How to make a dog grooming website
FREE GUIDE
A lot of pet business owners make their own websites, I have done for years but the design possibility’s are endless with a WordPress website. In this free guide I will show the basics to get started. How to load a template design into the WordPress dashboard to work on. How to change some of the elements in the template to be able to create a mobile responsive dog grooming website and get it online in no time. I will show how some of the design features work. How to add a new page. All you need is web hosting and a domain name (and a laptop or desktop) everything else you will need will be a free version, so this guide is ideal if you are on a tight budget or just setting up.
Guide Contents
- 1. Web Hosting & Domain Name.
- 2. Install WordPress
- 3. Install Theme & Free Template
- 4. Add Free Plugins
- 5. Customise Colours & Fonts
- 6. Elementor Editor
- 7. Pages
- 8. Customise The Menu
- 9. Contact Form
- 10. Privacy Policy
You will need a laptop or desktop to build the website on.
1. Web Hosting & Domain Name
Web hosting is the service that allows you to display your website on the internet, kind of like your little space on the internet. You need to rent this space from the web hosting company in order to display your website.
A domain name is the address of your website, it is the name that you type into the URL bar of your browser to find your website. You can purchase your domain name from the hosting company.
There are lots of different hosting companies out there but I recommend using siteground or Blue Host for hosting websites and domain names they are both a brilliant option. The dashboard in the client areas are clean, simple and straight forward to use.
To get hosting to start building a website visit siteground or bluehost.com and choose a plan.
Domain Name
If you don’t already have a domain the next step is to register a domain name, this costs about £15.
The domain name you choose can be your business name if it has not already been taken. If you already have a domain name you can transfer it to the hosting company.
Search domain names
2.Install WordPress
WordPress is a content management system CMS, which basically means software which is easy to use, you don’t need codes to make a website. WordPress is free, however you need hosting to be able to use it on the internet.
At siteground or bluehost.com it is just a click of a button and wordpress is installed, that easy!
WordPress Dashboard
This is the WordPress dashboard, there are a few settings to change.
Find and click on SETTINGS down in the left hand side panel.
In the settings check the site title this is the title of the website usually your business name, the language, the time and date etc can be all be checked and changed here.
Save the settings.
Next under settings find the > permalinks down the column, check the post name is the one selected then save
3. Install A Theme
A Theme For WordPress. A theme in WordPress is the look and style of the website. There are lots of themes available for WordPress, you only have 1 theme on the website I am going to use ASTRA it is free. You can upgrade to Astra Pro to unlock more features. The Astra theme is a light, fast easily customisable theme. I have the Astra Pro Theme on my online shop I highly recommend it.
At the dashboard on the left hand side
Appearance
> Themes
> add new
Type in Astra
> Install
Activate
Then click > plugins at the side of the page
At the top the page > ADD NEW
Type in Astra Starter Sites
Click > install now, then activate
choose Elementor page builder, the elementor page builder is fantastic I have the pro account but for now we will use just the free version.
Dog grooming website template
There are 20 free STARTER SITES to choose from with Astra, I am going to use Outdoor Adventure
> Import complete site
> view site
The Outdoor Adventure website template from the Astra starter sites is a nice clean stylish looking website template which is already a mobile responsive design, ready to start working on. The template is ideal to work as template for a dog grooming website.
4. Add Plugins (Free)
Plugins for your website are the building blocks which work important features like the contact form, and SEO. There are hundreds of free plugins available. There is usually a free and a premium version. You can add any plugin you like into the website but if you end up not using it then delete it completely from the website. If you buy a premium plugin you will have to upload it, go to > plugins > add new > upload plugin then usually > activate and you may need a licence key (its easy to do)
The extra free plugins I add are –
Yoast SEO or RankMath
Cookie Notice
Wordfence (Security for the site)
Updraftplus (back up)
Go to the DASHBOARD
> Plugins
> ADD NEW
search for the plugins > Install > activate All plugins have settings too, go to > plugins at the bottom of each plugin will be settings, click on the settings and follow the instructions.
