Planning and Structuring a Website (Sketch Important Steps!)

Planning your website is like sketching a map before a road trip—you need to know the route, where you’re going, what you’ll need to carry, and who’s coming along. Doing this saves time, money, and stress!

In this chapter, you’ll learn how to define your website’s purpose, find your niche, and create a clear plan—all without any tech jargon. Get a notebook and some paper. Currently, we won’t be creating anything live on the web. You’ll have to plan a website on a page and sketch out all the important steps before going live.

Okay, let’s dive in!

2.1 What’s the Purpose of Your Website?

Before building anything, ask yourself, “Why does this website exist?” So, firstly, make sure the kind of website you would like to create and with what purpose you have come up with these ideas.

Here are common reasons why you should create a website:

1. Share Knowledge: Write blogs about your expertise (e.g., gardening tips, WordPress tutorials, blogger tips and tricks, etc.).
2. Sell Products: Create an online store and sell handmade crafts, groceries, or digital courses.
3. Build a Community: Create a forum or social network for like-minded people and start conversations.
4. Showcase Work: Display your photography, writing, or design portfolio.
5. Monetize Content: If you have great content ideas, build a website and start monetizing it with Google Adsense, affiliates networks, etc
6. Build Your Brand: Build a website to create a recognizable online presence. This will set you apart from others in your professional field and help you create loyal readers and customers who resonate with your brand’s core.

Example: Maria, a yoga instructor, builds a website to share free tutorials. She creates a website, adds a blog, and starts blogging. She also adds a store on her website and begins selling online classes, e-books, yoga posters, etc.

Though these are the main reasons to build a website, there are still several other reasons to start a website that you might not want to miss. Follow the link and read in detail.

2.2 Find Your Niche (Don’t Be Generic!)

It is widely said, “Select a profitable niche; half of your work is done.” Picking the right niche is very important for success. Be more specific; get better results!

So, what is a niche?
A niche is a specific area of focus or skill that guides the content you write and how you interact with your readers. In short, a niche is your website’s special focus on a specific subject matter.

This will make it easier to understand:

Bad Niche: “Travel” (too broad—everyone does travel!).
Good Niche: “Budget Backpacking in Southeast Asia” (specific and unique).

How to Find Your Niche:

1. Passion: What do you love to talk about? (e.g., vegan baking, indie games).
2. Problem-Solving: What issues can you help with? (e.g., “meal prep for busy parents”).
3. Audience: Who needs your content the most? (e.g., college students, retirees).
4. Market Demand: Look if you can provide content niches currently in high demand! (e.g., DeepSeek Prompts).

Pro Tip: Avoid niches crowded with experts on multiple topics and categories. Start small and grow! To get more ideas about the profitable niches for bloggers, YouTubers, or any other content creators, I recommend you read this: “Top Profitable Niches.”

2.3 Know Your Audience (It’s All About Them!)

Your audience is the heart of your website. To understand them, follow these:

• Demographics: Age, gender, location (e.g., moms aged 25–40 in the U.S.).
• Struggles: What keeps them up at night? (e.g., “no time to cook healthy meals”).
• Goals: What do they want to achieve? (e.g., “lose weight without gyms”).

Example Audience Persona:

• Name: Busy Becky
• Age: 35
• Job: Full-time mom + freelance writer.
• Goals: Quick healthy recipes, time-saving hacks.
• Pain Points: Overwhelmed by complex blogs, needs simple solutions.

2.4 List Must-Have Features (Keep It Simple!)

Start with essential features—you can add fancy features as your website gets bigger, better, and more popular!

Basic Features for Most Websites:

1. Blog: Share website announcements, blog posts, tutorials, or news.
2. Contact Form: Let visitors reach you easily.
3. About Page: Tell your story and build trust.
4. Privacy Policy: Commit to keeping visitors’ data safe and ensure compliance with global privacy laws.
5. Mobile-Friendly Design: Ensure your site works on phones.

These essential features act as the backbone of the website.

Advanced Features (Optional):

• Online store (WooCommerce).
• Membership area (exclusive content).
• Forum (bbPress).
• Social Network (BuddyPress).

