How To Create A WordPress Website

Register A Domain Name

A domain name is an address on the Internet. A hosting provider stores website files on servers and makes them available to be accessed on the internet. There are many hosting providers to choose from, and usually bundle both a domain name and hosting at sign up. However, my recommendation is to use a separate company to manage your domain name. I use Google Domains, they have a clean easy to understand interface and prices are lower than others. Once you have a domain name in mind, go to Google Domains to see if it’s available, then register it.

Get Web Hosting

Now that you registered your domain name at Google Domains, you’ll need to choose a web host. You should have a web host before you create a WordPress website. I’ve been fortunate enough to have used most of the web hosts out there since 1995. Since 2016, I’ve used A2Hosting for my personal websites as well as my customers. A2Hosting offers the fastest dashboard and best customer service for the money. Their cPanel interface is clean, strong security, super fast and a ton features at a price no other web host can match. If you would like to read my review on A2Hosting click here.

After web hosting service is established, and assuming you’ve registered a domain name at Google Domains, go back to Google Domains and point your domain name to your new web host. In this example, we’ll use A2Hosting. A2Hosting DNS servers: ns1.a2hosting.com, ns2.a2hosting.com.

How to point your domain to your web host inside of Google Domains.

Login to Google Domains and select your domain.
On the left select DNS, on the right select Manage Name Servers.
Add A2Hosting DNS servers: ns1.a2hosting.com, ns2.a2hosting.com.

Click Save.

How To Create A WordPress Database

Now it’s time to login to your web hosting account and create a database and database user.

In the New Database text box, enter a name for the database.
Click Create Database. A new interface will appear.
Click Go Back. The new database appears in the Current Databases table.

Add A User To Your Database

In the Add User To Database section of the interface, select the desired user and database from the menus.
Click Add. The MySQL Account Maintenance interface will appear.
Select the checkboxes that correspond to the privileges that you wish to grant to the user.

Note: In order to grant all available privileges to the user, select the All Privileges checkbox.

Click Make Changes.
Click Go Back to return to the main interface.

Upload WordPress

If you want the cleanest WordPress installation possible, I recommend visiting WordPress.org and download the latest version, here’s the link WordPress.org.

On the right side you will see your install directory. Upload the WordPress zip file into the install directory and unzip it. Note: Verify all files are in the correct directory. If not, navigate to them, select all, right click and select move.

Add Database Info

Find and rename wp-config-sample.php to wp-config.php, then edit the wp-config.php file and add your…

Database Name: define( ‘DB_NAME’, ‘database_name_goes_here‘ );
Database User: define( ‘DB_USER’, ‘database_username_goes_here‘ );
Database Password: define( ‘DB_PASSWORD’, ‘database_password_goes_here‘ );

Save your changes!

Install WordPress

Now that everything is setup, we can begin the WordPress installation process.

Go to your domain: http://example.com.
Select your language.
Gather your Database Info and click Let’s go!
Add your Database Info. Leave Database Host and Table Prefix as is and click Submit!
Give your WordPress site a title, Username, Password and Your Email.
Click Install WordPress!
Login with the credentials you just created.

Congratulations! If you did everything correctly, you should be looking at your WordPress dashboard.

WordPress Themes And Plugins

Now that the technical stuff is over, it’s time to choose a WordPress theme. There are many great themes to choose from, the WordPress theme I recommend is GeneratePress. It’s a solid theme with a clean interface, very fast, easy to use, affordable, and my customers love it. As a premium member of GeneratePress since 2016, it’s the WordPress theme I use on all of my personal websites as well as my customer’s. As a premium member of GeneratePress, you get access to a full library of WordPress Site Themes. They have over 80 beautiful designs to choose from. Once you have one selected the design process can begin.

Note: Before you create your WordPress website and get started on the actual design, it’s best you install an SSL certificate first. If you are unfamiliar with an SSL, they keep Internet connections secure during financial transactions and prevent hackers from having access to our personal information. With that said, the Free SSL Certificate I recommend is called, One-Click Free SSL Certificate. Go ahead and download the plugin and follow the instructions to install. If you need assistance, the plugin author has a video you could watch – here. If you still need assistance, post in the comments section below.

Page Builders

Beaver Builder

Beaver Builder gives us the tools to take our website customization options to another level. If you want to create a WordPress website with the most simplicity, the two most popular WordPress page builders are Beaver Builder and Elementor. Both offer a ton of customization features giving you the ability to unlock your creativity. Personally, I prefer Beaver Builder in my workflow. The interface is easy to pick up and visually geared for beginners. Therefore Beaver Builder is the page builder I use on most of my projects and the one I recommend if you are just starting out.

Elementor

Elementor is also a fantastic page builder with a slew of customization features as well. Some designers prefer Elementor over Beaver Builder. Depending on the project, the choice comes down to personal preference. Like I said earlier, I think Beaver Builder is easier for beginners to get started with. Beaver Builder is my go to for giving websites a unique look that is sure to impress.

Block Builders

I’ve been using GenerateBlocks with Beaver Builder for a while. You could use one or the other, but I like to use both. I find GenerateBlocks is better for creating blog posts, where as Beaver Builder is better for creating pages.

GenerateBlocks is a small collection of lightweight WordPress blocks that can accomplish nearly anything. Here are a few things I like most about using GenerateBlocks.

Performance: Deliver lightning-fast sites built with clean HTML5 code, dynamic CSS, and without code dependencies.
Endlessly Flexible: With these four blocks, you can build almost any layout, style any content, and produce any design.
Responsiveness: Create stunning sites designed for any screen with device-level controls and advanced flexbox grids.
Coding Standards: Built to the highest coding standards for security, stability, and future compatibility.

Conclusion

The steps that go into learning how to create a WordPress website, if take your time and follow the steps, it is not that difficult. Especially if you read through all the steps I listed above and utilized the services I used in my examples, your web building experience should be a smooth one. If you hit a road block, don’t worry, reach out to me for support. My goal is to provide you with the best support possible.

If your goal is to learn how to create a WordPress Website, I can help. Whether you want to sells products, offer digital downloads, need search engine optimization, web hosting support, custom graphics, social media marketing campaigns, help with Google Analytics, Google Search Console or someone who will be on call for your random WordPress emergencies.

I am respectful, friendly and work hard for my customers. Service is available 7 days a week. Call Anthony at: (954) 895-2555, 10:00 am to 10:00 pm, Est.

Post Views: 993