Perplexing Guide to Creating a Bursting Classified Website in WordPress

What is a Classified Website?

If you are lost and in search of information on how to make a classified website in WordPress, you have stumbled upon a very puzzling guide to help you every step of the way. First things first, let’s answer the question: What is a classified website?

A classified website is a digital platform that harbours all types of ads posted by individuals, and businesses offering their products, services, or even job openings. The website owner makes a profit by accepting payments for posting specific ads or showcasing ads from third-party brand advertisers.

Step 1: Get Your Hosting Plan

Before you jump into the creation process, first things first, you need to choose the right hosting plan, where you’ll store your website files and content. Bluehost stands out as the best hosting service for WordPress websites, as it provides unique hosting plans tailored for WordPress, making the WordPress installation process faster and more straightforward. Additionally, their hosting plans come at an affordable price, inclusive of features such as free domain registration, SSL certificate, and seamless customer support which operates 24/7.

Step 2: Install Your WordPress

The installation of WordPress is pretty straightforward, and most hosting providers offer a one-click installation process, including Bluehost. Upon signing up for Bluehost hosting plan, the next step is to follow the on-screen instructions to create and install your WordPress website seamlessly.

Step 3: Choose a Classified Theme

A classified theme gives your website a professional appearance and feel that attracts visitors. There are numerous classified themes at your disposal in the WordPress directory that come with features such as “Ad Posting,” “User Registration,” “Search,” and several others. You can select the perfect classified theme through the WordPress theme directory or go for reputable third-party websites such as ThemeForest.

Step 4: Install Classifieds Plugins

Plugins are software components integrated into your WordPress website. They help you add unique features and functionalities not readily available in WordPress. Classifieds plugins are specifically tailored for classified websites and add features such as Ad posting, user registration, Ad management, payment gateways, and more. The two most popular classifieds plugins are WPAdverts and Advanced Classifieds & Directory Pro.

Step 5: Set Up Ad Categories and Fields

The next step is to set up ad categories and fields where you will categorize Ads based on their core features and attributes you’ve set. While Ad categories group similar ads, ad fields’s primary role is to define every Ad’s necessary information the user needs to input on your website.

Step 6: Add Payment Gateway

If your plan is to charge users for posting Ads, using premium functionalities, or opting for exclusive benefits and features, your website has to accept direct payments. Adding a payment gateway on your platform is imperative. There are numerous payment gateway plugins available for WordPress, including PayPal, Stripe, and WooCommerce.

Step 7: Create Pages

The creation of pages is a crucial aspect of building a user-friendly website. You need to create specific pages, including home, about, contact, Ad posting, Ad management, user registration, among others. The classified plugin or theme you installed could automatically create the pages for you. Alternatively, you can customize them manually using WordPress page editor.

Step 8: Customize Your Website

Customization is the final step in constructing your one-of-a-kind website. The WordPress customizer helps you modify website colours, fonts, background, among others. On the other hand, the theme settings allow tweaking of your website’s layout, Ad display, and several other aspects to your liking.

Conclusion

Creating a classified website in WordPress is not rocket science, and you don’t necessarily have to learn the language of the internet (coding) to achieve this. By following these eight perplexing steps, selecting the appropriate hosting provider, a carefully designed theme, and integrating impeccable plugins, you can create an impressive and profitable classified website with ease.