1. Domain & Hosting
The domain is your website's name (e.g. yourbrand.com). Hosting is the place where your website actually runs.
- Buying a domain: Namecheap, Cloudflare
- Hosting: Netlify, Vercel, Wix, Squarespace
- DNS basics: A-record, CNAME
Part 1
Website basics (non-tech)
What's worth knowing before you launch a website – no coding required.
2. Website builders
No-code website building for small businesses.
- Wix – fast, simple
- Squarespace – beautiful design
- Webflow – professional, detailed
- Webnode – beginner-friendly
3. Branding basics
- Colour palette: 1 main colour, 1 accent
- Typography: max 2 typefaces
- Images: consistent style, good quality
- Logo: simple, legible
4. SEO basics
- Page title
- Meta description
- Fast loading
- Mobile-friendly design
5. GDPR & Cookie Banner
Mandatory in the EU and UK.
- Privacy policy
- Cookie banner
- Form consent
6. Security basics
- HTTPS
- Strong passwords
- Backups
Part 2
Web development basics (tech)
HTML, CSS, and the developer tools websites are actually built with.
1. HTML basics
HTML gives a website its skeleton – every element is marked with an opening and closing "tag".
<h1>Title</h1>
<p>Paragraph</p>
<a href="#">Link</a>
<img src="image.jpg" alt="Image">- Every tag has an opening and closing pair:
<p>...</p> alttext is mandatory for images (SEO + accessibility)- Only one
<h1>per page
2. CSS basics
CSS handles the appearance: colours, typography, layout.
body {
background: #0b1120;
color: #e5e7eb;
}
h1 {
font-size: 2rem;
color: #38bdf8;
}- Use classes (
.card) for repeated elements, IDs (#header) for unique ones - Flexbox / Grid for modern layout without a template
- Always have a mobile-optimised (
@media) view
3. IDE – your development environment
Visual Studio Code is a free, easy-to-learn code editor – it's what most developers use.
- Useful extensions: Live Server, Prettier, HTML CSS Support
- Live Server: see changes in your browser instantly after saving
- Built-in Git integration for version control
4. Deployment – going live
Once your website is ready, it needs to be uploaded somewhere so anyone can reach it.
- There are free, fast services that auto-update from GitHub
- Connecting your own domain via DNS
- HTTPS comes standard with most modern hosting providers
5. Embeds
Inserting video, maps or social media content with an <iframe> – no coding required.
<iframe
src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VIDEO_ID"
width="560" height="315"
allowfullscreen>
</iframe>- YouTube / Vimeo video: the "embed" version of the shared link
- Google Maps: the "Embed a map" option when sharing
- Instagram / Facebook post: the post's own embed code
This is just the basics
Request a quote →
Want a professional team to build it for you?
If you don't have the time or the desire to do it yourself, I'll design and build it for you – from design to launch.