How to Start a Site




OK, I taught you how HTML, but do you really know how to start a site? No? Well let me explain things in an ordered way. I might suggest that you have read most of the other guides on this site to be familiar with HTML and other things. So, know let's begin!

Think of a Good Topic


First thing is first. Think of a good idea for your website. The most popular categories are graphics, guides, and sometimes anime or fansites for celebrities. But, let's say you start a graphics site mainly for that. What kind of audience are you going to attract? Graphics lovers. But don't you want to go farther than that? I sure do! Try opening up. For example, my site isn't just guides, graphics, and fun stuff. I include things about Animal Crossing, which is a game very close to my heart. I also include things about Pet Rocks, which I know hardly any sites do. And guess what? I got quite a lot of visitors because of that! The point is to make sure your topic isn't all one topic. If you love neopets, try a neopets site. But add more! If you see people visiting your neopets site, there is a huge chance that they would also want a lot more than just neopets things. I love animal crossing, but at some point I will stop going to ACWW websites because I am so tired of reading the same thing every time I am there. So, what are you going to do? Add different things and don't keep it to one topic. Because at some point, you will get tired of it.

Pick a Good Name


One of the first things that I see when I enter I neopets site is that the title is Neo... Stop it! If you have a neopets site, don't start with Neo. Sure, it helps people know that your site is about Neopets, but come on, can I say, "lacking style and coolness"? But if you don't want your site to be Neo related at all, try to think of something all of a sudden. I thought of Zingo Planet because I was once thinking of something I could use as a nickname on a site, and I thought of Zero Planet. A few months later, it was transformed into Zingo Planet, and the site was born. So don't be scared if you can't think of a site name too soon. Just look around and you will find it! Think, oh look, there is an Ice Cream truck outside. And there is a picture of the London Eye in your room (That really is in my room). So there you go, Ice Eye! And I just made a type while typing this and it turned into Ice Eyez. How about that? So you will never know when to expect a good name idea to come along. Just think and you will get it. So, what have you learned? No Neo. And be original. But don't forget, if you can't think of a good name yet, try going Name-less until you do think of something. But don't go name-less for too long unless you want to scare your visitors away! Note: Once you think of a name, always check with Google to make sure no other site has that name already. You can get into a lot of trouble if there is one. So be on the lookout.

Find a Website Host


Now, thought of a topic, have a name, but wait, no website host? Well, if you want to find a reliable host for free, search Google for "Free Website Hosts". I am sure you will come upon a few sites that give you top ten hosts or something like that. If you are a lazy bone, and don't feel like Googling, I suggest trying out Freewebs, Bravenet, or my new favorite, Awardspace. I would suggest having an account on all of them, because it can help you in many ways. I use Freewebs as my old host and I keep my Moving sign there. I also use it for the Staff Forums, guestbook, and a few other things. Next, I use Bravenet for a lot of things. Take for example, the forms. Also, there is the Guestmap. That's why Bravenet is my #1 host for tools and widgets. And then, there is the greatest host ever, well, almost, Awardspace. This host doesn't have many tools, but what other things you can do with it are endless. It supports PHP, HTML, CSS, and sooo man more! Who doesn't like that? Plus, it has a lot of Bandwidth space and website space. I suggest it if you have possibly made a site before and you know HTML. Oh, and did I forget to mention there are no templates you can use? Yeah, that is a huge up-side. That way, whichever Awardspace site you visit, you are guaranteed an HTML site, which is just what I look for. Those are my favorite hosts, but don't forget to search for more. Don't be a lazy bone.

Set Up Your Site Look


If you chose to be smart and learn HTML, then you need a layout. You can find pre-made layouts from Lissaexplains.com, but the good thing about them is that they don't give you your style, only your actual layout. So that way you can choose to make it look however you want, without feeling bad that it is a premade. Oh, sorry, I forgot to explain those. Premade layouts are those that you get from sites and they already come with pictures and everything. A little tip: Stay away from those. They are just wastes of your time. Go for a unique look and make your own. If this is only your first or second site, sure, go with one until you can learn to make your own. But other than that, stay away! Do you here me? STAY AWAY. If you make one, and don't want to go with a huge picture in the middle of it, always make sure you are going with a color theme. If you are going rainbow and colorful, like I am, don't add black, unless it is a little bit of text. If you are going dark, don't add too many bright colors, unless your style is that neon kind of style, like my site's used to be. Just remember those tips.

Time for Content


OK, you got all of that down. Now what? The moment you have all been waiting for, time to add content. Add whatever matches your theme, and more. Guides, graphics, pet rocks, anime, drawings, fonts, and much much more! Remember never to steal anything, unless you are using pictures of a celeb from Google. But even with those, be careful. Don't add to many flashy things like music and animation everywhere. Oh, and stay away from too many pre-mades, like somebody's site I know of. Just don't do it.

Connect with Others


After a few weeks or even months of your site, you should be ready to connect with other people. One way to do this is by adding affiliates. Go explore some sites and do my favorite thing, do the Affiliate hunt. Go to one site, and it will probably have a lot of affiliates. Click on one, then one of theirs and continue until you end up visiting and affiliating with a ton of sites. But don't just affiliate for the sake of it. Make sure you check out the site, follow the rules, and not just say "nice site, wanna affiliate". That is just sickening, hearing that the person basically didn't even visit or explore the site. Do these steps: Explore the site. Read a little of what is there. Find the guestbook. Comment nicely, saying what you liked. And finally ask to affiliate. Those are the steps. Now, another way to connect is to add staff members. This is so you can get more friends and have fun. It will also make it easier to work on your site. Speaking of that, why haven't my staff members been helping out lately? I gotta go talk to them...

We hope this tutorial helped you! For suggestions, questions, or anything, contact yael@lime-pie.zzn.com or sasha@lime-pie.zzn.com.