Your Launchpad to Building a Website That Works

Oct 2

Welcome — and thank you for arriving at 1760. If you’re here, you probably have an idea, a passion, or a business you want to bring online. You’re asking the right question:

“How do I build (or launch) a website for myself or my business — the right way?”

That question is one of the most searched ones by new site-builders, entrepreneurs, and creatives alike. Your beginning doesn’t have to be confusing. In this very first post, I’ll walk you through the essential roadmap, the pitfalls to watch, and real steps you can take today to get from idea → published site.

Let’s get started.

Why This Post Matters (and Why You're in the Right Place)

Before we dig into steps, here’s what makes this different from many “how to build a website” guides out there:

Clarity over jargon — You won’t need to know “server clusters” or “CDNs” to begin.
Focus on ROI and usability — A website isn’t just a digital brochure; it should serve your purpose (sales, leads, audience, brand).
Scalable mindset — Start simple, but leave room to grow.
Transparency on cost & time — Many guides hide how much things really cost or how long they take.

If you follow this roadmap, by the end you’ll have something live (even if minimal), and a path to evolve it.

Step-by-Step Roadmap to Launching Your Website (for Yourself or Your Business)

Here’s the high-level journey. I’ll break out each step in follow-up posts, but this gives you the big picture.

  
      Phase
      What You Do
      Why It Matters
    
      1. Define Purpose & Audience
      Clarify why your website exists and who you’re speaking to
      Without direction, the site becomes scattershot and won’t convert traffic into action
    
      2. Choose Domain & Hosting
      Register a domain name, pick a suitable host or website builder
      This is your web address and foundation — choose reliability early
    
      3. Select a Platform / Tech Stack
      (WordPress, Webflow, Squarespace, custom code, etc.)
      The right choice balances flexibility, ease, cost, and scale
    
      4. Plan Structure & Content
      Decide pages (Home, About, Services, Blog, Contact), and initial content
      You’ll avoid wasted work or ghost pages later
    
      5. Design / Theme / UX
      Use a clean design and user experience best practices
      A site must look modern, load fast, and be easy to navigate
    
      6. Build & Populate
      Assemble pages, insert content, images, test forms, links
      This is where “it all comes together” in real form
    
      7. Optimize for SEO & Performance
      Add title tags, meta descriptions, compress images, set mobile behavior
      You want people to find you — speed and structure help search engines
    
      8. Test & Launch
      Check on mobile, different browsers, fix broken links, then go live
      A final sweep ensures visitors don’t see glaring bugs
    
      9. Monitor & Iterate
      Use analytics, user feedback, A/B tests, and keep improving
      A site is never “finished”; it grows as you learn

Key Decisions You’ll Make (and How to Choose Wisely)

While many small decisions lie ahead, three foundational ones will set your trajectory:

Platform / Builder vs Custom Code
- Builders (WordPress + page builders, Squarespace, Wix, Webflow) allow you to move faster, often with no or little coding.
- Custom code gives ultimate flexibility and performance, but costs more time and money.
- For your first MVP launch, I often recommend starting with a solid builder or WordPress setup you can extend later.
Domain Name & Branding
- Choose something easy to spell and remember.
- Go with a “.com” if possible, or relevant niche TLDs if your brand allows.
- Don’t overthink: you can rebrand later if necessary, but consistency helps early.
Hosting & Scalability
- Shared hosting is fine to start; avoid hosts known for performance issues.
- Eventually scale to VPS or managed hosting as traffic grows.
- Make sure backups, security, and SSL (HTTPS) are part of packages.

Common Pitfalls & How to Avoid Them

“Paralysis by planning”: people delay launch indefinitely because they want perfection. Aim for minimum viable site (MVS) and improve.
Overloaded homepage: cramming too much content, videos, sliders can kill load times and confuse visitors.
Neglecting mobile: many users use phones — if your site isn’t responsive, you lose trust.
SEO as an afterthought: without proper on-page SEO early, your site may never rank.
Bad imagery & copy: cheap, blurry images or vague text erode credibility instantly.

What to Expect in the Next Posts (From 1760)

Over the coming weeks, I’ll publish a focused series diving into:

How to pick a domain & hosting (with cost trade-offs)
WordPress vs site builders: pros, cons, and recommendations
Step-by-step: structuring content & site maps
Best practices for design and UX (mobile first)
On-page SEO essentials for beginners
Pre-launch checklist & “soft launch” strategy
Post-launch analytics, feedback loops & growth hacks

If you’re reading this, you’re joining 1760 at the ground floor. I encourage you to leave a comment or send me your biggest obstacle in launching a site — I’ll either address it in upcoming posts or help you personally.

Until next time — may your domain resolve quickly and your site inspire visitors to stay.

Welcome to 1760. Let’s build something together.

— Parker Feldmann

Parker Feldmann