Website Design Basic Concepts and Terms Explained

Did you know there's different types of websites? Do you know what hosting is?

I'll discuss some website design basic concepts and terms that anyone who wants a website should know.

You may think that website design is easy but there are a lot of things you have to consider before putting things on the screen.

Knowing what type of website you want will help you to go about finding the right type of hosting site, designer, and what programs or tools you need to use.

Common Types of Small Business Websites

The terms specifically to help you figure out what type/size website you may want.

Landing Pages

Typically, landing pages are just one page "sites" that have the basic in formation needed to let the customer know about the company and their products. I put the word "sites" in quotation marks because technically it is not a website but a single web page.

Mini or Brochure Websites

Mini sites are also known as brochure sites. Plainly stated, brochure sites usually have the same information that you would have in a brochure.

It consists of about two to five pages or more; it can vary. Normally it will have a homepage, about us page, contact us page, services page, and/or a location page.

Most small businesses get this type of website over any other option.

Blogs

Usually, small businesses use blogs for keeping their customers updated with the latest news and deals of the company.

One negative to having a blog is that it is not effective unless you are willing to add to it and post information daily or weekly.

One positive thing about blogs is they are cheaper to run.

Content Websites

A content site provides information about the business as well as related information that would be useful for the client, customer or website visitor.

My site, for example, is a content site. I have pages that talk about my business but I include information about graphic design in general. Content sites can have as much as a hundred pages or more or as few as fifteen to thirty pages.

Common Terms When Building A Website

Domain Name

A domain name is what you typically see after "https://www." in the browser's URL area.

It's similar to your street address. In real life, your street address gives someone a location of your house. On the Worldwide Web, your domain name is the address to your website.

Your domain name is what people type into their browser to directly find your website.

Here are some real examples of domain names:

amazon.com
cox.net
healthcare.gov
hamptonu.edu

You can get your own by registering a domain name online. Typically, a domain name costs about $12-$15 a year.

Just be sure to purchase your own domain name instead of letting someone do it for you.

If you want to know the reason why, I have written an article about "Why you should never let anyone else register your business domain name for you".

Web Hosting

Web hosting is what makes your website live on the internet.

It can be likened to the power that lights a bulb. Without that electricity, you don't have a working light bulb. Similarly, without hosting, you don't have a working website.

Depending on how your website is built, you may have to acquire your own hosting service. But if you use a website building tool like Squarespace or Wix, hosting is included with that company's service plans.

If you have to acquire your own hosting, it won't be hard to find one because there are a lot of web hosting companies to choose from. But, be careful who you choose, because not all hosting services are created equal.

The web hosting plan you choose can directly affect your website's speed, features, and size.

So be sure to read reviews before purchasing a plan.

Template or Theme

A template is the framework that controls the look and design of your website.

If you use WordPress to build your website, you will likely hear the term "theme" instead of template because that is the specific term used to describe a WordPress template – hence the term "WordPress Theme".

Templates come in all colors, styles, and forms. Your template options are directly affected by the website building platform you use. That's because some templates are build solely for specific platforms.

Is there a term you want explained?

Is there a website design term that you would like explained that I didn't cover on this page.

Contact me and ask me to explain it to you. I may even add it to this page.

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