5 Step Process to Create a Website

Making a website can seem daunting, but once you know the steps, anyone can do it. Here is the 5 step process to create a website, the right way. Follow these steps, and you will have your own website, fast.

The 5-Step Process to Create a Website

It’s temping to take short-cuts and skip right to adding words and images to your website. But you need to think about every step below if you want a good website. We have the definitive guide that covers all the topics below, in our free ebook, if you need more detail.

Step 1: Choose your hosting company

Your website needs to live somewhere. You need to pay a company (called a hosting company) to “host”, or store, your website. There are free hosting companies, but in the website world, you get what you pay for. If you are starting an online store or making a portfolio, or anything professional, do it right and pay for a good hosting company. It will pay off in the long run because you will have a faster website, no branding on your website, and better SEO.

As part of our Care Plans, we offer easy and straightforward hosting, in addition to looking after your website and keeping it safe. So, you know, that’s an option.

Step 2: Choose a domain name

Let’s pretend your house is at 123 4th St. If someone wants to come to your house, you give them your address, and they know where to go. A domain name is your address on the internet. You can pick anything you want, but only if someone else hasn’t taken it. For example, you might want to get the domain cutekittens.com, but you can’t have it, because someone else beat you to it (sorry).

A website needs a domain, just like a house needs an address: so people can find you. You need to use a “domain registrar” to reserve your domain name. You need to pay for your domain every year. It should cost around $14 a year. Use a service like NameCheap to search for and register your domain. Just go to their website, search for a domain name, and they will tell you if it’s taken or not, and even offer up alternatives you can pick from. Once you’ve purchased a domain, connect it to your hosting. Talk to your hosting company for help with this, but it’s super easy.

Step 3: Choose a website design

Every website needs some style, and yours does too! Ask your hosting company how to install WordPress. WordPress if a free tool you can use on your website that makes it easy to add words, pictures and designs to a website, without any coding. WordPress has thousands of free designs (called “themes”) that speed up the website building process. The most customizable and easiest to use theme is called Zakra. It is easy to change without coding, and has lots of add-on features other themes don’t have. Download Zakra from their website, and add it to your WordPress website. For more details on this step, check out my free, in-depth tutorial.

Step 4: Add words, images, and video

Your website is set up, but it’s boring right now, because there is nothing on it. Now you need to add the content that makes your website special. Add as many pages as you want, put content on them, and design it the way you want.

Step 5: Launch

It’s time to launch your website. But wait! Before you launch, triple-check everything:

If you type in your domain name (from step 2), does your website come up?
Are there any spelling mistakes?
Do all the links work? Yes, test every single one.
Are the images working?
Has someone else proofread the website?

Once you get through all that, you are ready to launch. All you have to do is share your new domain name with friends, family, coworkers, anyone! Send out emails, make postcards, post it on social media. You are now the proud owner of a piece of the internet!

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