Web Development | Web Hosting | SEO

If you are looking for a quick and easy way to get yourself a place on the web, you’re not alone. If you are asking what is WordPress, it is a great way to build a personal website without the need for prior knowledge on web development or comprehensive knowledge of HTML. WordPress provides you everything you need from start to finish. From helping you set up a URL to providing you a variety of templates to chose from, the user-friendly site helps you build your website and hosts it as well.

Why Use WordPress?

For one, it’s free. Though there are many additional features that require payment, the basics are all included through WordPress. If you are on a tight budget or simply just want a space of your own without any frills or commitments, WordPress will work for you. However, this does not mean that WordPress cannot be a robust tool for the more advanced website designers. On the contrary, a good knowledge of HTML can get you far on WordPress. If you want a good amount of control over your space without needing a web developer you’re also in luck.

What Can WordPress Do?

WordPress provides a wide variety of templates that allow you to start blogs and websites of all sorts. With so many templates available for free, and even more available for purchase, you can customize your webspace almost anyway you would like. Though WordPress is best known for supporting blogs, it has since come a long way and can be used to support many different types of content as well. WordPress can even support your videos so you don’t have to upload and embed your videos through other websites. This provides a cleaner look for your space.

Who Uses WordPress?

WordPress is available for use for anyone. There are no limitations to who can use it and you can register many different WordPress accounts. If you’d like to start five blogs or webpages, you can do that without a problem. Regardless of whether you are a novice or an expert in the website building world, it provides guides and tutorials that can help you make the most of your webspace.

How to Start Using It

Simply visit their website and sign up for an account. You will be prompted to enter certain information and then will be asked what you’d like your blog or site to be called. Upon entering that information you will be given your URL which will read [nameyouentered].WordPress.com. You will then be able to work through the backend of your website and start building on your webspace by picking a template and color theme.

It is a great tool for anyone who is looking for a quick and easy way to build a blog or website. It is also a great place to start for anyone learning how to manage online content on their own as it provides all the basics and offers room to grow as well as great online community tech support and a variety of tutorials.

There are thousands of web sites on the Internet and it is a sad thing to say but most of them just don’t get it. The whole point of building a site and publishing it on the Web is to attract visitors and get them to take the action that you desire. This can be to purchase your product or service, opt in to your email list or become a subscriber to your page eagerly awaiting more interesting and engaging content from you.

The other mistake that people make is not considering the search engines when they design their pages. At the beginning of site creation the first thing that you should do is undertake some keyword research to find out what terms people are entering into the search engines so that you can get in front of this traffic with your site. A lot of small business tend to have sites created around their company name and will register a domain name in the same name. It is better to get a domain name with the keyword you are trying to target in it. If you own a hairdressing business in Chicago then it is far better to register hairdressingchicago.com then it is to get sallysalon.com. Google and the other search engines need as much help as they can get and they will never realize that sallysalon is a hairdresser in Chicago.

Keyword research is so easy but a lot of people are put off by the word research as it sounds like a lot of work. You can use the Google Keyword Tool for free to find out if the search terms that you have in mind are popular or not. If they are not then look for ones that are. All you have to do is enter the terms you are thinking about using and the tool will respond with the search volumes for these and some other suggestions. It really is that easy. Once you have chosen the most appropriate keywords then save them as you will be using them to create pages for your site later on.

When it comes to creating content for your pages, make sure this is related to the theme of your site. Google and the other search engines reward relevance and if you have a site about hairdressing and suddenly start creating content about rocket science then the search engines will penalize your site for this.
If you are in business online then offer people genuine incentives to call you or purchase your products or services. For a hairdressing site or other service based business you could have a special coupon on the page which people can quote when they call to make an appointment which could entitle them to 10% off or a complimentary service free of charge. Also you could create a free style guide and offer that to visitors in exchange for their email address. Once you have their address you can follow-up with them offering special deals.