When you decide to have your own website, the thought of it can terrify anyone, as the general requirements for building any website would be to get a web developer or someone with web design.
A primary concern for anyone getting started, but that's not necessary for you. Thanks to the WordPress platform, you can build a website for yourself without having to hire anyone.
You can create a beautiful-looking website all by yourself.
What is WordPress?
You may construct and host websites using WordPress, a CMS (Content Management System). You can create a new website or enhance an existing one using free source software. Apply themes, plugins, and other tools to your website to make it more user-friendly and attractive. Customize however you like it and keep implementing your vision or imagination on the go.
The first thing you will notice while working in WordPress is a free plan. The free plan allows you to create an essential website with limited features, but it works for many as long as you are not looking or deciding to own a professional domain.
But how can you build your own website? This step-by-step guide will help you understand the basics of WordPress and how to create a website that is both easy to use and attractive.
WordPress.com OR WordPress.org?
It is common to have this question in your mind about these two platforms. The name is similar and familiar to you; however, the only difference is - WordPress.com is a shared platform, whereas WordPress.org is a private platform.
WordPress.org is for those who are looking to host their website through third-party hosting providers and manage their own server, whereas WordPress.com is for anyone who wants to solve the problem of managing their website on their own. This means WordPress.com supports hosting your website.
In WordPress.org, you need to download and install the software on your own server. You can only do this if you have the technical knowledge and hands-on experience in website development. WordPress.com does not need any software downloads.
If you go for WordPress.com, your website will look like this– www.mywebsite.poweredbywordpress.com. Remember, the free plan has fewer features than the paid plan, and the domain that you see is also free but with its name as a subdirectory at last.
Building a WordPress website for beginners
It might be easy for some and difficult for others. However, it is not impossible to create a beautiful-looking website for yourself. The software is effortless and hassle-free to use. You only need to get a better understanding of how the dashboard works in order to install plugins and customize on your own.
Let's inspect how you can start building a website super quickly:
- Select a WordPress.com plan (.org only if you want to manage on your own)
- As previously mentioned about the free plan which WordPress.com provides with its limitations, upgrading to a plan is a wiser choice if you want to create a professional-looking website or build an e-commerce site. And to access full customization from themes to plugins, a paid plan will assist you better with more storage and customer support. WordPress comes with four original plans.
- Set up your domain name and hosting provider and Install WordPress
- While you purchase any plan, they will set the domain and host up simultaneously. Your domain name should not mislead your viewers and be simple to understand. Your hosting provider is like your store room where your website files and other essential pieces of information are stored. Without a server, you cannot have a website.
- WordPress.com allows you to choose whether you want a custom domain. Your hosting company is essential since it affects your website's reliability, speed, and security.
- Choose your theme, add pages and create posts for your website
- Now you can add a theme to your website and start customizing the appearance according to your taste. Add pages and posts that'll help your website rank and be searchable. Choose a theme with better layouts, styles, fonts, and colors to make it more appealing to your visitors. You can also check this new blogging guide to get you started on customization.
- WordPress applies a somewhat boring default theme by default. Regardless of cost, a custom WordPress theme will give your website to your buyer personas an inviting and expert appearance.
- Install essential plugins to create a functional website
- The user experience on your WordPress website is improved with the addition of functionality provided by plugins. There are alternatives for nearly every type of website and user among the more than 70,000 plugins that are now accessible.
- To start the installation, go to the Plugins area of your admin dashboard. This displays every plugin that is active and installed on your website. Depending on your host, you may already have a few plugins installed. Keep in mind that a plugin must be active to work after installation.
- Optimization website: cache
- The user experience of a website critically depends on its performance. By turning on browser caching, you can enhance the performance of your website. Temporarily saving data from your website on visitors' browsers is known as browser caching.
Wrapping Up
Learning how to use WordPress is not a slow or fast process but a learning course as you go along with it. It might seem a little overwhelming initially, but now that you are not terrified of all the technical stuff, get started creating your website today!
