RyanHSEO
Regular Member
- Jun 11, 2020
- 482
- 207
Starting your first site can be a daunting process. When you Google "Website Builder Free", you will probably see Wix or Weebly appear as a result, however, I wouldn't recommend choosing Wix or Weebly as your site-building option as these options can often be expensive and bulky, whereas you can setup a site using WordPress for a much cheaper price.
What Do You Need To Get Started?
- A Domain
- CPanel Hosting
- WordPress
- A WordPress Theme & Builder
Sorting Your Domain:
The first step of the process is to sort a domain. Now Domains can be expensive if you go for something that is rare or a domain that is expired, however, you don't need to spend thousands of pounds on a domain name, you can go for a free or very cheap domain.
Free .co.uk & .UK Domain:
https://promotions.names.co.uk/index_uk180.html - You may have to provide a card but you can register a Free Domain using Names.
Once you have decided upon a Domain Name and you have registered it, you will have it for free for a year. This is long enough to sort your business and online site out to earn some more money online to cover Year 2's Domain Costs.
When you have registered your Domain Name, you need to change your nameservers, however, what you change these nameservers to will depend on who you use for your hosting!
Sorting Your Hosting:
The second step of the process is to sort some CPanel Hosting. Hosting can become a huge cost if you decide to go with something more dedicated, however for your first hosting needs, your site will survive on a Shared Server.
Depending on what you go for will depend on how much your hosting cost is, however you can get Free & Cheap CPanel Hosting that will work fine.
Free CPanel Hosting:
https://infinityfree.net/ - You can sign up to InfinityFree, for free with no restrictions or advertisements and it will work fine for your website.
Once you have registered for your Hosting, you need to point your Nameservers to the Hosting Provider so that you can set up the CPanel Hosting and install WordPress.
This process is easy, however, the nameserver change process can take a couple of hours so don't be worried if it doesn't happen straight away.
Sorting Your WordPress Installation:
Now that you have set your Domain & Hosting up, you need to install WordPress to your Domain and Website. Again this part is easy and you can either do this manually or through the Softcaluous Installer.
In this guide, we will be using Softcalous Installer instead of the Manual Process to make it easier.
To install WordPress, you need to scroll to the bottom of your CPanel Page, until you see WordPress. Once you see WordPress, click onto it and click install. You will be presented with some options, of which you can configure your install.
You want to ensure that the /wp box is empty and that your site options are set to HTTPS and not HTTP as most CPanel Providers include Free SSL Certificates anyway.
You also want to ensure that you set a Custom Admin Username & Password for your WP installation to prevent anybody else logging in.
Once configured, click install and WordPress will install to your domain.
Once installed, go to yourdomain.com/wp-admin to get onto your WP Dashboard to build your site and edit your WordPress Build.
This is where we come onto installing a Theme and Plugins to your site. This bit is where you start to develop and design your site through your theme and builder.
Sorting Your WordPress Theme & Builder:
The final but most time-consuming part of the process is to sort your WordPress Theme & Building tool. Now this all depends on your site and the needs of your site. If you are building something basic for a business, you can use Elementor and a Theme. However, if you are wanting to set up an E-Commerce Store, you will need to install a Commerce Plugin along with a fitting Theme as not all themes work with all tools.
I would recommend that you install Elementor along with a Theme such as GeneratePress or Hello Theme. These Themes load quickly and get the job done, whereas a lot of the other themes are quite bulky and unresponsive when it comes to loading and showing Page Content.
You can Tutorials in regards to Installing Themes on YouTube. As for Elementor, click Plugins on the left, and click Add New, then search for Elementor.
Once installed, you can set pages on the left under the pages option and start building your site. This bit is down to you. You need to decide on how you want your site to look.
As for SEO, I would recommend that you install Yoast SEO as your SEO Plugin to set your Page Data such as your Meta Description and Page Title.
I hope that this guide helps you out a bit and kickstarts your Website Journey.
If you need any help or have any questions, just ask below!
What Do You Need To Get Started?
- A Domain
- CPanel Hosting
- WordPress
- A WordPress Theme & Builder
Sorting Your Domain:
The first step of the process is to sort a domain. Now Domains can be expensive if you go for something that is rare or a domain that is expired, however, you don't need to spend thousands of pounds on a domain name, you can go for a free or very cheap domain.
Free .co.uk & .UK Domain:
https://promotions.names.co.uk/index_uk180.html - You may have to provide a card but you can register a Free Domain using Names.
Once you have decided upon a Domain Name and you have registered it, you will have it for free for a year. This is long enough to sort your business and online site out to earn some more money online to cover Year 2's Domain Costs.
When you have registered your Domain Name, you need to change your nameservers, however, what you change these nameservers to will depend on who you use for your hosting!
Sorting Your Hosting:
The second step of the process is to sort some CPanel Hosting. Hosting can become a huge cost if you decide to go with something more dedicated, however for your first hosting needs, your site will survive on a Shared Server.
Depending on what you go for will depend on how much your hosting cost is, however you can get Free & Cheap CPanel Hosting that will work fine.
Free CPanel Hosting:
https://infinityfree.net/ - You can sign up to InfinityFree, for free with no restrictions or advertisements and it will work fine for your website.
Once you have registered for your Hosting, you need to point your Nameservers to the Hosting Provider so that you can set up the CPanel Hosting and install WordPress.
This process is easy, however, the nameserver change process can take a couple of hours so don't be worried if it doesn't happen straight away.
Sorting Your WordPress Installation:
Now that you have set your Domain & Hosting up, you need to install WordPress to your Domain and Website. Again this part is easy and you can either do this manually or through the Softcaluous Installer.
In this guide, we will be using Softcalous Installer instead of the Manual Process to make it easier.
To install WordPress, you need to scroll to the bottom of your CPanel Page, until you see WordPress. Once you see WordPress, click onto it and click install. You will be presented with some options, of which you can configure your install.
You want to ensure that the /wp box is empty and that your site options are set to HTTPS and not HTTP as most CPanel Providers include Free SSL Certificates anyway.
You also want to ensure that you set a Custom Admin Username & Password for your WP installation to prevent anybody else logging in.
Once configured, click install and WordPress will install to your domain.
Once installed, go to yourdomain.com/wp-admin to get onto your WP Dashboard to build your site and edit your WordPress Build.
This is where we come onto installing a Theme and Plugins to your site. This bit is where you start to develop and design your site through your theme and builder.
Sorting Your WordPress Theme & Builder:
The final but most time-consuming part of the process is to sort your WordPress Theme & Building tool. Now this all depends on your site and the needs of your site. If you are building something basic for a business, you can use Elementor and a Theme. However, if you are wanting to set up an E-Commerce Store, you will need to install a Commerce Plugin along with a fitting Theme as not all themes work with all tools.
I would recommend that you install Elementor along with a Theme such as GeneratePress or Hello Theme. These Themes load quickly and get the job done, whereas a lot of the other themes are quite bulky and unresponsive when it comes to loading and showing Page Content.
You can Tutorials in regards to Installing Themes on YouTube. As for Elementor, click Plugins on the left, and click Add New, then search for Elementor.
Once installed, you can set pages on the left under the pages option and start building your site. This bit is down to you. You need to decide on how you want your site to look.
As for SEO, I would recommend that you install Yoast SEO as your SEO Plugin to set your Page Data such as your Meta Description and Page Title.
I hope that this guide helps you out a bit and kickstarts your Website Journey.
If you need any help or have any questions, just ask below!
