(Last updated on: March 2nd, 2023)
Setting up your WordPress website can seem like a daunting task if you’ve never done it before. Luckily, one of the best things about WordPress is that it’s so user-friendly and intuitive. Just about anyone can do it!
While the technical part of setting up a WordPress website isn’t complicated, knowing what to put on your site and how to get it up and running can be difficult
Reading: How to create a simple website in wordpress
But before we get to the steps, let’s clarify what a WordPress website is, why to choose one and what to consider before you start building a website with WordPress.
- What is a WordPress website?
- Why choose WordPress to build a website?
- WordPress.com vs. WordPress.org
- How to create a WordPress website
What is a WordPress website?
WordPress is a free and open source -CMS (Content Management System) written in PHP and coupled with MySQL / MariaDB database. Simply put, WordPress is a free and open platform, a website builder that allows you to create simple and straightforward websites for your businesses and blogs.
There are many features in WordPress, including templates, you can easily Enter your information and create a website, plugins, add-ons, various themes and much more.
There are other ways to create websites, but WordPress has always been the most popular and widely used open source Website building platform. Wondering why so many people choose WordPress over any other platform?
Why choose WordPress to build a website?
Although WordPress was originally conceived as a platform for blogging and related publishing, it is now a platform on which one third of all websites are based. This is thanks to the numerous benefits that WordPress brings to website owners, such as from small businesses to ecommerce stores. Whatever you choose, WordPress can be customized to accommodate it.
Ease of Use
A WordPress site can be up and running in minutes, even if you have no technical knowledge. All you need is a domain name and a web hosting account.
Themes and Plugins
While WordPress themes give you a wide range of options for the look and feel of your website, plugins are the specialized features that which are geared to specific needs of your website, such as shopping carts, contact forms, galleries and more.
High Ranking
Because WordPress sites are so large in number and update content regularly, they include plugins and a variety of tools to help them plan and optimized content – they often rank higher than websites not built on WordPress.
Aside from these benefits, people have other reasons to choose WordPress, including the fact that WordPress websites mobile responsive, a built-in blog, and great customer service.
Now that you’re familiar with the benefits of having a WordPress website, you should also know not to confuse WordPress.com with WordPress.org – both are they different Learn more below.
WordPress.org vs. WordPress.com – Which to Choose?
People often mistakenly believe that .org and .com the same are the same wordpress.
WordPress.org is if you host your website on WordPress, which means you have complete freedom to change and customize the web design – it is recommended if you are familiar with how WordPress works. You can get the most customizable website builder when you host your own website.
See also: How to Get a Professional Email Address With a Custom Domain
On the other hand, WordPress.com is when WordPress.com takes care of your website for you, including hosting. This way you have less freedom in your web design. However, it’s easier and simpler – recommended if you’re a newbie.
Now that you know the background of WordPress and how easy it can be for you to create a website, let’s learn how how to create a WordPress website.
How to create a WordPress website
There are ten easy steps to get started with WordPress. Just follow these and you’ll be up and running in no time.
Step 1: Define your website.
Before you do anything When it comes to WordPress, you need to choose your niche. Attempting to develop a WordPress website over something that has been done 10,000 times will not be beneficial. If your WordPress site isn’t for an existing business, make sure you choose a theme that really interests you so it doesn’t feel like a chore to update your site now or months later.
Step 2: Choose a domain name.
Your domain name should be directly related to the niche you chose in step 1 and it should be a name be something that users can remember so easily they never forget. Keyword research can also be helpful. Stuck on a certain name but .com is taken? Try .net or .co.
Step 3: Get web hosting.
Your next step is to find a reliable web host to host your website. Here at HostPapa, we offer industry-leading servers and infrastructure. Our multilingual customer support is available via chat, email and phone; We also maintain an extensive knowledge base and video tutorials. What about a shared vs. dedicated server?
Shared web hosting is fine in most cases and is very popular with WordPress users. Learn more about types of web hosting below.
Shared Hosting
Shared hosting is the most basic type of web hosting. It’s like renting an apartment with one or more roommates – with web hosting the number of sharers is up to a few thousand. When you buy shared hosting, your company’s domain is hosted on the server and all websites that share the same hosting as you.
The most significant advantage of shared hosting is the cost. Since the same web hosting service is offered to thousands of parties, the cost of the server is shared and service providers can offer very affordable plans. Secondly, shared hosting is very simple and straightforward, best for beginners.
