It’s the modern age and anybody can create a website. You don’t need coding, design, or development experience at all, and you don’t even need a lot of money.
You only need three things…
1. Domain name
2. Hosting service (Siteground, Bluehost, GoDaddy)
3. Website Platform (WordPress, Squarespace, Wix)
Disclaimer: This article contains affiliate links where I may receive a small commission at no cost to you if you decide to create an awesome website. These are the tools I fully recommend and have personally used.
1. Domain Name
Domain names are how people find your website. Facebook.com is an example of the Facebook domain name and how users identify the website.
How to get a domain name
Simply go to one of the many domain name selling platforms and make the purchase. Purchasing domain names are quick, easy, and typically very cheap.
For ease of use and integration, I recommend purchasing a domain name from the same place you purchase your hosting. Siteground for example is a great service where you can purchase a domain name and hosting all in one.
Another good option you can use is Google Domains. I have used this in the past and it is great but can be difficult to fully integrate with your preferred hosting platform. There are some extra steps you have to take to make sure everything goes smoothly if purchasing your domain and hosting from different places so I recommend purchasing from the same place.
Pick a good domain name
Try to get a domain name that closely resembles the name of your business. Facebook identifies as Facebook and therefore uses facebook.com as a domain name and not besttruckparts.com. It just doesn’t make sense to use a different domain name from your intended business/brand.
As many more people are purchasing domain names these days, it is a good idea to make sure your preferred website name is available before naming your business, otherwise, you will have to pay a very high price from the person who already owns it.
Try to get a “.com” if you can as they are the most recognized website extensions and tend to rank better when people search. Other domain extensions such as .net work too but ultimately will require a bit more effort to be recognized (nothing a little marketing can’t fix).
Try typing in a domain name of your preference in the domain checker below.
2. Hosting
You need a web host in order for your domain name to work. Think of a domain name as your car exterior and the hosting service as the engine. Without an engine, you technically have a “car” but you can’t go anywhere. A website host works the same way, it is your engine. Without a host, your domain name isn’t visible to anybody.
There are many great hosting options but I believe Siteground and Bluehost are the premier options due to having the best up-times on the market, great speed, and top-rated customer service.
If you purchase a domain name on the same hosting platform it should automatically prompt you to add a hosting service or vice versa.
Siteground has three hosting services which range from $6.99 per month to $14.99 per month. Bluehost is a bit cheaper starting at $3.95 per month for their basic plan and $13.95 per month for the pro plan.
If you are a blogger just starting out I recommend a cheaper plan as you can always upgrade later.
Website Platform (WordPress)
Now that you have your domain and host, you can officially access your website. Unfortunately, there will be nothing there because you haven’t added any HTML/CSS code!
Don’t know how to code? Don’t worry, WordPress is here. WordPress is an open-source content management system (CMS) that allows you to easily design a website without any coding knowledge. Not just any website either, WordPress helps create really beautiful websites that are functional to do whatever you wish.
The best part about WordPress is that it is free and easily integrated with most hosts (including Siteground). Simply sign up with a WordPress.org account and sign in with your credentials on your hosting platform to link it to your domain.
Now the design starts to take place. You can use one of the many free themes available on WordPress or you can purchase one on Envato Market. I recommend purchasing a premium theme because they offer many amazing features that are easy to use and truly allow you to take your website to the next level. Most premium themes come with a one-time license of $50 which is an amazing deal for what it can do.
All themes will give you instructions on how to install it on your WordPress website and you can start designing your needs.
You will have to learn a few things
Admittedly starting a website takes at least a little effort. Signing up, linking, installing, and designing your website through WordPress and your host may seem a little confusing at first but don’t be overwhelmed.
There are tutorials for everything!
This is why I love Siteground in particular. They have a tutorial for anything from selecting a domain, hosting, and managing the WordPress platform. Confused about integrating WordPress with Siteground? Check out their short and easy to understand instructions.
You have all the tools!
Now that you have a domain, a host, integrated WordPress, and installed a theme, you are ready to start creating content!
Spend some time to play around with your theme and all the elements that come included (there are many!). WordPress truly allows you to bring your imagination and creativity to life. Where other similar platforms such as Wix and Squarespace limit your ability to create, WordPress makes everything possible.
You don’t have to pay a developer thousands of dollars to create a great website when you can do it yourself for $100. Along the way, you will learn the process and be able to manage everything by yourself. When starting a business it is crucial to cut costs and you can do so greatly by creating your own website using Siteground and WordPress.
Don’t forget to secure your website!
Encrypt your website with SSL.
In your browser search bar, you will typically see “HTTP” and “HTTPS” before a website. HTTPS on websites such as https://jacobpippenger.com/ for example means the site is secured (indicated by the lock) making it very hard for the data transmitted to be read by others.
This is incredibly important is you plan on operating an online store or any sort of feature where users input data. It is best to be secured in today’s age and it is incredibly easy with Siteground. Find out how to get secured.
