I need to create a new site. I have a current site on Bluehost, I want to keep the same URL

  • Unknown's avatar
    whitefordsa · Member ·

    I’m not seeing how to get started. I don’t want to replace my current site until I have the new one built. Bluehost is my current host. I want to use my current site name and URL once I have the new site built. Your general directions are not clear to me about the process. I want a Business account. I have paid for hosting with Bluehost through next June including my site name. How do I do this? Can I use Chat? – it is hard to find.

    I don’t have a site with WordPress.com yet

  • staff-totoro · Staff ·

    Hi there,

    Yes you can fully set up your new site with us before pointing the domain here. That way your current site can stay “live” until your new one is ready.

    To explain, When you first create your site we will assign a staging subdomain you can use to get set up in private. When you are ready to “launch” the new site to replace the current one, that is when you will want to connect your domain to us.

    Essentially when you domain to us, your WordPress.com site will replace your existing site, but the address will not change for visitors. You are welcome to start your new site here and just choose the “wordpress.com” address instead of typing in your custom URL. We can help you with that later when you are ready.
    :)

    https://wordpress.com/start/

    Can I use Chat? – it is hard to find.

    Chat is not an option for free accounts but we’re happy to answer any questions you have here in this posting. As well I’d like to point out that if you opt for the yearly (not monthly) versions of the Premium, Business, and eCommerce plans, live chat support is included in the plan.

    Let us know if you need further assistance or if you have any questions.

  • Unknown's avatar
    whitefordsa · Member ·

    Hi Jerry.

    I really appreciate your response and hope you will have the patience to further clarify.
    In what order do I do these things? It seems it would be best for me to purchase the Business level first so that I could have access to chat.
    Then I would build the web?
    I will keep my current domain name (at least for the time being) whitefordresources.com – which is hosted by Bluehost. Some remnants of my old web are still there but much of the content was lost due to php upgrades and downloading a new version of the WordPress theme.
    Once the new web is built I want the new content connected to the whitefordresources domain, and will remove the old version from Bluehost. My hosting contract with Bluehost ends next June, so I don’t need to pay for a new host until then. I may determine to keep Bluehost as my host if it makes sense, at that time.
    In paying for the business level and I paying for hosting or the site creation software or both?
    I’m assuming I should sign up for business level before I build the site. I have a WordPress account that seems to point me to building the website first, and the original options for level don’t seem easy to find.
    Thanks for your patience.

  • staff-doublebassd · Staff ·

    Hi there,

    In paying for the business level and I paying for hosting or the site creation software or both?

    Both hosting with WordPress.com as well as most of the site creation features are absolutely free. You only pay if you decide you want additional features for your site via the Business Plan. You can take a look at the particular features exclusive to the Business Plan here:

    http://wordpress.com/business

    As staff-totoro mentioned, what you could do is create a site with a free WordPress.com blog address. You are assigned a .wordpress.com or a .home.blog subdomain whenever you create a site with WordPress.com, so you can just use that as the domain as you build the site and determine whether or not this is the platform you want to use. The site starts off private until you are ready to launch it.

    As you are developing the site, you can determine if you need the Business Plan features in order to make it the way you want, but you can start developing the site for free. If you are looking to install plugins or a custom theme, for example, the Business Plan is definitely recommended.

    Then, you can make the decision to transfer the domain over from Bluehost:

    https://en.support.wordpress.com/incoming-domain-transfer/

    Hope this helps. Let us know if you have any other questions.

    Thanks,

  • Unknown's avatar
    whitefordsa · Member ·

    Thank you!

  • The topic ‘I need to create a new site. I have a current site on Bluehost, I want to keep the same URL’ is closed to new replies.