We know how confusing it can be when you are thinking of creating a website. There are so many options and a lot of new terms. That’s why we’ve put together this simple guide to getting started online that won’t make your head hurt.
We make it as easy to understand as building a house! Keep reading to learn more! <!–more–>
Having a website all starts with an address
The first you need to decide when building a house is where you want to live. This is your address, or your Website URL. This is also called a Domain Name, which is your address online and how people find you. You can buy domain names at a registrar, like GoDaddy. Even website host providers sometimes sell domain names, along with business email hosting. We don’t typically recommend one provider for them all because they are really separate things and you don’t want everything to go down if something goes wrong.
Keeping your website URL up to date (we recommend setting it on Auto Renew) is key to keeping your website online. So when you buy a domain be sure to mark important (or ‘star’ in gmail) their email confirmation and write down your username and logins to keep these safe and secure. Maybe try an online password service like Last Pass or do it the old school way and keep an offline notebook of all your logins – you are going to have a few!
Along with your domain name you might want a matching business email address.
Your website files need to live somewhere
Before you buld your website you need to decide what platform to use.
Once you have your domain name (your address) it’s time to build the land where the house is located (the hosting). There are different platforms to use to build a website just like there are different types of house builders. Which platform you choose will determine who hosts it. On a platform like WordPress, you need to manage your own hosting and maintain your website , but you control it and own it. You can easily outsource this and hire a developer (like us) to manage your website for you. This is like getting an account manager, versus a 1-800 number to find support for your website. It’s nice to have a dedicated person looking after it.
Some companies are like volume builders who offer the design and build together. Platforms like Squarespace, Wix, Weebly host, maintain and help you build it. You save costs but your options are more limited than on a platform like WordPress.
You can read more here about why we recommend WordPress as a website platform to build on.
Then you design and build the house
Now you’ve decided your platform it’s time to design and build it!
To design a website, it requires the content first.
What content is needed to create a website design?
Regardless of whether you have a template to start with or not, you will still need the following content to create a great website
- Branding – logo, colour palette, typography
- Copywriting – how you communicate your main messages through copywriting
- Photography & Graphics – visuals that help people process your content and message more quickly
Just like a real house, it can take a long time to design and build a house from scratch.
Many websites have the same features, and having some help can speed up the whole process. That’s why we offer professionally designed templates which can help guide you with not only design by copywriting and photography!
