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WordPress is probably one of
the more comfortable and more accessible content systems to work in. It
presents a clean and nearly foolproof interface, unlimited, customizable
options for sites of any kind, and is fundamentally good for any digital
marketing efforts.
That said, it does present some learning curve, and the top WordPress websites implement quite a few plugins and features to get the most out of their websites. Here, I’ll lay the steps to create and launch your WordPress website.
1. Choose a Domain
The first part of the journey is choosing the domain
and the TLD. The URL will be what people type in to visit your website. The
rule of thumb here is to keep the name relatively short, match your brand name
or as close to it as possible, and something that will be easy to remember for
your visitors.
I also suggest that you buy the domain name when you
buy your web hosting, as you’ll more than likely save more money that way. If
not, that’s fine, too!
When you’re buying the domain, you have the option to
choose the TLD. The TLD, or top-level domain, is the suffix at the end of your
website’s name. Usually, people choose .com, .net, .edu, or a country-specific
TLD like .uk.
2. Buy Web Hosting
As the name implies, web hosting “hosts” your
websites and allows others to see it. Web hosting companies generally own and
operate a large number of servers.
They exist as a way for you to keep your website
running without having to do a lot of maintenance and understand the
intricacies of web server management.
In exchange for their services, you essentially pay rent for the space your website operates. There are a number of these services, like SiteGround, who are willing to do this for a decent rate.
The type of hosting depends on what you may be using it
for. For example, if you’re running a blog, you may want to use Shared hosting.
It doesn’t require much space to run, and it’s usually cheaper.
On the other hand, if you’re expecting to make a lot of
transactions, you may want a virtual private server. It’s more expensive, but
it can handle the bandwidth that you’d need.
3. Install WordPress!
If you’re using WordPress to create a website or
websites, there are several ways to do it. Fortunately, most web hosting
companies allow for a one-click approach. This is generally what most novices
want to stick to, as it can get complicated pretty quickly.
Once it’s all set up, you can log in with your
credentials and get into making the website your own. If you want to log into
it without having to go through your website’s host, it will be directly found
at www.yourwebsiteaddress.com/wp-login.php.
4. Finding a WordPress Theme
If you’re wondering how to build a WordPress website, most people who are just getting started hit the ground running here. It’s at this point where your creative juices can get flowing.
It can be tempting to go through a variety of menus, settings, and plugins, but you should probably start to figure out the look and feel. WordPress templates are already coded for immediate use, meaning that you don’t need any programming skills to get something sharp.
On the one hand, there are the free WordPress themes.
There are hundreds of them to choose from, and they range from news site themes
all the way to complex eCommerce websites that can handle hundreds of unique
products.
As you’d expect, they’re not always completely plug and
play. Some may require plugins for them to work correctly; others may require a
fee in which to unlock all features.
If you bounce around from theme to theme, you’ll find
that there will always be different formatting changes that you’ll have to
retool. Paid items usually offer more documentation, support, and more
configuration options.
5. Installing the Theme
Here, we’ll expand a bit on actually installing both
free and premium WordPress themes. If you’d like to go the free route, you will
need to go to “Appearance” and then select “Themes” and
finally “Add New” to enter the bank of free WordPress themes.
It’s a little easy to be overwhelmed with all of the
choices, but don’t fret, you’ll have a nifty small search bar at the top.
After you’ve found one, you can click
“Install,” and it’ll be saved in your files. To see it in action,
you’ll have to go to click “Activate.” It’s in the same place where
“Install” is, so you won’t have to go hunting for it.
Premium WordPress themes can work the same way, though
they’re also third-party, so you may have to go to the website and purchase it
from there. Then, you’ll download it to WordPress as a .zip file.
This is done by finding the file on your computer,
going back to WordPress, and going through the steps you did for the free
theme. Instead, you’ll want to go to “Appearance,”
“Themes,” and click on “Add New.”
Finally, you’ll click on “Upload Theme” and
select the file from your computer.
5. Configuration
Of course, you’ll want to make some changes to your theme once you have it installed. The top WordPress websites have hundreds of configurations, settings changes, and little tweaks to make it stand from the pack.
Even if you don’t want to change too much, you should
at least get familiar with all of the buttons. Colors allow you to get your
color website’s color palate right, “Add Menus” will enable you to
direct visitors around your site.
“Widgets” allow you to add website content to
a specific area of your sites – such as the header or sidebar.
7. Your First Page (or Post)
The first thing that you should know is that there are
two types of pages that you can create. One is called “Page,” and the
other is “Post.” The first is the more traditional website page.
Things like “About Us,” “Contact Us,” and stuff like that
are found here.
“Post” pages are usually relegated to blogs. The great thing about both of these types is that you won’t see too much a difference working with them, though this may depend on the theme that you’re using.
Page Builders also change the look and field, though,
with a bit of effort and diligence, you’ll be fine firing off pages as you see
fit. Publishing them is done through a click of a button on the right side
after you’re done inputting your content.
Using WordPress to create varied website options can be
challenging, though easy once you have the actual technical details and theme
picked out. It’s the broadest used content management for websites, and it’s
always updated to make using the service more comfortable for those who may not
have a tech background.
Of course, there’s much more to designing in WordPress,
but fortunately, there are limitless resources that go into fine detail on how
to do everything you’ll find inside.
However, this should be a very decent kicking off point to how to build a WordPress website.
Comment below on how your experience was and feel free to ask any questions.
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