Hello, friends! Have you ever dreamed of having your own website? Maybe you want to share your cooking recipes or sell handmade crafts. Perhaps you would like to start your own blog about your favorite hobbies. Well, doing so will first require making a website. So today we are going to learn how to set up a website with BlueHost. And cheer up—I’m gonna keep it simple and throw in some jokes to make it fun!
What is BlueHost?
BlueHost is a company that can help people build websites. Essentially, in layman’s terms, consider it a ‘digital landowner’: they give you free real estate online (hosting) and a name for your website (domain).
For instance, let’s say you want to open a store. Firstly, you need a space to display all your items (hosting), and then you need a sign with your store name (domain). And that’s what BlueHost provides!
Pros of Using BlueHost
- Cheap: You can start for little as $2.95 per month. That’s probably less than a cup of coffee!
- Easy to Use: Even if you have never built a site before, BlueHost will make it easy.
- Reliable: Your website will be live and active almost all of the time, so that visitors don’t see an “error” message.
- Great Support: They offer 24/7 customer support. Having an active friend prevents you from sleeping so he/she can help you!
Cons of Using BlueHost
- Upsells: Sometimes BlueHost will try to sell you more during the purchase process. Just like how when you go to buy a burger and they ask if you want fries with that!
- Renewal Rates: The initial cost is low, but the renewal price can be higher. It’s like those magazine subscriptions that start cheap and then get pricey.
Step-by-Step Guide to Set Up a Website on BlueHost
Ready to dive in? Let’s go step by step.
1. Choose a Plan
First, you need to pick a hosting plan. There are a lot of options through BlueHost, but for most beginners, the basic plan is all you need. It costs about $4.95 per month, but it works out to $2.95 if you sign up for three years. That’s the same as buying in bulk at Costco – cheaper in the long run.
Tip:
Start with the basic plan. You can always upgrade later if you need more features
2. Choose a Domain Name
Your domain name is your website’s address. It’s like choosing the name for your new store. Keep it simple and easy to remember
Example:
If your name is John and you love baking, you might choose “JohnsBakingDelights.com”
Tip:
Edit your article with keywords on the topic. This would be very helpful for easy and fast searching of the user.
3. Register the Domain
After you have a name, you need to register it. BlueHost usually offers a free domain for the first year. Just like a free trial at the gym, it’s a nice perk!
4. Install WordPress
WordPress is the chance it gives you to develop a website in an easy way. BlueHost provides one-click WordPress installation. Yeah, it is just a click of a button away.
Steps:
- Go to your BlueHost account.
- Find the section “My Sites.”
- Then click “Create Site”
- Follow any of the instillation prompts to setup WordPress.
5. Choose Theme
A theme acts in the same way that the layout of your store would. It dictates the look of your website. There are thousands of free themes in WordPress. Of course, if you like to have something really unique, there are hundreds to purchase as premium designs.
Tip
Just pick some simple, clean theme. You can always change it later.
6. Customise Your Website
Now, the exciting part! You can add pages, posts, images, and a lot of other stuff to your website. This is the part where you almost decorate your new store. So have fun with it and don’t be afraid to fiddle around to see what looks awesome.
7. Add Essential Plugins
Plugins add extra features to your website. Think of it like adding a security system or fancy lighting for your store. Some must-have plugins are:
- Yoast SEO: This will help your website show up on search.
- ** Contact Form 7: ** Allows the messages from the visitors to be directly forwarded to your mailbox
- ** W3 Total Cache:** Allows your site to become faster
Tip:
Do not use excessive numbers of plugins; they might slow down your website
Why Should You Get BlueHost?
Easy To Use
First of all is that the interface BlueHost brings to the platform is very intuitive, and it feels quite usable even if you are not very technology-comfortable. They provide quite good instructions and helpful support in the event you need it.
Cost-Effective
Starting a website using BlueHost does not cost an arm and a leg, even for their most basic plan. It is very affordable, with regular promotional prices often listed on the website and a free domain for the first year, thus saving a few coins.
Reliability
Consider a store that stays open all hours of the day, every day of the week. For instance, the uptime guarantee on BlueHost is 99.9%, which means that your website will pretty much be accessible all the time. Why this is important: if your website goes down frequently, people won’t return, and you’ll lose credibility.
Support
BlueHost offers support 24/7 through phone service, chat support, and email support. When it is 3 AM or 3 PM, you can reach out and get your solution. Their support team is really sound and friendly. They make sure to get your problems solved on priority.
Tips to Choose the Right Domain Name
Keep It Short and Simple
Make the domain name short because long domain names are hard to remember and always prone to typos. Aim for the one that is relatively short, simple, and easy to spell.
Example:
Instead of “JohnsDeliciousBakingRecipesAndMore.com,” make it “JohnsBakes.com.”
Keywords in the Domain Name
You want to have the important keywords in your domain name. Having the right keywords is both SEO and helping your customers easily remember the site.
