With 1,344 residents, Roland is one of the smaller municipalities in Story County. For web design in Roland, the aim is plain: look trustworthy to someone who has never met you. Aria builds and hosts the website for $89 a month, domain and business email included; within 5 business days it is ready on a temporary link, and you pay only after you approve it.

No setup fee: you only pay the $89 monthly fee, after you approve your website.

What kind of businesses Roland has

ZIP code 50236, which covers Roland and the area around it, had 29 business establishments with employees in 2023. Among them:

  • Landscaping companies: 3. Their website should show maintenance plans and one-time projects on separate pages, the neighborhoods you cover and a quote form.

In Story County, the Census counted 2,162 businesses with employees and 6,013 without a payroll in 2023; the second group is where a simple, affordable website changes the most. 45 hotels, inns and other lodging operate in Story County, 2.5 times what the national mix would predict. In that line of work, travelers compare rooms, rates and location; a good site gives customers rooms with real photos, amenities, location and how to reserve by email or through your booking channel. The jobs Roland residents hold are mostly in education, health care and social assistance (22.6%) and retail trade (10.6%).

Roland households and how they shop

Story County had 101,291 residents in 2025 and 15 incorporated municipalities. For a city as small as Roland, the county figures are more reliable: households have a median income of $69,685, and half the residents are older than 26.9. Broadband reaches 80.4% of homes, and 8.0% of households are online only through a phone plan. 55.5% of households own their home.

The roads, towns and places around Roland

Within a short drive of Roland you find Story City (4.5 miles, pop. 3,382), McCallsburg (5.7 miles, pop. 353) and Randall (7.1 miles, pop. 158). The city spreads over 1.2 square miles of land, with roughly 1,148 people per square mile. Story County’s county seat is Nevada, 10 miles to the south. Ames, a city of 68,220, is 11 miles southwest. Ames Municipal Airport (AMW) is 14 miles southwest of Roland in a straight line. A service area page that lists the towns you cover, from Roland to McCallsburg and Randall, answers the first question many customers have: do you come to me?

By the 1991-2020 normals of the Ames Municipal Airport weather station (14 miles from Roland), July highs average 84°F and January lows average 11°F. Precipitation totals about 36 inches a year, with June the wettest month. About 17 days a year hit 90°F or more. Cold winters bring heating calls, snow plowing and winter car trouble, and the first freeze sends everyone searching at once. If you offer emergency or same-week service in bad weather, say so in plain words and make the contact form fast to fill in.

Census facts about Roland

1,344Residents in 2025Census Bureau estimate
−1.1%Growth since 2020Iowa: +1.5%
$185,900Median value of a homeIowa: $208,000
29Businesses with employees in local ZIP codesZIP Code Business Patterns 2023

Little has changed in the head count: 1,359 in 2020, 1,344 in 2025. The high point was 2021, with 1,368 residents. Iowa as a whole changed +1.5% in the same period. Without much growth, the customers are mostly the same people every year; the website is how they remember you.

Running a website from Roland: the Iowa rules

These are some of the Iowa and federal rules a small business with a website runs into:

  • Iowa’s state sales tax rate is 6%, and many cities and counties add a 1% local option sales tax on top of it. Iowa Department of Revenue
  • If you send marketing email from your new business address, the CAN-SPAM rules (16 CFR Part 316) apply, including an easy way for people to opt out. 16 CFR Part 316

General information, not legal advice: confirm the details with the agency that handles each item.

What happens after you sign up

Aria is based in Curitiba, Brazil, and has built websites for small businesses since 2008. There is no Aria office in Roland, and you don’t need one: sign-up, material and approval all happen online.

  1. Fill in the sign-up form (about 5 minutes) and send your material by email.
  2. Review the website on a temporary link, ready within 5 business days, and request any changes.
  3. Approve it, pay the first month, and the website goes live on your domain together with your business email.

Later on, you send changes by email (a new price, a new photo, a new service) and the team makes them, with no extra charge.

Plan$89/monthNo setup fee: you only pay the $89 monthly fee, after you approve your website. No lock-in contract.
  • Business website or online store, same price
  • Your domain, registered and renewed by us (or the one you already have)
  • Business email on your domain: 5 GB, webmail and spam filtering
  • Hosting, SSL certificate and daily backups
  • Changes to text, photos and prices, requested by email
  • Ready within 5 business days on a temporary link
I want the $89 plan

Roland web design FAQ

Does a small business in Roland need a website?

Yes, because the competition is county-wide: Story County counts 6,013 nonemployer businesses and 2,162 with employees (2023). Being findable outside Roland is the point of the website.

Do you have an office in Roland?

No. Everything happens online and by email, from Curitiba, Brazil; you see the whole website on a temporary link before approving it.

Will people in Gilbert and Nevada see that I work there too?

Yes. The website can carry a service area section naming Gilbert, Nevada, Story City and any other town you cover; you send the list by email.

Is there a setup fee?

No. No setup fee: you only pay the $89 monthly fee, after you approve your website. There is no lock-in contract either: you can end the service whenever you need.

Get your Roland business online for $89 a month

You approve the website before the first payment, and there is no setup fee.

Start my sign-up
Sources for the numbers on this page
  • Population figures for Roland: Census Bureau Vintage 2025 estimates. Households, income, commuting and housing: American Community Survey 2020-2024, 5-year, county figures where the town estimate is too uncertain. Businesses: ZIP Code and County Business Patterns 2023 and Nonemployer Statistics 2023. Distances: 2025 Gazetteer, straight line.
  • Climate: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020 (station USW00094989).
  • Founding year, nickname, elevation, waters, colleges, hospitals, airports and parks: Wikidata (item Q1925777), retrieved on October 30, 2026; distances are straight-line.
  • The Iowa rules come from the official sources linked in that section (checked October 30, 2026); county seats from the USGS National Atlas.