If you ask someone what WordPress is, there’s a good chance they’ll tell you that it’s a blog platform, but it’s so much more than that.

Since it first hit the web in 2003 as a blog application, WordPress has evolved into a fully functioning content management system. It stores your content, keeps it organized, and makes your website easy to manage and navigate. Best of all, it’s free.

For those of us who once coded websites by typing HTML by hand, WordPress is a monumental blessing. It doesn’t have the same restrictions and complications that programs like FrontPage or Dreamweaver present because it’s highly customizable and flexible enough that a website designer can take full control of the design and layout while simultaneously giving consideration to the actual content.

About WordPress

Most website hosting providers offer one-click installation for WordPress. That means once you’ve signed up for hosting, getting WordPress installed on your website is just a click away. Only a few, outdated hosting providers still require manual installation, which involves uploading the WordPress files and database to the server on which the site is hosted.

The code and files include instructions that tell a browser how to display the WordPress website on the screen. This is done through WordPress themes, which are templates that drive the design and layout of each site.

The content of a WordPress site is managed online, from the WordPress control panel, which is as easy to use as web-based email. From the control panel, you can compose pages for your site as well as blog posts, and add media including text, images, audio, and video.

WordPress Themes

Often, people are turned off when they hear words like “themes” and “templates.” But WordPress themes can be customized to the point that they don’t even resemble the original look and feel, and there are an enormous variety of themes available.

Most people want a completely original and unique website, especially if they want their business to stand out from the crowd, so it’s understandable that themes or templates don’t sound too appealing. However, there are a number of benefits to using these themes on a website.

For example, many themes have certain standardized components. A navigation menu across the top of a website, a clickable header, and sidebars are familiar to website visitors and make them feel at home. This makes any website easy to navigate and therefore more attractive to visitors.

Also, since the themes are so customizable, it’s entirely possible to strip down a theme and make it look completely different. You can even start with your own design, find a theme that loosely resembles it, and then tweak the theme to match what you had in mind. Or, you can choose a theme you like and tweak it until it has a look and feel that satisfies you.

Some of the available themes are premium, and these you must pay for. However, most themes are free. Many premium themes are available via license through designers who have purchased the right to customize and resell the themes. If you have considerable HTML and CSS skills, you can learn how to customize a WordPress theme quickly and easily on your own. And if you don’t have those skills, you can simply hire someone to do it for you. Chances are, it will be a lot cheaper than hiring a website designer to code your site from scratch.

Problems with Traditional Websites

Traditional websites, which are coded with HTML, present a host of problems and frustrations for business owners:

• If you don’t know how to code your own site, you have to hire someone to do it for you, which means every time you need to make a change or update (no matter how small), you’re reliant on someone else. And you have to pay for it.
• Large amounts of content can be difficult to manage, add to a site, and keep track of without some kind of content management system.
• Small changes to a site’s structure could be costly and time-consuming. For example, you may need to change your URL structure to optimize the site for better search engine performance. That could be tedious and expensive for a larger site that’s not running on any kind of database.
• Designing a site from scratch without a theme or template costs more than customizing a theme because it takes a lot longer.
• It’s difficult to switch designers once your site is up and running. Because a WordPress site runs on a theme, if your designer is unavailable or unsatisfactory, you can easily find another who can update your site for you.

WordPress Benefits

WordPress solves many of the problems presented by traditionally coded websites:

• Once your WordPress theme customization is complete and your site is launched, you (or any of your employees) can quickly and easily add content or make changes. It’s literally as easy as composing email.
• WordPress uses a database to manage all of your content, and through the WordPress control panel, you can view and manage that content with great ease.
• With WordPress, changing the URL structure, for example, is just a matter of renaming pages or categories, and that can all be done in a matter of minutes.
• Because the site’s design starts from a theme and most coding is done by amending the style sheet, a WordPress website will probably be a lot less expensive than sites rendered the old-fashioned way. The code is already there and it just has to be customized.
• Once your site is up and running, anyone with knowledge of WordPress and themes can make changes to your design or content. This can be done from within the control panel.

