Website design and building has changed since the early days of the internet and the introduction of HTML. Web pages used to be little more than a plain text document with the addition of headings, links to other pages, and maybe some images. The HTML code was simple, and you didn’t worry about styling too much, there really wasn’t much you could do. You may have had cheesy animated gifs for extra flair to capture attention.
Today we have HTML5, CSS3, responsive design, interactive pages, linked to social media and have to compete with millions of other sites for attention from search engines. Building websites by hand is possible, but there are much easier ways to do it. CMS, or Content Management Systems, have risen to automate most of the techie stuff in the background, so you can concentrate on the design and content of the website.
WordPress for Building Websites
WordPress is an open source software package you can use to create a website. WordPress comes more from a blogging background rather than CMS, but has evolved to be the most popular platform for creating and running websites (over 25% of all websites according to w3techs.com). It’s blogging features compliment a website if required, but using these features are not necessary. With the availability of an extensive list of themes and plugins, WordPress is able to provide simple and advanced website solutions for most.
WordPress Plugins
The plugin architecture of WordPress allows it to extend the available functions and features, enabling to customise the website to the specific needs for the business. Plugins range from SEO, client portals, social media, e-commerce, marketing, and many more. Many plugins are free to install and use. Some require purchase or monthly subscription to use or to access additional features.
WordPress Themes
Wouldn’t it be boring if all websites looked the same? WordPress allows additional themes to be installed to change the look and feel of the website, without having to alter the code or website content. Themes are generally free or premium, and there are many available to view and install from the management pages within the WordPress software.
Hosting WordPress Websites
WordPress alone doesn’t give you a website. Well, actually it can as long as you don’t mind using wordpress.com as your website domain name. There are two main ways to have a WordPress website hosted. The first is to use WordPress.com, which has a free option. The other is to host WordPress on your own web server.
WordPress.com
WordPress.com has a choice of plans starting from Free, up to a Business plan. The free plan is simple using wordpress.com as your domain name (rubidyn.wordpress.com), contains advertising for WordPress, and offers basic customisation. As you move to higher paid plan you get access to more storage, more advanced customisation, and use of your own domain name. To access popular third party plugins, the top Business plan will be required.
WordPress.org
WordPress.org is the open source free offering of WordPress, you only need somewhere to run it from. There are many hosting providers of cPanel based web hosting with WordPress available for use. WordPress is included in the application options with Rubidyn’s website hosting. You have control over your WordPress website, with full access to third party themes and plugins, and use your own domain name.
With the ease of use, high popularity, and many themes and plugins available, using WordPress to build a website is a good option. While it started as a blogging platform, WordPress is a powerful and popular CMS, and can cater for most needs, including gallery, portfolio, shopping, and more.
See Rubidyn’s website hosting options to get your WordPress powered website started.