Building a business these days is to some extent synonymous with having a good website. How else will you find potential customers? The task of creating a website from scratch, though, might seem daunting to you. But, the fact is it has never been easier to build a website on your own.

With a variety of content management systems (CMS) out there, which don’t require you to hire a developer, you can get started with your business in a matter of days. In this blog, I am specifically going to focus on WordPress and how you can create and host a website using this technology.

Why WordPress?

Before we get to the central part, I think it’s only fair to ponder why use WordPress and not other CMS technology like Drupal or Wix. In 2021, over 80% of the websites will be using WordPress.

And one of the primary reasons for this is that it is easily customizable. A simple interface, a plethora of plugins and tools, and an easily navigable dashboard make WordPress the top choice for people across the globe. Furthermore, the platform lets you pay special attention to SEO with its multitude of features that focus on optimizations for better rankings.

Now that that’s settled let’s take a closer look at the steps you need to follow to create a WordPress website. 

Building a B2B Website Using WordPress

Though it may seem like a ton of work, it really isn’t that complex. Let’s quickly look at all the steps involved.

1. Choose between WordPress.org and WordPress.com

Firstly, you’ll have to decide whether you want to host your own website via a third party or you would like it to be hosted by WordPress- WordPress.org caters to the former and WordPress.com for the latter. 

With WordPress.org, you’ll be responsible for all customizations, which also means that you will have complete control of your website. You can choose the free WordPress and move ahead by setting up your domain name and hosting provider. However, you’ll have to pay for any plugins or tools you want to use to customize the website. 

WordPress.com, on the other hand, takes care of a lot of tasks for you. According to the plan you choose in this case, you’ll have some customization options to choose from. You always have the option of upgrading your plan as and when the need arises. 

2. Think of a domain name, choose a hosting provider, install WordPress

The second step for creating a website is setting up a domain name and hosting provider. Your domain name is important, and you definitely need to put some thought into it. Think of something catchy and simple and keep it short if possible. There’s always the option of using a free business name generator. 

Now, when it comes to getting started with the hosting provider, WordPress suggests Bluehost, which means that it is certainly a reliable option. The platform also provides you with a free domain name. 

Bluehost has three plans, and you can choose the plan as per your requirements:

• Basic– $2.95/month
• Plus– $4.95/month 
• Choice Plus– $5.45/month

After choosing the plan, you will need to set up the domain and create your account. Once you make payments and set up your account, you can access the hosting dashboard and install WordPress. 

You’ll find ‘one-click installs’ in the ‘MOJO Marketplace’ option. Find WordPress and start the installation process. All you have to do is choose the domain name where you want to install the app and set up your username and password. The process will be somewhat similar if you decide to opt for a different hosting provider. 

Now, when the installation process ends, you can start customizing your website and adding content. 

3. Start creating your website on WordPress

There are four key pieces that you’d need to consider here- theme, plugins, site structure, content.

Pick a theme

WordPress has a variety of themes for you to choose from, and you can see which one of them is the most likely to appeal to your audience. The platform gives you the option of trying out live demos of themes, so you can play around and bit and then decide which theme presents your content in the most ideal way. 

Remember that your website needs to be easily navigable, so visitors are less likely to bounce. Another thing that requires attention is how the website looks on mobile devices. Since most people leverage mobile devices for browsing, your website should be optimized for mobile. 

Lastly, check what plugins you’ll need to install and if they are compatible with the theme you want to apply. 

Add plugins

Now that you have set a theme, it’s time to add some plugins which will essentially ensure that your website is performing the way you want it to perform. Many plugins will be specific to the type of site you have created; therefore, you’ll need to figure that accordingly. 

However, some plugins serve universal purposes: 

• Yoast SEO: Eventually, you’ll want your website and the content on it to rank organically, and this is precisely what plugins like Yoast SEO will help you achieve. 
• Akismet: This is a common plugin that is used by website owners to filter out spam messages or any spam that could attack posts. 
• Jetpack: This plugin will help you out with a number of factors, including site speed, SEO, design, performance, marketing, and image serving. 

Since we are specifically talking about B2B websites, here are some plugins that you can install: 

• WPForms: You might already know that forms are an integral part of any website. They are a quick and easy way for visitors to contact you and can also be leveraged to generate leads (think of something like a blog lead gen form). WPForms allows you to easily create forms for different purposes. 
• MemberPress: If you are thinking of creating gated content like guides and courses, you need to install this plugin. 
• WP Rocket: This is a pretty popular plugin and not in vain. We all know how important page speed is these days, especially when you think of search ranking metrics. WP Rocket then is necessary to optimize website speed. 
• SEMRush: Being a marketer, you probably might have come across this name already. SEMRush is a big deal in the industry and the plugin can help you enhance content & PR strategy, SEO, paid traffic strategies, and social media strategy. 

Plan your site’s structure

When you are done with picking a theme and adding plugins, you can start adding some content. But before you decide to keep on going, you need to ensure that your site is structured in an optimal manner. 

This will include structuring the primary navigation menu in the header, navigation links in the footer, categories and tags on the blog page, and the pages you need to have on your website. This area requires careful planning so I suggest you spend considerable time structuring the website properly. 

Add content

Now you’re done with all the key elements and you can start adding posts and creating pages. It’s no news that it is the content on your website which is eventually going to help you get leads. What this means is you have to be creative when it comes to product page copies and blog content. 

Since yours will be a B2B website, you should ensure that product/service pages are understandable and describe the product/service properly. 

When it comes to the blog and other content resources, you cannot afford to ignore SEO best practices. Make sure to pay special attention to content quality which makes keyword research a must. Look at what your competitors are and what’s working for them. It’ll be some time before your blogs or website pages start ranking organically, but you can always leverage paid mediums for short-term results. 

Final thoughts

That’s how you create a kickass website using WordPress. And you can do all this without any help from a developer. 

I’d like to close by summarizing a few more things that you’ll need to consider:

• Make use of image alt text to enhance rankings and SEO
• Once you create enough resources, you can leverage the blog sidebar as a distribution channel. The same can work for any event, you host. 
• Keep optimizing your website for providing the best possible user experience.
• Keep a track of how your website is performing with Google Analytics.
• Use a WP backup plugin to steer clear of any issues or mishaps.