Should Multi Passionate Creatives Put Two Businesses on One Website?

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When I speak to groups and on webinars about effective website design, it’s not surprising that many folks identify as multi passionate creatives. And often, the question comes up: if you have more than one identity, do you need separate websites? Or should you put two businesses on one site?

The example scenarios that prompt this debate include:

You write in more than one genre
You have different pen names
You teach writing, or offer editing services, as well as producing your own work
You have a business that’s unrelated to your writing
You’re a multi passionate entrepreneur with two different businesses

To answer whether or not you should have two websites, let’s remember, you’re already busy. Really busy. Your brain is already juggling multiple ideas, deadlines, and to-do lists.

And I’m assuming you’re doing most of it on your own. If you could afford separate teams to support each of your businesses, you’d have extensive marketing infrastructure in place already.

So as you grapple with this question, start from the basis that your life will be simpler, cheaper, and happier, if you can put everything on one website.

However, I know you want more detail than that. So here’s how to analyze what’s right for you.

The most important considerations to help you decide between a single website vs multiple website

(1) How much separation do you need between these audiences?

Is it important that one audience doesn’t even know you’re creative in the other area? (Example: you write ultra-steamy romances, as well as children’s nonfiction) > Strong reason for separation
Does it look a bit incongruous that you do both things? (“Incongruous” is in the eye of the beholder, but maybe you’re both a tax accountant and a cupcake baker?) > Moderate reason for separation: people who know you and trust you for one thing might well like to try the other.
Or is it simply the case that you don’t think there will be much overlap in interest? (Example: you’re a professional violinist, and you also self-publish science fiction… or you write both romantic poetry and legal text books) > Moderate reason for separation.
Would separation be nice, but it doesn’t especially matter if your audience knows you do both? (Example: you write contemporary political thrillers as well as historical fiction) > Mild reason for separation, although admittedly, branding could get tricky.
Have you simply assumed there would be no shared interest, but in fact, there might be? (Example: you’re a proofreader, and you are also working on your debut novel) > Mild reason for separation: your audience for one might be excited to know about the other thing.

Get tough with yourself here. Start from the place that having just one website would be less stress, and dig into your current beliefs that tempt you into having two. Sometimes you can be suffering from a lack of confidence about being “seen”, especially for the newer or more creative endeavor.

And if you want to be truly memorable, try combining two common jobs into one unforgettable brand. This might be the rocket fuel that each business has lacked. Multi passionate entrepreneurs often get to have enormous fun—and show huge creativity— with their branding. Would I enjoy designing website visuals for a tax accountant who bakes cupcakes? Why, yes, I would!

(2) Can you realistically maintain different websites?

Think about your capacity in terms of

Time
Technical expertise
Enthusiasm
Or the ability to pay for help

Not many people I speak to truly have the capacity to maintain two different websites. And if you’re not able to look after two sites yourself, this means either one (or both!) will get neglected, or you’ll need to pay someone else to do it for you.

There’s nothing wrong with paying for help, but you need to be realistic and budget for either time or money to make this happen.

(3) How will two websites impact the rest of your marketing efforts?

When multi passionate entrepreneurs ask about having separate websites, they often haven’t considered the rest of their online marketing.

Much as I love to encourage you to have an attractive and effective website, let’s not forget the other pieces of your marketing toolkit.

If you decide to have two websites, are you also intending to have

Two email lists
Two blogs
Two sets of social media accounts
Two email signatures
Two business bank accounts
… and so on?

Whether or not Search Engine Optimization is one of your marketing strategies, if there’s even a small likelihood you’d like to grow your audience with SEO, then having two websites will split make your efforts.

Suddenly, it seems like a lot of work, doesn’t it?

Chances are, as a multi passionate creative, you’re already max’d out in doing your work, promoting it, and having some kind of life. This “split personality” that you’ll create in your marketing life is rarely sustainable.

So, the more that you can keep different aspects together, the better.

(4) Are you avoiding the hard decision to focus on just one thing?

Maybe your dilemma about whether to have two websites is convenient procrastination for a decision that requires more soul searching. Should you, for now at least, focus on just one thing?

I’ve worn many different hats already in my life and I know how it feels to crave variety. I love the sense of possibility that many of my clients embrace, as they transition from one role to another. But having the opportunity to pursue many interests doesn’t mean we should necessarily do it all at once.

The tough-love advice, at least in terms of growing your audience and making an impact, is that it’s much easier to market just one message, than to scatter your efforts.

If you are deeply honest with yourself, your reluctance to go all-in on one of your website ideas might mean you’re hedging your bets, so that you always have a handy excuse for why it didn’t work out.

For help making tough decisions, may I suggest you check out my friend and client Nell Wulfhart, The Decision Coach ?

By now, hopefully you’ve got a sense of how important, and feasible, it is for you to have two websites as a multi passionate entrepreneur.

Let’s look at some practical options for representing your different interests online.

Solution 1: Two businesses, one website, one email list

In this scenario, you’ll be upfront about having two businesses on one website.

For your website design and structure, you can do this by either

Creating top menu items to guide visitors to the content they’re more interested in
Making a landing page where visitors must choose “A” or “B” in order to proceed

For your email subscribers, you’ll build just one email list, but you’ll use features like tagging so that you either separate people when they sign up, or you ask them to tell you their interests later on. ConvertKit has nice options for doing this, and I’m a happy affiliate.

ConvertKit also makes it easy to offer different lead magnets and tag people according to what they picked. I also use MemberVault to host several freebies, and it sends tags to ConvertKit, so I know who is interested in what.

Example: Zakiya Fatin offers coaching, workshops, books, and self-care merchandise. Everything is organized on one website. This works because the number of pages for each offering is small (usually just one), and the subject matter is harmonious.

Solution 2: A dominant website with a minor second site

website for multi passionate entrepreneur

With this option, you’ll decide which activity deserves your main website. Your second website is then a simple calling card. All your marketing efforts, activities, and bio information support your main thing, but the second site sits there quietly, for anyone who is interested.

You still get to be a multi passionate creative, but, arguably, with less exhaustion.

If this appeals to you, I recommend investing in a tool like Squarespace for your primary website, but consider a lower-priced option like Carrd for your ultra-simple second site.

Example: This is exactly what I’ve done with the website you’re looking at. It supports my website design business, which is my full-time job. I also have a second, seldom-updated website that shows my romantic comedy books. But I’m not actively promoting the novels these days (nor am I writing more at present), and so I don’t give this much thought. The second website is a Carrd website, with a super low annual fee. I do have subtle links from one website to the other, just in case anyone is looking for the other thing.

Solution 3: Choose your focus and leave the other for later

I’m sorry for the tough love here. But growing two audiences at the same time is hard. Really hard. In her book, How to Be Everything, Emily Wapnick reminds us that being multi passionate doesn’t mean we have to have our multiple interests going on at the same time.

So it’s okay, for sanity’s sake, to pick your creative focus for now, and park your other interest for later.

To make you feel better about this, I do recommend you register a domain name that reflects your “someday” project. With Google Domains, this will cost you $12 per year and then you can start to use it any time you wish.

Alternatively, if you simply register your own name, or a generic business name, you have the option then to change the content of your website according to your current focus.

Example: Zakiya Fatin Enterprises is a strong but flexible name for a variety of business interests.

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