In addition to solving problems that traditional website design presents, WordPress offers a host of perks:

• Plugins like All in One SEO make keyword optimization a breeze, and are easy to learn.
• Other plugins make website management much easier. Google Analytics plugin automatically installs on every single page of the site.
• Still more plugins make the site attractive to visitors, especially when your site includes a blog.
• WordPress tells you which other websites are linking to yours.
• Using categories and the blog feature, you can generate categorized blog posts or articles, which is a great way to communicate with your customers, connect with other professionals, demonstrate your expertise, establish credibility, build transparency, and generate content that will help your site perform well on search engines.

Website Design Solutions and WordPress

Of course, there are plenty of other content management systems out there and WordPress is not appropriate for all situations. Mammoth sites might need a more powerful (and costly) system. WordPress is ideal for small to medium sized websites and may even be appropriate for some large, content-oriented sites.

One of my favorite things about WordPress is that it allows you to grow your site so easily. I can continually add content, and WordPress handles it seamlessly. I don’t have to keep track of all my files, file naming conventions, folders, and directories. WordPress handles all that for me.

I also appreciate being able to update my site from any computer with an Internet connection as well as from my mobile phone. That definitely comes in handy.

But what is a domain name? What’s a host? How do you get these things and do you really need them?

In today’s market, the Internet is a force to be reckoned with. That’s why every business needs a website. It’s also why every business owner needs to understand what a website is, what it needs to succeed, and how ownership works. A domain name has everything to do with ownership.

What is a domain name?

A domain name is the address of a web site: www.yourdomain.com. When you own your domain, you can add subdomains and web pages to it.

A subdomain looks like this: www.subdomain.yourdomain.com

A page on your site might look like this: www.yourdomain.com/pages/information.html

Each of these is an address. The general address of a site is usually its domain. Another term often used for a web address is URL (Uniform Resource Locator).

Why does this matter?

Owning a domain is like owning a piece of real estate. It’s digital real estate, but it’s real estate, and it has a value, especially if you’re going to use it as your online business headquarters.

The reason this is important is that some web developers and website designers will offer to set up your domain for you. This is a reasonable service for them to provide, but you need to make sure that the ownership of your domain is in your name.

If the person you hire to manage or create your site owns the domain, they have complete control over it. Should your business relationship go sour or if anything happens to that person or the company they represent, they can take your site down with them (or just run off with it).

What about all those free sites?

Free sites are great for kids, amateurs, and folks who are testing the waters of the web. Having your own domain tells people that you take what you’re doing seriously.

You can register a domain for under $10 and get a pretty decent hosting package for under $120 a year. If you’re not willing to invest that much in your business and online presence, then people will take that as a sign that you’re not serious about what you’re doing – or they might assume you don’t know what you’re doing.

What’s a hosting service?

A website is basically a bunch of electronic files that are stored on a special computer called a server. The server is configured so that the files are accessible to people with internet access. A hosting service owns the servers where your website files sit and makes those files available to web users.

You own the files, you own the domain, the host owns the computers the files are stored on and all the technology that makes your site accessible to the web-viewing public.

So, how do I buy a domain and pick a hosting service?

One popular place to buy domains on the cheap is godaddy.com but I’ve never used them personally and can’t make an official recommendation. If you choose your hosting service first, you can purchase your domains through them. It’s a standard service that every hosting provider offers.

Also, some hosting companies have pretty good technical support – people you can call or email who will help walk you through the process. They may even have designers on their staff who can help you build your site. Another option would be to hire a professional designer to create your site and whoever you hire will be able take care of the technical details for you. As previously mentioned, just make sure you own the domain.

If you decide to seek out a host, take some time and do a little research first. There are plenty of reviews online but read them with caution and discretion because you never know – the hosting company themselves may have written the review or paid someone to write it for them. As with most products and services, nothing beats a good recommendation, so start asking around.

How to Choose a Domain Name

Unfortunately, there’s a good chance that your number one choice for a domain name won’t be available. Here are some things you can do if that’s the case:

• Check the site and see if it’s active and relevant. If it’s not, you may be able to contact the owner and make an offer to buy it.
• Consider using dashes (your-domain.com).
• Add another word to the title (professionalyourdomain.com or yourdomaininc.com).
• Use one of the alternate extensions such as .org or.net.
• Pick a different title and domain name.
• Make up a name or word (like I did).
• Purchase a domain name close to the title of your site or name of your business. For example if your site will be called “Your Site” but yoursite.com is taken, you might be able to purchase “yoursite360.com” and just call it “Your Site” anyway. The title of your site doesn’t have to be the same as the domain name. But you’ll still need to use the accurate URL or domain for links, business cards, etc.

