Top ten lessons I learned building my website
🛠️ Top 10 Things I Learned Building My Own Website
Building ShopWithNic.com from scratch has been one of the most empowering (and humbling) journeys of my life. I started with a vision, a domain, and a whole lot of Google searches. Along the way, I picked up some powerful lessons—some technical, some creative, and some just plain real.
If you’re thinking about building your own website or knee-deep in the process, here are the top 10 things I learned that might save you time, money, and frustration.
1. A Website is Never “Finished” — It’s Just Live
Launching a website doesn’t mean you’re done—it means you’re just getting started. There’s always something to tweak, improve, or update. Perfection isn’t the goal; progress is.
2. Doing It Myself Taught Me More Than Any Course Could
Yes, it took longer than hiring someone. But figuring things out on my own forced me to understand the backend of WordPress, how to use Kadence blocks, and how all the puzzle pieces work together. That knowledge is priceless.
3. Kadence Theme = Total Game Changer
Kadence gave me the design flexibility I needed without requiring me to know how to code. From custom headers to mobile-friendly layouts, this theme helped me create a site that actually looks like me.
4. Pretty Doesn’t Matter if It’s Slow
I learned quickly that a beautiful site that takes 10 seconds to load is basically invisible to visitors (and Google). Image compression, caching plugins, and minimizing scripts became part of my workflow.
5. Your Hosting Service is Your Secret Weapon
I chose Hostinger, and I’m glad I did. Good hosting isn’t just about space and speed—it’s about having support when things break, crash, or confuse you (which they will).
6. Not All Plugins are Created Equal
Some plugins made my life easier (like Rank Math for SEO, Pretty Links for my Amazon links, and WPForms for email signups). Others just bloated my site or clashed with each other. Less is more.
7. If It Doesn’t Work on Mobile, It Doesn’t Work
Most of my audience visits from their phones. That meant every button, image, and section needed to look clean and scroll smoothly on a tiny screen. Mobile responsiveness became a non-negotiable.
8. The Footer is Prime Real Estate
I used to ignore the footer. Now, it’s home to my subscribe button, social links, and key navigation. It’s where I remind people who I am and how they can stay connected.
9. SEO Isn’t Optional—It’s Strategy
I used to think SEO was just keywords. Now I know it’s about titles, descriptions, image alt text, and even URL structure. Tools like Rank Math helped me make my content actually discoverable.
10. Publishing Builds Confidence
I was nervous the first time I clicked “Publish.” Would it look right? Would people judge it? But every post, every product, and every update made me more confident. I’ve learned to just start—and fix it as I go.
Final Thoughts
If you’re building your website right now, know this: You’re doing something brave. It’s messy and frustrating at times, but the pride of saying “I built this” is unmatched.
I hope these lessons help you along the way. And if you ever need tips, tools, or inspiration—I share what I learn right here at ShopWithNic.com. 💻✨