How to Build a Free Website on Canva (Even If You’re Not Tech-Savvy)

If you’re anything like me, you’ve been around the sun a few times and know that life has its fair share of challenges. Experience teaches us resilience — we learn to face many setbacks with confidence — yet some hurdles still feel a little intimidating.

I remember spending nearly three hours twelve years ago following a YouTube tutorial just to build my first website. Back then, the process felt endless and confusing. Today, thanks to incredible technological advancements, you can create a professional-looking website in minutes, though not without a few limitations. Platforms like HostGator, DreamHost, and Hover make getting started easier than ever. And yet, even with all these tools at our fingertips, that tiny whisper of fear can still creep in — the one that says, “What if I’m not ready?”

Fear often appears at the exact moment you’re about to take a bold step forward. Whether it’s launching a business, publishing your first product, or creating your own website, that inner voice whispers: “What if I’m not ready?”

At Hippos to Horses Marketing, we understand that feeling. You’re not just building a business, you’re raising a family, managing daily responsibilities, and striving for financial freedom. The pressure is real, but so is your potential.

Here’s the truth: fear loses its grip once you take action. One of the most empowering steps you can take as an entrepreneurial parent starting an online business is to build your own website — your digital home and the foundation for your brand’s growth. Whether you’re exploring website design for beginners or ready to launch your first service, this guide will show you how to move from hesitation to action — with clarity, confidence, and purpose.

If you’ve ever wondered whether building your own website is worth it (and if it’s something you can actually do), keep reading. This post will walk you through the mindset, tools, and simple steps to turn your idea into a real online presence — even if tech isn’t your thing.

Why Fear Holds Entrepreneurial Parents Back

Fear or faith —you get to decide for yourself. I often do things despite the fear, and sometimes I’m amazed by the results. Other times, I realise I should have listened to that still small voice saying “Don’t.”

I advocate and, hopefully, live the hashtag #businesswithhumility because, for me, humility means being willing to learn from others regardless of status, age, ethnicity, or gender. It also means learning from our mistakes. Confidence is a skill we can all develop, and as entrepreneurial parents with a growth mindset, we’re lifelong learners by nature.

Fear thrives in uncertainty and sometimes in pride. It often keeps us from showing our vulnerability or admitting that we’re still developing new skills. Those doubts sound familiar, don’t they?

• “I’m not tech-savvy.”
• “I don’t have time.”
• “It’s too expensive.”
• “I’ll build a website later when my business grows.”

But here’s the truth: your website is how your business grows. At Hippos to Horses Marketing, we believe every entrepreneurial parent who wants to start an online business from home needs a website, a central hub that reflects your story, showcases your brand, and builds trust with your audience.

Think of your website as your online storefront, the place where customers meet you, understand your purpose, and decide to work with you. It signals professionalism, credibility, and permanence.

Unlike social media pages, your website is genuinely yours. Algorithms can change overnight, but your domain remains your digital real estate, a space you own and control.

So instead of letting fear delay your progress, take small, confident steps forward. Build your own website, one page at a time, and watch your courage and your business grow.

Starting Simple: Build Your First Website with Canva

As entrepreneurs, we’re always experimenting — testing, learning, and refining as we grow. If building a website feels overwhelming, start small. You don’t need a developer or any coding skills to create something beautiful and functional. There are plenty of free website builders out there, but my top choice is Canva (and no, this isn’t sponsored).

For many users, building a website with Canva is the easiest way to get online fast — especially for entrepreneurial parents who need a simple, visually appealing space to showcase their business or passion project. Canva’s drag-and-drop interface makes design effortless, even if you’ve never built a website before. Its professionally designed, mobile-responsive templates help you launch a polished website that looks great on any device.

If you already use Canva for your social media posts or brand visuals, your logos, colour palettes, and designs automatically carry over, keeping your website consistent with your brand. You can even collaborate in real time with family or team members and, if you’re a Pro user, take advantage of AI-powered tools like Magic Write and Magic Media to generate text and images quickly.

The best part? Canva offers a free plan, allowing you to publish your site on my. canva.site subdomain making it a cost-effective, fast, and beginner-friendly way to build a simple website with Canva while balancing family life and business growth. Canva makes starting your digital journey simple, but its real strength lies in the features that set it apart from other website builders.

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Why Choose Canva Websites for Your Site

As busy entrepreneurial parents balancing business and family life, you need a website that’s fast, beautiful, and stress-free. If you’ve been thinking about building a website in Canva, here’s why it’s one of the simplest, most affordable ways to get started — and why Canva Websites make perfect sense for entrepreneurs like you.