Got Questions?

Learning how all this stuff works is confusing at first – especially for people who are new to doing business online. If you still have any questions after reading this, feel free to post them in the comments.

And good luck with your domain!

Some consider design to be a component of content, but it’s actually a separate consideration having to do more with aesthetics and branding than actual content, which is the information, images, and products or services that a site presents to its audience.

When you’re getting ready to launch or redesign your site, take your time, develop the content first, and seek out comprehensive, proven website design solutions to ensure that your site’s design is a success.

Let’s look at some basic considerations to keep in mind when you’re getting ready to design your website.

Content Development

Most web professionals agree that a site’s content should drive the design and not the other way around. Before you get started with design, develop a comprehensive content plan. Here are some questions to consider during the content development phase:

• Do you already have a logo? If not, you might want to get one before you start on your website design.
• What will be on your home page? Will it be image-driven or text-driven? The most effective home pages serve as an introduction to a site’s content.
• How many pages will the site have? Try to include the basics: home, about, contact, FAQ, and at least one page that describes your products or services.
• Will the site include a blog? Articles? Videos?
• How often will the site be updated or changed? Keep in mind that if you don’t make your own updates, you’ll have to pay someone every time a small change is made. Also, remember that the more frequently you update your site, the better your search engine rank will be.

Image and Branding

Your site should reflect your company image. Are you sleek and professional? Warm and friendly? Cutting edge? Your image is an essential part of your brand, and it should be reflected in everything that relates to your website and your company – from press releases to advertisements.

One of the most essential branding components is your logo. If you don’t have one, your website designer may be able to create one for you as part of your design package. Your logo should appear on your business card, website, in ads, and all other materials that you share, publish, or distribute.

If you start with a logo and company image, you’ll already have the foundations in place for your website. Design solutions come quickly and easily when a well-planned brand is already in place.

Traffic Generation

Before you design and launch your site, you should spend some time thinking about how you’ll draw traffic. Some websites draw all their traffic from search engines. If you plan on harnessing search engine traffic, you’ll want to optimize your site and that would be mean hiring a search engine optimization (SEO) expert. Website copywriting professionals (like me) often offer a variety of SEO services, including SEO copywriting.

You may also use directory listings, referrals, and advertisements. Your website copywriter can help with writing text ads and your website designer should be able to create image ads for you. Remember that any text or image ads that you use to promote your site should tie in with your brand and your design scheme.

If you have a handle on how you’ll draw traffic before you start working on the design, you can incorporate your ads or SEO into the content development and design plan. For example, if your online marketing plan includes a press release, article marketing, or newsletter, your website copywriter can work on these while writing your website copy. Everything will be coherent, written in the same tone, and it will all reflect your image and brand.

Finally, Bring in the Designer

First and foremost you need to figure out who is going to be generating your web site. Here are a few options:

• Design it yourself – If you already know web design, this is an obvious choice.
• Use WYSIWYG web design software – For the record, WYSIWYG stands for What You See is What You Get. This would include software such as FrontPage, which is relatively easy to use, especially for anyone familiar with the Microsoft Office suite of products.
• Use an automated site generator – Hosts such as Yahoo! provide automated tools, which are user friendly and walk you through the process of putting together a web page.
• Hire someone – You can hire a business or an independent professional (freelance web designer) to put your site together.
• Trade – If you can find a web designer who is in need of the products or services you offer, you can inquire about doing a trade.
• Get someone to do it for free – If you know someone who’s willing and able, ask away!

No matter who designs your site, you should take a look at some of their previous work to make sure that their style and skill level matches your design needs. You also need to understand that there’s more to design than the way a site looks. If your site will include e-commerce, for example, you may need a design team that includes a designer and a web programmer.

Before the site is built, you need to consider what you want it to look like. If you hire someone, they will ask you to outline your preferences in terms of color and layout, and they’ll need to know whether you have any images or links you want to display on the site. Be prepared to have a preliminary design plan.

In these times, a well-built website is critical to business success. Whether you’re starting a brand new site or revamping an existing one, don’t rush. Take the time to plan carefully so you save time and money later and get it done right the first time.