How to Use WordPress: Ultimate Guide to Building a ...

Learn how to build your website on WordPress and discover tips to ... When considering hosting providers for your WordPress site, make sure ... HowtoUseWordPress:UltimateGuidetoBuildingaWordPressWebsite WrittenbyKristenBaker LearnhowtobuildyourwebsiteonWordPressanddiscovertipsandtricksthatwillhelpyouenhanceuserexperienceandboostconversions WordPressConversionToolsPoweredbyHubSpot Growyourwebsitewiththeall-in-onemarketingpluginforyourWordPresswebsite. GetItNow 18 minremaining Thethoughtofcreatingyourownwebsitemayseemoverwhelming. Youmighteventhinkthistaskisimpossibleforanyonebutadeveloperorapersonwithabackgroundinwebdesign. Well,Ihavegoodnewsforyou—there’sasoftwareouttherethat’ssoeasytouse,virtuallyanyonecansuccessfullycreateauniqueandprofessional-lookingwebsitefortheirbusiness,blog,orportfolio.It’scalledWordPress. WhatIsWordPress? WordPressisacontentmanagementsystem(CMS)thatallowsyoutohostandbuildwebsites.WordPresscontainspluginarchitectureandatemplatesystem,soyoucancustomizeanywebsitetofityourbusiness,blog,portfolio,oronlinestore. Buthow? Thisultimateguidewillcoverabasicstep-by-stepprocessofcreatingyourownWordPresswebsiteaswellasalistoftipsandtrickstorememberwhileworkingwithWordPress. HowtoBuildaWordPressWebsite WordPressHosting InstallWordPress ChooseYourTheme InstallPlugins TipsandTricks Butfirst,let’sanswerthequestionmostpeoplehavewhentheybeginthinkingabouttheirnewWordPresswebsite:WhatisthedifferencebetweenWordPress.organdWordPress.com? Wordpress.orgvs.WordPress.com ThedifferencebetweenWordPress.organdWordPress.comhastodowithwhoisactuallyhostingyourwebsite. YouhostyourownwebsiteorblogonWordPress.org,throughathird-partyhostingprovider.YoualsohavetodownloadyourWordPresssoftware,buyadomainnameonathird-partysite,andmanageyourserver.It’samuchmorehands-onexperiencethanwithWordPress.com. WordPress.comofferstohostyourwebsiteforyou.Youalsodon’tneedtodownloadanysoftwareormanageaserver.IfyouchooseWordPress.com,yourwebsite’sURLwilllooklikethis:www.mywebsite.wordpress.com.However,youhavetheoptiontoalsoupgradeyourWordPress.comaccountandbuyacustomdomainfromathird-partyprovider(meaningyourURLwilllooklikethis:www.mywebsite.com). HowtoChooseBetweenWordPress.orgorWordPress.com YoumaybewonderingwhetherWordPress.orgorWordPress.comwouldbeabetterfit.Let’sreviewafewmoreoftheprosandconsthatcomewithbothoptions,soyoucanmakeaninformeddecision. Wordpress.orgisidealifyouwantfullpowerovercustomizingandcontrollingyourwebsite.However,thereisalotmoreresponsibilitythatcomeswithmanagingaWordPress.orgwebsite.Youhavetopurchaseandsetupyourowndomainname,uploadandinstallpluginsandatheme,edityourwebsite’scode,andmanageyourwebsite’ssecurity.WordPress.orgisfreetouse,butyouhavetopayforeverythingelsethatgoesintohavingawebsite. WordPress.comispreferableifyou’relookingforanall-in-oneoptionthathasmostofthehardworkdoneforyou.You’llneverneedtomanageyourserver,payforyourhosting,orbuyadomain.TherearealsoanumberofcustomizationoptionsthatcomewithaWordPress.complantohelpyoumakeyourwebsitelookthewayyouwantitto. WordPress.comhasafreeandpaidversion.Ifyoustickwiththefreeversion,youcan’tuploadanycustomthemesorplugins,andyouwillhaveaWordPresssubdomain.However,thereisalwaystheoptiontopayforpremiumupgradesandotherplansthatprovideyouwithevenmorefeaturesandcontrol,aswellastheoptiontobuyacustomdomainthroughathird-partysite. WordPressforBeginners:HowtoUseWordPress