So, you’ve decided that you need a website—Congrats!
It is smart to have a corner of the internet that you control. With your own website, you can build your brand, provide value to others, and support your business.
Your website is your 24 hour calling card, and you want to make sure it is communicating everything you want it to communicate.
In this post, I will outline everything you need to know to build a website that you’re proud of, especially if you do it yourself.
This post is for the true beginner who needs a roadmap. I’m sharing all of the details with none of the fluff.
By the end of this article, you will be on your way to an amazing and dynamic website.
I used these steps to build this website with zero coding skills, no design background, and a very small budget.
The internet is great, but finding a step by step blueprint is like finding a needle in a haystack. For example, if you Google how to make a website, you’ll find +19 billion search results…
Yikes. Stressful much?
I do not want to overwhelm you with billions of options.
Therefore, I’m sharing one path, with a few alternatives here and there.
I wrote this article to get you out of the gate now, without all of the rabbit holes. This will take a little time, but I’ve streamlined everything as much as possible.
So, block a few hours, pour yourself a glass of something, and grab your laptop.
Two notes:
#1. This is a long article and a long-ish process. Even if you hire someone else to build your website, I’d recommend skimming through this. There may be some points you want to talk over with your web designer. Once the website is done, you’ll probably still want to make tweaks here and there.
#2. Please note that if you purchase some of the things I recommend below, including Bluehost, the Divi Theme, ConvertKit, or Canva using the links I provide, I will receive an affiliate commission because I included affiliate links. This is at no cost to you.
Step One: Choose a message you care about
Choosing the right message for your website is critical. If you’re going to go through the time and expense of creating a website, you should create one that both: (1) energizes and motivates you, and (2) quickly tells other people what your website is about.
Your message is the thing that drives you. In an ideal world, you would focus on it every day.
You may already know what your message is–this is great news if you do. Scroll on to step two if you’ve got that covered.
If you still need clarity on your message, please listen to my Create a Perfect Vision program, which asks you to work through three questions:
- First, what do you want your life, brand, business and energy to look like in the future?
- Second, how are you showing up in the world right now?
- Third, how can you get from where you are right now to where you want to be?
Now, I know a perfect world doesn’t exist. My audio program isn’t about creating some unattainable pipe dream.
It is about taking whatever you think is an ideal life and giving you a real, actionable plan to pursue it. This includes focusing on the topic and message that will help you build a brand, business and life you love.
Don’t build a website for a message that doesn’t move you in this direction.
Step Two: Schedule a photo shoot
I know “scheduling a photo shoot” seems like a weird step, but hear me out. When you or your web designer start building your site, the issue of photos will come up pretty quickly.
Even with the best site design in the world, it isn’t going to look like much without photos. So, you can be proactive and have those ready as you prepare to design and launch your website.
The thought of putting your face out there may make you cringe. But, to build your brand and demonstrate your expertise, your website needs your face.
You’ll feel better about this if you have some amazing, high resolution photos where you look and feel great. In my experience, hiring an experienced photographer and a hair and makeup glam squad made all the difference.
You may not look like your glam shots every day out in the world, but you will every day on your website!
Now, you may be tempted to use stock photos of other people. And these may work for things like blog posts, PowerPoint slides, etc. However, you’ll need some great photos of yourself on your website. These will become your header images, Bio page images, and more.
In addition, consider:
- posing in a few different outfits;
- trying out multiple angles;
- using different facial expressions;
- wearing classic pieces that won’t look dated in a few years;
- including a few shots where you are standing against a solid-colored background (great for photoshopping later);
- taking some shots where you are standing to the very right or left of the photo (great for header images).
You do not have to do the photo shoot before walking through the next steps. However, you’ll want to have some great photos of yourself on your website before launching it.
Step Three: Choose a name for your website
Now that you’ve taken care of the preliminary steps, you need a name for your website. Choose a name that best reflects your message and brand.
This name will become your domain name for your website. A domain name is the www.yourwebsitename.com that points people to your online home. It is the address for your website and how visitors will find it on the internet.
Here are a few tips as you decide on your website’s name:
- Brainstorm at least 3-5 optional names, because many of the best domain names are unavailable.
- Choose no more than three words for your website name.
- A .com address is the easiest to remember and most trustworthy in many cases (as opposed to .net, .biz, etc.). There are exceptions, depending on your industry (i.e., www.yourwebsitename.io is popular in the blockchain/cryptocurrency world).
