We discussed how to make a website, when we see Websites surround us everywhere we go, with links being posted on billboards, advertisements on TV, and much more, but how many people know how to make a website? Luckily in today’s article, we will mention how to make a website from scratch covering all the steps involved & explaining what each step is for.
Before we begin, let’s explain what a website is and the purpose of building one. A website is essentially multiple web pages put together and uploaded to a server that is connected to a link called a domain name, which is the name of a website. Websites can be used for pretty much anything these days, including Advertisements, Blogs, Entertainment, News, Research, eCommerce & much more.
Let’s walk through all the steps of building a website from scratch. Essentially five main steps can have smaller segments within them but to put it together requires you to purchase a domain name, select a platform to build a website on (WordPress, Squarespace, Wix, or many more options), purchase a hosting plan for your website, prepare & plan your content layouts and finally developing your website.
Registering A Domain
For any website, a domain must be registered and purchased before beginning any development or hosting work. As mentioned before, a domain is essentially the website’s name or link which allows your audience to access your website. Without this being purchased, there is no way you could host a website or allow for your target audience to access it.
Often, a domain is chosen accordingly, often with the business or companies named in the URL being purchased. A domain can also be used in company emails so picking the right one is crucial. You can use domain registrars like GoDaddy.com to purchase such links. Once this is done, we can move onto buying a web hosting plan.
Selecting a Platform To Develop On
Selecting a platform to use for your website development needs can be daunting, especially if you have no experience. Platforms like Squarespace & Wix often come with hosting services that can be purchased through them. With platforms like WordPress or having no platform (development from scratch with frameworks) will require hosting services and a domain purchase from external sources.
Those with experience often start from scratch, or a minimal Customer Relation Management system (CRM) like WordPress as they provide more customization than web builders like Squarespace. If you decide to use a web building like Wix & Squarespace, which has a hosting service, you may skip the next step; otherwise, you must purchase a web hosting service for any other solutions.
Purchasing A Web Hosting Service
This step is where research is needed. Purchasing a web hosting service can be easy but often overlooked; This is one of the most important aspects of any website. It will determine the website’s responsiveness, uptime of the website & bandwidth of your website.
Responsiveness refers to how fast a site can load, uptime determines how often the site is up and running, a higher uptime is always better & bandwidth refers to how many users can access your website at any time simultaneously.
Some of these packages can also include a free domain email address or other applications for your web hosting needs depending on the pricing you decide to choose. An example of a web hosting service with impeccable service is HostGator.com, with an uptime of 99.7%. Once this is selected, we can move onto preparing the content for the website to be developed.
Preparing Content For Your Website
This part of the website building process is the conceptualization stage. You will figure out exactly what you want your target audience to see, experience & do on your website; This will help you plan out the website’s pages with what elements go in which pages and which sections exist on particular webpages.
It would be best if you planned this accordingly as you want to make sure the website’s structure is as simple & easy to navigate as possible for your potential target audiences. A website that is well planned and designed will help make you stand out from your competitors. Once this section is complete, we can move onto the final section, which is the website’s development & implementation.
Developing & Implementing The Website
This part is where the magic happens. Depending on if you chose a web builder to build your websites like Wix or Squarespace or made it from scratch with WordPress or a code editor, the method will differ. For a web builder, simply drag & drop elements and use the web builder’s interface to implement the design you would like to use for your website. As simple as that but it has its limitations in design.
For a WordPress or custom-built website from scratch, choosing a programming language like PHP or .Net and a framework to use like Laravel or MVC for scaffolding and the utilization of Bootstrap is crucial for the most responsive website designs.
Depending on the language you choose will entail how you build your website code. Once the coding is completed, you must either upload the files to the server via the upload function of the web hosting service you have chosen, or you must SSH it to their servers. Every web hosting service will be different, so be sure to check with the company you have chosen to go with.
Once this is completed, you need to link your domain you purchased in the first step to the hosting service also, and you are done.
Wrap Up
Building a website has never been easier with online website builders or by coding a custom website. With plenty of tutorials showing step-by-step instructions on how to code, website coding can be a breeze even for the inexperienced. If you can’t code and want someone else to do it for you, look no further than a development company such as Big Kitty Labs.
Big Kitty Labs is one of the leading software development companies in Columbus Ohio that has been developing applications, websites, and software for over 10 years. Contact us for free discovery and consultation on your next project!