User-Friendly & Intuitive

No coding required: Canva’s drag-and-drop editor lets anyone arrange images, text, buttons and sections without writing a line of code.
Simple interface with almost no learning curve — ideal if you’re juggling business, kids, and everything in between.

Templates as a Starting Point

Choose from a wide range of professionally designed, mobile-responsive templates to avoid starting from scratch.
Customise them easily to reflect your brand, colours, fonts and visuals — keeping everything consistent across your website, social posts and email marketing.

Quick to Launch

Go from blank to live website in just a few hours — perfect when you have limited windows between school runs and bedtime.
Built-in hosting (including a free subdomain) means fewer technical hurdles and more momentum.

Affordable to Start

Canva offers a free plan allowing you to build and publish a website on a canva.site subdomain with zero upfront cost. SiteBuilderReport+1
You only upgrade to Pro (for custom domain, premium visuals and AI tools) when you’re ready to scale.

Consistent Branding

Your Brand kit (logo, colours, fonts) ties in seamlessly, meaning your site mirrors the look and feel of your social media and other assets.
If you already use Canva for graphics and social posts, your assets are ready to go.

Mobile‐Responsive

All Canva website templates automatically adjust for desktop, tablet and mobile — ensuring your visitors have a smooth experience no matter the device.
Basic Analytics
Canva provides insights like visitor counts, engagement and traffic sources — enough to monitor progress early on without being overwhelmed by data.

Limitations of a Canva Website

We all know there’s no such thing as a free lunch — and the same applies to free Canva websites. While Canva is an excellent starting point, it does come with a few limitations. In truth, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. A free Canva site gives you the confidence to share your content on the World Wide Web with minimal risk and helps you gain clarity on the kind of business you want to build.

If you’re still exploring what type of business fits your lifestyle and goals, download your free Clarity Tool to help you define your online business idea. As your business grows, it’s essential to understand where Canva’s simplicity may start to feel restrictive and when you might need to move to a more advanced platform.

Restricted Customisation

Canva websites are template-based, which makes them easy to use but less flexible for advanced design needs.

You can adjust colours, fonts, and layouts, but you can’t access deeper design controls, custom code, or plug-ins.
This limits how much you can tailor your site’s functionality or create unique brand experiences beyond the pre-set templates.

2. No Built-In Blog

Canva doesn’t currently offer a native blogging feature, a major limitation for those who rely on content marketing.

Regular blogging helps improve SEO, drive organic traffic, and build authority in your niche.
Without it, you’ll need to create individual pages or use a separate platform for your blog, which can fragment your content strategy.

3. Limited SEO Tools

If you’re planning to build long-term visibility, Canva’s SEO capabilities are basic.

You can edit page titles and descriptions, but you can’t implement advanced optimisation features like schema markup, custom URLs, or dedicated analytics plug-ins.
This makes Canva less competitive against platforms like WordPress when it comes to ranking in Google search results.

4. Domain Dependence

Free Canva sites use a my. canva.site subdomain, such as yourbrand.my.canva.site.

Subdomains can appear less professional and may not rank as strongly in search results.
Upgrading to Canva Pro allows you to connect your own domain (for example,yourbrand.com), which improves credibility and gives your brand a stronger online identity.

5. Not Ideal for Scaling

Canva works best for simple portfolios, landing pages, or small business websites — not for growing e-commerce or content-heavy businesses.

It lacks features like integrated payment systems, product databases, or advanced navigation structures.
As your business expands, adding these capabilities often means migrating to a more powerful content management system such as WordPress or Shopify.

While Canva gives you the confidence to take that crucial first step online, it’s designed as a launchpad, not a long-term solution. As your entrepreneurial journey evolves and your audience grows, you’ll eventually need more flexibility, ownership, and control than a free platform can offer. That’s where owning your own website becomes essential.