- For your personal brand, choose firstname.com or firstnamelastname.com.
- Using numbers or dashes make websites harder to remember and find.
- In addition, getting too creative can make your website hard to find. If you constantly have to spell or explain your domain name, it will be tough for potential visitors to remember it later.
Finally, if you’d like to see if your preferred domain name is available, check for it here:
Step Four: Purchase a domain name and get a web host
For your new website, you will need both a web host and a domain name.
First, a web host allows people to view your website online–this is where all of your website’s files and data live on the internet. You can think of the web host as your digital house–it is a place to keep your website’s stuff, including photos, videos, blog posts, the design theme, and all of things that visitors will experience when they visit your domain name.
Second, a domain name is www.yourwebsitename.com. If the web host is your digital house, the domain name is like your street address.
Therefore, you will need both. You can purchase these separately or from the same place.
Recommended Web Host: Bluehost
I’d recommend using Bluehost as your web host for several reasons.
- First, when you buy a Bluehost account, you also get a free domain name. This means you won’t have separate accounts to keep up with.
- Second, Bluehost has won many web host awards because of its great customer service, customization options, and ease of use.
- Third, you can run a WordPress-powered site using Bluehost. WordPress is one of the most popular tools to make a website–for design experts and beginners alike.
Regarding WordPress, you may have noticed in your research that you can create a website using WordPress.org or WordPress.com. Both are free services, similarly named, and connected to the same people.
WordPress.org gives you more freedom to create a customized website. You can use more features and plugins, and you can tinker more with the source code that makes your site look and operate the way it does.
This may sound like a foreign language to you right now, but it will become important as you design your website.
If you use WordPress.com, you will not need a separate web host like Bluehost. But, WordPress.com does not offer many of the customization options unless you pay a very high price.
Many people start with WordPress.com and switch over to WordPress.org when they realize they want more control over their websites.
That is what happened with this site. I currently use Bluehost to host my WordPress.org-powered website. I switched from Squarespace to WordPress.com to WordPress.org as my vision and business grew.
In conclusion, there are many options out there, but Bluehost is best for newbies (and especially if you DIY it).
Create Your Bluehost Account
This section will get you completely set up with Bluehost. I’m writing this post in December 2019, and all screenshots are up to date as of that time.
To create a Bluehost account, visit this link and click on “hosting.”
That click will take you to the hosting page, where you can choose from three options: shared, VPS and dedicated. Beginners should choose the “shared” option.
You will have multiple shared options once you click on the button. You will have to decide on the shared plan you need.
I would suggest the “Choice Plus” plan, because it gives you some room to grow.
It also gives you domain privacy protection, which hides your name, personal address, and other information from publicly-accessible internet directories.
If you don’t want any random internet person to find your home address, you want domain privacy protection.
Once you select the type of plan you want, you’ll go to a page that asks you to enter your website’s domain name.
If the domain name you want is available, you can enter it on this page.
Even if you’ve already purchased a domain name from elsewhere, no worries. Bluehost can still point your website to that domain name.
You also have the option to create your domain later. I suggest connecting your account to a domain now.
Finally, you’ll be led to a payment page. Bluehost accepts major credit cards and PayPal.
Once you enter all of that information, voila! You have your account.
If you have purchased a domain, you will receive an email from Bluehost to verify and activate your domain.
You will have fourteen days to click on the link in that email to verify your domain. Bluehost will deactivate your domain name if you wait beyond fourteen days.
Install WordPress
Next, you will be prompted to create your Bluehost account on the confirmation page. Once you log in to Bluehost, you should click “My Sites” on the left side of the window.
Next, click on “Create Site” on the right side of the window. This will install WordPress and create your website for you with one click.
Then, you will enter a Site Name and Tagline.
Next, you will choose a domain for your website. Click on the dropdown box and select the domain name you want to use.
In addition, you will have the option of downloading “helpful free plugins.” I don’t think it hurts to download all three. If you find you don’t need them, you can delete them later.
Then, you’ll be taken to a page with your log in information. Make sure you write this information down somewhere safe!
Step Five: Design your website
Now it is time to decide on how your website will look and who will create it. Will you try to make your website yourself? Or will you hire a web designer?
I have done both. With this site, I wanted to understand all areas of my business before turning things over to someone else, so I’ve done it all on my own. In addition, I did not have the four- or five- figures that it would take to pay a web designer at the time.
