How to structure a website

You have finally decided to create your website but, although the ideas are many and valid, it is still not clear to you how to organize them. Do not be afraid then: if you want, today I am here to give you a hand in this regard and explain to you how to structure a website according to your communication needs.

Having established some general rules, you will learn which are the fundamental pages to have within a site, be it a personal site, a blog or a company site. But not only that: you will understand how to define the hierarchy of contents on an e-commerce and, if you are already a little expert on the subject, you will be able to juggle structuring a site with the HTML language. I will also suggest some tools to make your job easier.

I bet that, at this point, you will want to know right away how to get started in order to get your website online as soon as possible. Did I guess? Well, then all you have to do is take a few minutes of free time and read what I have to recommend: you will see that, in no time at all, you will have clear ideas about the most functional structure for the site you will create.

Index

• Preliminary information
• How to structure a personal website
• How to structure a corporate website
• How to structure an e-commerce
• How to structure an HTML website
• Other useful tips

Preliminary information

Why is it important to understand how to structure a website? To begin with, the main reasons can be summarized according to two points.

The first of them concerns the clarity of communication: whoever browses your site will have to immediately understand what you do, and then deepen looking for more information about your account and, finally, maybe have the opportunity to interact by contacting you.

In all likelihood, in this description, you have already been able to identify some of the most easily recognizable elements of the basic structure of a site, namely the pages called Home page, About us and Contacts.

You may have also noticed that, in most cases, the access point to these areas of a site is located inside the top of it (in the form of a menu ), what is technically called the header.

You may also run into the side navigation bar ( sidebar ) and slide the body center of each page until you reach the area located lower down, called footer, which usually contains more technical information, such as links to the Privacy and Cookie Policy page, whose presence is mandatory on all websites.

Simply recognizing all these sections when you open a site helps you intuitively understand how to search for the information you want.

The second point, for which it is essential to structure online content well, concerns browsers and search engines, the most used of which is undoubtedly Google. To ensure that your site can enter the Google SERP (ie the page with the search results), you must establish a “dialogue” with its crawler (ie the one that deals with “scanning” the sites to be indexed then in the search engine).

If you want to position yourself well on Google, you have to work from an SEO perspective (i.e. Search Engine Optimization, search engine optimization) on the source code that is behind every single element of the site (do not be scared, many things are already optimized by default and you will not necessarily have to work deeply on the code); you will also have to create content (primarily texts, but also images and other multimedia elements) in an “appealing” way for search engines (without ever losing sight of the intrinsic value of each content proposed to the reader, which is always the most important thing ).

For the rest, I can tell you that, in principle, a good site should have a structure in which the more generic categories of topics dealt with in the foreground are placed and, directly dependent on them, there are others, from time to time more specifications. This type of structure is defined as silos and, figuratively, each single category, with its related topics, represents one of these large containers (you have to imagine the silos that, for example, contain different types of cereals in large farms, side by side one next to each other). In this model, what is inside a silo should never “contaminate” the nearby silo.

Returning to referring to a website, everything that is described by specific keywords (also called keywords ) should belong to a single category, without being reproduced in another section of the site, described with different keywords: otherwise, as they say in technical jargon, the topics would end up being cannibalized by themselves and the search engines would no longer know which ones to index.

Do not worry, it is not at all difficult to identify such a structure within a site: I will give you a practical example through this blog. If you go back to the top of this page, or that of any other article, under the main menu of the same you can see entries such as Home> Internet> Online services> Create websites> Title of the article.

This pattern, which I advise you to always make visible on your website, is determined by terms called breadcrumbs, literally breadcrumbs. Just like in the famous tale of “Tom Thumb”, the bread crumbs are meant to be followed to lead you to your destination and, in the case of a website, to reveal its structure.

The information you will get will tell you that, in the case of this blog, within the Home page, you will find a large macro-category, the one called “Internet”, which contains all the articles concerning the “Online Services”, and, at in turn, it contains all the topics on the topic “Creating websites”, which also includes the tutorial you are now reading.

The silo scheme, which goes from the more general theme to the specific one, is called vertical. To highlight precise transversal aspects, common to several topics, a horizontal system is used, that is, tags.

A precise organization of the contents of a website ensures that visitors perceive its immediate readability and, at the same time, the search engine algorithms consistently interpret the logic behind the structure.

Before building your website, you can design its structure, even simply by drawing its outline ( wireframe ) on a sheet. So, when you move on to the actual operational phase, also remember to write the texts using tools that can suggest the right keywords (I suggest the Google Keyword Planner ), to use light images (for example in .png format ) and to name their files using keywords exploited as well in the texts, along with terms that actually describe what the photos represent. The same applies to any other multimedia content.

