First off, it’s great that you are looking into how to build a website. That means you are taking real actions, which is the key to making real progress.

I know building a website can seem a bit intimidating, especially if you don’t know how to code, but that’s what I’m gonna help you with.

However, before we get started with the actual building, there is a crucial first step you must take to make sure the process goes as smoothly as possible. Before you get a hosting plan, or purchase a theme, or install WordPress, you have to have the right mindset.

 

Wait… What?!?

Don’t stop reading! I know it sounds goofy, but having the right mindset will make the process of building your website so much easier. Allow me to explain.

If you’re like most people, you’ve seen some pretty cool websites out there and thought, “Hey! I want a website like that!”. Unfortunately, there is a VERY good chance that what you saw was an incredibly expensive website done by highly-paid coders. In other words… A website like that is probably outside of your reach… And that’s okay.

You see, people get all wrapped up in having bells and whistles on their website and kill themselves trying to get it. But the honest truth is, when all is said and done, those bells and whistles are going to have a very small impact on your business, if any. CONTENT is what drives business, not fancy websites.

 

How To Build A Website: The K.I.S.S. Mentality

Before you start your website you should get your head straight on the proper mentality: K.I.S.S.

K.I.S.S. is a pretty well-known acronym in the business world, but if you aren’t familiar with it K.I.S.S. stands for “Keep It Simple, Stupid”. Or just “Keep It Simple” if you’re the friendly type.

Basically it means to stop overthinking everything. Find the simple solution and take action! Stop wasting time and money on more complex answers that will do virtually nothing to improve your bottom line. All you’re doing is delaying the actual actions that will drive your success forward. Simple solutions acted on immediately will almost always beat complex solutions that take forever.

 

How To Build a Website: Content Is King

In today’s world, the value you are providing to your clients, or prospective clients, is going to be the primary driving factor in your success. Website bells and whistles aren’t going to get people to buy from you, follow you, or whatever it is you want people to do. It is the value you bring that will drive your business.

 

How To Build A Website: The Basics

Even though you need to keep things simple, you can’t keep them TOO simple. There are some basics that you MUST have in today’s world (all of which we will help to make sure you have):

1. Responsive: Your website 100% has to be responsive. “Responsive” means the website adjusts it’s layout and design automatically based on the size of the screen a person is using. Or even simpler, it means your website has to look good on a computer and on a phone. Clear back in 2014 the mobile phone surpassed the desktop in regards to internet traffic. That means people are more likely to look at your website on their phone than their computer. So if your website doesn’t look good on a phone you may as well say goodbye to all of those prospective viewers.
2. Good load times: Getting blazing fast websites takes money. And usually coders. But that doesn’t mean you can’t have a fast load time if you… Wait for it… Keep things simple. That’s the thing about website bells and whistles that nobody tells you. All those lines of code that are needed to make the bells and whistles work slows down the website. Now, you might be thinking that a cool website you saw loaded really fast, but the owners are probably paying a small fortune to have dedicated, high-speed servers in order to deliver the content that fast. So, if you don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars a month on hosting, keeping the bells and whistles away from your website will help keep it fast.
3. Security Certificate: Your website has to have a security certificate, regardless of whether you take credit card payments or not. If you aren’t clear on what this means, a security certificate, or SSL, changes your website from “HTTP” to “HTTPS”. The added “s” denotes that the website has security measure in place. This is important because in 2017 it was announced that Google was going to start penalizing HTTP websites, meaning you will have a harder time being found on Google searches. Eventually everything will be “HTTPS”, so you might as well get started now.
4. Look up-to-date: Your website doesn’t need to be “cutting-edge” (in fact this whole article is explaining why it probably should NOT be “cutting edge”), but it does need to look current and contemporary. Using the right tools, like our preferred WordPress theme will allow you to get that contemporary look without breaking a sweat. In fact, you’d have to work hard to make a bad-looking website!

How To Build A Website: In short

Let me shorten this entire article on how to build a website into a short little blurb: Don’t sweat the small stuff.

Is your header a bit bigger than you want? Don’t sweat it. Can you not get the exact structure that you want on the website? Don’t sweat it. Do you think there are websites out there that look better? Don’t sweat it.

At WP Success Path we point you to the tools that will help you understand how to build a website quickly and easily. The tools we suggest may not allow you to do exactly what you want to do, but the tiny variance isn’t worth your time and energy. Follow our steps and recommendations and your website will be exactly what you need.

Worry about bells and whistles when your company starts generating millions in revenue.