5. Customise Colours & Fonts.
To get to the customise area, click > visit site > customise. The customise area is where you will change the global colours of the website, if you upgrade to Astra Pro you will have more control over the colours for the template and a huge range of font styles to choose from plus more features. But you can change the style of the text, without Astra pro.
For this template you need a black (or coloured) and a white logo or a logo which will work on the transparent header. If you search online there are lots of free logo maker sites.
In the homepage settings check that your homepage is set to static page, this is your custom home page.
You can change the text on the footer in the footer area.
You can change and customise a lot in this whole section, including the menu which we will come back to.
6. Elementor Editor - Sections, Columns, & Elements.
To edit the website click Edit With Elementor in the top bar.
Elementor is the worlds best page builder. It is a visual page builder, which means you can click on any element on the page and edit it. A drag and drop editor Elementor makes designing websites easy.
All the elements of the page can be changed through the elementor editor on the left hand side. The page is made up of Elements in Columns which are in Sections. (The menu and footer can’t be changed here that has to be done in the customise area).
Within the elementor editor is where you add URL links to your buttons, photos, titles etc and make all the changes to the design of the page. The editor can do so much to the style and layout of the page I have just told you a tiny fraction of what is possible with elementor.
You can keep the website as simple as possible by just changing the elements you need to, like the text and photos. At the other end of the scale you can turn the website into a rainbow with moving elements and anything else you can dream of is usually possible
The video clip shows how to change the basic elements, like the text and photos.
7. Pages
It is up to you how many pages you need for a Dog Grooming website. But the main ones you would need are the –
HOME PAGE – This is your showcase of what you have to offer, where you are, what you are and who you are.
ABOUT – This is where you can go into more detail about who you are the experience you have within the industry, qualifications, what you specialise in.
SERVICES – What services do you provide, dog grooming, cat grooming or both, collection and delivery, mobile or salon, all breeds, you may want to put prices on this page too or prices from.
PHOTO GALLERY – A photo gallery is always a great page to have on a pet grooming website to show off your skills. A before and after photo gallery is worth having too.
CONTACT – You need a contact page so clients can book appointments and make enquiries. The busier you get with the grooming, the more you will realise that the more information you have on the website the better. The phone ringing just to answer simple questions can be inconvenient sometimes whilst trying to get on with grooming, and from a safety point of view it is dangerous to leave a dog unattended on a grooming table whilst answering a phone. So as much information as possible is needed on a the website.
+ Adding a page.
Go to the Dashboard > Pages > Add New
To have the same layout as the other pages in the template, in the column on the right hand side set the Sidebar to No Sidebar then the Content Layout to Full Width / Stretched then check the box to disable title and disable featured image.
Add a title at the top of the page for example Photo Gallery you can publish the page now or pubilsh later when you have finished the page. Then click Edit With Elementor to start working on the new page.
8. Customise The Menu.
The menu can be customised from the Dashboard or the Customiser.
From the Customiser > Menu > Menu
Click +Add items and the menu will open up, from here you can add or remove items from the menu. You can change the name of the item in the menu too.
With the Outdoor Adventure template the button in the menu is customised in Header > Primary Menu this is where you can change the text on the button add the link and change the style.
9. Contact Form
Make sure the contact form has your correct contact details so you can receive the emails.
At the Dashboard > Plugins > settings for the wp forms then add your details.
10. Privacy Policy
With the Outdoor Adventure template there is a privacy policy page as part of the template design. Dashboard > Pages Privacy Policy > Edit With Elementor
Share online
Once you have completed the design you are ready to share your website online.
You will be able to update the website, add new photos, text and content as you need to.
With the Astra theme for WordPress there are 20 free starter sites available including free online store templates to use with the woocommerce plugin for wordpress.
Use the worlds leading WordPress page builder and take your website design to the next level. With a front end drag and drop page builder the design possibilities are endless.
Managed WordPress hosting. Powerful, yet simple to use.
Ideal for dog breeders, pet businesses, online stores looking for web hosting which is easy to use.
