How To Move Website From Godaddy Builder To WordPress

I get asked about how to migrate from the GoDaddy Website Builder to WordPress a lot, and my answer is always the same: “That’s the thing, you can’t. It has to be done manually.”

It’s not the answer most people are hoping for, but if you’d like to avoid the headaches of migrating, companies like ours have developers (like me) who handle the process for you.

Of course, if you enjoy a challenge, this guide will walk you through how to… let’s say embrace the struggle. And if you’ve got 100+ pages, well, may the odds be ever in your favour.

Step 1: Building The Foundation For Your New Website And Install WordPress

WordPress.org is smart and made by people who don’t like wasting time, so I think you should check out their themes and tools. You can start here: wordpress.org/themes/

Once you pick a theme you like, you can use it to make a template page with all the standard sections. This will make importing content from your old builder site easier and help organise your website content, so you’re ready for the next step.

Step 1.5: Building Standard Sections AKA: How To Migrate Easier

Standard sections are the key building blocks most sites use: a header at the top, a navigation menu, a main content area, an optional sidebar, and a footer at the bottom. These sections create a consistent layout that helps visitors navigate easily and find information quickly.

While they’re not strictly required, including them will make building and organising your GoDaddy Builder site, or preparing to export it, much simpler.

Step 2: Copy Your Content From The Godaddy Website Builder

This step is straightforward, choose a page (many people like to start with the homepage), copy the content from the page, and save any image files from that page. This makes it easier to transfer everything to your new site while keeping your domain connected.

Step 3: Importing Content Into WordPress

This step is also simple paste the words from that page into your new WordPress site and add the images you saved. This helps ensure your domains are ready, your plugins work smoothly, and your WordPress site looks just the way you want.

Step 4: Repeat the Process

Once your first page is complete, congratulations! Now, simply repeat Steps 2 and 3 for every remaining page and file on your site. Along the way, you may find yourself questioning why you chose GoDaddy in the first place and why the process couldn’t be just a little easier.

Pro Tip: To make this step a little easier, put on a podcast or your favourite music while you work. It won’t completely take away the repetitive nature of the task, but it can make the time pass more pleasantly.

Step 5: One Final Check

Once you’ve finished moving all your content, do one last check to make sure you didn’t miss anything on your old site. Then look over your new site to be sure it looks exactly how you want.

Step 6: Transfer Your Hosting Domain.

This is the most challenging part of the guide. First, it’s important to understand the difference between WordPress.com and WordPress.org.

For this process, you’ll want to use wordpress.org.

Next, you’ll need to choose a hosting provider for your domain. Popular options include Pressable, Bluehost, and Hostinger. Each of these providers offers step-by-step instructions for transferring your domain. When prompted to select a site builder, be sure to choose WordPress.

Your chosen host will also provide instructions on how to install WordPress.org.

Once that’s complete, your migration is finished and you won’t have to deal with the previous system again. While there’s little reason to leave WordPress, it’s worth noting that it includes a convenient migration tool: simply click the button and follow the prompts to move your site elsewhere if needed.

Alternatively

If you want to skip all the stress and frustration, and you’re thinking, “No way I’m doing this,” the good news is you don’t have to, you can just hire someone to do it for you, like 10am Digital. We’ll handle the whole migration so you can focus on more important (and far less boring) things.