Remember to insert internal links in the pages of your site, that is, that refer to other pages on the site itself. This will greatly help visitors speed up browsing.

Finally, ask yourself what type of site is right for you: a personal page or a blog are clearly different from a company site, useful if you have services to offer, just as a landing page or an e-commerce site is different, necessary if your intention is to sell products.

In the following paragraphs I will describe the differences between the different types of sites, their structure and the best tools to build them. Always keep in mind that, although the latter may be free, you will need to register a domain (the name of the site) and purchase a hosting space, which will host it, along with the content that you will upload online. Some services provide everything in convenient “all-inclusive” packages, so don’t worry: even in this case, nothing particularly complex.

How to structure a personal website

When you understand that you know some interesting topics, for which you have gained a certain competence, or you want to spread your works, the best solutions for you are the blog (perfect if you prefer an article structure and are looking for a ready-to-use system for content management) and/or the portfolio site (which you can always structure as a blog or even create in a more static format, if your focus is on personal promotion and your external projects, which maybe you talk about better on other dedicated sites) Here, then, are my indications on how to structure a personal website.

In this type of website, what will have more space will be the articles you write, or images, videos or other multimedia content able to show, for example, your works. Your most important topics, the latest posts published and those that have periodic importance could already be recalled from the Home page.

In case you had a real blog in mind, you can take mine as an example, to determine its structure, as I explained to you in the preliminary information of this guide.

If your content is mostly visual, a photo and/or video gallery should be integrated into the classic site structure.

To start your blog, you can use different tools, including free ones. Among them, perhaps the most complete and versatile, which allows you to structure the site as just mentioned, is a CMS, an acronym that means Content Management System and represents a fairly easy “ready-to-use” system for configuring a site and/or of a blog, also intended for those who are not webmasters. One of the best-known, used and flexible CMS is WordPress: after purchasing the domain and hosting for your site, you just need to go to the official WordPress site, download the CMS and install it on your webspace., to instantly bring your site to life. Alternatively, you can create a free or paid WordPress blog (with the purchase of domain and webspace directly through the service) starting from this other WordPress site. Keep in mind that the free version of WordPress does not allow you to monetize the site with advertisements.

As an alternative to WordPress, if your intention is to create a free blog unpretentious, you should consider the platform Blogger to Google, which also allows you to monetize content through the ads AdSense. More info here.

When you have gained some experience, if you want you can also put your efforts to put up the blog to good use: it is in fact a particularly suitable tool for selling advertising space or links. In this regard, you can try reading my guide on how to do link building and, more generally, on how to make money with a blog.

And if you really want to work hard to get results with your personal website, also read my guide on how to create a successful blog.

How to structure a corporate website

Maybe you have a business that you want to raise awareness and promote, so what you are wondering is how to structure a business website.

Again, the reasoning you will do upstream will reflect on the structure of the site. It is very important to have a clear focus on what your company’s mission is, that is why your services should attract and interest a specific target audience and what its vision is, that is, how do you plan to create and keep alive the interest in your audience . These details will be precious to give the imprint to the contents that you will subsequently upload online (text register, type of call to action, tone of images and so on).

It will then be time to choose the domain name and purchase hosting space, then decide on the most suitable system for managing your web content, presumably a CMS system.

As for the structure represented by the pages, in addition to the Home page , the About us page and the Contacts page, which are always indispensable, it is logical to think of creating one to host a Portfolio of the works performed and/or the customers with whom we collaborated. Fundamental will be the page in which the proposed Services are described and in which you will take care to highlight the Advantages that they can bring to the user. From a promotional point of view, it could also be useful to add a section dedicated to positive comments, reliable testimonials about the activity, i.e. Success Stories.

If you also offer discounts or sell products, you could think about building a landing page or an e-commerce (I will talk about this topic, however, in the next chapter ).

The structure of a corporate website can also be built using a CMS system, as explained in the chapter dedicated to the personal website. It is almost obvious to say that WordPress is the best tool suitable for the purpose, although it can also recommend Joomla, for the creation of landing pages and Drupal. To better orient yourself in the world of CMS, I have written a guide that describes which are the best CMSs around and, therefore, I suggest you take a look at it.

Instead, to solidify the basics of the topic covered in this chapter, I recommend that you read my guide on how to create a business website, complete with all the steps to complete the task.

How to structure an e-commerce

These days, you really need to digitize your store, or you really intend to open an online store directly. Excellent strategy, but how to structure an e-commerce in an adequate and functional way? If the question haunts you, these are my indications on the matter.

