Title: Basic Start Help Please Last modified: August 19, 2016 --- # Basic Start Help Please * [joeatb2bmn](https://wordpress.org/support/users/joeatb2bmn/) * (@joeatb2bmn) * [15 years, 2 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/basic-start-help-please/) * Have read all of recommended Codex pages and we have content & nav buttons & “ needs” etc. more or less figured out for a new site (with a blog) but anxious about 1st steps. We’re a small ad agency & want to offer WPress design, content, SEO to clients, bypassing our current (outsourced) programmers. We do know SEO. 1) Is it best to upload WP to a host server from the start, or start outside of the host, get client-approved, then upload? 2) I assume we get a .com domain from GoDaddy or similar, then have it hosted at a place like bluehost? 3) The steps to upload to host seem daunting; do they assist with that, and with FTP client, MySQL user, etc.? 4) I need to find a PHP for Mac; I just see FileZilla mentioned (Windows). 5) Seems like Coda is good editor for Mac? Seems it’s free but then they have a $99 option (?) 6) Confused about placing files in “root of domain” or in “sub directory on my site” — pros & cons? THANKS, people! The“ 5-minute Install” they talk about must be for the pros! Thanks again — nice support forum. Viewing 7 replies - 1 through 7 (of 7 total) * [Samuel B](https://wordpress.org/support/users/samboll/) * (@samboll) * [15 years, 2 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/basic-start-help-please/#post-1976225) * 1 – personal preference there – I like to install in a “test” folder on host – then move install to root or another server when ready * 2 – yes – yes * 3 – most hosts have a one-click install for wordpress – bluehost does * 4 – I assume here you mean ftp client (you will need one eventually) [options](http://search.yahoo.com/search?fr=yhs-avg-chrome&type=yahoo_avg_hs2-tb-web_chrome_us&p=ftp+client%2cmac) * 5 – [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TextEdit](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TextEdit) * 6 – another personal preference – seo doesn’t seem to be affected either way * [esmi](https://wordpress.org/support/users/esmi/) * (@esmi) * [15 years, 2 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/basic-start-help-please/#post-1976227) * 1. Unless you can run WP on a local server, I’d suggest you upload WordPress first. Alternatively, you can do a lot of the design & development work on a local server and then have a demo site on a remote server where you can display new themes etc to clients. * 2. For clients – absolutely. You might even want to look at [networked sites](http://codex.wordpress.org/Create_A_Network) if you feel that you’ll have a reasonably stable stream of clients. * 3. If you are going to offer WP to clients, I’d strongly suggest that you get used to using FTP **now**. There are times when it will come in very useful. * 4. You need some sort of FTP client for Mac. Have a look on [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_FTP_clients](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_FTP_clients) for some suggestions. * 5. Not a Mac person myself but all you need is a good text editor. If you can get one with some syntax highlighting, so much the better. * 6. I think that’s going to depend upon whether these clients have existing sites that you will be replacing (upload to a sub-folder) or are going to use a completely new domain (upload to domain root). * Thread Starter [joeatb2bmn](https://wordpress.org/support/users/joeatb2bmn/) * (@joeatb2bmn) * [15 years, 2 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/basic-start-help-please/#post-1976229) * Thanks much, Samuel. Great re #3; like that. So re #1, is that seamless to do? Thanks again… * Thread Starter [joeatb2bmn](https://wordpress.org/support/users/joeatb2bmn/) * (@joeatb2bmn) * [15 years, 2 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/basic-start-help-please/#post-1976231) * Thanks, esmi — good advice. Re #6, Brings up question: we would want to keep a client’s domain name, for sure, and I assume that’s not a problem if we use WP platform? * [Samuel B](https://wordpress.org/support/users/samboll/) * (@samboll) * [15 years, 2 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/basic-start-help-please/#post-1976236) * #1 [http://codex.wordpress.org/Moving_WordPress](http://codex.wordpress.org/Moving_WordPress) * [esmi](https://wordpress.org/support/users/esmi/) * (@esmi) * [15 years, 2 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/basic-start-help-please/#post-1976237) * No – that’s no problem at all. * Thread Starter [joeatb2bmn](https://wordpress.org/support/users/joeatb2bmn/) * (@joeatb2bmn) * [15 years, 2 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/basic-start-help-please/#post-1976240) * Thanks, guys! Viewing 7 replies - 1 through 7 (of 7 total) The topic ‘Basic Start Help Please’ is closed to new replies. ## Tags * [Getting Started](https://wordpress.org/support/topic-tag/getting-started/) * In: [Everything else WordPress](https://wordpress.org/support/forum/miscellaneous/) * 7 replies * 3 participants * Last reply from: [joeatb2bmn](https://wordpress.org/support/users/joeatb2bmn/) * Last activity: [15 years, 2 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/basic-start-help-please/#post-1976240) * Status: not resolved ## Topics ### Topics with no replies ### Non-support topics ### Resolved topics ### Unresolved topics ### All topics