How to set up a Wix website
Today, I want to make sure you know how to set up your Wix/ePortfolio page.
The completion of your Wix/ePortfolio at the end of the semester will take up 80% of your grade. This is a major project, and the best way to tackle a major project is to break it up into small tasks.
Before class begins, you will need to:
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Set up a free Wix webpage with a blog
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Set up your Home page
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Set up your About page
Where do you start?
Go to Wix.com and Sign up. You can use your FSU email or your personal email- that is up to you.
The program will ask you “What kind of website do you want to create?”. I would suggest clicking on Blog.
The program will next ask “How do you want to create your website?”. You ABSOLUTELY WANT to click on Wix Editor (right side). DO NOT CLICK ADI (Left side).
The next page asks you to pick a template. Pick a template which best fits your personality. Note: if you pick a flashy, complicated template, know that you are expected to manage the technological requirements for it. If you do not feel technologically confident, I would suggest one of the simpler templates. You cannot go wrong with white background and black text.
By the end of the semester, your website will need: Home, About, Project #1, Project #2, Project #3. Page requirements can also be located here. If you want to build all your pages now, that is fine. However, before class begins, you MUST have your Home page and About pages designed.
Next: Add you blog manager. On the left side, you’ll see a button which says Start Blogging. Click on it, then click on Add Now. From there you will see Add New Blog Post and Manage Blog. That is how you will post Wix blog assignments. Those posts will begin next week. Your template might come with some preloaded blog posts which will give you an idea of what is capable with your blog. This are good learning tools, but they need to be deleted before you begin your own blog posts.
Next, go to the top left hand corner of your page, and click the dropdown menu This is where you will see your pages. You will have a Home and possibly an About already built. The template that you chose might come with suggested pages (like Gallery or Shop). Go ahead and delete those. To add a page, go to the bottom of that dropdown and click Add Page. It will ask if you want to add a Page, a Link or a Menu Header. You want to add a Page. Then you can name it, and move it in the order you would prefer it.
After you build your pages, you must click PUBLISH in the upper right-hand corner. Anytime you make a change to your page, you MUST CLICK PUBLISH. If you do not, then I cannot see it and I cannot grade it. When you click PUBLISH, a pop up box appears. In the middle that pop up box is the correct link to your webpage. I need you to Tweet that link so I can make a record of it and post it on the class website.
If your link begins https://editor.wix.com, you are using the wrong link and it will not open for your viewers. The correct link will begin with your user name (which is often the same as the email you used to open the account. For example, my websites begin https://bwb15b.
What do you need on your Home and About pages?
This is where you get to express your personality and begin to consider your BRAND as a student.
First: Who is your audience for this page? Your first instinct might be to say, “Instructor B”. Which is true. I will be reading this webpage all semester. This is where I will be able to see what kind of student you are. How well do you make your deadlines? How detail oriented are you? What are your interests and goals?
But this page will also be viewed by your classmates. This is a collaborative class, and you will be asked to look at each other’s webpages.
This page is public. Depending upon your content, your webpage may appear on Google for other people who share interests in the projects you are working on.
This page can be used as an example of your work. You might be able to use when you apply for jobs, scholarships, entrance in specific programs at FSU, etc. This means that potential employers, teachers, mentors and selection committees might review this webpage.
Which begs the questions: How do you want those audiences to see you? What is the first impression you would like to make?
What are two or three adjectives which would describe your brand? (Remember that Professional does not always mean Business Professional. You could be Creative Professional. Whimsical Professional. Rustic Professional.)
Here is what I want on your About page:
I have asked you to treat this page as a way to write your personal narrative. This means I want a person story which defines who you are. It does not need to be your life story. It does not even need to be long (minimum 500 words). It does not need to read like a social media bio. You might consider writing about:
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Changes in your living situation,
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moments where your had a shift in your way of thinking,
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dramatic moments where you felt yourself mature or change (as long as you feel comfortable discussing it in a public space),
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the moment you chose your college major,
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the influence of a particular family member or ancestor,
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a place where you feel at peace and your personal connection to it.
