You don't need mad skillzz to make a simple website
I'm writing this tutorial as i kinda found myself in a position in the past years where i wanted to make a website fast and cheap for whatever reason i had at that moment, maybe for a friend or maybe just to test things out for an idea i had in my head.So i'm sharing my knowledge and the easy steps i took to make myself a simple website with no prior HTML knowledge or even a slight of web design skills.
Please note that this is the route you can take if you want a simple-not-too-complicated website- If your business depends of the website you want, or if the business you have requires some type of online interaction- then you may want to spend some time learning the mysterious ways of HTML, CSS and other Web related code, or just simply PAY THE DUDE who's doing this as a living
Some things to consider before you start building the website
Before getting your hands dirty with all the tiny parts in involved in making a website, you need to do a little brainstorming.Get your facts wright, do some research, KNOW who YOU are, and what your bizz is about.Even if it's a simple website, you need some clarity, so you don't get your viewers/clients/visitors confused.So Implement a successful website strategy to show you are a professional.
People say first impression doesn't mater, but when it comes to the internet, it does not aply. When someone clicks on a link that redirects him on your website, and they see a nasty layout with unnecessary buttons and to much info/not that much info they gonna leave and never come back. So you need to sketch your vision before, than apply it to your page. Decide what should each section contain, and where to put it.
First, Get your domain name
What's a domain name?
A domain name is your website URL, your website name.Can be any combinations of letters and numbers, and can have different domain extensions such as .com, .net, .org, .xyz and more.You need to register your website name before it can be accessible, and by registering i mean you need to buy it by either paying an annual fee or you have the option to buy it for extra-period/life.
Getting a domain name involves registering/buying the name you want from a organization called ICANN through a middle-man called a domain name Registrar. They are many services online, each with their offers and each with their prices. Some Web-hosting services can offer you a free domain name if you buy hosting from them, but i suggest you register directly from a registrar as you keep the chances for scams on the low, avoiding unpleasant situations I've heard over the past years.
So, after you gave that a thought, you need to think at the name.Brainstorm a bit, but don't take too long, as your needed website name can disappear fast.If the name you want is not available, you can chose another extension, but i suggest you stick with the usual .com extension, as the other ones looks quite weird.
Good, you've decided on a name, now you need to register it.Each registrar can accept a vast methods of payments, but most accept Credit card, Paypal, Skrill, and there are a few that accept crypto as well.Decide on a method of payment, and buy your domain name.
Hurayy! You now have a domain name!Your unique website name, that you own!
Until you buy and set you your Web-hosting, your domain name is automatically parked by your registrar at a temporary website set up for you, so you can take your time and worry about other bits of the story.Until you set up hosting, your website URL will lead to a dummy page, usually filled with your registrar adds.
What registrar to choose?
All of them offers the same service, but some of them are more reliable from the support perspective.The market is over-saturated, competitive, so each registrar can offer competitive prices.Do some research before you choose.I'll list some for you, that I've used in the past.
- GoDaddy is probably the biggest and most popular registrar there is.They have a great offer: For your first domain name you pay 99/cents. Ain't that a great deal ?
If you want to register more that one domain name, they have .com domains for 9.99$ per year, and other extension at different prices. Please note that the market can fluctuate, and the prices can drop, and rise.
- Other registrar I've used is PanaNames : I managed to buy from them domain names with prices as low as 69/cents , although weird extensions like .xyz, and .online, etc. Check them out, they have some one of a time offers.
With a google search, you can find allot of them, depends of you what suit you best! Remember to always read reviews about them, so you know what to expect.
Now what, you wonder?!
After you registered your domain name, you need to sign up for a hosting plan.So choose a web host and sign up for an account.
What is a Web-Host?
Basically, a company with many computers and servers connected to the internet.When you place your website on their storage, everybody can see and navigate your website pages. Think at it as renting some space for your house, or renting some space for your business.
Web hosting providers are as many as there are domain registrars.How do you choose?Again, depends of your personal preferences.Most of them offers about the same stuff, so for a simple web-page , you need not to worry about this stuff, just calculate your budget, and see what can you afford.