This approach has an unintended benefit–if I need something updated quickly, or if I need to make a tweak, I can do it myself without having to pay someone else and wait for them to do it.
If you decide to hire someone, great. Even so, you should understand how to make basic maintenance changes and updates for your website.
As such, please skim through the rest of these steps and talk them over with your web designer. You want your website optimized so that visitors can find you and want work with you. And, you want a plan to keep the site dynamic.
For the DIY folks, keep reading for my basic design suggestions.
DIY Website Design Basics
Once you sign up for web hosting and a domain via Bluehost, you will be given the option of going directly to WordPress.
Once you click this link, WordPress will open up in a new window.
I’m going to take a little deviation here for the people who do not go directly to WordPress.
If you do not go directly to WordPress, and instead back to your Bluehost account, Bluehost gives you a full design checklist to build and care for your website.
It will look something like this:
When I did the first time, I was a bit confused by this checklist because I thought they were just suggestions. However, they are a little more than that.
Essentially, Bluehost tries to make sure you have created some design elements before your new website goes live online.
If you do not click enough of the check boxes to indicate that you have set things up, your site does not go live immediately.
Because I was switching sites, I skipped/ignored most of the check boxes because I already had many of these items. Because of Bluehost’s policy, this gave me about half a day of downtime where my website appeared to be offline.
Ultimately, I called customer service and they got everything moving in the right direction in minutes.
The moral of this story is don’t ignore the check boxes.
With the check box items, a “Let’s Go” button pops up when you hover your mouse over each item.
If you click “Let’s Go,” you will go to the WordPress customization page.
In short, no matter which route you take, you’ll end up inside of WordPress eventually.
Choosing Your Website Theme
You will start with a default WordPress theme. A theme is basically the look and feel of your website.
To view your WordPress theme options, click Appearance > Themes.
Next, you’ll be taken to the themes window displaying multiple themes. Your default theme will be called “Twenty Twenty.”
It is a clean, basic theme and fine for getting started.
If you’d like to spice your theme up a bit, both WordPress and Bluehost offer upgraded options. Some are free and some cost money.
To view other upgraded themes, you can click “Premium Themes” or “WordPress.org Themes” at the top of the window.
You can also buy WordPress themes from other third parties.
For this website, I use the Divi Theme by Elegant Themes, which is amazing (but not free). I have tried other themes over the years and Divi is the best by far.
For someone who does not have a web design background, Divi is perfect. Elegant Themes has hundreds of Divi tutorial videos for just about every design choice you want to make.
If you can follow directions, you can create a beautiful website with Divi. Customer service is also very good. I get a real person each time I call.
If you would like to check out the Divi Theme, click this link.
It may take you a little while to find a theme you like. That is fine. Try on a few and see what you think.
You can preview themes within WordPress by clicking on the “install” and “preview” buttons when you find a theme you like.
One note here: it is best to have a few of your own pictures and sample paragraphs when you preview a theme.
The stock examples are cool, but you will really get a feel for the theme if you plug in your own pictures and information.
Other Website Customization Options
Choosing a theme is just the first decision you’ll have to make. There are tons of design choices left! This is kind of like designing a new home–every item has an option, from doorknobs to light switches to ceiling fans and flooring.
WordPress makes it pretty simple to customize your website.
In addition to choosing a theme, you can make all kinds of design choices by visiting Appearance > Customize.
When you click “Customize” you’ll find all kinds of options. This will include choices like:
- Site icons (Site Icons are what you see in browser tabs, bookmark bars, and within the WordPress mobile apps);
- Logos;
- Color schemes;
- Tag lines;
- and more.
You have to play around with things to really get a feel for it. At this point, though, you’re well on your way to an amazing website!
Step Six: Download Yoast SEO
While you’re in the trenches building your website, you should also make sure that it is search engine and visitor friendly. One of the best ways to do that is with Yoast SEO.
This software provides a great start for search engine optimization, or “SEO.”
It helps you make your content easy to read for users and easy to find for search engines like Google.
To download Yoast SEO, click on Plugins > Add New
Next, once you are on the Add New page, search for “Yoast SEO” in the “Search plugins” bar in the middle of the page.
Yoast SEO should be one of the first plugins that pops up. Click install now.
Next, the “Install Now” button will change to an “Activate” button. Click “Activate.”
