Guides / Build a website

Build a website like one you like

Link a website you like and Kodebloc builds yours in a similar style. How it works, and the line between inspiration and copying.

The short version

Put the address of a website you like in your request, next to a word like “like” or “inspired by”. Kodebloc opens that page, studies how it is put together, and builds your website with a similar layout, colors and fonts. Your website gets its own words and its own name.

Under the Website choice in the editor you'll see the same hint: “Add a link to a site you like to build one like it.”

How to write the request

Kodebloc needs two things to know that a link is a style to follow and not something to put on your page:

1. The address. A full link like https://example.com works, and so does a plain name like example.com.
2. A word that says “follow this” close before it. For example: like, similar to, inspired by, based on, in the style of, the look of, or the same as.

A link without one of those words is treated as content. So “link the button to example.com” puts a link on your page, and “our Instagram is instagram.com/rosasbakery” shows your Instagram. Neither is opened as a style to follow.

If your request has more than one such link, Kodebloc uses the first one.

What happens behind the scenes

1. Kodebloc opens the one page you linked. It does not look through the rest of that website.
2. It reads the page's title and description, the colors it uses most, the fonts it loads, and an outline of its parts: headings, sections and the text in them.
3. The AI gets that outline as reference material. It takes after the layout, the order of the sections, the kind of content, how busy or roomy it feels, and uses colors and fonts close to the original.
4. It writes fresh text for the business in your request. If you don't give a name, it makes one up that is not the other site's name.

Photos are not taken from the other website. Your website gets its own photos, just like any other build. See photos in your website.

The page is treated as information only. If it contains instructions aimed at an AI, they are ignored. The AI follows your request.

When the page can't be opened

Sometimes Kodebloc can't use the page. Then your website is still built, from your words alone, and the chat tells you why, for example:

• The site couldn't be reached (it may be down, private or not exist).
• The link isn't a web page (for example, it points to a PDF or a picture).
• The site took too long to answer.
• The page has no text to go by. Some websites build their page with code after it loads, so there is little to read at first.

There is also a limit on how many linked sites you can use in an hour. Past it, the chat says so and builds from your words. Pages behind a sign-in can't be opened either, because Kodebloc sees only what any visitor sees.

Use it for a change

Linking works after the first build too. For example: “make the menu section look like the one on example.com”. The AI takes after that site for the part you are changing, and keeps your website's own name, words and the rest of its look.

Inspiration or copying: where is the line?

Looking at websites you like is how most designers start. Layouts, like “a big photo at the top, then three cards”, are ideas shared by millions of websites. Taking after them is fair.

Some things belong to the other website's owner, though. Copying them can break the law, and it is unfair to the people who made them.

Fine to take

• The general layout and order of sections
• A similar color mood, like “dark with bright green buttons”
• A similar kind of font, like a bold, rounded heading font
• The kinds of sections, like reviews, prices and a booking form

Never copy

• Their words. Write your own headlines, descriptions and slogans. Don't paste their text into your request and ask for it word for word.
• Their logo or name. Use your own. The AI is told never to copy another site's name, logo, slogans or product names.
• Their photos. Photos are owned by whoever took them. Use the photos Kodebloc finds for you, or your own.
• Their trademarks. Brand names and symbols are protected. Don't make your site look like it belongs to another company.

A good test: if a customer of the other business saw your website, could they think it was the same business? If yes, change the name, colors or words until they couldn't.

Tips

• Link the exact page you like. If you like a site's pricing page, link that page, not its home page.
• Still describe your own website. The link sets the style. Your words set what the website says. A request with only a link gives you made-up content.
• Say what to change. “Like example.com, but with warmer colors” works.