Build a Professional Looking Website For Free
Until recently, the world of web design was a domain frequented only by skilled professionals; to have a site of your own, you most likely had to spend a good sum of money. With the rise of easy-to-use site providers and web editors, however, you can quickly and intuitively create your own web pages free of cost. Whether you want to use a preexisting service or dabble in some impromptu web design for beginners, here are a couple of ways to create a professional-looking website for free.
Contents
Steps
Using a Pre-Existing Platform
- Plan out your website. Before you sit down to create your page, get a feel for the kind of site you want to have. This will enable you to have a clear image of what you want when selecting a platform.
- The sky is the limit for site potential, but common ideas include blogs (lifestyle, humor, artwork, and so on), photo galleries, news sources, tutorials, or any combination thereof.
- Pick a platform. Once you know what you want your site to be about, find a relevant platform. WordPress and Tumblr are two of the most widely-used platforms for free websites, with WordPress powering over 65% of all websites on the Internet for both small and large companies to meet most general requirements.
- Some platforms, like Tumblr, specialize in visual content; others, like WordPress, are more writing-centric.
- Some platforms allow you to create a custom .com URL for free, but most free platforms require their name to come before the ".com" (for example, www.yourwebsite.yourplatform.com).
- Tech-savvy users may prefer platforms such as Joomla and Drupal for their customization capabilities, but most prefer easy-to-use platforms like WordPress.
- Create an account. Most platforms will require you to log in with an email address and a password. Make sure you select an active email account so that you don't miss any updates.
- Most platforms will send you a confirmation email; depending on your email provider, this email may be in your spam folder. Click the confirm button in the email to lock in your account.
- Choose your theme. After you've created your account, it's time to pick a theme. Your theme determines aspects of your site such as layout, persuasion--for example, photo- or script-oriented--and the general aesthetic of your website. Choose a theme that best reflects your content intentions.
- For example, a minimalist theme with a heavy emphasis on visual media is great for a photo portfolio, whereas a visually-stunning text-only theme works well as a news source.
- Customize your settings. After you've chosen your basic theme, you can tailor certain aspects such as font, the color of the writing, and the heading to your liking. If your platform allows it, you can also determine the URL of your site and similar mechanics.
- If you're tech-savvy enough, most sites will allow you to access basic HTML editing for extensive customization purposes.
- Upload your content. Once your site is customized to your liking, it's time to start fleshing it out with content. Most professional sites go for a balance of written content and visual media, so be creative!
Using Templates and an Editor
- Plan out your website. Decide on the kind of content you intend to emphasize before you sit down to create or use a template--this will save you time later!
- The sky is the limit for site potential, but try to make your site a unique reflection of you and your interests. Blogs, photo galleries, news sources, and instructional sites are all great starting points.
- Find a "What You See is What You Get" web editor. Open an internet browser of your choice and search for free versions of WYSIWYG software; Wix, Weebly, and Jimdo are all excellent choices, but it's important that you pick an editor that suits your purposes.
- Programs like these often give you the ability to create entire templates from scratch; if you want to design your site's detailing from the ground up, this is how you do it.
- Create an account. You will likely have to sign in with an email address and choose a password, so be sure to write both down. It's a good idea to choose an email address you actively use so that you don't miss updates.
- Check your email for a confirmation note from the site of your choice; most sites such as these require you to confirm your email as active before allowing you access.
- Start building your site. Each WYSIWYG editor will have different criteria for beginners, so read through their terms and instructions if need be. Your main focus should be on creating your template; this will serve as the base for all your content.
- If the editor you chose proves to be too advanced for your purposes, consider accessing their tutorials or simply using a different editor. You can always come back later!
- Most WYSIWYG sites have a ton of free templates, so feel free to start with one of them and expand from there.
- Consider searching for templates. If you don't want to build your site from the ground up, look for free template galleries; several open-source sites cater to this specific market, with Wix in particular providing premium-grade photography templates for free.
- Upload your content. Once you've created your templates and customized the site to your liking, it's time to start adding content. Don't be afraid to make this site your own!
Learning to Code
- Decide on the type of site you want to make. Coding is intimidating to begin learning but the truth is that there are more free resources than ever to help you get started. First you'll need to consider the type of site you are aiming to build. This will determine the type of coding you have to use; for example, flash visual-heavy sites tend to emphasize JavaScript, whereas a script-based site might utilize HTML.
- Choose your language. Some common web design languages include HTML and CSS, Java, and Python.
- HTML and CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) tend to go hand-in-hand: HTML is responsible for creating the core structure of any basic webpage, while CSS dictates aspects of the webpage like theme, color, and layout. Both are fairly basic programs, and thus are recommended for beginners.
- Python and Java are higher-level codes used by advanced programmers to create dynamic sites. Both are well-suited to high-traffic sites such as Amazon or Yahoo Maps.
- Begin the learning process. There are a ton of sites that will teach you entry-level coding for free. GitHub, CodeAcademy, Khan Academy, and Code Avengers all offer unique and interactive ways to learn HTML and CSS webpage coding. These resources are all easily accessed, and should be more than sufficient for most webpage coding needs.
- If you're interested in more advanced coding literature, MIT Open Courseware, edX, and Google University Consortium both offer free courses in Java and Python.
- Be patient. Focus on learning your language of choice and make it a priority, but don't expect to learn an entire language over night--this will take time! While knowing how to code basic webpages and templates is the end goal, keep in mind the fact that webpage coding is a marketable skill; thus, you should absolutely consider branching out into more advanced territory as you learn.
Tips
- While free sites are great for personal reasons and self-employed business, you may have to upgrade to a paid plan if you intend to run any standard or official business, both for copyright reasons and Google search results.
- If you want to keep your website at the top of search engine results, you have to be active on it; post daily, use keywords pertaining to top search engine terms, and try to catch the interest of passersby with interesting or unique content.
- While you may be inspired by other sites or content, try to make your website unique to your interests and experiences--no need to imitate others. As long as it is specific to you, your content should be plenty to pique the interest of the internet.
Warnings
- Make sure all of your content is either open-source, exempt from copyright, or purchased by you. Otherwise, you might have a copyright claim filed against your site, resulting in it getting taken down.
- Read the Terms and Conditions of any site editor or preexisting site before you sit down to post. Aspects such as mature content, the nature of the content you plan on posting, or content form (such as video, image, or writing) may be restricted on your chosen platform.