Once you’ve activated the Yoast SEO plug in, click “Plugins” on the left of the screen to go update your settings.
Next, WordPress will lead you to a page that offers “First-time SEO configuration.” Walk through the prompts to install Yoast SEO.
When you’re done with that, there may be two settings you want to change.
First, go to Settings > Reading.
On this page, you can change your homepage from the latest blog posts to a static page. A static page is one like this website has. It is a custom homepage with whatever you want on it. You do not have to do this, but it is a popular customization.
Second, go to Settings > Permalinks to change the way your blog post links show up. This is another common customization.
Permalinks are the permanent URLs of your pages and blog posts. The default setting is numerical. You want to change this for a few reasons.
First, you want human beings to know what your blog post is about. A bunch of numbers doesn’t communicate anything about what the post is about.
Second, you want Google to know what your blog post is about. When people are searching for things online, Google can use permalinks to provide search results.
I recommend using the “Post name” setting.
I would not choose a permalink with a date, because this can make your posts look old and dated to visitors.
Step Seven: Create a content strategy
Now that your website design is coming together, you need a plan for your website’s content.
You chose your message in Step One, and now it is time to build a strategy around how you share that message on your website.
First, decide on what kind of content you plan to share. This could include:
- written articles;
- videos;
- podcast episodes;
- interviews;
- pictures;
- infographics; or
- anything else you can think of.
Second, decide how often you will post this content on your website. Do whatever works best for you and the audience you’re trying to reach.
This could be every week, twice a month, once per quarter, or anything else. For example, I currently post new content twice per week on this website.
Third, come up with some topics that relate to your message. Because you want to create content that other people care about, I suggest asking yourself a few questions:
- Who is my target audience?
- What makes my audience happy, excited and motivated?
- Where is my audience struggling right now?
- What does my audience need to know?
If, for example, my blog is about attending and paying for college, I might answer the above questions this way:
- Who is my target audience?
- prospective students applying to college
- current and prospective students looking for scholarships
- What makes my audience happy, excited and motivated?
- being accepted into college
- finding relevant scholarships to apply for
- winning money for college
- being able to go to a great college
- making their families proud
- Where is my audience struggling right now?
- finding money for college
- having the time to search and apply for scholarships
- finding references for each scholarship application
- choosing the right college
- What does my audience need to know?
- how to decide on a college
- how to choose which colleges to apply for
- where to find scholarships
- how to fill out financial aid documents
- deadlines for relevant scholarships
Next, take each of your answers and create 3-5 potential articles, videos, podcast episodes, etc. that addresses these topics.
With my above list about college scholarships, if I take the topic of “choosing the right college,” three potential content pieces might be:
- Visiting potential colleges overnight for free
- Five steps to choosing the right college
- Top ten mistakes to avoid in choosing the right college
Fourth, create a content schedule that you can stick to. Now that you have multiple topics to write about, be consistent with writing about them.
Staying with the college theme, here is a basic content calendar I created with Google Sheets. Simple and easy to follow.
Now that you have a schedule and calendar, it will be much easier for you to be dynamic and consistent.
This is where many people fall off with their websites, because it can be hard to come up with new things to talk about from week to week. Your content calendar will keep you on track.
You might even get ahead and have a bank of posts written and ready to go weeks in advance. WordPress allows you to schedule posts immediately or for a future date and time.
Step Eight: Post content on your website
Now that you have a calendar and a plan, it is time to start posting content.
WordPress makes posting pretty straightforward.
Creating your first blog post
Scroll to the top of the WordPress Dashboard and click “Posts.” It will take you to the page where you can create new posts and edit old ones.
The “Hello world!” post is the example WordPress gives you to start with. You can start by editing this post.
When you hover over the title you will receive a few options. Click “Edit.”
Next, you’ll go to a page that looks like this:
It is time to write your first blog post!
First, you can change the title by clicking on the big “Hello world!” title at the top.
Next, you can start typing the text of your article right below that.
Similar to everything else with WordPress, there are a lot of customization options.
For instance, each time you click “enter” on your keyboard, you will have the option to add a new block. If you want to continue entering text, just keep typing.
If you click the plus symbol with the circle around it, you’ll see that you can add all kinds of things to your blog posts, including videos, images, files, and all kinds of other things.
I will not go through the endless options and configurations, but I will point out a few things for you.