How to design your page?
Consider these things while designing this website. What do you like to see when you go to a website. Log onto a few online blogs and magazines and consider where they put words, headlines and photos. Online publications organize texts in a Z shaped formation and structure elements left to right to mimic how humans read. However, some websites choose to center text to bring the eye to the middle. Consider the magazine Vanity Fair. It utilizes a clean white background and large color photos. This is a mostly vertical design. Left hand size, small photos stacked vertically with text beneath. All these photos are links to other stories. Same system on the right except no photos, only text. In the center, the primary article. Scroll down and you'll see a band which runs horizontally of other articles, and the art is captured in circles. On the other hand, Entertainment Weekly uses a horizontal layout. This magazine wants the reader to see everything important without needing to scroll down the page. The logo and top links are small across the top. They have one photo in the middle, and the text to describe it is on the left. On the right, a list of articles which are trending in the magazine. Again, this page's color palate is minimalist. White background, black text, color photos. Small accents in green and red.Consider reviewing your favorite website and ask yourself what style and design choices they are using and if that would work for your audience, topic and branding.
Adding words
When you are ready to add headlines, titles and paragraphs to your Wix page, click on the + in the left-hand toolbar and select text.
Because the sites are created using templates, when you go to add text, you will see a selection of fonts under "Themed Text". You get a font for titles of multiple sizes. You can choose a font which has not been selected, but unless you feel really comfortable with graphic design, I would not recommend it.
Click one on the title or paragraph you want and drag it to the position on your page you prefer, or double-click the text you want and it will appear on the page.
When you click on the box, it will ask you if you want to edit text. Click it and the Text Settings toolbar will appear. From there you can change formatting, orientation, bullet points or add hyperlinks.
If you are interested in adding images, shapes, videos, or other elements to your page, you go through the same process. Go to Add (+) then the element you wish to add.
Images
When you want to add images, you have the option of uploading your own, or from images available for free through Wix. After to go to Add (+) and Image, you can click on My Uploads or Free From Wix. If you are using your own images, click on upload images and where you have saved the image on your computer. If you are using a photo from the Internet, know where you are getting it. If you download an image from Google Images, it will tell you where the photo originate. Copy that link. When you upload the Image and place it on your page, when you click on it, it provides a toolbar. Click the icon for Hyperlink, select Web Address and then paste the URL in the space provided.
Don't feel obligated to use your own photos. Browse through the Wix free images for art for your website. They have lots of options.
Style Choices
Think about what you like when you visit a webpage. What is visually stimulating? You might prefer a clean layout and design without photos or images. Fine. You should consider setting fonts and text which is visually stimulating.
A simple layout is a vertical one:
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Headline
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Photo
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Single column text
(see examples on P1 page)
The best way to make sure you are designing a visually pleasing webpage is to visit webpages for publications you like to read: Magazines, Buzzfeed, News, etc.
Adding Pdfs to your pages
Some of you may have already begun the process of adding Pdfs to your pages. However, the icon for Pdfs are not visually stimulating. How can you make sure all your pdfs are on your page AND look good.
Use a list.
Under the +, scroll down and add a list to your page. Then click on Manage list. You can change the photos, text and add your Pdfs of your previous drafts in one handy place.
For an example, go to P1 and P2 pages and see how I used Lists to organize those Pdfs.
How to check traffic on a Wix site?
Some Wix sites are provided the ability to track the traffic one gets on their website. It is listed under Insights
First, click on the green B so you are taken to your blog manager.
Next, click on Manage Your Blog.
This will take you to the large blue box and you will see all the blogs you have posted for your page.
On the lefthand side, you will see a menu bar. On that menu bar is the word Insights.
When you click on Insights, a drop down menu appears. Through this menu, you can click to see how many people have visited your site, and read each blog post. It can show you what times of day your site gets the most traffic down to the hour. You can see from which country your visitors live. You can see whether they are viewing from a desktop, tablet or phone.