ThereareanumberofwaysforyoutocreateyourdreamwebsitewithWordPress.Usersgenerallyfindthesoftwareeasytouse,butgettingstartedcanbeunderstandablyintimidatingifyou’recompletelynewtotheprocess.That’swhywehavebuiltthis“WordPressforBeginners”guide.Wantaquickintroductionbeforeyoudivedeep?Checkoutthishelpfulvideo: Forevenmoreresources,we'vealsocompiledsomeofthebestwebsitesforlearningaboutWordPress—thesecanbeincrediblyvaluablesourcesofinformationasyoustartyoujourney. Below,wewilltakeacloserlookathowtostartcreatingyourwebsite. HowtoBuildaWordPressWebsite SelectaWordPressplan(WordPress.comonly). Setupyourdomainnameandhostingprovider. InstallWordPress. Chooseyourtheme. Addpostsandpagestoyourwebsite. Customizeyourwebsite. Installplugins. Optimizeyourwebsitetoincreasepagespeed. GetinspiredfromWordPresswebsiteexamples. WordPressisbyfarthemostpopularCMStoday.Itseaseofuseandversatilityenablethemajorityofusersandbusinessownerstocreateawebsitethatworksfortheirneeds.Here’showyoucandothesame. 1.SelectaWordPressplan(WordPress.comonly). Tobegincreatingyourwebsite,selectaWordPressplan.Asstatedearlier,withWordPress.orgyouonlyhaveone(free)planoption—butitrequiresyoutobuyyourdomain,hostingprovider,plugins,themes,andeverythingelserelatedtoyourWordPresssite. WithWordPress.com,you’llhavetochoosebetweenthefiveplanstheyoffer. ImageSource Themaindifferencesbetweentheseplansarethemonthlyfee,typesofsitecustomization,andtheaccessyougettomarketingtools. 2.Setupyourdomainnameandhostingprovider. SettingupyourdomainnameandchoosingyourhostingproviderforWordPresstypicallyhappenaroundthesametimeinthewebsitecreationprocess. Beforewetalkabouthowtocompletethosetasks,let’sdiscussthedifferencebetweenyourdomainnameandhostingprovider. Thinkaboutyourdomainnameasyourhomeaddress—it’showyourvisitorsareabletolocateyourwebsiteontheInternet.Youdomainnamewilllooksomethinglikethis:www.example.com. Yourhostingproviderislikeyourhouse—it'swhereyourwebsitefilesareactuallystored.Withoutahostingprovider,yoursitewouldn’thavespaceonaserverto“live.”SomeofthebestWordPressinghostingprovidersincludeWPEngine,Bluehost,andKinsta. ImageSource Howtopickdomainandhostingproviders Again,WordPress.orgrequiresyoutocreateyourowndomainandfindathird-partyhostingproviderforyourwebsite.WordPress.comallowsyoutodecidewhetherornotyouwantacustomdomaindependingontheplanyouchoose,butittakescareofthehostingforyou. Yourhostingproviderisimportantbecauseitimpactsyourwebsite’sspeed,security,andreliability.Therearehundredsofproviderstochoosefrom,whichiswhyweputtogetheralistof22ofthebestWordPresshostingproviderstohelpyoudecidewhatwillworkbestforyou.AlloftheseprovidersmeetWordPress’threehostingrequirements: PHPversion7.4orgreater MySQLversion5.6orgreaterORMariaDBversion10.1orgreater. HTTPSsupport WhenconsideringhostingprovidersforyourWordPresssite,makesuretheymeetalloftheabovecriteria. Fordomainnames,gettingoneisaseasyassearchingandpurchasingonethroughyourdomainregistrarofchoice.IfyouarenewtoWordPress.combuthavealreadypurchasedandcreatedadomainnameelsewhere,noproblem—you’llhavetheoptiontotransferormapittoyourWordPresswebsite. Forthesakeofthisguide,let’sassumeyoudonotyethaveadomainorhostingprovider.Here’showtostartcreatingyourwebsitewiththepopularhostingserviceBluehost. First,headtoBluehost’swebsiteandclickGetStarted. ImageSource Fromhere,you’llbetakentoBluehost’spricingpagetochoosefromfourplans. ImageSource OnceyouchooseyourplanandclickSelect,you’llbetakentoanotherpagetosignupwithadomainname. ImageSource Onceyouselectyourdomainname,you’llbebroughttoapagetocompleteyouraccountandbillinginformationforyourpurchase. ImageSource Afterconfirmingyouraccountandpurchasingyourdomain,youwillgainaccesstoyourhostingdashboardwhereyou’llbeabletoinstalltheWordPressCMS. 