{"id":20723,"date":"2024-05-17T16:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-05-17T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/digitalnomadshq.com.au\/?p=20723"},"modified":"2025-07-24T01:58:54","modified_gmt":"2025-07-24T01:58:54","slug":"how-to-build-a-website","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/digitalnomadshq.com.au\/blog\/how-to-build-a-website\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Build A Website"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Building A New Website?... Follow our step-by-step guide...<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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We have put together a beginner’s guide to making your own website \u2013 this is outlined in an easy step-by-step format for you to follow along at your own pace. Whether you have worked on websites before, or are completely new and have no past experience, this will guide you along the way.<\/p>

Some common questions people that stop people from building a website;<\/p>

Do I need to know how to code?<\/strong><\/p>

No.<\/p>

As I mentioned this is designed for beginners\u2026 so no matter your experience, at the end of this guide you\u2019ll have a live functioning website to show.<\/p>

Will I make a mistake or \u201cmess things up\u201d?<\/strong><\/p>

While yes, there is a lot of intricacies in any website process \u2013 if you follow this guide step by step, you\u2019ll be fine.<\/p>

I will be sure to mention any areas that you should avoid or hire a developer to assist with down the track.<\/p>

Will it cost me a lot of money?<\/strong><\/p>

The benefit of being able to self-develop a website is the savings.
Aside from hosting fees, which shouldn\u2019t cost more than 10-20$ AUD per month…
you\u2019ll have no other outgoings.<\/p>

So, with that covered\u2026 let\u2019s get building your new website!<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Step 1: Choose a domain name (.www)<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The first step for every website is to ensure you have a domain that your website can be accessed (www.example.com)…<\/p>

This is quite straightforward, and we have a few rules you can stick to to make the right choice for your business.<\/p>

Business Websites<\/strong>: Your domain should be as close to your company name as possible or an \u201cexact match\u201d for consistency.
Example: Digital Nomads HQ, Our Domain Digitalnomadshq.com.au<\/p>

Personal Websites<\/strong>: Use your name for a personal blog or personal branding (unless you have a personal brand name)<\/p>

.com vs .com.au: If you are an Australian business, targeting the Australian market get either the .com.au or (new) .au domain. For a more detailed explanation of why read this; .com vs .com.au<\/a><\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Where do you buy a domain?<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Simple: https:\/\/domains.squarespace.com\/<\/a> – This was previously Google Domains.<\/p>

An easy platform to buy your domains and check if a domain is available.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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How much does a domain cost?<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Both .com.au and .au domains are (A$27\/yr)<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Step 2: Hosting your website (Web Hosting)<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Now you have your domain sorted\u2026 we need to sort website hosting.<\/p>

Hosting is the server to which your website will be stored online\u2026<\/p>

Now there are many web hosting services, that will include both hosting and the ability to build your website also \u2013 Wix, and Squarespace are examples of this.<\/p>

Leveraging platforms like these can be the \u201csimple\u201d, or \u201ceasy\u201d option\u2026 but note, that they come with there own limitations. So to maximise flexibility, SEO & long-term success we will use globally the largest web platform (CMS) WordPress in this guide.<\/p>

Organic positions within search display a strong correlation to the more links\/authority a website has\u2026 the higher it ranks.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Finding a web hosting provider<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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With 100s of web hosting providers online\u2026 just search \u201cweb hosting\u201d in Google and strap in.<\/p>

We have grabbed one of our favourite for the ease of use, price & performance \u2013 so you don\u2019t have to go searching.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Dreamhost Hosting<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t(Not sponsored) Dreamhost has a fantastic $4.95p\/m (USD) WordPress starter hosting plan. This will include your SSL certificate, and great performance and they will even install WordPress onto the server for you\u2026 saving your time!\n\nGet started here – https:\/\/www.dreamhost.com\/wordpress\/shared-wp-hosting\/<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\n\nClick \u201cGet Started\u201d\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Select Your Term (Monthy, 1 Year or 3 Years)<\/p>

