Your Brand Website

Why you need your own website and how to build one without learning a framework. We’ll show you how to get a professional site running on GitHub Pages for free. When people Google your name, this is what they should find.
Categories:
Tags:

  4 minute read  

If you’ve been in tech for a long time but never had your own website, you’re not alone. For most of us, it never felt essential. But today, when your name gets Googled more than your resume gets read, it’s one of the most powerful signals you can send.

The good news? You don’t need to learn React, set up a backend, or even pay for hosting. You can have a free, fast, professional-looking personal site online in an hour.

This page will show you how. We’ll start small, using GitHub Pages to publish a basic site like itbyjohnd.github.io, and walk you through the whole thing using tools you probably already have.

Want to go deeper?

Why You Need a Personal Website

A .com with your name on it is more than a vanity project. It’s your:

  • Digital business card
  • Project portfolio
  • Link hub (to GitHub, LinkedIn, blog, etc.)
  • Proof that you’re active and paying attention

It doesn’t need to be fancy. It just needs to exist.

The Fastest Way: GitHub Pages

GitHub Pages lets you publish a website straight from a repository with no hosting costs, no config headaches.

We’ll create a public repo, edit the default template, and publish it to the world. Let’s go.

1. Create the Repository

  1. Go to github.com
  2. Click the + in the top right, then New repository
  3. Name it like this: itbyjohnd.github.io (replace with your GitHub username)
  4. Check “Add a README file”
  5. Hit Create repository

Boom. Your repo is live.

Important

The .github.io naming convention is crucial. It tells GitHub to treat this repo as a website. If you name it something else, it won’t work. The first part of the name MUST match your GitHub username, and the second part must be .github.io.

2. Clone the Repo Locally

You’ll want to edit the files on your computer. It’s easier and faster than editing directly on GitHub. The idea is that you “clone” the repo from github.com to a folder on your local computer. Part of that git clone ... process is the wiring up your upstream “remote” repository so that you can push changes back to GitHub later.

So, it’s as “simple” as: clone the repo locally, edit some files, commit those changes, and push them back to GitHub. That kicks off a short “build”. Then, a minute later your website is live. In the example above:

https://github.com/itbyjohnd/itbyjohnd.github.io would publish to https://itbyjohnd.github.io

On Windows 11

  1. Open PowerShell
  2. Navigate to a working folder:
    cd ~/Documents/gitlocal/itbyjohnd/
  3. Clone your repo:
    git clone https://github.com/itbyjohnd/itbyjohnd.github.io

On macOS

  1. Open Terminal
  2. Navigate to your workspace:
cd ~/Documents/gitlocal/itbyjohnd/
   ```bash
   cd ~/Sites/
  1. Clone your repo:
    git clone https://github.com/itbyjohnd/itbyjohnd.github.io

3. Open It in VS Code

  1. Open VS Code
  2. Click File -> Open Folder, then select your itbyjohnd.github.io folder
  3. Create a simple index.html file if one doesn’t exist:
    <!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
  <title>John D. | IT Consultant</title>
</head>
<body>
  <h1>Hi, I'm John</h1>
  <p>IT Professional with 25+ years of experience in systems, security, and automation.</p>
  <p><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/itbyjohnd">LinkedIn</a></p>
  <p>Email: [email protected]</p>
</body>
</html>

4. Test It Locally

You don’t need anything fancy here, just right-click index.html and open it in a browser.

If you’re using something like Jekyll, you might run:

bundle exec jekyll serve

But if this is just a raw HTML page, no extra steps needed.

5. Commit and Push

Back in VS Code or terminal:

# See status
git status

git add .
git commit -m "Initial commit"
git status

# Push to GitHub
git push origin main

git status

Your changes are now pushed to GitHub.

6. Publish With GitHub Pages

  1. Go to your repo on GitHub
  2. Click Settings -> Pages
  3. Under Source, choose main branch, root folder
  4. Hit Save

After a few seconds, your site will be live at:

https://itbyjohnd.github.io

That’s it - you’re on the internet.

What Should Be On the Site?

Start small. A single page is fine. Here’s what you might include:

  • Your name and a short intro
  • A paragraph on your experience or focus area
  • Links to:
    • LinkedIn
    • GitHub
    • Email (or a contact form later)
  • Optional: your blog, public talks, or favorite tools

Next Steps

If that was easy and you want more:

  • Use Jekyll to build a simple blog
  • Try a template or theme from jekyllthemes.io
  • Register a custom domain (like johnd.dev) and point it to your GitHub Pages site
  • Set up HTTPS for free with GitHub’s built-in SSL
  • ⭐Take a look at Domain Registrars for a walkthrough of buying a domain and wiring it up to THIS GitHub Pages site

Summary

You don’t need a degree in frontend to build a brand site. Just:

  • Set up a GitHub Pages repo
  • Clone it locally
  • Edit the HTML (or use a theme)
  • Commit, push, and publish

Once you’ve got that win, you’ll feel 10x more confident about the rest.