Probably the most thrilling second of your new WordPress undertaking is true at first. You may have an concept that sooner or later, you hope will quickly be shared with the world. Nevertheless it may also be overwhelming.
WordPress has numerous plugins that do just about all the pieces beneath the solar. In reality, the WordPress ecosystem has doubled when it comes to plugin submissions in 2025.
So, which of them do you have to use?
On this publish, I’ll discuss by way of how I plan to construct a WordPress web site.
Why You Ought to Plan A WordPress Website
To plan a WordPress web site actually is a must-do course of that reduces the danger of the undertaking spiralling in time and price.
Spending an hour or two following a easy guidelines, just like the one I’ve detailed under, places you and the consumer on the identical web page when constructing the web site.
Repeatedly, I’ve seen initiatives that’ve undefined parts that must be factored in, which eliminates potential scope creep.
It can additionally offer you a listing of duties, so in addition to avoiding scope creep, you may simply switch the weather of your plan into your undertaking administration software as duties and milestones. That may velocity up growth time.
Outline Your WordPress Web site Objectives
The very first thing you need to do is outline the objectives of the web site. The best option to start this course of is to ask your self the next two questions:
- The place are your guests more than likely to come back from?
- What do you would like them to do if you’re on the web site?
Assuming that the location is a brochure web site, then greater than possible, you’d need your guests to come back from search engines like google and yahoo, and also you need them to contact you.
That manner, you’ll want a plugin like Yoast search engine optimisation or Gravity Varieties.
You will have different objectives, like rising a e-newsletter or an ecommerce retailer. Or chances are you’ll get visitors from a social media platform that your weblog must combine with.
Every of those must be outlined, as it will assist outline your tech stack.
Objectives Outlined? Nice. Now, Plan The Structure
When you’ve outlined your objectives, it’s good to take into consideration the format and what customized work you’ll need to do.
When constructing your web site, I choose to think about templates, somewhat than pages.
You don’t want a template for each weblog publish, for instance. If you’re constructing an internet site for a solicitor, for instance, all companies it presents (e.g., Conveyancing/Wills & Probate) might run off an analogous template, chopping construct time.
This isn’t essentially true in the event you’re utilizing a web page builder, as typically web page builders deal with every particular person web page individually.
You may additionally have a look at customized publish varieties and taxonomies for sure pages.
For instance, you probably have a “Meet the Workforce” web page, then each individual may very well be their very own publish. This makes upkeep loads simpler, because it permits a brand new workforce member to be simply built-in with out an excessive amount of hassle.
Testimonials work nicely as a customized publish kind as you may create a “financial institution” of them to make use of all through the location.
When you’ve obtained the construction of the location and what you’re utilizing to construct it, that must be the templates.
Typically, for a brochure web site with a weblog and a “Meet the Workforce” part, you’ll have the next templates:
- Residence Web page Template.
- About Web page Template.
- Contact Us Web page Template.
- Information Publish Template (Single).
- Information Publish Template (Archive).
- Workforce Member Template (Single).
- Workforce Member Template (Archive).
- Catch All Template.
The “Catch All” template I discover helpful because it’s used for pages which might be current however don’t want a lot design, one thing like a Phrases & Situations or your Privateness Coverage pages.
I have a tendency to start out with these first, as you may construct a header/footer simply sufficient right here.
Lastly, chances are you’ll need to think about whether or not you could have a number of languages or you probably have totally different regional places of work. A big web site could also be higher fitted to a multisite, somewhat than a person WordPress set up.
As soon as completed, you need to have a WordPress theme and a WordPress plugin able to construct.
My common thought is that any WordPress performance you want to retain when redesigning must be in a plugin, somewhat than a theme.
Issues like definitions of customized publish varieties or search engine optimisation modifications you make programmatically are perfect for a customized plugin.
Relying on the complexity of the undertaking, it might imply that you just break up performance into numerous plugins.
For instance, I’ve an ecommerce web site the place their customized invoicing is in a single plugin, and the voucher administration is in one other plugin. There’s additionally the “helper” plugin that has minor efficiency enhancements and a customized publish kind.
Don’t Neglect The Ancillaries!
In fact, a well-built WordPress theme, with a spread of customized and supporting plugins, is just the start. Your web site wants content material.
If you’re a advertising and marketing company, chances are you’ll be liable for the creation of the content material, however what about imagery? It’s a good suggestion to outline within the WordPress web site planning issues like who’s liable for the content material.
If you’re utilizing the content material of the previous web site, it’s a good suggestion to outline who handles the migration, or on the very least remember if it’s transferable – not all content material methods are!
Different issues to outline in your WordPress web site plan are coaching, who may have entry to the location, and what stage. Ideally, you need as few directors as attainable.
If you’re pushing a brand new design to an present web site, there’s an method of creating everyone however your self authors or editors, and see who complains about missing entry. That works remarkably nicely!
The First Step Comes With Expertise
In actuality, the extra you create plans and pitches for WordPress web sites, the extra refined your toolset and your planning course of develop into.
I already know the instruments I’ll be utilizing for the subsequent 10, possibly 20 websites, with usually little or no variance amongst them. What works for a solicitor’s web site will most likely work for a cleansing agency.
I’ve a core group of about 5 to 10 plugins and two to a few themes that I take advantage of, after which I add additional plugins as wanted.
These plugins are private to me, however over time, you’ll construct your personal checklist of plugins. Doing so will make WordPress web site planning way more environment friendly.
Extra Sources:
Featured Picture: one photograph/Shutterstock
