look at people that have ads out to build sites.

Good luck!

[Jahid A]

Hello, have many website school but most are expensive,if you want make a good website and free host so go http://tiny.cc/GetFreeWebHosting and make a good website.Also you can make a good website from WordPress.com
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