Adding a featured image
In addition to the written (or other) content, you can add photos to your blog post to make it more engaging.
This includes an eye-catching “featured image” that draws readers to your article. This image will appear at the top of your post.
However, be careful with just pulling random photos from Google Image. You may get into copyright trouble and few people want to deal with that headache.
You basically have three (legal) options:
- take photos yourself and use those on your website;
- hire a photographer to take photos for your website; or
- use stock photos from third party websites.
You can find credible stock photo websites with professional, high res images for your posts. Two options of many are Canva and Pexels.
- Pexels is a great place for free, high quality images that you can use on your website without worrying about getting in copyright trouble.
- Furthermore, if you’re looking to take things to the next level with your images, social media posts, and other graphic design stuff, Canva is awesome. I’ve used it to create everything from Facebook headers and GIFs to slide decks and header images. It is a paid service but great for newbies who want custom graphics without breaking the bank.
Going back to your website, here’s how you add a featured image:
Click “Document” on the right side of the page and then “Featured Image.” Then click “Set featured image.”
Next, you will be taken to a window that allows you to upload your image. You can click “Select Files” or drag and drop the image into the window.
Please note the maximum upload file size–Wordpress limits file size. If your file is too large, WordPress may not let you upload it.
Once the photo uploads, you will have the option of adding more information related to the photo, including a title, caption and description. I’d suggest filling these out with great keywords, because they will help your blog show up in internet searches.
Finally, you can click “Set featured image.”
You will be taken back to your draft post, and a preview of the featured image will appear on the right side of the page.
Creating categories
In addition to a featured image, you may want to create categories for your posts. This will make it easy for readers to sort your posts by topic.
You can do this by clicking “Categories” on the right side of your draft post.
To add a new category, type in your new category name into the “New Category Name” bar and click the “Add New Category” button.
Be sure to uncheck the “Uncategorized” category, which is the WordPress default.
Making your content easy to read
As you are creating your post, you should keep your readers and audience in mind. The Yoast SEO plugin helps you do this. Scroll to the bottom of the post and you will see the Yoast SEO suggestions to make your article readable and findable by Google.
First, you should choose the SEO tab and create a “Focus keyphrase” so that Google’s search algorithm can find your article. Aim for a green smiley face.
If you have trouble with this, click the gray question mark circle to learn more about choosing the right keywords.
Next, click on “Readability.” You also want to aim for a green smiley face here.
Most importantly, you know your audience better than an automated plugin. Yoast SEO has a goal of optimizing your content for searchability and readability. Do not feel like you have to take each and every suggestion if it is not right for your audience.
Publishing your first post
Finally, you’re ready to publish your first post!
Click on “Publish…” in the top right hand corner when you’re ready. You will be prompted twice, as WordPress wants you to confirm that you’re ready to publish.
You can choose to publish the article immediately or at some point in the future.
Congratulations! Your website is up and functional, and you published your first post. It will look something like this.
You should also note that your post will have the sample WordPress comment listed at the end. This shows you what comments to your blog posts will look like.
You can delete this comment by clicking on “Comments” on the left side of the window, and then clicking on the “Trash” link when you hover your mouse over the comment.
Step Nine: Capturing website visitor leads
As your brand and business grows, more and more people will visit your website. They’ve expressed some interest in you, and you should tap into their interest!
One way you can do this is by capturing visitors’ email addresses so that you can reach out to them later.
There are a few services that help you do this, including ConvertKit, Mailchimp, Keap, and AWeber. I use ConvertKit.
Mailchimp is a popular choice because it is free and it is actually not bad when you’re starting out. I prefer ConvertKit because there’s more functionality, particularly for selling products.
You can try ConvertKit for free before deciding if you want to go with a paid account.
Whew! You made it to the end of this MAMMOTH tutorial! Congratulations again on taking this step.
Your website will be the first introduction many people have to your personal brand, and you want to get it right.
You will probably continue to make tweaks to your website until you are satisfied, and that is okay.
The goal is to create a website you can be proud of, and you’re making it happen.
Once you’re ready, leave a comment below and include a link to your new website! I’d love to see it.
Also, let me know in the comments if you still have questions about how to create a website that reflects your personal brand.
Happy creating!
Finally, please note that if you purchase Bluehost, the Divi Theme, ConvertKit or Canva using the above links, I will receive an affiliate commission because I included affiliate links. This is at no cost to you.