If you want to create a new website, you will first need to purchase hosting for your site. At Themeisle, we recommend using Bluehost due to its low prices, tools and features, and beginner-friendly experience. In this guide, we’ll show you how to install WordPress on Bluehost and get started with your new website.
How to Sign Up for Bluehost
Here’s how to get started with your Bluehost account…
1. Choose a Hosting Plan
The first step is to select a hosting plan that meets your needs. Bluehost offers a range of hosting options including…
- Shared Hosting
- WordPress Hosting
- VPS Hosting
- Hosting Dedicated
If you’re not sure which plan is best for you, we recommend starting with the cheap shared hosting plan, which starts at just $2.75 per month.
Here’s some additional reading to help you choose the right hosting plan for your project…
- What is WordPress hosting?
- Different Types of Hosting Plans Explained
- VPS vs Shared Hosting
2. Create a New Domain Name
With all Bluehost plans, you get a free domain name for the first year.
Once you’ve selected your hosting plan, select Create a New Domain to choose your free domain name.
Type your chosen domain name in the domain search and Bluehost will display a list of available domain extensions or domain names similar ones available.
(If you’ve registered a domain with a third-party domain registrar, you can use this domain name instead of creating a new one with Bluehost. To do this, you’ll need to point your domain name to Bluehost nameservers – a process Bluehost can walk you through.)
For help choosing the right domain name for your new website, check out these articles…
- How to choose a domain name
- Nine useful blog name generators
- Gu track of domain extensions
3. Enter the Bluehost account details
Next, Bluehost will ask you to fill in some personal information to create your account. Or, you can sign in with Google to speed up this process.
4. Confirm your hosting plan details
Bluehost will now display your plan details. Review them carefully, as by default Bluehost adds several premium ‘extras’. These include…
- Domain Privacy Protection (starting at $11.88 per year)
- SiteLock Security (starting at $23.88 per year)
- CodeGuard Basic (starting at $2.99/month)
- Bluehost SEO Tools (starting at $23.88/year)
Unless you already know you need a certain service, we recommend deselecting all these plugins. None of them are essential and you can always add them later if needed:
Under Account Plan, you can also set the number of years you want to sign up with Bluehost for. The minimum commitment is 12 months, but you can get a bigger discount if you commit to several years in advance.
5. Enter your payment details
The last step in the Bluehost registration process is to enter your payment details and confirm the order.
Remember, Bluehost offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, so if you’re not happy with your plan or the service after purchase, you can then request a refund.
Bluehost will now go ahead and set up your new hosting plan and domain name. You will then receive an email with payment confirmation, as well as your new account information, including login and password details.
How to Install WordPress on Bluehost
A Once you have purchased your hosting plan, you then need to install WordPress on Bluehost. Again, this is a relatively quick and easy process, aided by Bluehost’s user-friendly interface and its one-click WordPress install feature.
1. Sign in to Bluehost
To get started:
- Sign in to your new Bluehost account.
- Go to My Sites tab.
- Click the Create Site button in the upper right corner.
2. Enter Your Website Information
Next, you’ll need to enter basic information about your website, including Site Name and Site Tagline . Don’t stress too much, you can always change them later:
3. Choose your domain name
Use the Domain dropdown menu to select the domain name you chose when you created your Bluehost account.
You can also choose to install some of Bluehost’s recommended plugins or not.
4. Click “Next” to install WordPress on Bluehost
Bluehost will now install WordPress for you, create your new WordPress website, and display your login details.
To open your new WordPress website, click the Login to WordPress link.
How to set up your new WordPress website with Bluehost tools
First, we must note that n or you need to follow the steps in this section. It is entirely possible to create your own website using the regular WordPress dashboard.
If you’re not sure where to start, however, Bluehost provides its own dashboard in the Bluehost area. > from your WordPress dashboard that can help you get up. and working with your site.
