If you are reading this, the chances are you are building or thinking about building a website. Or maybe you just want to know more about the way the whole process works. Whether the site is for business purposes or for personal use, either way, the process is pretty much the same. There are several steps that take place for almost all websites.
What Do I Need to Start a Website?
There are several things that you need in order to build a website that can be seen by anyone on the Internet. That list includes:
• A domain name
• A web hosting plan
• A web page builder tool or online site builder
• Content
These items will allow you to set up a website and put it out on the Internet for others to see.
There are other things that will be needed in order to get the site found easily, make it work well, and keep it safe and running, but the above items will get the site going.
What is a Domain Name and How Do I Get One?
Simply put, a domain name is the address for your website. This is what people will enter their web browser to visit your website. An example is yourdomainname.com. You can “get” a domain name by registering the name with a domain name registrar. The most popular registrar these days is GoDaddy, but there are several others.
Once you find a domain name you want and that is available, you just need to register the domain name, pay the registration fee, and then you can start using that domain name. Finding a good domain name can be hard at times. Most of the really good ones are already registered.
Registration for a domain name should usually cost less than $20 per year, and you can register it for multiple years at a time if you want. Note: some domain name extensions can be more expensive than that but the typical .com, .org, etc., are generally under $20 per year.
What is Web Hosting?
Web hosting is basically paying for storage space on which your website will reside. You are “renting” space on a server that is connected to the Internet. You put all of your site files on this server and then it can be shown to people in a web browser.
That is an oversimplification, and there is a lot more involved, but basically that is what web hosting is and why you need it. Not all web hosting is created equal, and not all web hosting fees are the same either. For the most part, you get what you pay for. A good web hosting company will cost more but is worth it in the long run because they will have better support and your website will be safer and faster.
There are lots of web hosting companies to choose from, so it is best to make sure you are using one that has a good reputation. A little research will help. The best web host today may not be so good in a few years. They do not always age well.
Web Page Builders and How They Work
When I talk about web page builders, this can mean several things. In essence I am talking about a platform or program that helps you create the website pages and makes them look good.
There are lots of ways to go with this and I am not going to get into all of that in this post. If you are paying someone to build your website, they will have their own set of design and builder tools, so you do not have to worry about this.
If you are planning on building a site yourself and you do not have or know how to use these tools, you can use an online site builder platform.
These platforms are limited in what they can do, but they generally include the web hosting part of the equation along with the design templates for making a site.
These online site builder platforms have some limitations and are generally not the best method for building a website, but they can be good for starter sites for companies with a low budget or a personal site that is not too complex.
What Do I Need for Website Content?
Your content is basically the text, images, etc., that you need to put on your website. What you use for content is going to depend on what your site is about and what you want to share. A professional builder will be able to help you decide what you need on your site, but this can be as simple or complex as you want it to be.
Conclusion
These are the basics of what you will need to create a website. There are many, many more considerations for building a website that will work for your business and be a tool for generating sales and/or leads and we discuss those in some of our other posts, but this article should give you the basic information to understand the process of building a website.
If you would like more information on how we can help you through this website creation process, we would be happy to talk with you about your project. Just contact us for more information.