Although designing an e-commerce is more elaborate than other types of websites, the important thing is to always go in order, to “unravel the problem”.
First, as with a business website, it is important that you know your customers, the target audience who care about the products you sell. This will help you in drafting the texts and contents present in those that are the most canonical pages of a site, therefore also present on an e-commerce: Home page, About us , Contacts, to which, also in this case, a Portfolio page can be added, that of relating to the Services details you offer and want to highlight, as well as the opinions of satisfied customers, if you already have them.

In addition to this, the heart of an e-commerce will be represented by the Products and the cards that describe them. Each of them, basically, must contain, in the order, the name of the product, an image, or more than one, which shows it as truthfully as possible, a precise and accurate description, any technical characteristics, sizes, colors, pieces available in stock, price, the Buy button clearly highlighted and, perhaps, also related products that could stimulate the user to buy even more from your e-commerce.

You will then have to pay attention in managing the Catalog, structuring it preferably according to the silos model, which I described at the beginning of the tutorial, to the configuration of the Payment Methods and the contacts that leave their personal data: in this regard, if you carry out actions of marketing (among them we can also mention a possible login system to the site, cookies and the proposal to subscribe to the newsletter to site visitors) you will have to declare it on the page intended for the privacy policy, as well as think about inserting very accurate pages on the conditions of sale, of made, of withdrawal and the method of delivery of the goods. for these documents, I recommend that you contact a professional, such as an experienced lawyer.

To simplify your life in the creation of an e-commerce, you can turn to services such as Shopify, which allows you to start an online store in a few clicks, both from desktop and from smartphone or tablet (it is available as an app for Android and iOS / iPadOS ) with a 14-day free trial and then choosing from various plans: Basic Shopify ($ 29 per month) which, among other things, includes the ability to manage an e-commerce and a blog; Shopify ($ 79 per month) which adds the possibility of having 5 staff accounts and the possibility of inserting gift certificates; and finally Advanced Shopify ($ 299 per month) offering the best for larger businesses.

Once this is done, in essence, all you have to do is create an account and follow the instructions provided by the system to manage the store, the products within it and the orders. For all the details read my guide on how to create an e-commerce with Shopify.

If you prefer another solution and have a way to approach a CMS, try using WooCommerce, the official WordPress e-commerce extension, also available in ready-to-use solutions, such as Aruba. To get an idea of ​​the other e-commerce platforms available, read my guide on the subject.

My guide focused on creating an ecommerce site, on the other hand, can help you get an overview of the theme.

How to structure an HTML website

The idea of ​​building your website without necessarily using a “pre-packaged” system stimulates you and, after all, you know that with a little effort you can easily succeed in the enterprise. If you want I can also give you some suggestions on how to structure an HTML website.

To begin with, HTML is a declarative markup language, that is a system that helps programs capable of interpreting the source code to have precise indications on the hierarchy of the elements present, for example, within a Web page (which, if built with this language, it is also called static).

I already warn you that, most likely, for the creation of your HTML website, you will have to combine this language with CSS, for the design and stylistic trait of the pages, and JavaScript, suitable for creating interactive actions on the site.

At this point, I suggest you read my guide on how to create an HTML website, to understand how to build each single page, hierarchically structuring the contents. Then you can combine them into a framework, a method that helps to structure a website in such a way as to adapt its display according to the different browsers, to optimize its loading speed, customize the graphic aspects and so on.

Among the best resources that can be freely used to structure an HTML website, I can only recommend Bootstrap: a sort of library that contains countless HTML, CSS and even JavaScript templates. If you understand a little about the subject, you might also be wondering how to structure a PHP website: in that case try to consult this link.

Other useful tips

To conclude this tutorial, I would like to leave you a few other useful information, which can still help you in your approach on how to structure a website.

• Optimize the site for smartphones and tablets, keep in mind that today all of us browse mainly with these tools. Most CMSs provide this type of optimization automatically ( responsive ), however I advise you to always check while building the site.
• It takes care of the experience of using the website, for example by calculating the least possible number of clicks that will allow the future user to reach the information he is looking for. Study these possibilities when building menus and site categories (trees or navigation architecture).
• Use social networks to promote your site. By now, if you are not on social networks you do not “exist”, so try to promote yourself on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok and so on, in order to expand your audience and establish a dialogue with it.
• Use Yoast SEO, a content optimization plugin, if the tool you use to build the site allows.
• Once the site is finished, send the sitemap( the sitemap itself ) to Google through the Google Search Console tool: if you use WordPress and Yoast your task will be much easier, in fact you just need to upload a .xml file provided, which contains the site structure. This will be made available to the search engine.
• Use Google Analytics to understand, over time, how users interact with your site and, from the data obtained, change parts of the structure if you believe that they do not bring you the desired results, as, perhaps, those who surf may find them unintuitive or functional. .
• If you have an e-commerce, or in any case you sell something, read my guide on how to do business online.