While shared hosting is good, it can sometimes have a bad neighbor effect that causes slow speeds or downtime. Even the customer service line gets blocked. Another disadvantage is that you cannot customize your web environment, which would affect other websites. Overall, shared hosting is good.
VPS hosting
While shared hosting is like renting an apartment with roommates, VPS hosting is more like renting a unit such as an apartment building.
VPS hosting is far more desirable than shared hosting as it offers several advantages including reliability, better and more even resource allocation, flexibility and the ability to limit the number of hosts available to you increase standing resources.
VPS hosting can be much more expensive than shared hosting, depending on the web hosting provider.
Dedicated hosting
Dedicated hosting is usually chosen by large companies with multiple websites. With dedicated hosting, you have your own server and enjoy all its benefits. There are no bad neighbors, no security risk, and total freedom of customization.
See also: 4 Easy Steps to Create & Add a Watermark in Lightroom
If you’re new to this, dedicated hosting isn’t for you – there’s a massive jump in price and technology that’s not worth it because you have extensive know-how. Second, since you put all your eggs in one basket, a small security crash on your server could corrupt the entire server, including your entire website and information. The VPN service can help you by increasing your overall security.
Besides these three basic hosting types, there are others including cloud hosting, reseller hosting and self-service hosting. A word of advice, if you are building a website from scratch for your new business, consider using shared hosting and go from there.
Step 4: Install WordPress.
At the risk of stating the obvious, once you’ve found your web host and domain name, it is time to install WordPress and get started. Installing WordPress at HostPapa is incredibly easy, taking just minutes with our Softaculous script installer.
Step 5: Choose your WordPress theme.
Next you need to decide on a theme for your WordPress site. Thousands and thousands of themes are available, ranging from absolutely free to hundreds of dollars. When choosing your theme, try to make sure it makes sense for both your website’s theme and the layout and content you plan to publish.
Among premium WordPress themes for WordPress – Themes you will find a number of ready-made options for different themes. These include business, services, beauty, fashion, photography, education, food and many others. Any of them can become an excellent base for the website you’ve always dreamed of.
One of the most popular premium WordPress themes is Monstroid2 – a very lightweight multipurpose theme with a drag-and-drop drop builder.
Step 6: Install WordPress plugins.
A WordPress plugin is a program written in the PHP scripting language , which adds specific functionality or services to a WordPress website. WordPress plugins provide your WordPress site with a high level of customization and flexibility, as well as valuable features and tools for your visitors, such as: B. adding live chat.
You can’t start with many plugins, but the longer you use WordPress, the more you get the most out of your website. Some of our favorites are JetPack and Yoast SEO. You can find the option for plugins in your WordPress admin dashboard.
Step 7: Complete your administration pages.
Important pages are your contact page, about Page, Privacy and Disclaimer Page.Get these out of the way before you focus on adding content to your site – after all, it’s easier to add them now than later when you’ve finished publishing all the other, more exciting stuff! These pages also serve to protect you and your website visitors.
Step 8: Publish your WordPress website.
After completing the important Once you’ve published administration pages, it’s time to add some interesting content. Whatever your niche, you want to make sure you’re adding lots of quality content to your readers. Make your pages visually rich, and also make it a priority to add new content regularly. If you blog, add at least one image to each post. Not only does this give your readers something to share on social media, but it also makes your content more engaging. Whether you want to add content daily, weekly, or monthly, creating a content calendar will help you stay on track.
Step 9: Don’t Forget Marketing!
Marketing your new website is a twofold endeavor. First, SEO (Search Engine Optimization): Make sure your pages contain relevant keywords in the title, description, and body copy. Second, take the time to promote your website in every way you can. Free options include using forums on social media sites and sending out a regular newsletter via email. You can also consider guest posting and commenting on blogs, forums, and communities to build your social connections and increase link popularity.
Step 10: Secure your site.
Your content is your most valuable asset, so make sure you secure your website! For your blog, this means backing up your content in case of a crash so you don’t have to start all over again. If you don’t backup posts, plugins, and affiliate links, it can take a while to get back on your feet. If you don’t have time to back up your website regularly, your web host should offer an alternative. For example, HostPapa offers a great automated website backup service that only takes a few minutes to set up – you’ll never have to worry about backing up your website again!
That said, cost is always a factor many people wary when creating a website. Although we mentioned building a website on WordPress in the beginning – which is true since WordPress is free if you don’t opt for additional premium services.
There you have it – WordPress in ten easy steps!
See also: How To Write Blogs for Marketing (and Readers)
.
