How to Make a Website

Want to know the easiest and simplest way to create your own website?  Welcome to Wix – the world’s most intuitive free website builder!  Simply select a template from Wix’s extensive gallery, click Edit, and use Wix’s website creator to customize the design.  There is nothing to download, and no confirmation e-mail to wait for.  Here are the basic steps of planning and designing your own first website:

Step 1:  Get Inspired

Surf the web for websites that strike you as especially attractive or successful.  Browse through Wix’s gallery of free Flash web templates by clicking on the “Create” section of the Wix homepage. Or, check out what other Wix users have made in the past, in our “Explore” gallery. This gallery contains free Flash websites which were created by users like you. Many of them have no prior experience with web design, or programming. Wix’s templates are arranged by category, so you can see what others in your niche have done with Wix. Browse through as many templates as you like, taking note of what strikes you as successful web design that you might like to use in your own Flash website.

Step 2:  Plan Your Structure

To stay organized, make a simple sketch of your desired website structure.  Start with your Homepage, and take it from there.  Most websites include a separate “About” page, a page describing the products/services offered, and a Contact page.

Step 3:  Choose a Free Website Template

All of Wix’s Flash templates are royalty-free and entirely server-based, so no payment is required, and no downloading is involved.  Every item you see on a template (text, pictures, colors, links, sizes of items, widgets, etc.) can be easily changed with the Wix editor. You can also create your website from scratch by choosing the “blank website” template. Once you’ve chosen your template, click Edit.

Once you click “Edit” on a template, you will be asked to sign up for a free user account if you have not yet done so.  Just enter in your e-mail address, and create a user name and password.  Now you have an account with Wix, and you can use the free website builder to create as many websites as you wish.

Step 4:  Customize Your Website

You will now have access to the free website builder!  If you chose to use a template, it will now be automatically placed inside the builder, ready for customization.

This is what Wix looks like without a template selected:

This is a template ready for customization in Wix:

To ADD something:

Drag and drop! Select an item from the menu on the left side of the builder. From here you can add Page Parts, Media, Clip Art, Text, Galleries and Widgets to your website.  Once an item is added, you can customize it using the Property Panel.

To EDIT something:

Click on it!  A Property Panel will appear on the bottom of the editor, with all of the customization options for that item. Depending on the item, these options can include font, color, transition, linkability, behaviors, effects and more. Of course, changing the location of an item just requires a click and a drag.

Here’s just a few of the basic website elements that are easy to customize with Wix:

Structure and Layout

Every good website has easy-to-follow navigation, which allows a visitor to freely move around the website’s pages without getting lost or confused.  There are two items in the Page Parts section of your free website builder that are used specifically for this purpose:  Mini Pages, and Menus.

Mini Pages are just like regular web pages, but with more customization options.  With mini pages, you can have “pages” of content that turn in your website, while your site’s main page remains in place. So you have both static and dynamic content.

To add mini pages to your website, go to Page Parts > Mini Pages, and select from the style gallery on the right side of the editor. To link a menu to your mini pages, click on a mini page and select “Add a Menu”. You can move your menu wherever you like, but be sure to place it outside of your mini pages so it can be seen no matter where on your site a visitor is.  Click “Manage” to change the title of your mini pages, rearrange their order, or add more pages.

Text

You can add text as titles and paragraphs.  To add text with scrollbars, go to Text in your Quick Tools menu on the left side of the website builder, select Paragraphs.  To change any of the text in your free website template, click on it and select Edit. You can also add hyperlinks to your text from the Link option in your property panel, as well as change the text’s color, font, and the amount of space between letters and lines of text.

Images

To add an image, go to the Media button and select Pics. To change an image in one of Wix’s templates, click on it and click “Replace”.  Choose from images in Wix’s free collection, from Fotolia’s extensive stock archive, or from your own computer by clicking “Upload”.  You can add Clip Art or Animation from the Clip Art button.

Galleries

To add a gallery to your free website, go to Galleries and select a gallery style.  Once your gallery has been added, click on it and click Manage > Add Photos, and add your own pictures.  Each photo you click on will automatically fill the gallery. You can add title descriptions for each photo, and links.  Use the Property Panel to customize the skins of your gallery and more. You can even add a menu to your gallery. Just click on the gallery and click “Add Menu”.

Widgets

Widgets are items within your site that visitors can interact with, by clicking on them or entering in text.  There are tons of exciting widgets that you can use to make visiting your website engaging and functional.  Add music to your website by selecting the Player widget and uploading your own music file.  The Player widget also lets you include video playlists, with multiple videos.  Set up links to your blog or Twitter account through the RSS widget.  Create a section for visitors to leave comments by adding a Comments widget. Insert a Google map that will direct potential customers to your company’s precise location.   A Contact Form widget allows visitors to enter messages into your Flash website, which are sent directly to your e-mail.  You can also link your website to your PayPal account.  The Shopping Cart widget turns your website into an online store.  This widget is available only to users who upgrade from their free user accounts to Premium accounts.

Step 5:  Saving, Publishing & Updating Your Website

Your website will only become viewable on the internet if “Publish” it, by clicking the green Publish button on the top menu in the editor.  Until you’re ready to take your website live, save your work by clicking the Save button. The first time you click “Save” you’ll be asked to name your Wix. Once you title your free website, its URL will contain your user name, and the name you chose.  For example:  www.wix.com/username/website title.

Update your website whenever you wish, and see the changes instantly by clicking Save. Just go to wix.com, click on My Account, and you will see all of your websites ready for you to either View or Edit.  If you want your own domain, upgrade to a Premium account and gain additional control over your website’s online success. There are several different Premium accounts from which to choose, depending on your needs.

Any Questions?

Wix provides a wealth of resources to help you learn how to make a website.

Learning Center – Articles on website creation arranged by category

Wixpedia – Wiki website with video tutorials and articles about using the editor

SEOMyWix Blog – Learn tips and tricks on driving traffic to your website

Wix Pro Directory – Find a professional web designer to build your site for you

Wix Forum – Meet other Wixers and share ideas

Wix Designer Blog – Stay updated on Wix updates including new features, added templates, Wix promotions and more!

 

 

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