Example:
Use words like “bake,” “baking,” or “recipes” for your website if it is about baking.
Say No to Numbers and Dashes
Numbers and hyphens can be confusing. People can’t always remember if they’re supposed to use a number or if they should write out the number, and hyphens deceivingly tend to be left off.
Make Memorable
Domain names should be memorable. Just think of all the major websites you visit: Google, Facebook, Twitter. They’re so easy to spell, type, and say you never forget their names.
How to Install and Set Up WordPress on BlueHost
Step 1: Log In to Your BlueHost Account
After signing up with BlueHost, log into your account. This should lead you to a dashboard where you manage everything.
Step 2: Search for the “My Sites” Section
From the dashboard, search for the “My Sites” tab. It’s from this section that you will be managing any site you are hosting through BlueHost.
Step 3: Click “Create Site”
Clicking on the “Create Site” button will lead you to a series of installations that guide you on what step to take.
Step 4: Run Through the Prompts Given
You will be asked to provide some basic information about your site, like a name and tagline. Fill in the details and click “Next.”
Step 5: Choose a Domain
Choose your registered domain from earlier. If you haven’t registered one, you can still do it at this step.
Step 6: Install WordPress
WordPress will be installed by BlueHost. It won’t take more than a couple of minutes. After completion, you will get a success message.
Selecting the Appropriate Theme for Your Website
Free vs. Premium Themes
Although WordPress holds more than thousands of free theme that users can select from, they are good enough for an individual who has less experience and a less budget to invest in. Premium themes often have more options for various customizations and unique designs.
Example:
Free Theme Name: Astra
Premium Theme Name: Divi
Features to Look For
- Design: The theme should conform appropriately to your brand and content.
- Responsiveness: It should be responsive to all gadgets, including tablets and mobile phones.
- Customization: Look into how much you are going to be able to customize the theme. Some themes have more flexibility than others.
- Support: You usually get better support with premium themes.
Popular Free Themes
- Astra: Lightweight and very customizable.
- OceanWP: Perfect for e-commerce sites.
- Neve: Simple and speedy
Essential Plugins for Your WordPress Website
SEO Plugin: Yoast SEO
Yoast SEO is the plugin that helps your website rank better in search engines. It allows you to optimize all your content with keywords, meta descriptions, and many more.
Contact Form Plugin: Contact Form 7
This plugin lets you manage and build multiple contact forms. You can customize it and the mail contents flexibly with simple markup. It is also quite flexible in allowing visitors to contact you easily.
Caching Plugin: W3 Total Cache
W3 Total Cache
The plugin caches static files, which mean improved user experience and faster site load time. A faster site will provide a great user experience and can also help with your site’s SEO.
Security Plugin: Wordfence
Wordfence secures your site from malware, different kinds of hack attempts, and more.
Backup Plugin: UpdraftPlus
UpdraftPlus automatically backups your site, if anything goes wrong you can restore your site from the backup.
Social Sharing Plugin: Social Snap
What Social Snap does is to allow you to choose from their variety of social sharing buttons to add only the best and most socially effective buttons onto your website interface and content. People are indeed more motivated to share a blog post or website content when they are doing so from the convenience of their favorite social media site.
Modifying the Appearance
WordPress can be tailored to meet each and every one of your style and branding needs. Here’s how you can get your website to look exactly how you want:
#### Changing the Theme
- Log in to your WordPress dashboard.
- Go to “Appearance” > “Themes.”
- Click “Add New” to browse themes.
- Search for a theme or upload one you purchased.
- Click “Install” and then “Activate.” Customizing the Theme
Almost all themes have options to change colors, fonts, and layouts.
- Go to “Appearance” > “Customize.”
- Check out what your theme’s customizer provides.
- Adjust the settings to your heart’s content, then hit “Publish.”
Adding Widgets
Widgets are a way to add small bits of functionality to your site. You can put widgets in a sidebar, footer, and a number of other places.
- Go to “Appearance” > “Widgets.”
- **Drag and drop widgets where you want them to go.
- Configure the widgets as needed.
Examples of Useful Widgets
- Recent Posts: It shows the latest blog posts.
- Categories: Blog categories are listed here.
- Search: A search bar can be located with this at its side to facilitate the finding of content by the visitor.
Creating Menus
A menu allows users to move around your website. You can create menus for various areas, including the main navigation bar or footer.
- Go to “Appearance” > “Menus.”
- Click “Create a new menu.”
- Add pages, posts and custom links to your menu.
- Select menu location and on “Save Menu.”
Search Engine Optimization of Website
Search Engine Optimisation is rapidly acquiring the reputation of becoming the most crucial marketing technique. And for pretty valid reasons too. This is how you can optimise your site:
On-Page Search engine optimisation
Keywords
Use appropriate keywords in titles, headings, and content. But don’t stuff them excessively as this will hurt rankings.