In the Bluehost area, you can…
- Add new pages and posts
- Manage your menus
- Create an eCommerce store with WooCommerce
- Create a staging environment to test your website
- Disable Bluehost’s “Coming Soon” page and launch your website
- Jetpack: A multifunctional plugin, Jetpack will also add help to improve the security and performance of your website . like providing social media features, analytics data on how your audience behaves on your site, and much more. The Bluehost Wizard will help you quickly connect to WordPress.com to access and activate these powerful Jetpack modules.
- Contact Form – Every website needs a contact form to allow your audience to connect with you and help you increase lead generation. The quick start wizard allows you to immediately set up a contact form for your website using the free WP Forms Lite plugin.
- Cache: Bluehost provides a built-in caching feature . When you activate this tool, your website will load faster, which is important for user experience and SEO.
- ThemeIsle
- aThemes
- ThemeForest
- Elegant Themes
- StudioPress
- Akismet Anti -Spam
- MonsterInsights, a Google Analytics plugin
- Jetpack
- WP Forms Lite
- Yoast SEO – Improve your site’s SEO and help your pages and posts rank in search engines.
- Wordfence Security – Keep your site safe and secure with this free security plugin that includes an endpoint firewall and malware scanner.
- UpdraftPlus – For peace of mind, keep a backup of your site web, so if your site is hacked, you can quickly restore it to its original glory.
- Home Page – This is where most of your audience will land when they visit your site. Use powerful images, flag important content, and add calls to action to make sure your homepage engages and engages your visitors.
- About Page – An important page, here you should share your story, discuss your business philosophy, introduce your team and add any other relevant information that will help you build a relationship with your audience.
- Contact Page: As well as a contact form, consider displaying opening hours, a map showing the location, social media links, and more.
- Portfolio: If applicable, create Beautiful portfolio pages will help showcase your work.
- Blog: Always consider adding a blog to your website. A blog will attract visitors to your site, keep your website up to date, and help with SEO.
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Most of these are basic WordPress features, just put them in a convenient place for you to access.
The Bluehost control panel is a particularly useful tool for those who are new to WordPress and may need some instructions on how to get started. This is how to use it…
1. Use the Quick Start Wizard
When you open your WordPress dashboard, you should see the Bluehost Quick Start Wizard.
Using the Quick Start Wizard is a great way to get started launch your website. Follow the instructions in the wizard to set up the Jetpack plugin, a contact form with WPForms Lite, and caching for your website. Let’s take a closer look at these features…
2. Choose a WordPress theme
Your WordPress theme controls the appearance of your site.
Selecting the right WordPress theme is an important task and can take time as there are so many to choose from .
One of the features found within the Bluehost Menu is a Marketplace containing premium WordPress themes. You can browse these, but you shouldn’t feel limited to just the selection here either…
There are thousands of free and premium WordPress themes available outside of the Bluehost Marketplace, so we recommend exploring those options first. to make a decision.
Our free Hestia theme is a modern, high-performance one page theme, perfect for any type of business and a great choice to get started.
You can also find other premium themes besides the ones on the Bluehost Marketplace. To find a stylish premium theme that best suits your project, check out these theme stores and developers…
3. Install some essential WordPress plugins
When Bluehost installs WordPress, it also installs a selection of WordPress plugins by default.
These include…
Can Of course, remove any of these plugins or install your own plugins.Here are some essential plugins we recommend…
4. Create Pages (and Posts)
The next step is to create the content for your website: start by adding the pages. To do so, within your WordPress control panel, click on Bluehost Menu. Then, under Content > Pages, select Add New Page.
While the pages it displays will vary depending on the type of site you’re building, here are some types of pages you should consider creating. .
5. Launch Your Website
Once you’ve created your content and customized the look and feel of your website, all that’s left to do is launch your website.
Bluehost provides a page ‘Coming soon’ , which is activated by default when installing WordPress. This page gives you the privacy you need to work on your website.
When you’re ready to get started, click the Start Your Site button on the Bluehost WordPress dashboard to begin. .
This is how to install WordPress on Bluehost
Do you have any questions about installing WordPress on Bluehost and launching your site? Ask in the comments!
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