If this is a thought that is coming to your mind repeatedly, then it might be time you need a website.
To be honest, in 2022, it does not matter whether you are a multi-million-dollar corporation or a small pet shop selling products; you need an online presence to survive and do well.
If you are already running a physical business or offering a service, failing to take it online is a lot of revenue loss. As someone who wants to succeed, you do not want to be doing that.
While the importance of establishing an online presence was gaining traction over the last decade or so, the same became an absolute necessity during and after the Coronavirus Pandemic.
The pandemic showed us just how important online platforms and the internet were in almost every aspect. With physical lockdowns and social distancing, we cannot imagine what would have happened had it not been for online stores, meeting apps, and streaming platforms!
If you are someone that is just beginning out, this article will be perfect for you to create a website.
Creating a website: Where should I start?
When it comes to creating a website, the first and probably the most important thing you need to worry about is the platform.
When building websites first became the norm (way back in the early 2000s), the only programming that was mainstream was HTML, CSS, and PHP.
The thing was that these were pretty complicated to understand. Without the proper knowledge, you were dependent on website design and development agencies.
This prevented many from starting their own websites. It required a lot of time, money, and expertise.
Things changed when Content Management Systems (CMS) platforms first burst onto the scene. You had WordPress, which was the frontrunner, making website accessibility possible.
Post WordPress, you had other players like WIX, Square Space, Joomla, and Drupal. This era was followed by the emergence of easier options like website builders. Zyro became an important player then and made it possible for literally everyone to create their own website.
Choosing the right platform is critical. This is why you need to look for-
- A platform that does not require you to possess any technical skills whatsoever
- It is easily customizable in terms of the presence of themes and templates
- Possesses true and easy options like ‘drag and drop’ functions making things easier
- It has 24×7 support options that can help you meet challenges if you face any
- Integrates domain name and server hosting capabilities all on one platform
You need to understand that there should be as few barriers to entry as possible as far as creating and launching your website is possible.
What’s Next?
Once you have the website platform sorted, you now move on to two other things-
- Thinking and choosing a good domain name
- Selecting a server that is powerful enough to host your website
Let us explore both of these in some detail-
- Domain Name-
There are two ways you can go about it. Firstly, if you are creating a website for a business, you should go for something like yourbusinessname.com. If you are looking at a personal website like for individual branding, it should be yourname.com.
When it comes to Short domain names, make sure that you stay safe and go for .com, .net, or .org. There are newer ones like .party or even. blog. However, if SEO experts are to be believed, you should stick to the age-old tried and tested .com or .org.
- Hosting Server-
This is where all the pages of your website are stored online. Having a strong and fast server is important. Not only does it help with fast loading web page speeds, but you are likely to experience any downtime with the best servers.
One other thing you should be looking for is security. Having an HTTPS security certificate helps boost the confidence of your site’s visitors as well as shows search engines like Google that your site can be trusted. Make sure that you look for this when choosing a server.
Three Things to Remember When Creating a Website
Now that you are done with the initial setups and placements, you need to move on to other areas. In this section, we are going to list down three important things you should remember when creating a website-
- Branding-
Your website is the most important piece of your branding jigsaw. You need to make sure that your website is an extension of your brand, whether it be for a business or for an individual self. This means you need to focus on your website’s branding. Logo design, color schemes, font styles, layouts, etc., correspond to what constitutes branding on your website. Remember to make your websites consistent with any other offline presence you have.
- Attractiveness-
Two things are important. Your website’s design and content should be attractive enough to hold the attention of your site visitors. If this is achieved, you are going to witness lower bounce rates, always a good thing. Secondly, attractiveness should also be able to achieve what you are trying