How to Create a Website

Get a Domain Name
- There are many places out there to buy a domain name. A few of the more popular ones would be Bluehost, HostGator and GoDaddy. All you have to do is go to any site that offers domain names (you can start with Googling where to purchase a domain name). From there, look up the domain name you want to see if it’s available. If it is purchase that through the site’s checkout process. The most popular kind of domain names are .com’s.
Sign Up for Hosting
- Some of the sites in which you buy a domain name will offer hosting as well. We always recommend doing your research first (various host options and plans) to see what is going to work best for you. It all depends on what you want to accomplish with you site (amount of people that will be visiting it on a regular basis). Some popular sites for hosting include Bluehost, DreamHost, Rackspace, WP Engine, and HostGator.
Choose Your Platform
- There are many options to create a website. If you’ve coded in the past and are familiar with a few different languages like HTML, CSS, Ruby, JavaScript, etc., you could always create your website by hand. There are many benefits to doing this but given the development of website creation platforms it’s not all that necessary anymore. There are many platforms that offer all the dynamics of hardcoding a website by offering plugins to add more features without having to build it yourself. We are fans of WordPress and have used it on many projects in the past. With a little bit of coding knowledge and time to get to know the platform, WordPress offers a litany of features to completely customize your website via plugins.
Homepage Design
- The main idea behind a homepage design is to take your time and make sure it’s something you really want to stick with. Keep in mind this is going to be a visitor’s first impressions of your site and being that aesthetics can make or break a first impression, make sure it’s something visually striking and informative. We tend to start with a great picture that also shows someone what the site is all about.
Follow Suite with Rest of Pages
- When you’re designing the rest of the site, it’s best to create the rest of your pages in a style similar to your homepage. With a unity of design, visitors won’t get confused as to where they are (you’d be surprised how easily this can happen). Make it clear on each page why someone is there. H1 tags at the top of each page can help tremendously.
Test Your Site
- Make sure to check out the pages to see the layout on the frontend and check for interactive features to make sure they are all set up correctly.
Launch
- Time to take your site live.