How to Build Your Own Website From Scratch? A Helpful Guide for Dummies

About 40% of people stop engaging with an unappealing website. Conversions drop up to 20% for every second a page loads, too. In fact, 70% of shoppers abandon carts due to poor design as well. 

An eye-catching website can make or break your business. If your site is slow or unappealing, it could scare away customers. Instead, you need a plan to design it right.

Here are the nine tips you need when building your own website from scratch.

With these tips, you can build your own website with ease. You can avoid design mistakes that might scare away potential customers, too. 

Instead of costing your business, your website can set you up for major success.

Ready to get started? Discover how to build your own website from scratch with these tips today. 

1. Establish Your Goals

First, take a moment to consider your needs and goals. Otherwise, you might neglect certain design elements on your site.

For example, do you want to create a website that will demonstrate your experience and expertise? In that case, you’ll want to focus time and attention on your blog. You can create engaging, informative content to position yourself as a thought leader.

If you want to use your website to boost leads and sales, focus on your product pages. You might consider adding an eCommerce page to your site, too.

Make a list of the goals you want to achieve while building your own website from scratch. Then, determine what design elements you’ll need to accomplish those goals. 

Then, you can use the rest of these tips when focusing on those pages. 

2. Gather Research

Before you start building your website, take the time to gather research.

First, learn more about your target audience. Who are they? What do they care about?

You can design your website with your customers in mind. Then, you’ll have an easier time appealing to their wants and needs.

Determine who your customers are by gathering demographic and psychographic research. For example, you might want to consider their:

  • Location
  • Household income
  • Age
  • Gender
  • Marital status
  • Buying behaviors
  • Pain points
  • Interests
  • Hobbies
  • Education
  • Language

The more you know about your audience, the more likely you’ll appeal to them on your website. 

Don’t stop at researching your audience. Learn more about your competitors, too. Which brands do your customers already know and love?

Take a look at their websites. What design elements do you like? Where does the website seem to fall flat?

Gathering research can help you make more informed decisions when building your site.

3. Find Inspiration

Before building your own website from scratch, gather inspiration, too.

Start by looking at other websites that are relevant to your industry. Consider using Pinterest as well. Look for color palettes, font styles, and page layouts.

Gathering inspiration can give you direction as you start to build your own website. Otherwise, you might struggle to make design choices. 

As you start building your site, keep the user experience (UX) in mind. A positive UX ensures your site is easy to use and explore. Visitors will remain on your site longer, leading to more leads and sales.

In fact, 88% of people won’t return to a website after having a bad experience. Bad mobile optimization annoys nearly 48% of users, too.

How your website looks and functions can impact your success. In fact, 53% of mobile users will leave if your pages take longer than three seconds to load. People form about 75% of their judgment on your credibility based on aesthetics.

To improve the user experience, focus on:

  • Speeding up page load times
  • Improving the navigation
  • Getting mobile optimized
  • Improving security with an SSL certificate
  • Adding negative space
  • Using headings and subheadings
  • Writing with shorter sentences and paragraphs
  • Avoiding jargon

You can work with an experienced design agency to improve your site’s UX as well. 

4. Get a Domain

Consider investing in a custom domain (web address). A custom domain will help your site look professional. Choose a domain name that’s short, unique, and easy to remember.

Avoid domains that use hyphens, which can look awkward and unprofessional.

Once you purchase your domain name, you can start designing.

5. Organize Your Pages

Make sure to choose the best platform to build your own website on. The right platform can make the rest of the design process easier. You can check out the best builder here to get started: https://trustgeeky.com/best/best-website-builder/.

Start determining which pages you’ll need, including your:

  • Home page
  • Blog page
  • About us page
  • Product/service pages
  • Contact page

These five essential pages are a great place to start. Then, create your navigation bar. Organizing the navigation will ensure it’s easy for people to explore your site.

6. Improve the Layout

Consider using a template to get started. Then, make adjustments to the layout as you see fit.

As you start creating your pages, consider adding essential components like:

  • Your company logo
  • A header image
  • Forms
  • Call to action buttons
  • A blog reel

Keep your branding consistent across each page. That includes your color palette, logo, and font styles.

7. Add Imagery

Add high-quality, unique imagery across your website. Try to limit how many stock photos you use. Stock imagery can make you look unauthentic.

8. Get Mobile

Look for a web builder that will optimize your pages for mobile devices. If you’re not mobile-optimized, you could scare visitors away.

You can use Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test to make sure you’re optimized. 

Otherwise, test your site on a smartphone to ensure your pages are easy to explore. 

9. Optimize Your Content

As you start creating your web pages, make sure to optimize your site for search engines. Search engine optimization (SEO) can boost your rankings on Google. Higher search engine rankings will help you generate more traffic.

As you generate more traffic, you can boost leads and sales to improve your ROI. 

Avoid Design Disasters: 9 Tips for Building Your Own Website From Scratch

Building your own website from scratch doesn’t have to feel stressful. Instead, give these nine tips a try. With these tips, you can build your own website and start generating traffic.

Then, you can set your business up for success with ease!

Searching for more tips and tricks? You’re in the right place.

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