What is Website? Web Design and Development Basics

If you are confused about the terminologies or basics related to websites, don’t worry as I am here to help you. Hi, this is Digital Abhi, your digital marketing friend, a contented digital marketer. In this article, I will share with you what is website and some web design and development basics.

Also, if you are a video person, you can skip directly to the end of this post where I have embedded a video on the same. Or if you are quite busy, you can just listen to this content in a podcast form. 

What is Website? What is a Webpage?

We visit tens of hundreds of websites every month. We bookmark our favorite websites and webpages. And according to the data of millforbusiness.com more than 500,000 websites are created every day. But have you ever thought about what is a website or what is a webpage?

So, starting with the basics, let us first know what is a website and a webpage? A webpage is simply a hypertext document on the World Wide Web. Also, in the most laymen language, we can say that a website is a collection of related webpages under one single domain. We will also discuss what is a domain in a little bit.

To make it more relatable, you can think of a website like a book with lots of pages. Hence, the book is a website in the internet world and the pages of the book are the webpages on it. And the name of the book is the name of the website.

The difference is that a book has just text and image content while a website can have all the kind of content you can think of. It can be text, image, video, audio, infographics, and any other stuff.

In this post, I will share some basic information related to websites like what is a domain name, what is hosting or web host, what is DNS (Domain Name System), and CMS (Content Management System), and most importantly how you can create a website.

Domain Name

So, let’s first see what is a domain name. A domain name is the name of your website. It is then followed by an extension which can be .com, .in, .net, .org, .edu or any other extension you want. All the webpages of your website are under this domain.

So, the URL of your website now becomes https://yourdomainname.com or http://yourdomainname.com. The https or Http in the starting depends on the factor that your website has an SSL certificate or not. Now you may be thinking what is SSL?

What is SSL?

SSL is an acronym for Secure Socket Layer. When your website has an SSL, the URL has https in it and has Http if it doesn’t have an SSL certificate. In laymen terms, SSL is responsible for the security of your website. It is better to have an SSL for your website as it increases the security of your website.

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Also, search engines always prefer websites with SSL. If you are not having an SSL for your website, there are various websites that provide free SSL certificates. You can get one of these on Cloudflare. It is certainly one of the reputed names if you are looking for free SSL.

Now coming back to the domain name. To get a better understanding of what is a domain name, let me share a real-life example with which you can easily relate. Imagine you are having a retail shop. And your shop will definitely have a name. So, a domain name is the name of your shop in the internet world.

In the real world, two shops can have the same name. But in the internet world, a domain name is like a unique identity. No two websites can have the same domain name.

If you are thinking about the complications of buying or getting a domain, believe me, it is as easy as buying any other thing online. I would recommend you to use Godaddy for buying a domain. This is because I always buy domains from Godaddy and it hardly takes a couple of minutes to purchase a domain name on Godaddy.

Also read: What is Digital Marketing? Types of Digital Marketing

Hosting or Web Host

Now. what is a web host or hosting? A web host is like a real-life host. Let me share an example. Where does all the data on your phone is stored? In the memory card or internal memory of your phone. Right? Similarly, hosting is just a server where you put all the content of your website.

Or it is like a big memory card where you store all the data of your website. Relating it with the shop example, it is the area of land or the plot where you are going to build your shop. Or the other way around, it is the place which you rent out for your shop.

You can get a quite good hosting service from Bluehost or Namecheap at an affordable price. I have used both of them and found both of them to be good.

Or if you have quite a decent budget, you can use Bluehost. The reason I recommend Bluehost is because of its quality service. These guys are one of the oldest players in the industry.

DNS (Domain Name System)

You have got the name and space for your website. Now, you need to address the domain to the server or the hosting. And that’s where comes the DNS or Domain Name System in the role. It is just an intermediate which connects your domain name with your server.

But how does it work? Whenever some searches about you or opens the link of your website, a request is sent to fetch data. This request is sent to the server and the server makes the data available to the user or visitor on your site. You can edit the settings related to your domain name through the DNS.

CMS (Content Management System)

You have addressed the name of the shop to the rented space or the land area. Now, you need to construct the shop. Or if it is already constructed, you need to manage it and put some items in it.

This work is very nicely done by a CMS or Content Management System. Basically, a CMS is a tool that you can use to create an amazing website without having any kind of technical knowledge. It also helps you to manage the content on your website. Generally, these CMS are provided by your hosting provider.

Creation of Website

Now the question is how you can create your website with the help of a Content Management System. There are plenty of CMS like WordPress, Drupal, Joomla, Magento are available right now on the internet. Check out: WordPress Tutorial – Ultimate Step by Step WordPress Guide

Some other CMS like Wix are also available on the internet. You just need a few minutes and some clicks to setup these easy to use Content Management Systems.

The UI and accessibility of these CMS are so good that even a 9th-grade student can create a website. The best part to create a website with a Content Management System is that you don’t need any kind of coding or technical knowledge.

Although you gain some technical skills on your way towards website development. And if you are new to this digital world, stay tuned to Digital Abhi, I will give my best to provide you some great content.

Free and Paid Methods

Now there are two ways through which you can create your website. One is free and the other is paid. You can create your free website with WordPress, Wix, and plenty of other platforms. But the issue with the free version is that you get a subdomain kind of thing.

So, the name of your website will be something like yourdomain.wordpress.com or yourdomain.wix.com. Now let me ask you one question. Does it look professional? You know the answer. The free version is good when you are new and you just playing with things. Or, you are just testing out different things and aspects.

Although these platforms also have the paid features through which you can remove the .wordpress.com or the .wix.com thing.

But if you are someone who wants to build their brand. If you are someone who wants to grow their online presence, I would recommend you go with the paid part of the digital world. The best thing is, you can start with a very small amount. And this amount is like an initial investment for your brand, business, or idea.

Or what I say to everyone: it is like a gift which you give to yourself. A website is damn important for a business. But if you are confused why do you need a website, do read: Why do you need a Website? Importance of Website.

Here’s a video on all of the stuff we have discussed above:

Conclusion and FAQ (What is Website)

I have summarized all the topics we have discussed in this post in a format of FAQ. Hope you like it.

What is a Webpage?

A webpage is simply a hypertext document on the World Wide Web. If a website is a book, then a webpage is a page of the book.

What is a Website?

In the most laymen language, we can say that a website is a collection of related webpages under one single domain.

What is Domain Name?

A domain name is the name of your website. It is then followed by an extension which can be .com, .in, .net, .org, .edu or any other extension. All the webpages of your website are under this domain.

What is SSL?

SSL stands for Secure Socket Layer. When your website has an SSL, the URL has https in it and has Http if it doesn’t have an SSL certificate. It is better to have an SSL for your website as it increases the security of your website.

What is a Web Host/Server?

A web host is like a real-life host. Hosting is just a server where you put all the content of your website.

What is DNS?

DNS stands for Domain Name System. It is just an intermediate which connects your domain name with your server. You can edit the settings related to your domain name through the DNS.

What is CMS?

CMS is an acronym for Content Management System. A CMS is a tool that you can use to create an amazing website without having any kind of technical knowledge.

Thanks a lot for taking out time to read this post. I hope you got some value from it. And if you did, don’t forget to share this valuable information with your family, friends, and loved ones. Also, stay tuned to Digital Abhi, as I will consistently upload valuable content related to Digital Marketing.

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