Website by WordPress – Elk Grove, CA

Looking for a fresh, new look for your website? Having trouble figuring out what you want? Wondering if the flat, clean look is right for you? Interested in learning more about the growing importance of digital marketing and how to use digital tools to market your business? This article is for you. We’ll cover everything from website platform to domain name and more.

Website Platform

The first decision you need to make is which website platform you want to use. There are a variety of platforms out there, each with their perks and quirks. For example, WordPress is a popular content management system (CMS) used for building websites. It’s incredibly flexible and easy to use which makes it very popular among beginners. However, if you’re looking for a more professional look then you might want to try something else.

Domain Name

Once you have your CMS platform decided upon, you need to choose a good domain name. A domain name is a word or phrase that points to your website. For example, if you have chosen WordPress as your CMS platform, your domain name could be blog.wordpress.com. You can find free blog sites and domain names all over the place, so don’t worry about running out of ideas.

CMS Template

Once you have your domain name decided upon, you can start implementing your new website. If you’re using WordPress as your CMS, you’ll need to download and install a WordPress theme. A CMS template is a set of CSS and HTML files that make up your website’s design. In other words, a template is what your website looks like when you’re finished. You won’t need to touch the template again (aside from what’s necessary to make changes to the settings).

There are a variety of templates available for WordPress. Some of the more popular ones are described below. If you want a completely custom design, you can find a template that will suit your needs or hire a freelancer to design a theme especially for you.

Fully Customized

If you want to create a completely customized website then you’ll have to do a bit of research to find the right designer. Even then, this can be a tricky process and can take a lot of time. Keep in mind that a fully customized site will take a lot more work and may not be as easy to update as a simple, clean site.

If you’re looking for a one-stop-shop to find a designer, WordPress has you covered. The platform hosts a variety of free blogs and forums where you can find freelance designers that you can hire to build you a new website. Just remember that while these designers may be great at creating stylish blogs and e-commerce stores, they may not be the best when it comes to technical aspects of web design. So be sure to ask any questions that you may have before making a decision.

Clean

A clean, minimalistic design is popular these days. It doesn’t necessarily mean that your site will look like a mess, but you can incorporate a ton of white space into your design. In other words, there’s a lot of room for content so long as you don’t put too much content there. Anything more than three or four sentences and you’ll start to run out of room.

Keeping things simple and clean is important for a number of reasons. First of all, guests will likely be more attracted to your site if it’s easy to look at. Second, having a clean site means that it’s easy for Google to index and find your content. Third, a clean site means that it’s easier for your visitors to browse through your content. Last but not least, a clean site means that it’s easy for you to keep up with everything going on.

SEO-Friendly

You likely already know that search engine optimization (SEO) is important when it comes to attracting potential customers to your website. What you might not know is that having an SEO-friendly site is essential for attracting high-quality traffic and boosting your site’s search rankings. To make your site more SEO-friendly, you need to pay attention to a number of factors including but not limited to the following:

• On-site SEO: The closer your site’s HTML is to being ‘perfect’, the easier it will be for Google to find and rank your site
• Off-site SEO: The closer your site’s content is to being ‘perfect’, the easier it will be for Google to find and rank your site
• Content Strategy: Just like when creating a plan for your digital marketing strategy, you need to put into consideration what your target audience is searching for
• Structuring Your Content: The way you structure your content can either help or hurt your site’s SEO. Make sure to follow the guidelines set by Google if you want to succeed in SEO
• Keyword Research: Finding the ‘right’ keywords that represent your site’s content can be a challenge. For help, use free keyword research tools like Google Keyword Planner or KeywordTool.io. Don’t worry – you don’t have to run everywhere to find these tools.
• Blog articles: The better your blog articles are, the easier it will be for you to succeed in SEO. Make sure to create helpful, engaging content that will hold the interest of your target audience. Start a blog on your site named ‘Marketing Blog’ to help you keep track of your keyword research and to help you develop your content strategy.
• Products: If you’re selling your own products or offering products and services that your site visitors can buy, you need to make sure that your sites are set up correctly for product searching (E-commerce store setup).

Now that you know which type of design you want for your new website, you can start making decisions about what CMS platform to use and which domain name to go with. While not all of these options are beneficial to your SEO, knowing what type of design you want on your site can make the process a little easier. Keep in mind that the above information is just a small fraction of what you need to know before you begin building your site. To learn more, visit google.com/webmasters or wordpress.com/help/glossary.