Looking Ahead: Why Owning Your Own Website Matters

Your Canva site is a great starting point, simple, functional, and empowering. But as your business evolves, you’ll eventually want a digital space that’s fully yours. Hippos to Horses Marketing will be launching a course that will guide you on how to start your online business. Sign up here to join the waiting list

Owning your own website gives you long-term control, credibility, and room to grow. Here’s why it matters:

You Own Your Digital Real Estate
When you register your own domain (for example,com), you own your content, audience, and data. Social platforms and third-party sites can change or disappear — but your website remains yours.
It Builds Credibility
A professional domain name shows potential clients you’re serious about your business and confident in your brand. It instantly elevates how you’re perceived online.
SEO Creates Visibility
A self-hosted website allows you to optimise for search engines so new customers can find you organically. It’s one of the most effective long-term marketing strategies — and it doesn’t cost extra per click.
You Control the Customer Journey
With your own site, you decide how visitors experience your brand — from blog posts and videos to newsletters and landing pages. You can guide them seamlessly from interest to purchase.
You Unlock Monetisation
Your website can become a revenue hub. Offer digital downloads, launch online courses, or build a membership community — all within your own branded ecosystem.

Cost-Efficient Ways to Build a Professional Website

You don’t need to spend thousands to own your site. Here are affordable, scalable options suited to entrepreneurial parents:

1. WordPress (Self-Hosted with HostGator or DreamHost)

Why it’s excellent:Total flexibility with thousands of themes and plug-ins.
Estimated cost:Around €50–€60 per year for hosting through HostGator or DreamHost, plus €10–15 for a domain.
Best for:Bloggers, course creators, and business owners planning to scale.

2. Squarespace

Why it’s excellent:All-in-one solution with elegant templates and built-in hosting.
Estimated cost:€15–25 per month.
Best for:Entrepreneurs who want a professional design without managing tech.

3. Shopify

Why it’s excellent:Designed specifically for e-commerce.
Estimated cost:€30 per month for the basic plan.
Best for:Product-based businesses selling physical or digital goods.

4. Wix or Webflow

Why it’s excellent:Visual site builders with creative freedom.
Estimated cost:€10–20 per month.
Best for:Freelancers, coaches, and service providers wanting modern layouts.

5. Continue with Canva + a Custom Domain via Hover

Why it’s excellent:Keeps setup simple while looking professional.
How:Purchase a custom domain through Hover and connect it to your Canva site for a polished, branded web address at minimal cost.

From Fear to Action: Take the First Step

The hardest part of building your website isn’t the technology. The challenging part is your mindset and your willingness to take action — in fear, in faith, or with confidence — but taking that action anyway.

If you’re anything like me, there was a time when you heard an idea that stirred something in you, but you brushed it off. Maybe you didn’t think you were capable, or you told yourself it wasn’t for you. Then one day, that same idea returns, and this time, it lands differently. You realise you’re ready to learn, to grow, and to make it happen.

“When the student is ready, the teacher appears.” At face value, that sentence may sound passive, but it isn’t. The teacher appears because the student takes action by actively seeking knowledge and being open to growth.

So maybe that’s why you’re here today. You’re seeking that proverbial teacher, and you’ve come across this blog because you’re ready to take that next step.

You don’t need to be an expert, and you definitely don’t need everything to be perfect before you begin. Even Apple and other leading tech companies don’t wait for perfection — they launch a minimum viable product (MVP), gather feedback, and keep improving. You can take the same approach with your website: start simple, learn as you go, and refine it over time. You can do the same with your website, and pretty much any new skill that you are learning.

If fear says, “I’m not ready,” answer back, “I’m learning as I go. “Growth mindset in action and addressing self-limiting beliefs.

Every successful entrepreneurial parent began exactly where you are, balancing work, family, and a dream. The only difference between hesitation and growth is a single small step.

Your website doesn’t need to be flawless; it just needs to exist. Once it’s live, you can improve, evolve, and grow alongside it. Remember, progress always beats perfection.

Confidence in Action: From Fear to Freedom in Your Online Business Journey

So, what are you going to do now? You really have only two options, and both involve action. You can do nothing and stay where you were before reading this, or you can take the leap and start building your online business today.

When you take that leap, even with your self-limiting beliefs shouting in the background, you’re being intentional. You’re choosing progress over perfection and proving that confidence grows through consistent action.

As an entrepreneurial parent, when you show your children the website you’ve created—whether it’s built on Canva or a self-hosted platform—they see more than a design. They see confidence, creativity, and the joy that comes from building something that’s truly your own.

Open Canva today, choose a simple template, and start your digital home. When you’re ready, claim your domain through Hover, move to scalable hosting with HostGator or DreamHost, and keep building.

Your dream deserves visibility. Your story deserves a platform. And your next chapter begins with one click.

To keep learning and building with purpose, sign up for our newsletter and continue your journey from fear to freedom.