Basics of web design and development
This detailed guide is for you if you are interested in learning web development and web design.
Why should you learn the basics of web development?
- To build your website
- To express your skills
- To earn by selling this skill
Planning a website
Planning a website involves researching the niche, buying a domain, and hosting.
Niche research
Niche is the basic idea or basic theme of your website. Whether you are a soccer fan, a music artist, or a cook, there is a niche for you. For example, if you are a soccer fan, you can plan a website offering advice for soccer shoes. You need to research the related keywords and then use these keywords for buying a domain and writing the content.
Buying a domain
A domain is a URL which visitors will type to reach to your website.
Tips for buying a great domain name
- It should be easy to remember.
- It shouldn’t be lengthy.
- Avoid the domain names that come with a hyphen.
Buying a hosting
The server where the files of your website are stored is known as hosting.
Tips for buying the best hosting
- Buy hosting from reputable companies.
- Shared hosting is great for beginners.
- Buy hosting from the companies that offer a money-back guarantee.
Choosing a Coding language and CMS
It’s time to decide whether you want to build your website from scratch or use a template. Here are some options for you:
HTML
It is the language of the websites. Every website uses HTML at some point. To display anything on the front-end, it should be converted to HTML at the back-end.
CSS
The styling of your website is based upon CSS.
Javascript
It allows us to do dynamic actions like validating the web form or interacting with the users of the website.
The following are some content management systems.
WordPress
WordPress is the most popular CMS today. It offers a lot of functionality because of the availability of many themes and plugins.
Squarespace
Not as popular as WordPress, it allows you to build classic websites, blogs and store easily.
Joomla
Joomla offers high customization, but it requires a lot of time to master.
Designing a website
After buying a domain and connecting it with the hosting, you need to design your website. Your website is your face. A great design will be liked by the visitors and the search engines.
Tips for designing a website
- It should be easy to navigate.
- Content should be easy to read.
- It should be mobile-friendly.
- The homepage should be free of clutter.
User interface
What users see and think about your website is UI and UX. It depends upon the goal of your website. Right fonts, colour schemes, and typography results in an excellent user interface.
Tips for an effective user interface
- Do some research about your audience.
- Keep it simple.
- Use proper colour and texture.
- The page layout should show the purpose.
- Use common UI elements.
Search engine optimization (SEO)
A website with great design and content is useless if it has no visitors. Remember that not everyone can remember the URL of your website. You need to optimize your website so that search engines can rank the pages at higher positions.
Tips for SEO of new websites
- Conduct proper keyword research.
- Use the keywords in your content.
- Use alt tags for images.
- Submit your website to search engines.
- Link your web page to internal pages and external websites.
Conclusion
A beginner needs to learn the basics of web development. When we know the basics, we can handle the website easily.