You can add plenty of other features and expand your WordPress blog. We’ve discussed this in Chapter 4: “Installing and Configuring WordPress.”

2.5 Create a Sitemap (Your Website’s Blueprint)

A sitemap is a list of all your website’s pages. Since you’re learning to create a website, I would recommend you start simple:

Create a sitemap that includes the following:

• Homepage: Welcome message + links to key sections.
• Blog: Categories like “Recipes” or “Travel Guides.”
• About: Your background + mission.
• Contact: Email form + social media links.
• Privacy Policy: Users data safety policy.

A sitemap enables website owners to:

• Notify Search Engines: Alerts search engines that content has been added to a website.
• Maintains Structure and Hierarchy: Make content structures easy to navigate through your website’s web pages.
• Rank Website on SERP: Make content user-friendly and improve website ranking on the search engine result page.

How to Create a Sitemap?

You can manually create a sitemap or upload plugins (Yoast, AISEO, etc.) that automatically create a sitemap for your website. We’ve discussed plugin installation in Chapter 4: “Installing and configuring WordPress.”

WordPress Sitemap:

WordPress automatically generates the sitemap (read here) for your website if you’re using version 5.5 or later. The default sitemap for the WordPress website is https://yourdomain.com/wp-sitemap.xml. Replace yourdomain.com with your actual domain name.

If you are using an SEO plugin like Yoast SEO, AISEO, or JetPack, the sitemap URL might be slightly different.

Pro Tip: Use sticky notes or a notebook to sketch your sitemap. No apps needed!

2.6 Pick a Domain Name (Your Digital Address!)

The domain name is the address of your website on the internet (e.g.,YourAwesomeSite.com). A visitor clicks on the domain name (URL) and reaches your website. It’s how people find your website, so treat it like your digital storefront sign. A good web address follows these rules:

• Short & Memorable: Keep the domain name short and memorable.
• Easy to Spell: A domain name should always be short, memorable, and easy to spell.
• Include Keywords: Add keywords to your domain name.
• Identify Niche: Your domain should reflect it.

Bad vs. Good Examples:

• ❌ Too Long: “TheUltimateGuideToVeganBaking.com”
• ❌️ Confusing: “need4speedz.com”
• ✅ Simple: “VeganBakingGuide.com”
• ✅️ Niche: “BlueHost.com”

Note: We have covered more about the domain names in our next chapter.

2.7 Set a Budget (You Don’t Need to Spend Much!)

You can build a professional website for under $50/year (the maximum cost if you do it right).

• Domain Name: $10−$16/year (e.g., GoDaddy, Namecheap, Bluehost, SiteGround, or any reliable domain registrar).
• Hosting: $3−$20/month (e.g., GoDaddy, Namecheap, Bluehost, SiteGround, or any reliable web host).
• Themes/Plugins: Most are free! Save premium tools for later.

Example Budget Breakdown:

• Domain: $12/year (average domain cost)
• Hosting: $10/year (average hosting cost)
• Installation: $5/one time (Installation charge)
• Extras: $20 (optional premium plugins)
• The total cost to create a WordPress website would be around $47.

2.8 Common Mistakes to Avoid

1. Trying to Please Everyone: Focus on a specific audience.
2. Overdesigning: Don’t overdesign your website. Keep it as simple as possible.
3. Overcomplicating Features: Start with basics—add more later.
4. Ignoring Mobile Users: Most visitors will use phones, so prioritize mobile design.

Example: John launched a cluttered website with too many features. Visitors got confused and exited the website. He had to simplify it later.

Chapter 2: Checklist

1️⃣ Defined my website’s purpose (blog, store, community, etc.).
2️⃣ Chosen a specific niche (e.g., “DIY Home Decor for Renters”).
3️⃣ Created an audience persona (age, goals, struggles).
4️⃣ Listed essential features (blog, contact form, etc.).
5️⃣ Drafted a simple sitemap (homepage, blog, about, contact).
6️⃣ Picked a domain name (short and memorable).
7️⃣ Set a budget (domain + hosting + installation + premium plugins under $50/year).