How to Connect a Custom Domain and Set Up SEO

Your site is built. Now let's make it professional: connect your own domain and set up SEO so people can actually find you.

Step 1: Upgrade to Pro

Custom domains are a Pro feature. In your dashboard billing page, upgrade the site you want to connect a domain to.

Step 2: Buy a Domain

If you don't have one yet, buy a domain from any registrar — Namecheap, Cloudflare, or Google Domains. Pick something short and memorable.

Step 3: Connect Your Domain

1. Go to your site's Domains tab in the dashboard
2. Enter your domain (e.g., yourname.com)
3. Add the DNS records shown to your registrar
4. Wait for DNS propagation (usually 5–30 minutes)
5. SSL certificate is provisioned automatically

Step 4: Basic SEO Setup

1. Set a Clear Page Title

Make it descriptive: "Sarah Chen — Product Designer in San Francisco" not just "Home".

2. Write a Meta Description

Keep it under 160 characters. Explain what visitors will find.

3. Use Heading Hierarchy

One H1 per page, followed by H2s and H3s. The AI already does this correctly.

4. Add Alt Text to Images

Descriptive alt text helps Google and makes your site accessible.

5. Submit to Google Search Console

Add your domain and submit your sitemap at yoursite.com/sitemap.xml. Sitelas generates this automatically.