Meta Description represents a small overview of your page content. This then shows in the search results below the title of your site. Write compelling meta descriptions to increase clickthrough rates.
- Install the Yoast SEO Plugin.
- Take a visit to the page or post that you want to edit.
- Scroll down to the Yoast SEO section.
- You are to enter your meta description herein.
Headings
Headings should be used to structure your content. They help search engines understand the structure of your content.
Off-Page SEO
Backlinks
Backlinks are links from other websites to your site. They send signals to search engines, showing that your content is good. Get backlinks only from quality sites.
Social Media
You need to promote your content on social media. This drives visitors to your website, beneficial to SEO.
Technical SEO
Site Speed
A fast website ideally offers a great user experience and may positively impact your SEO. Check your site for its speed using tools like Google PageSpeed Insights.
Mobile-Friendliness
Be sure that your site looks good on a mobile device. After all, Google uses something called mobile-first indexing—the mobile version of your site will be ranked first.
Local SEO
If your business has a real location, then you really need to work hard on local SEO.
Google My Business
Create a Google My Business listing. It lets your business show up in local search results.
- Go to the Google My Business website.
- Sign in to your Google account.
- Complete your business information and verify your listing.
Local Keywords
Add some local keywords to your content. For example, if you have a bakery in New York, then use “New York bakery” or “bakery in NYC.”
Protect Your Website
Security of the website means protection not only of your data but also of that of your visitors. Here is how you can secure your WordPress site:
Use Strong Passwords
Use strong and unique passwords for a WordPress account, hosting account, and other critical logins.
Keep Everything Updated
Keep WordPress updated regularly, along with all themes and plugins. Updates often include security patches.
Install a Security Plugin
Security plugins add an extra layer of protection to your site. Wordfence and Sucuri are two popular options.
- Activate the plugin and install it.
- After install, follow the setup wizard to configure security settings.
Enable Two-Factor Authentication
Two-factor authentication adds another layer of security to your application. Even if someone gets your password, they can’t log in without another form of verification.
- Install a 2FA Plugin.
- Set up the plugin for your preferred authentication method.
Regular Backups
Automatic regular backups can give you an lastsaving point if something goes wrong. UpdraftPlus is also one of the better-known backup plugins.
- Install and activate UpdraftPlus.
- Visit “Settings” > “UpdraftPlus Backups.”
- Configure the schedule and resources that you want to back up to.
- Click “Backup Now” to create your first backup.
Monetizing Your Website
Now that your website is up and running, you might want to make some money from it. Listed below are some ways you can go about monetizing your website:
Affiliate Marketing
Promote other company products and get some commission back on every sale made over your recommendation.
Steps:
- Join affiliate programs related to your niche.
- Promote products in your website with special links.
- Get commission for every sale made through your link.
Example:
You can Uniliated if you are running a baking blog, for example. You will sell baking tools and ingredients with Amazon in that case.
Publish Advertisement Needs
Selling ad space on your website. Google AdSense is one of the most used as well as the easiest to use for beginners.
Steps:
- Get accepted to Google AdSense.
- Paste the AdSense code on your website.
- Get paid whenever any of your visitors clicks on your ads.
Sell your product/service
Sell physical products, sell digital products, or services directly from your website.
Steps:
- Install an e-commerce plugin such as WooCommerce.
- Put up products or services to sell.
- Configure payment methods.
- Launch your online store.
Example:
Sell your handmade crafts, e-books, or courses online.
Sponsored Posts
Create sponsored content for companies and get paid for this. It works very great in case of having a blog on some narrow niche with a core audience.
Steps:
- Get an audience and build your website.
- Contact the companies related to your niche.
- Negotiate the terms and rates for the sponsored posts.
Membership Sites
Charge visitors for accessing premium information or the membership site with exclusive content.
Steps:
- Install a membership plugin for free; for example, MemberPress.
- Plan out members and set up pricing.
- Limit the Available Premium Content to paying members only.
Tips to Succeed
Keep Learning
The digital world keeps changing. Stay updated with the latest trends, tools, and best practices.
Network with Fellow Bloggers
Join communities of bloggers and network with other bloggers. You can share a lot and sometimes collaborate on projects.
Engage with Your Audience
Reply to the comments, emails, and messages that your audience sends. This will obviously help you build a relationship and get devoted readers.
Analysing Your Performance
Tools like Google Analytics will help track the performance of your website. Learn what is working and what isn’t. Adjust the strategy accordingly.
Stay Patient and Consistent
Making a successful website takes some time and creating. The thing is that one needs to be patient and just keep writing useful material, never leaving it.
Final Thoughts
Setting up a website with BlueHost is much like planting a seed. With time, care, and attention, it can grow into something beautiful and fruitful. Keep in mind, every big website started small. So just take that first step to follow through with this guide, and you’ll have your own corner of the internet very soon to share with the world.
Thanks for joining me on that journey, and now, go out there and create something amazing! And if you have any questions, feel free to ask. I’m here to help!
