How to Create Website is the question, that I am asked very often. In my many years as web developer I have built hundreds of websites. There are few ways to create website. I will outline these methods below.
If you want to create website, how can you do that? You can use website templates, you can build website from scratch, you can use Content Management System (also called CMS), you can use software, that is written for the specific type of websites, use JavaScript library, framework or server environment, or you can use a combination of the few methods. Let's take a closer look at each one of these options.
How to Create Website:
1. Use Website Templates.
Many web hosting companies offer website templates and they often include them for free. They can be used for simple websites and are relatively easy to use.
Best use:
Simple websites, when you only need some online presence. In other words, if you need website only to put the web address on your business card and you do not want to pay to build and maintain website.
Advantages:
Can be built relatively quickly and often for free, depending on your skill level and type of website.
Drawbacks:
Only simple websites can be built with templates. It is very difficult to get traffic and conversion from these websites.
They have very generic look and feel due to their design and the fact that hundreds and often thousands of websites look the same or very similar to each other. You want your website to standout and not to look the same as thousands of other websites on the Internet. It may not be that much of issue for some personal blogs, but for e-commerce sites or professional sites that want to sell their services, professionally built websites should be strongly considered.
So far, we only talked about overall look and feel of website, now it is time to talk about its main objective. For the majority of websites, getting visitors is the first major step. Search Engine Optimization or SEO is the key to getting visitors to your website. SEO is vast and complex subject, so we are just touching the surface here. For both, Organic SEO (natural search traffic) and paid search traffic often called SEM (short for Search Engine Marketing) websites built with templates just cannot compare with professionally built websites. You just cannot get for free something that should cost thousands of dollars.
The next major step and the main objective, that you want from your website traffic is conversion. It is the main goal for thousands of websites on the Internet: convert visitors to buyers and customers. Again, sites built with templates just cannot compare to professionally built websites. For any website, that wants to sell goods or services, look and feel is important. It does not have to be flashy or ultra hi-tech, with some exceptions of course, but it has to look and feel professionally built. Websites built with templates also do not have the features, that you would need. So, as attractive as some offers of web hosting for just few dollars a month with free templates may sound, it is important to keep the end result in mind.
2. Create website from scratch.
Best use:
Websites, that require a lot of custom works. Considering the fact, that you would have to write the software and create your own design, then test it and then keep updated, it would take time and skills. All that usually means the high cost.
Advantages:
Can be used for many types of websites, even for very large and very complex websites. Professionally built. Can have professional look and feel. Can have unique design. Can standout from thousands of other websites on the Internet. Can perform much better than sites built with templates in-terms of web traffic and conversion rates.
Drawbacks:
Takes time and skills. You would need to have it tested and regularly updated. Can be very expensive to build and to maintain. For large and complex websites you may need a team of developers to build, test and maintain websites.
3. Use Content Management System (CMS) to create a website.
Best use:
Many types of websites can be built with CMS. Content Management Systems can be used for a wide variety of websites and it is often the best option. Good examples of CMS are Wordpress, Drupal and Joomla. In many cases CMS is the right tool for the job.
Advantages:
Can be used for almost any website, even for very large and very complex websites. Professionally built. Can have professional look and feel. Can have unique design. Can standout from thousands of other websites on the Internet. In majority of cases, it would cost significantly less to build and to maintain the website with CMS, than building, testing and maintaining website from scratch. Can perform much better than sites built with templates in-terms of web traffic and conversion rates. There are plenty of developers, who can build websites with popular CMS, so finding the one should not be a problem.
Drawbacks:
Though typically cheaper than to create website from scratch, depending on the type of website can be expensive to build and to maintain.
4. Use software, that is written for the specific type of websites.
Best use:
These scripts are intended to be used for specific types of websites. Good examples of the software intended for the specific type of websites are Magento, which is now also called Adobe Commerce and PrestaShop. Magento and PrestaShop are specifically designed for eCommerce websites, so if you want to build eCommerce website Magento or PrestaShop could often be an excellent choice.
Advantages:
Specifically written for certain types of websites. Have the features that you would need for that type of website, that are difficult to find in other software. For example, eCommerce websites would have some very specific features, that are not normally found in CMS, so you would need to use some special modules for Drupal like Drupal Commerce or WooCommerce pluging for Wordpress to get these features. Then you would need to choose a theme, that would work with these modules or pluginscurrent. Your other option would be to write the whole script from scratch and also keep it current with updates. As you can see, specialized software can be very useful.
Drawbacks:
Though typically cheaper than to create website from scratch, can be expensive to build and to maintain. Search Engine Optimization with specialized software is often not as good as with CMS like Drupal or Wordpress.
Quality themes for sites, build with these scripts, can be difficult to find. To design a good theme you would need a theme developer who is familiar with particular software. Otherwise your site may not work properly. Depending on the type of the website and the software, could be a lot less developers familiar with some types of websites and software. For example, there are not as many developers, specializing in building eCommerce websites with Magento or PrestaShop, as developers, who build websites with Wordpress. On the other hand there are plenty of quality themes for Wordpress, both free and commercial, because Wordpress is such popular CMS.
5. Use JavaScript library, framework or server environment like React, Vue.js, Angular, Node.js, etc.
Best Use:
Single-page applications, web applications, dynamic web pages, dynamic web sites. Often used in combination with other software.
Advantages:
Can be very useful for some projects. It is often better option, than building web application or website from scratch, because it would save time and reduce cost. Can have very good performance. Can have professional look and feel.
Drawbacks:
Though typically faster, than to create website from scratch, can be expensive to build and to maintain. Search Engine Optimization may not be as good as with CMS like Drupal or Wordpress. Site may need to be updated, when software updates are released.
6. Use a combination of the few methods to create website.
Best use:
There are few uses for that. One of them would be to use CMS as a base to create website. Typically it would be a combination of Content Management System like Wordpress with extra code added. That can be done when you need some extra features and you cannot get it with just writing your own plugin, because that would require a lot of changes to CMS.
Another one would be a combination of CMS like Wordpress and library like React.
Advantages:
Can add features, that you cannot get from CMS alone.
Drawbacks:
Can be expensive to build and to maintain. You may need more than one developer or you would need to find a developer who can build and maintain a website with few different types of software.
Here you have it: different ways to create website. All have their advantages and drawbacks. All have their uses. It is just the matter of choosing the right tool for the job.
So, if you want to create website yourself and you are not a web developer, what method can you use? There are two methods, that are suitable for DIY web projects:
a. Create website with templates, but be aware of all the limitations and drawbacks of this method.
b. Use Content Management System (CMS) and this is much better option IMO. If you decide to create website with CMS, Wordpress would be my recommendation. It is not very difficult to create simple website with Wordpress.