Introduction

One of the most common questions people ask when they decide to establish their online presence is: “how do I set up my very own website?” That’s a great question.

A website is where people can find you on the internet and learn more about what you have to offer. So it’s no wonder that you are worried about setting up your own page and configuring it to be the best that it can be.

Today, you are going to learn what to do (and what not to do as well.) We will cover the basic, preliminary steps of getting a website up and running. We’ve broken down this information into clear and easy steps, in order to make things as easy as possible for you. Are you ready?

Don’t use third-party websites

Everyone has seen these ads before: “create a jaw-dropping website at a click of a button for free!”

We know that it can be really tempting for a first-time website owner to use such a service, but the truth is, you should avoid these like the plague.

If you’re just messing around with a blog or hobby website, then there’s really no problem. Feel free to use them.

However, if you are trying to showcase your business online, then you’re setting yourself up for failure.

Although you can really get a website done for you at a click of a button, what most of these services offer are poorly made templates with some content on top.

By taking the “easy path” to building your website,  you’ll doing more damage to your brand than good.

As for another word of caution: be careful not to fall for these company’s tricks either.

Usually, they’ll offer you both a free and paid account. They’ll use the free one as bait. As soon as you start using their services, you’ll realize that you can’t do much with the free plan. That’s when they’ll come along and try to upgrade you to a paid subscription package.

Another problem with these services is that you become restricted. You’re stuck to using their platform and nothing else. So you can forget about customization or switching to a different web hosting plan if you ever need to.

Oh, and one more thing; It’s really not that easy to use. Basic skills will give you a basic website. So if you want to create something that’s worthwhile, it’s not going to be easy at all on these platforms.

Choose a Good Web Hosting Company – HostandStore.com, of course

Your website needs a place to live, so the first thing you need to take into consideration is hosting.

In a nutshell, web hosting is a service that stores your website’s files on a server. People will then connect to those files via your domain name on the internet. Some key things to look for in such a service is uptime reliability, customer service, and speed – we have it all here at HostandStore.com.

Choose a CMS (WordPress)

WordPress is the web’s premiere content management system (CMS).

It contains an easy to use back-end editor that will allow you to edit your website with just a few clicks. And best of all, no technical skills are needed. You can find thousands of themes and plugins for WordPress on the web. So whatever you wish to do on your page, chances are, there’s already something out there to help you.

Installing WordPress is really easy. You can have it set up in less than 5 minutes.  We do want to make sure you know that there is a difference between wordpress.com and wordpress.org.  Make sure to do your research and make the decision that is right for you.

Final Thoughts

Before you go out and create your first website, know you that you may need patience as you begin this journey.  Somet people will struggle at first. But the more you practice, the better you’ll get, and the easier all of this will become.

If you run into problems, do a quick search on Google or Youtube. Chances are, someone has had this problem before as well, and they were happy to share the solution on the web.

So keep on learning, taking action, and soon enough, you will some see serious results!