Most people stall before launch because they treat setup as a project. It is not. For your first 90 days, the minimum setup is three things: a domain you own, one simple page where people can learn about your offer, and one way to get paid. Everything else can wait until someone actually wants to buy.
1. A domain you control
A custom domain makes your business look real and keeps your address portable if you switch tools later. Register it in your own account at a registrar, not through a freelancer or a friend. ICANN, the organization that coordinates domain names, notes that registrars must warn you before a registration expires, but that a lapsed domain can be expensive or impossible to recover, so keep your contact email current and turn on auto-renew. Prices vary by registrar and extension, so compare the renewal price, not just the first-year promotion.
2. One simple page
You do not need a multi-page website yet. A single page that says who the offer is for, what they get, what it costs and how to buy is enough to start conversations. A one-page builder such as Carrd can do this; as of October 2026 its Pro plans list prices starting at $9 per year, and custom domains appear on its Pro Standard plans and up. Check the current plan details before you pay. If you plan to blog, a WordPress site is a fine alternative, but do not build it before you have picked your model.
3. One way to get paid
Pick the simplest payment path for what you sell. For digital products, a platform like Gumroad lists a 10% + $0.50 fee on direct sales and says it handles sales tax worldwide as merchant of record (as of October 2026). If you would rather use a payment processor, Stripe lists 2.9% + 30¢ per successful domestic card transaction, with extra charges for international cards and currency conversion. Fees change, so read the official pages before you commit, and remember that tax and legal duties depend on your state and country.
What to skip for now
Skip the logo suite, the brand kit, the elaborate funnel, the five social accounts and the custom email signature. None of these helps a first customer decide to buy. Add them after your first sale, when you know what you actually need.
Costs stay low at this stage, but they are not zero: expect a domain fee, possibly a small yearly page-builder fee, and payment fees on each sale. Results vary, and most side businesses earn little at first, so keep your spending small until a customer has paid you.
Do this today
Spend 45 minutes writing the five lines your one page will need: who it is for, the problem, what they get, the price, and how to buy. Do not build anything yet. Once those five lines read clearly out loud, you are ready to pick a domain and a builder tomorrow.
More on Totally Relentless
- Pick One Business Model for Your First 90 Days
- What It Actually Costs to Start an Online Business on the Side
- Open a Separate Account for Your Side Business: Why and How
