How to Code Your Own Website on WordPress
If you’re looking to start your own website then you’re in luck because we’ve got you covered. In this article, we will walk you through the steps to ensure you have everything you need to launch your own successful website. Whether you’re an experienced coder or simply someone with a creative side, you can find software that will streamline the process and allow you to focus on what matters most: your content.
Why WordPress?
WordPress has officially served 13 billion page views across all its platforms. The content management system has been around for more than a decade now and continues to thrive because it provides users with everything they need in one place. No matter if you’re looking to create a blog for yourself or a professional news platform, WordPress has you covered.
Another plus of WordPress is its extreme flexibility. The platform offers a variety of methods to display content. Whether you want to opt for a purely classical approach and use a grid-based layout or prefer to spice things up and use a tableless design, you can find the right WordPress theme to fit your needs.
The Basics
The first thing you need to do is decide what type of hosting you’ll need. Do you want to use your own domain name or do you want to use a free domain like WordPress.com? Both options are viable, but you should consider the pricing and extra features of the service you select. Self-hosted WordPress websites usually come with more features than you’d need for a basic blog but the pricing is higher. That being said, it’s definitely a good option for those who are looking for the ultimate in flexibility.
Domain Name
The second step is to pick a desirable domain name. If you’re using WordPress.com then you can choose any.com domain you want for your site (like harrypottermore.com). If you’re using your own domain, you will have to purchase the domain from a reputable website hosting service. Once you’ve bought the domain name you can point it to your WordPress installation using a custom-named folder.
There are a variety of plugins you can use to speed up the process of setting up your WordPress website. One of the most popular plugins is Easy Digital Downloads. This plugin allows you to set up a variety of in-house download forms that can be accessed from any page on your site. Creating a form using Easy Digital Downloads is very simple and takes less than five minutes to set up. You can then customize the form as much as you want and give it a try.
Content Management System (CMS)
The third step is to select a content management system (CMS). WordPress is a content management system and it is one of the most popular options when it comes to hosting a website. CMSes allow users to seamlessly create and manage content as they see fit without needing to know how to code. They also provide users with a variety of useful features like a search bar, archive, and tags. WordPress’ ease of use and wide compatibility make it a perfect fit for beginners who want to get up and running quickly with a new website.
If you’re looking for a content management system with a little more flexibility then consider looking into Joomla! The Korean company that developed Joomla! is now offering a free template that allows anyone to create a fully functional blog or website within minutes. The template is completely customizable and comes with all the features you’d expect from a content management system including a search bar, archives, and a comments section.
Security & Flexibility
The final step before you can start coding is to secure your domain name and install WordPress on a secure hosting platform. As mentioned, WordPress is a content management system which makes it very flexible. This flexibility is its greatest strength and also its biggest weakness if you don’t know how to code. You can use this flexibility to put your website at risk of hacking. Since WordPress is such a popular CMS with a large user base (over 13 billion page views as of this writing), it’s very likely that a determined hacker will try and break into your site. To prevent this from happening, you need to install WordPress on a secured hosting platform. A secure hosting platform allows you to install WordPress safely and with minimum hassle. The best part is that you don’t need to know much about security to get the most out of a secured WordPress blog.
Now that you have a secure platform, you can start installing WordPress itself. The first thing you need to do is log in to your hosting account and navigate to the WordPress installation folder. Once you’ve located the folder, you can download the latest version of WordPress (at the time of writing this article, version 4.9) or manually copy the contents of the zip folder into your wp-content folder. A typical installation takes about five minutes. You’ll then have to click on the ‘Install WordPress’ button and follow the onscreen instructions.
A WordPress installation guide will walk you through the rest of the setup process. Once you’ve finished, you’ll be able to create your first blog post or website on the platform. If you want to add more functionality to your site, you can look into upgrading to a premium plan which provides you with additional features (like a custom domain name and free backups) for just $5 per month.
As mentioned, WordPress is one of the most popular content management systems around due to its ease of use and high degree of flexibility. Its extreme popularity makes it a target for online pirates who want to make a quick buck. To prevent your website from being hacked, you need to take the following steps: