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There is a lot of information online on starting your website. I have found the process difficult, but there are ways to make it much easier.
It will help to be clear before starting down this path.
Why do you want to start a website?
You might want to start a personal blog and share your writing; maybe you started a business or have been interested in this for a while and don’t know where to start.
By the end of this article, you will know how to create your website.
It’s easier than you think!
First of all, congratulations on your decision to start your website!
It’s going to be awesome. Let’s get started!
Pick A Niche
If you are starting a blog or a business, one of the most important things to do is find an area you are interested in writing about. This will help give you a direction for your site.
Stay tuned for an article about picking a niche, as it’s crucial. But you want to know what your site will be about.
Having a site with a bit of everything will confuse the reader. Trust me on this one. I’ve been there and done that.
Remember, you can have your niche be anything. One thing to note is that the more you can niche down, the better it will be.
Choosing A Name
Now that you have a niche in mind, it’s time to create a name.
One way you could do this is to use your name (as you can see that I’ve done), your business name, or another name you want your site to be called.
There are a few things to take note of when choosing a name (also known as a domain):
- Easy to spell
- Easy to remember
- Something to do with your chosen niche
As mentioned above, I decided not to waste much time on this, as I just used my name for this website. Don’t be someone who spends too much time on this.
It’s also a good idea to search for your chosen name. I use Google, but any search engine will do.
This will allow you to see what else will come up. You can search for your domain name and change the website suffixes (the end of the site, such as .com, .net, .org, etc.).
After you have a few names in mind, ask your friends what they think about it.
Doing this process can take up to a few days, but the hope is to get a name that you will like. You can change the name later, but moving a website can be a pain.
And yes, I’m speaking from experience here.
What Are The Exact Steps?
Okay, now the two significant steps are out of the way. It’s time to get your site up and running.
There are a few options, but first, you need to find your piece of online real estate (or what you will call your domain name). This will be www.yoursite.com.
Side Note: The last person I helped with this process said they wanted a WordPress site. Yes, that is important, but that is not where you get a domain name. You will install WordPress after you have picked out your site name.
That said, I would suggest getting a .com or .net over some of the others out there.
Yes, .com will be more expensive, but it will be better in the long run.
You will see different price points depending on the service you sign up with, but most people know and trust .com sites.
The creator of this blog loves checklists. So here is a quick list you need to prepare for your site.
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- Have a niche
- Choose a name
- Pick a site (.com if you can get it)
- Consider getting a secure certificate (it costs more, but it is worth it)
- Get a hosting service (such as Bluehost or what I currently use)
- Download WordPress
- Start adding content
This might seem like a lot to accomplish, but take each step one at a time, and you will have no problem.
The next thing is something not everyone realizes after they purchase their domain name. Now, you have your site, www.yoursite.com, but you still need a hosting company before you can get up and running.
There are various companies nowadays. A majority will cost a few hundred dollars a year. A few include CloudWays, GoDaddy, BlueHost, and NameCheap (which has been my go-to).
Side Note: My short plug for NameCheap lets you get your .com domain! They are a fantastic company that has excellent customer service, too. If you are considering buying a domain and want it with a great company, check them out.
BUT WAIT! Maybe you want something that is an all-in-one platform. Continue reading.
I have started a few sites and found one place that simplifies everything. I’ll discuss that in the next section.
Set Up Your Site Fast, The Easy Way Is With Wealthy Affiliate!
A Simple Solution & My Top Pick
If you read my first review, you will know that I suggest getting a Wealthy Affiliate account. Why?
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- It’s free to start.
- Access to great training
- Access to the best community of like-minded people ever!
- Have a website set up in under a minute (which includes the secure certificate)
Simply put, Wealthy Affiliate has a streamlined system that will teach you everything you need to know, and you can have a website up and running in under a minute!
Yes, you read that right, and it might sound cliche, but if I can do it, you can too.
You can do all of this on your own, or you can go to a one-stop shop. With that, they give you the ability to get a site, domain hosting, a secure certificate, free site backups, a ton of training, and much more.
Yes, you can do it all on your own. After all, that is how I started. But if you are new to this, there is a slight learning curve, not to mention a lot of your time. Or, sign up with their free membership and start right now!
Do You Have More Questions?
There are many other things you will do after having your site up. But that is for another post. The most important thing is to take the first step and set up your website.
Once it’s started, we can get into the other fun topics, like writing content, search engine optimization, and much more.
You can choose to do this independently or get help with Wealthy Affiliate. I have done both approaches, and if I had to do it again, I would choose the latter. They make it easy, and you get to be part of an amazing community.
If you want to read more on Wealthy Affiliate, sign up for their free service. After your free site is up and running, you can continue with their paid version. It’s up to you.
Whatever path you decide to take, give it a try and let me know how it goes.
If you feel I missed anything or have further questions, let me know in the comments below.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Hello there Eric Wilde. I am beginner in the online business world. I have just chose an online business good enough for me, which is blogging and affiliate marketing. And will need a website. I have read quite a lot on building a web, however it still feels amazing reading your article. Your article has it’s own uniqueness in the way you were able to breakdown the steps for creating a website. This has indeed given me more knowledge on how I can build my website.
Hi Nelson.
Welcome to the online business world! I will say that it’s a long but fun process. I do hope that this post will help you in creating your own website. If you have any questions that I didn’t cover, feel free to reach out.
Thank you for rolling out the basics at starting your own website. From the much resesr to creating the website. Top of it is the community where one can learn affiliate marketing – wealthy affiliate. It a great community with evergreen resources. The community is filled with people ready to help you out
You got that, right! Thanks for the comment and for stopping by. I appreciate it.
For those that are reading this, Parameter is an awesome resource in the Wealthy Affiliate community and has some amazing training that I have learned a lot from.
Picking a niche and then choosing a name for our website are 2 of the MOST important things we need to think carefully about. The niche should be something we are passionate about else we will eventually lose steam and give up. The website name is then about branding and our own comfort. We need to feel happy with the website name else it can become a mental block. That’s my 2 cents worth.
I couldn’t agree with you more, Richard. I remember the first site I built used a difficult name to spell and didn’t have a direction. So what you said sums it all up.
Thanks for the comment.
I have been involved with Wealthy Affiliate for 8 months now and i have tried to do it on my own previously as well. I have to agree with you Eric, going the WA way is a lot easier, everything thing you need is in the same place. The fee to upgrade to a yearly membership is peanuts compared to what others charge just for hosting alone. you can still learn and earn as a free member, which is a great option if you are not sure and you just want to check everything out.
Thanks, Lisa! I couldn’t agree with you more. Trying to figure everything out on your own is pretty rough. Wealthy Affiliate can take much of the pressure away.