GoDaddy Own Your Brand Online Domain business

Over half of the UK workforce dreams of having their own business, although 43 percent of us don't believe we'll ever achieve it.

But the start of a new year is always the greatest motivation to tackle something new, and since it's a new decade too, 2020 could just be the year you finally become your own boss.

This year, GoDaddy is challenging aspiring entrepreneurs to kickstart their small business website in just 12 days by breaking down what can often seem like an overwhelming task into a few simple and straightforward steps.

With the right tools, insights, and support from them, they believe it's possible for any aspiring business owner to bring their idea online by this January.

To build excitement for the challenge, we've compiled a few of the things every entrepreneur should know before going solo in 2020.

1. Always start with a business plan

All good business ideas begin with a plan so before getting started, it's important to define a clear market need from your customers and be sure you're able to deliver it. Then think about what it can offer you, as the business owner: like financial freedom, location independence, or time. You can then chart your growth by thinking about where you want your business to be a month from now, then in one year's time, and after that, five years' time.

2. Name your idea carefully

Naming your idea is one of the most exciting first steps for a brand-new business. Successful business names commonly hint at the concept behind the business but play around with sound, spelling, or rhyming to make it more original and memorable. However, a pro tip is not to limit your business with the name, in case you want to diversify in the future. Finally, once you have your name, make sure to do a thorough internet search to ensure no one else owns the copyright, trademark, or limited company already.

3. Choose a web host

A web host, such as the world number one GoDaddy, is a platform that makes your site visible online. Whether you're looking to set up a basic blog or a high-powered e-commerce site, GoDaddy offers fast, reliable plans that help you get set up swiftly. This year, things are even easier with their 12-step set-up plan that gives you one challenge every day on the road to completion within just 12 days.  GoDaddy will reward you by building your website for you using their new 

4. Discover a domain that fits

A business domain is a name you give your website that helps other people on the internet find you easily, like Google.com or UK.GoDaddy.com, which are both domain names. You can check to see if there is an online domain available to suit your business name using GoDaddy's simple. GoDaddy can help you swiftly land on the right domain to suit your website and get moving ahead.

5. Find the right building blocks

Building a website can seem like a daunting task, but with GoDaddy's handy Website Builder, it's simple to create a modern and professional-looking site without being a web designer or learning how to code. For a small monthly fee, choose any one of to bring your idea to life or go more advanced with a Managed WordPress site. Whatever you decide, GoDaddy offers the technical guidance and simple steps to get you online within a matter of hours!

6. Attract the right customers

Building a website is just the beginning of your business. Once you're set-up, can help you to draw the right customers to your business and start to see some success by using everything from email marketing to appointment booking to your advantage.

7. Set up an online payments system

For e-commerce entrepreneurs, the beauty of building an online store, where you sell your stuff online, is that you can go beyond the traditional checkout options to pay in person or by cheque, and instead connect to an online payments system that's easy to set up in a few simple moves. All GoDaddy UK sites are compatible with three payment options: Square, Stripe (including ApplePay), and PayPal making transactions easily automated for swift purchases and happy customers.

8. Build your online presence

Stuck scratching your head about SEO? With the help of GoDaddy InSight™, you can build your presence without starting at square one on search engine optimization (SEO). The idea is to help your business show up on Google, Bing, and Yahoo using handy keyword techniques and phrase suggestions that push you above your competitors. Plans start from £5.99 per month.

9. Get results with social media

If you thought Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn were just for social networking, you were wrong. Social media is actually a great tool for marketing because it's where you can really connect with your target audience. The best social media marketers divide their time into three strategies: Promotion (of your product), education (to help your followers), and engagement (to keep your audience interested). In combination, these will help balance your content and entice more followers, and therefore greater brand awareness.

10. Get professional on email

Whether you're selling a physical, information product or delivering a service, happy customers are at the heart of any successful business. One of the most professional ways of interacting with your visitors is an official email address proudly bearing your company name. The is an easy way to get set up with a business address that creates a great first impression.

11. Never be afraid to ask for guidance

All good business owners know how to ask for help when they're in need. If you've followed your action points and still need support, reach out to the web pros at GoDaddy who are on-hand 24/7, 365 days of the year.

12. Protect your business

When you're a successful business owner, everybody wants a piece of the pie. So don't forget to keep your domain locked in your name for the life of your business. With Business Protection you're safe for up to 12 months from both accidental and malicious domain transfers, your personal details are hidden but your online business card is available so customers and partners can find you easily. 

GoDaddy confirms individual accessed 28,000 customer accounts

Popular web hosting platform GoDaddy has admitted that 28,000 customer hosting accounts were compromised in a security breach.

According to 

GoDaddy says that though user accounts had been accessed there was no evidence that they had been modified. It has since reset the passwords of those affected.

The company is also still advising customers to review their accounts t make sure  

It also notes that only login and password information of hosting accounts were compromised while main accounts had not been breached.

The individual responsible for the breach was discovered after GoDaddy found an altered SSH file - a cryptographic protocol used in security - as well as 'suspicious activity on its servers.

According to GoDaddy, the breach was discovered late last month but occurred in October 2019. As noted by BleepingComputer, GoDaddy is the world's biggest domain registrar and a web hosting company and services about 19 million customers.

'On April 23, 2020, we identified SSH usernames and passwords had been compromised through an altered SSH file in our hosting environment. This affected approximately 28,000 customers,' GoDaddy said in a statement to BleepingComputer.

'We immediately reset these usernames and passwords, removed the offending SSH file from our platform, and have no indication the threat actor used our customers' credentials or modified any customer hosting accounts.'

GoDaddy says that it will provide customers affected with malware scanning software for a year.

As per the company: 

'These services run scans on your website to identify and alert you of any potential security vulnerabilities. With this service, if a problem arises, there is a special way to contact our security team and they will be there to help.'