If you‘re looking to build a professional website without needing to know how to code, WordPress paired with SiteGround hosting is the way to go. With over 60 million websites powered by WordPress, it has become the world‘s most popular content management system. And SiteGround, used by over 2 million domains, is one of the most reliable, secure and high-performance hosts specifically optimized for WordPress.
As an experienced web developer and digital marketer, I‘ve used various platforms and hosts over the years. Hands-down, I‘ve found WordPress with SiteGround to offer the best user experience whether you‘re an absolute beginner or web expert. Their industry-leading speeds, helpful 24/7 customer support and seamless WordPress installations make the setup process smooth sailing.
In this step-by-step guide, I‘ll walk you through exactly how to:
- Set up hosting with SiteGround
- Install WordPress and connect it to your hosting
- Pick a theme and customize your design
- Add plugins to extend functionality
- Create content like blog posts and pages
- Monetize your site once it starts generating traffic
Let‘s get started!
Step 1: Get SiteGround Web Hosting
In order to build and launch a WordPress site, you need web hosting. Web hosting provides the actual server space where your site‘s data is stored and delivered from.
SiteGround has speed-optimized servers designed specifically to host WordPress sites. All plans include free daily backups, free site transfers, top-notch security and their award-winning 24/7 customer support.
Their GrowBig plan is their most popular option, allowing you to host unlimited websites with up to 20,000 monthly visitors. I personally recommend GrowBig for most small- to medium-sized sites.
When signing up, you’ll choose a domain name and set up your account credentials. More on choosing a domain in the next step!
Step 2: Choose a Domain Name
Your domain name is your website address that people type in to access your site (for example, www.myblog.com).
Some tips for choosing one:
- Make it short, simple and easy to remember. Avoid odd spellings or hyphens when possible.
- Use keywords relevant to your site‘s topic if possible. This can help with search engine optimization.
- Get the .com version if available. .com is the most common and recognizable extension.
Most hosts, including SiteGround, have a domain search tool that lets you see available options during signup.
Once your account is set up, you’ll gain access to their user dashboard to manage your domains and hosting.
Step 3: Install WordPress on SiteGround
SiteGround provides a straightforward, automated WordPress installation process through their dashboard. Here‘s how:
- Access your SiteGround dashboard and click Set Up Website
- Select Start New Website then choose WordPress as your platform.
- You can add additional recommended features here like caching and security. These help optimize performance.
- Click Finish Setup and SiteGround will complete the WordPress installation for you within minutes!
And just like that, you‘ll have a live functioning WordPress site hosted with SiteGround. Pretty painless so far right?
You can access your site‘s backend at yoursite.com/wp-admin. This is where you‘ll manage all your content, design and functionality moving forward. More on that soon!
Step 4: Choose a Theme
Now that your site is up and running, it‘s time to work on design.
Your WordPress theme controls the look, layout and aesthetic styling of your site. You can browse and preview themes under Appearance > Themes within your WP dashboard.
I highly recommend choosing a premium theme like Astra or GeneratePress rather than a basic free one. The quality and customizations are vastly superior:
🛍️ Get the GeneratePress Theme Here
Premium themes start at around $60 for a single site license. While not free, this small investment is well worth it! These themes are faster, more SEO-friendly, responsive across devices, and come with quality support.
Once you‘ve downloaded your chosen theme, upload and activate it via your WP dashboard.
Step 5: Install Plugins
One of the great benefits of using WordPress is being able to easily extend functionality with plugins. Plugins are bits of code that add specific features like contact forms, ecommerce, galleries, subscription options, pop-ups, and more.
Here are some of my recommended must-have WordPress plugins:
🔆 SiteGround Optimizer – Provides performance optimizations like caching and content delivery network integration. SiteGround creates this specifically for users hosting with them.
📈 Google Analytics – Connects your WordPress site with Google Analytics for in-depth tracking of traffic, click data, conversions and more to inform your strategy.
🗺️ Yoast SEO – An all-in-one SEO plugin allowing you to optimize pages/posts for search engines and integrates with Google Search Console.
🌐 Jetpack – Adds tons of site enhancements like related posts, image CDN and caching, video embeds, site stats, contact forms, and security features.
Browse the WordPress plugin directory and search based on your needs. Install any plugins you want by clicking “Add New” under the Plugins menu.
Step 6: Start Creating Content
Now for the fun part…filling your site up with valuable content!
Access the WordPress post editor by going to Pages > Add New or Posts > Add New within your dashboard.
Here you can:
- Enter a title and body content with text, images, embeds
- Format using headings, lists, quotes, etc for better structure
- Set featured images/videos that display with your content
- Select tags and categories to organize and group similar content
- Publish and share your finished pages/posts
Take time to create well-written, search engine and user-friendly content that engages readers. This is the foundation of a successful site!
Step 7: Start Monetizing Your Site
Once your site starts generating a steady stream of traffic, you can begin earning income from it. Here are some of the most common WordPress monetization strategies:
📣 Advertising – Get paid for displaying ads on your site targeted to your audience. Join an ad network like Google AdSense or Ezoic once you meet their traffic requirements.
💲 Affiliate Marketing – Earn commissions promoting other companies‘ products you genuinely trust and recommend. Use affiliate management plugins to track data.
🛍️ eCommerce – Sell digital or physical products directly using plugins like WooCommerce. Set up secure payment gateways.
🌟 Memberships/Subscriptions – Charge monthly/annual fees for access to "premium content" like courses or coaching. Plugins make establishing member portals easy.
Which options are best aligned with your audience, traffic volume and niche? Get creative in providing value readers want!
I hope this guide gave you a solid overview of the steps involved with creating a WordPress website hosted with SiteGround. Here‘s a quick recap:
- Choose SiteGround hosting – Sign up for one of their managed WP hosting plans.
- Pick a domain – Choose an available .com name that‘s short and memorable.
- Install WordPress – SiteGround handles this seamlessly with auto-install.
- Select a theme – Customize the design and aesthetics with a premium theme.
- Add key plugins – Extend features and functionality.
- Create great content – Publish SEO-optimized, engaging pages and posts.
- Monetize your audience once you build traffic.
As you can see, WordPress and SiteGround speed up much of the development process. Focus on understanding your audience, creating value for them, and nurturing community.
For any questions as you build and grow your site, SiteGround‘s world-class support team is available 24/7. I‘m also happy to help address any specific issues – feel free to drop me a comment below!
Let the website-building adventures begin! 😉