It will prompt you on whether you have a domain already, as we have already purchased your domain you can select \u201cI already have a domain\u201d, to which you will be prompted to input your new domain name.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Upon completion of this step-by-step \u2013 Dreamhost will assist you through some key areas;<\/p>

\u2022 It will create an environment<\/p>

\u2022 Talk you through the connection of your domain to the hosting environment<\/p>

\u2022 Install an SSL (for security)<\/p>

\u2022 And install WordPress for you.<\/p>

These are all very simple step-by-step process with which the platform will assist you, and if you get stuck at any time you can use their 24\/7 live support.<\/p>

This is your Domain, Hosting and Website setup complete.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Step 3: Designing your website<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Now we have you set up with your WordPress website, you can log in through your Dreampress dashboard or at yourdomain.com\/wp-admin with your login credentials.<\/p>

WordPress<\/strong><\/p>

This is your dashboard for WordPress.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Wordpress\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tThe left-hand side menu is where you assess each part of your website and can perform different functions\u2026 i.e. add pages, add posts (blogs), add imagery etc.\n\nBy default, WordPress leverages a default Twenty Twenty-Four theme which is built using a platform called \u201cGutenberg\u201d. But here we recommend a fast and optimized IT WordPress Theme<\/a>.
\n\nNow in this guide, we are going to take it one step further and add a WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) builder called Elementor\u2026 Why?\n\nElementor is a fast, and very user friendly builder to give you better design functionality \u2013 so why wouldn\u2019t you?\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Step 1:<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Installing Elementor<\/p>

Click Plugins on the side menu<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\u201cAdd new plugin\u201d in the drop down.<\/p>

In the top left corner search \u201cElementor\u201d<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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And select \u201cInstall Now\u201d<\/p>

Once installed select \u201cActive\u201d<\/p>

Ok, so that\u2019s Elementor Installed\u2026<\/p>

Themes<\/strong><\/p>

We want to ensure the default \u201cHello Elementor\u201d Theme is also active.<\/p>

You do this by selecting on the side menu \u201cAppearance\u201d \u2013 \u201cThemes\u201d<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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And \u201cactive\u201d Hello Elementor.<\/p>

Once complete, it should look like this.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Site Appearance and WordPress Settings<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Let\u2019s keep moving through this!<\/span><\/p>

So, with both Elementor installed and default themes now set\u2026 we can start tailoring your website to your business, brand and desired goals.<\/p>

Let\u2019s start by fixing up the site name, favicon and site logo. Again, on the left-hand side menu select \u201cAppearance\u201d \u2013 \u201cCustomise\u201d.<\/p>

This will display a page that will look as such;<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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The left menu will allow you to change the site identity \u2013 this includes;<\/p>

Your logo, Site title, tagline and site icon (favicon)… this will be displayed in the browser for users.<\/p>

Go through and complete these fields.<\/p>

Here\u2019s my example, so you can see how it should look.<\/strong><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Once you have completed these, click \u201cPublish\u201d<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Creating your homepage<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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With site logos done and your business name in\u2026 let\u2019s create a homepage.<\/p>

Select \u201cPages\u201d \u2013 \u201cNew Page\u201d<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Name your page \u2013 Home<\/p>

And click the blue \u201cEdit with Elementor\u201d.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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This is where the fun starts, designing your Homepage.<\/p>

Important to note: I\u2019m trying to keep this short and not too \u201cin-depth\u201d in either the navigation design (design of the navigation menu) or include any advanced on-page design techniques\u2026 for that we will have an additional guide.<\/strong><\/p>

My goal is to give you the basics to which you can then learn and experiment yourself.<\/span><\/p>

So, with that being said \u2013 your page will look like this to start with;<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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The left-hand menu is your \u201cwidgets\u201d<\/p>

Widgets are pre-configured blocks, or designed elements to add to your page (without the need for custom code).<\/p>

By simply dragging and dropping these blocks into your page you can start building out a design that works for you.<\/p>

Here\u2019s a short video showing the drag and drop, adjusting the sizing of images, and colours of fonts.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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