Making it big online: Your own website not required

The Internet is full of success stories, where someone turned an idea into a stand-alone website and made a genuine difference — or at least a lot of money. But sometimes a big impact is possible without your own .com, through free online services.

There are many good reasons why government agencies, businesses, and even individuals should have their own website. As the online community grows, an official online destination can help you spread your message, or even provide products and services at lower cost. How? That’s up to you, since having your own website means you have full control.

And let’s not forget, maintaining a site is very affordable — or at least with the right plan, provides great value. For basic purposes, renting a domain (the address people type in their web browsers to visit your site, like google.com or technogra.ph) and web host (a service provider that makes your website accessible to the Internet in general) shouldn’t cost more than P2,000 a year.

Large online services like Amazon.com, on the other hand, spend millions of US dollars keeping their sites running smoothly. When you consider, however, that Amazon netted over a billion dollars last year, it’s money well spent.

Yet many times even a low-cost website is unnecessary, when there are established venues like Facebook and Twitter. Why spend money at all, when you can gain the exposure you need and serve your audience, for no cash out?

The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) maintains mmda.gov.ph (local government agencies have to use the .gov.ph domain). One of the MMDA’s roles is traffic and transportation management, and updating Metro Manila drivers on current traffic conditions falls under this.

Last year, the MMDA launched its official Twitter account. It is now an indispensable online resource for drivers attempting to navigate Metro Manila. Regular updates inform on current traffic conditions along main thoroughfares, and notify the public of accidents, construction work, and even floods that may create additional congestion.

The MMDA didn’t stop there. Last June, it launched the Traffic Navigator, which compiles all traffic updates into an intuitive visual map. With a glance, visitors can see which parts of Metro Manila suffer from heavy traffic, and plan trips accordingly.

How much do you think the MMDA spends on maintaining these two online services? Probably not that much, or even nothing. All Twitter accounts are free to operate, while the Traffic Navigator is hosted on interaksyon.com, which is maintained by TV5.

Of course, the MMDA pays people to post updates on Twitter. And it paid for the development of the Traffic Navigator. But these two serve thousands daily, through channels that don’t drain the agency’s coffers. The MMDA Twitter account has over a hundred sixty-thousand followers as of this writing.

The point is, if the MMDA just focused on its standalone website — ignoring the possibilities available through a free service based in the US and a willing local media company — we’d still have to call the hotline for traffic updates. That’s more cumbersome than viewing the information online (both Twitter and the Traffic Navigator can be viewed on most phones that can browse the Internet). We only have Yves Gonzalez to thank for pushing the MMDA towards a low-cost, but very effective direction.

Less service-oriented examples include online celebrities like Mikey Bustos, who’s enjoyed over 7 million views at YouTube’s expense. Christine Gambito, better known as HappySlip, nets 100,000 or so views with each video she uploads on YouTube. Neither personality pays for video hosting, one of the most demanding and thus expensive services to pay for. Yet they’ve made millions worldwide smile.

There are also numerous local sellers who conduct business exclusively on Facebook (and previously, Multiply). Many of them have earned good money, without spending a single centavo on a domain name and web hosting.