How Much Does it Cost to Create a WordPress Website?
WordPress is the world’s most popular content management system. Thanks to its free and open-source software, anyone can create a working website using almost no experience at all. The cost of entry is very low, which makes it an ideal choice for those looking to create a portfolio site, blog, or even a simple e-commerce store.
However, despite its popularity, not all WordPress users are creating websites for profit. Some choose to use the platform as a way of giving back to the community, and help others learn how to code or build a site from the ground up. If you’re interested in creating a WordPress site for yourself or a loved one, but don’t have the time or money to do it properly, this guide will help walk you through the steps to create a functional and beautiful website that will serve your needs.
Step One: Identify Your Needs
Before you even think about spending a penny on a pre-made template, you need to have a clear idea of what you need. What is your purpose for creating the website? Is it for your personal use or for sharing with others? Is it a money-making venture or a way of giving back to the community?
Once you’ve decided on your purpose, you can map out the kind of content you’ll need to ensure your target audience finds what they’re looking for. This will help you decide what features you need to include in your site to serve your purpose. WordPress provides you with a massive toolbox filled with features, giving you complete control over the way your site functions. But, if you don’t know what features to use, you might not end up with a functional website at all.
For example, if your goal is to create a portfolio site to showcase your work, you’ll most likely need to set up a separate blog for this purpose. Having a separate blog will help you keep track of your stories, and ensure they don’t get mixed up with the content on your main website. If you decide to run a blog, you can opt to use the free Open Blog plugin to directly integrate your blog with your main site. Doing this will help bring more value to your potential visitors, as they’ll be able to find the information they’re looking for immediately.
Step Two: Budget And Time
As we’ve established, not everyone who uses WordPress is doing it for financial gain. Some choose to use the platform as a way of giving back to the community, or simply as a way of exploring programming or web design. If you’re looking to create a personal or charity website, you won’t have to worry about budgeting or limiting yourself to a set number of pages. You can also use WordPress as a standalone platform, and don’t have to limit your content to certain niches.
If you’re looking to create a commercial website, however, and don’t have the time or money to do it right, there are cheaper options. You can hire web designers or programmers who have experience in creating WordPress websites to suit your needs. When it comes to budgeting and time, you can’t beat a pre-made solution. There are hundreds of affordable and high-quality templates available to download from reputable websites like themeforest.net. This will save you both time and money, as you won’t have to worry about integrating a third-party template with your own site.
Step Three: Choose A Domain Name
Before you start building your website, you need to choose a domain name. A domain name is the bit of text that appears after a colon in an URL. For example, the WordPress website www.wordpress.com is the domain name. The term “domain name” might sound daunting, but you basically just need to choose a name that you think will be easy for others to remember and will match your website’s theme and design. You can find free domain names with any preferred extension (like.com,.net, or.org) through many registrars, which makes this part of the process extremely simple.
Step Four: Install WordPress
Once you’ve chosen a domain name, the next step is to install WordPress. Installing WordPress is very simple and straightforward, and can be done in just a few minutes. To start, visit the WordPress website and click on the Install button at the top right of the screen. Then, follow the on-screen instructions.
Once WordPress is installed, you can click on the Appearance menu item from the WordPress dashboard, then click on the Customize button. From here, you can fully customize the look and feel of your site. You can add a logo and change the overall layout to fit your personal preferences. You can play with the different elements available to see how they affect your site’s design. If you’re happy with what you see, click on the Publish button to go live.
Step Five: Start Writing
Writing is an important part of any website. When someone visits your site, they’ll soon find themselves immersed in a sea of words. To make sure they return time and time again, you’ll need to ensure you consistently put out high-quality content. Luckily for you, WordPress makes this very simple. On the WordPress website, click on the +New menu item, then the Post button. From here, you can start a fresh blog post or press the Publish button to go live.
Type in a title for your blog post, add your content, and then select the Blogger template from the list of available layouts. You can add a logo and change the background color to fit your theme. Once you’re happy with what you see, click on the Preview button to go live.
From here, you can start adding more content to your site. If you’ve never done so, it’s a good idea to familiarize yourself with the different types of content available in WordPress. These days, with the web being such a dynamic and changing environment, it’s essential to have a broad range of content on your site. It would be best to have at least five blog posts ready to go live when you hit the publish button. This will ensure you never run out of content, and keep your readers coming back for more.
Step Six: Manage Your Site’s Sidebars
WordPress provides you with numerous sidebars, which are essentially extra boxes that appear on the right side of a website’s content. Each sidebar contains a range of boxes that can be used to display content that’s been curated from different parts of the web. For example, you might want to display recent blog posts, images from a certain category, or a collection of links to other sites.
To add a sidebar to your site, go to the Appearance menu item on the WordPress dashboard, then click on the Customize button. From here, you can choose to display the sidebar on the right or the left of your content.
Step Seven: Integrate Third-Party Applications
WordPress is incredibly generous when it comes to integrations with third-party applications. The reason behind this is simple. The team behind WordPress recognized the importance of having a range of apps and tools available to end users. If you decide to add more functionality to your site by integrating with a third party, you’ll need to follow a defined process.
To start, go to the Platforms tab on the WordPress dashboard, then click on the +New button to get started. On this page, you’ll see a list of some of the most popular third-party applications available for WordPress users. If you click on any of these, you’ll be brought to the App Store or Play Store, where you can read about and download the app.
After you’ve downloaded and installed the app, visit the Integrations menu item on the WordPress dashboard, then click on the Add button to connect the app to your website.
Step Eight: Promote Your Site
Having a viable website is only the first step in promoting your site. Ultimately, you’ll want people to visit your site, and become aware of your existence. To make sure this happens, you’ll need to put out content that’s both interesting and valuable. To achieve this, you’ll want to regularly post blogs, articles, and promote your site on social media. If you decide to use social media to promote your site, you can use platforms like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Google+ to connect with others who could become interested in your content.
WordPress is a free and open-source platform, which is why we couldn’t cover all the steps necessary to create a functional website in this article. However, this doesn’t mean it’s not possible. If you don’t have the time or resources to build a website from the ground up, there are cheaper and easier options. You could hire a web designer or programmer to create a custom-built website for you.