Duda AI: A quick overview and step-by-step tutorial

In this tutorial, I’ll guide you through each step to create a website fast using Duda's new AI-assistant workflow.

In short, you can get the AI to recommend pages to build, it can then build the layout automatically and populate the content, all in just a few clicks.

Stick around to find out.

Here’s what we’ll cover (feel free to jump around):

• Step 1: Getting started with Duda AI
• Step 2: Set up a new duda site
• Step 3: Leverage Duda AI tools
• Step 4: Auto-generate site metadata
• Step 5: Publish your site

I've also added an FAQ section for some of the more questions I get asked about the Duda AI site builder.

Let’s dive in!

Step 1: Get started with Duda AI

First, head to Duda AI landing page and click Try for free.

You won't need a credit card to sign up but you will be asked to create a free account (in the next screen).

Once you sign up, complete the onboarding questionnaire, and you'll activate the 14-day free trial.

Step 2: Set up a new Duda site

Duda has a different approach to AI-powered website building compared to its competitors.

Instead of using AI to generate an entire website from scratch, Duda lets you incorporate AI throughout the creation process. I'll explain later but first let's start creating a website in Duda.

Head to Sites ➝ Create New Site

Next, you can either start with a blank site (i.e creating a site from scratch) or use an existing template.

For this tutorial, I'll create Roofing company website using one of the available templates.

Step 3: Leverage Duda AI tools

This is where the fun starts.

Duda has what I call a "Triple Threat AI assistant workflow" for completing a website fast.

Here's the AI assistant workflow:

1. Page recommendation — Based on your existing business/site detail, the AI will recommend a list of pages you can add to your site.
2. Page layout suggestion — Once you have your pages, the AI will generate page layout that's tailored to your business model and your intention with the page.
3. Populate content with AI — And once you have your layout ready, you can auto-populate the page with AI-written content and images.

This works even if you start with a blank canvas site!

1. AI Page Recommendations:

This feature eliminates the often dreaded "blank canvas syndrome." Instead of staring at an empty page wondering what content you need, Duda's AI analyzes your business profile and suggests relevant pages that actually make sense for your specific industry.

Here's how you can access Page Recommendation:

From the sidebar, click Pages ➝  Page recommendations

Then, answer 3 questions for the AI prompt for them to generate page recommendations.

In the next screen, you'll find a list of relevant pages to add to your existing site.

As you'll see I like how the AI thinks like an experienced web designer. It didn't just suggest the obvious homepage and contact page – it recommended specialized pages for our roofing company.

• Roofing FAQ page to answer common roofing questions, covering materials, maintenance, and installation to help clients make informed decisions.
• Landing pages for different services: Roof inspection, seasonal roofing care , and more.
• Testimonial page to highlight past client reviews.

2. Smart Page Layout Suggestions

Once you've selected the pages to create, you'll be redirected to the layout and content generation editor.

Here's where you can:

• 1-click to generate the layout for the page with AI
• If you're not satisfied, you can regenerate layout for the page again.
• If you're really going nowhere, can you still manually choose one of the many pre-made layouts from the sidebar.

So rather than piecing together sections one by one, you get a smart layout recommendations based on your page's purpose (in this case, an FAQ page).

This isn't just about throwing random sections together – you can tell the AI actually considers the logical flow of information.

My favorite aspect is how it handles section ordering. When I used it for the landing page for roof inspection service, it created an educational landing page with the quality of a high converting landing page layout:

• A hero section with relevant roofing professionals and image
• Step-by-step on how to inspect your roof
• Other roof safety measures to look out for
• Explain the pain point of managing roof and when to hire professionals
• testimonial section
• and ended with a strong call-to-action to hire my roofing company.

I can tell you this: Every other AI website builder does not even come close to creating a personalized page like this.

3. Full-Page Content Generation:

The auto-generated layout comes with AI-generated content for each section, but you can easily regenerate (and have control) the copy for each section.

Simply click Regenerate Page Content, and the Page Content Panel sidebar will show.

From here, the Duda AI assistant will show you a list of prompts for each section of the page. Simply describe the type of content you want for the entire page.

This ability to generate copy for the entire page while still have fine control over each section is unique to Duda.

That said, you can't specify the tone (e.g, professional, casual ) here. You can only rewrite the copy in a different tone individually later on.

The power of full page content generation

What sets it apart is its ability to generate both text and images that are contextually relevant to your business.

If the initial content isn't quite right, you can tweak the prompts for individual sections until you get exactly what you need. Here I can regenerate specific sections to include specific Roof inspection methodologies based on my subject matter expertise.

Seamless Integration between AI workflows

What makes these features truly powerful is how well they work together. You can:

• Start with page recommendations for overall structure
• Apply smart layouts to each recommended page
• Generate full-page content with a single click
• Fine-tune everything to match your (or your client's) specific needs

In my experience, while the AI-generated content is decent, it's best used as a starting point that you should definitely improve with client-specific details and brand voice adjustments.

Room for Improvements

Here are a few areas I think Duda could be even better:

• The page recommendations could offer more industry-specific variations. For example: there's no layout for restaurant to take reservations
• Layout suggestions sometimes need adjustment for unique business cases. For example, carousels to display a series of images.
• Generated content requires significant tweaking for highly specialized industries.