Some web-hosts offers also a free domain included in the price, so it's your choice if you go with a registrar and a host, or just a Host with a free domain. I'll list some of the budget ones bellow:
GoDaddy also has a web hosting plan, starting as low as 2,99$ for 3 months, With 100 GB of disc space, Unlimited data transfer, and other stuff. You can buy with Credit card,Paypal and other.
1&1 is one of the biggest web hosting provider around. Both linux and microsoft packages.You can go with Linux based platform for 0,99/month with 1 free domain name, unlimited data transfer and web space, space for additional sub-domains, and other useful stuff.
Use google search to find the best hosing suited for your needs.If your plan is a simple website, go with some budget provider, no point in getting some fancy stuff if you don't really need it.
Point your domain to your website
Good, now that you have your domain and your hosting, you need to point your registered domain name to your website.
You need to obtain from your web host the name of their primary and secondary nameservers. It will look like this : ns1.exemple.com, ns2.exemple.com.After you got them, find the DNS settings in your registrar domain page and edit the sections related to nameservers.Submit and after some hours your domain will be ready to show your website to the public.Remember that your website is parked, showing a dummy page, until you point the domain to your website.
You now have made the first baby steps.You own a fresh registered domain, and you have a hosting to upload your website files, and many more useful thingies you can find in your hosting panel.You can also point your WordPress blog( if you have any) to your domain name;Personally i do not like the blog look on word-press, but of-course, there are ways to edit the platform.
Designing your Web Pages
The next step is to design the website itself. Assuming that you will be doing this yourself, and not hire someone to do it for you, and assuming you do not have any web coding and web design skills, you need to find some web builder with drag and drop features, easy to use, and with the ability to export/publish the website files you just made.
You can download some free HTML templates and use a HTML editor to edit what you need.You won't need some HTML coding skills, but you will need some basic generic knowledge to edit the stuff you see in the editor.
MOBIRISE
Another method is using a web-builder.After i searched the web and could not find a free online service that offers what i need, i eventually found an free offline software called Mobirise.
Mobirise is absolutely free for both commercially and non-commercial use, and does not have any limitation.Is mostly newbies orientated, perfect for me, a NOOB, and does not require special experience to be installed and used properly.
It's simple to use,even if you didn't use an offline/online builder, mobirise will no be a problem. Easy to register/login, although you will only need to login if you want to download some free templates from their themes/extension section.The interface is efficient and functional, and it's drag and drop features allows users creating the structure in less the 1 hour.Filling the structure with content and finishing off the rough edges will take the rest of the day depending of your browsing habits and the complexity of your project.
The software is designed to make small websites, small landing pages, portfolio, and different types of promo type of projects.Dashboard is very intuitive and simple containing visual editor, settings and a panel to add your blocks.
In your mobirise dashboard you can find a themes section from where you can preload pre-made templates, and edit them as you desire.Although not many are free, more complex ones are worth buying, if you want to save time, and you find it hard to build it from scratch.
On the right, you will see a big red plus sign,clicking that will enable the block panel. Block panel is divided in categories, containing blocks you can use to add headers,footers, media, galleries, contact forms, articles, information, text, testimonials and more. You build by dragging and dropping blocks, edit and adding media and content.I won't blah blah more about this, as i consider it's common sense simple, even for a not techie individual.
The thing i like about this FREE software is the fact that i preview and save the project and publish it on my own domain. You have 2 options: Either publish it by using FTP file transfer, or just save it to your hard disk and upload it yourself on your hosting.
Once you saved the files on your hard drive, you can directly upload the files into your desired folder on your hosting file-manager. If you encounter some errors with uploading the files , you can just archive them into a ZIP, and upload that.Once uploaded, extract the archive inside file manager, and you're done.If your website doesn't show, and instead you see a directory with files when you click your website URL, you just need to rename the HTML file to "Index" .
This completes this tutorial.If i made some mistakes, i'm sorry, it's late and i'm 80% filled with coffee!
Posted on Utopian.io - Rewarding Open Source Contributors