Everything considered, these minor drawbacks, the time savings are substantial.

What used to take me hours of planning and initial setup now takes half hour to an hour max.

Pro Tips for Getting the Most Out of Duda's AI Features

After extensive use, I've found these strategies particularly effective:

1. Always review and edit the AI business profile thoroughly – the more detailed information you provide, the better the recommendations
2. Use the page goal editing feature to incorporate specific keywords for SEO optimization
3. Generate multiple versions of content for important sections to cherry-pick the best elements

These AI features represent a significant leap forward in website building efficiency.

While they don't replace the need for human creativity and oversight, they dramatically reduce the time spent on initial setup and content creation, allowing you to focus on adding those crucial personal touches that make a website truly stand out.

Step 4: Auto-generate site metadata

Metadata is like a preview or summary of your webpage that helps both search engines and users understand what your page is about.

In Duda you can generate keyword-rich SEO metadata for all the pages in the entire site in one click using Duda's AI Assistant.

To generate the Metadata, navigate to Page SEO Tags from sidebar.

Next, click Generate Meta Tags, and then Generate tags for all pages. If you haven't already, enter your business details and click continue.

The AI-generated metadata will be displayed in a table, and you can use the checkboxes to select which page tags you want to use.

You can click into any text field to edit the generated tag if you want. And when you're ready, click next.

In the next screen, you'll see the number of pages the auto-generated metadata were added to. If everything's fine then click Save Meta Tags.

By the way, you can also generate the SEO Metadata for individual page.

In the same Page SEO dashboard, click All Pages, then select the three-dot (kebab) icon of a specific page and click Generate Page Tags.

See how Duda's AI Assistant can save you hours from launching a complete site? These details usually take an SEO specialist a couple hours to complete, which you can do in a few minutes.

Step 5: Get ready to publish your site

When you're ready to publish your site, just click Publish from the top corner. You do need a paid plan to get your site published online.

As for the pricing:

The regular monthly cost for Duda is $19.

It's more expensive than popular site builders like Wix and Squarespace (which cost $16/month), but Duda's AI features are more polished than them.

Where Duda gives the most value are the client management and whitelabeling features.

It's great if you're a freelancer or an agency owner building sites for other businesses.

Basically, it lets you:

• Create custom login screen with your logo and branding for your client
• Auto-generate site stats for your client via email
• Let your client edit pages with controlled access
• Set up recurring payment subscription from your client

you can find the rest of the features here.

Anyway, back to your site.

Here's a checklist before you publish your site:

• Add Social Media Links: Replace the social media links in the header and footer
• Review Your Content: Proofread all pages to catch grammar and errors.
• Perform Basic QA: Test every link on your site to confirm that none are broken.
• Add a Custom Domain: Connect a custom domain to your site. Here's a tutorial on how to do it.

Once that's done, you're ready to publish your site!

FAQ about Duda AI website builder

How much does Duda AI website builder cost?

Duda starts at $19/month.

AI features (AI Text, SEO, and building assistant) are included in all paid plans.

Note: Duda does NOT offer any free plan as of this writing, but you can trial them out for 14 days.

How does the AI builder work?

Duda takes a different approach to AI website building compared to its competitors. While other platforms generate an entire website from scratch based on your business information and style preferences, Duda integrates AI throughout your website creation process:

1. You begin with either a template or blank canvas
2. The AI can then suggest additional pages based on your current website structure
3. You can use AI to generate layouts for your pages
4. AI helps populate your pages with relevant content and images
5. Before publishing, Duda AI can automatically generate SEO metadata, including:
   • Page titles and descriptions
   • Image alt text
   • Product descriptions

This AI-assisted workflow is designed to streamline the website creation process, helping you complete your site more quickly than traditional methods.

Who is Duda AI Website Builder best suited for?

Duda serves two main audiences effectively:

1. Small Business Website Owners — they an intuitive, fast editor comparable to Squarespace and they offer diverse pre-made templates for different website types (Business brochures, Landing pages, eCommerce sites, Blogs, etc)
2. Web Design Professionals (Freelancers and Agencies — Includes specialized features for managing client websites like white-labeling (Clients can log into the Duda platform and display your agency's branding instead of Duda's. They also have Built-in tools for client management tools like billing and creating reusable templates for clients.

That said, while it's accessible for individual business owners, I think freelancers and agency owners would get more value out of Duda.

Do I need any coding skills to use the builder?

You don't need coding per se, since they have plenty of pre-made sections (comparable to Squarespace I must say) but you can get much farther with Duda if you have prior design skills since Duda also allow much more flexibility to customize your site.

What industries or business types does Duda support?

Business site for professional services, restaurants, landing page for start ups, travel site, blog & lifestyle content site, and eCommerce.=

Does Duda support eCommerce or blog sites?

Yes and yes.

David Nge

David is the founder of MakingThatWebsite.com and started making websites for businesses back in 2014. He's a keen learner and wants to share his journey and knowledge with other business owners and freelancers. He launched MakingThatWebsite.com in 2021 to make website building more approachable and scalable for businesses.

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