3.InstallWordPress. IfyouareusingahostingprovideroutsideofWordPress,you’llneedtoinstalltheCMStoconnectyournewdomaintoyourwebsite. Thistime,let’suseGoDaddyasanexample.(Don’tworry,nomatterthehostingprovideryouchoose,thisprocesslookssimilar.) Note:IfyouchoosetouseamanagedWordPresshostingservicelikeWPEngineorKinsta,youwon'tneedtogothroughthisprocess,asthoseserviceswerebuiltspecificallyforWordPressandwillhaveWordPressinstalledforyou. Tostart,logintoyourGoDaddyaccount,clickWebHosting,andthenManage.Youwillbebroughttoascreenwithyouraccountdetails. ImageSource ScrolldownandunderOptions&Settings,youwillseeanareatitledPopularApps.ClickontheWordPressapptobegintheinstallation. ImageSource AfterinstallingWordPress,you'llneedtoanswerafewquestionsaboutthedomainyouwanttouse,thedirectorywhereyouwanttoinstallWordPress,andyouradmininformation. Afterabout24hours,yourwebsitewillbeinstalledtoyourhostingaccount,andGoDaddywillsendyouanemailconfirmation. NowthatyouhaveyourdomainsetupandWordPressinstalled,you'llnextneedtosetupyour“PrimaryDomain”withinWordPress,soyourvisitorsseeyourwebsitewhentheysearchyourdomain. InWordPress,gotoMySiteandclickDomains.Selectthecustomdomainyouwanttomakeyourprimarydomain. ImageSource Then,clickMakePrimary. ImageSource ConfirmyoumeanttomakethischangebyclickingUpdatePrimaryDomain. ImageSource VerifytheupdatewassuccessfulbylookingforagreenboxwithacheckmarkthatsaysPrimaryDomain. ImageSource Now,ontostepfour:makingyourwebsitelooknice. 4.Chooseyourtheme. YoucancustomizeyourWordPresswebsiteusingWordPress’manythemesandtemplates,eachofwhichcontainsamultitudeoflayouts,formattingstyles,colors,fonts,andothervisualoptions. WordPressautomaticallyappliesadefaultthemethatlooksratherplain.Youcankeepit,butyourwebsitevisitorsmaynotbesoimpressed.AcustomWordPresstheme,whetherit’spaidorfree,willmakeyourwebsitelookappealingandprofessionaltoyourbuyerpersonas. Similartothewiderangeofhostingprovidersavailable,therearealsohundredsofthemesandtemplatestochoosefrom.Tohelpyouout,we’veputtogetheraguideto20ofourfavoritethemesandtemplatesandcategorizedthembypurpose.Whetheryou’relookingforathemeversatileenoughformultipledifferentbusinesstypes,oronesuitableforyourecommercesite,portfolio,blog,orbusiness,there’sathemethatwillworkforyourspecificneeds.Ontopofyourtheme,youcanfurthercustomizeyourpageswithabuildertoollikeElementor. TofindathemethatworksbestforyouinWordPress.org,headtoyouradmindashboard.ClickAppearance,thenThemes.You'llbebroughttoanotherscreenwhereyoucanbrowseavailablethemesorsearchforaspecificoneyouhaveinmind. Onceyoufindtheperfecttheme,simplyinstallittobegincustomizing.Eachthemehasdifferentstepsrequiredduringthecustomizationprocess,sobesuretofollowthemclosely.Ifathemehasawebsite(oftenaccessiblethroughtheWordPressthemeandtemplatelibrary),checkfordocumentationasyouworkthroughthecustomizationprocess. 5.Addpostsandpagestoyourwebsite. WhenyouaddcontenttoyourWordPresswebsite,it’susuallydisplayedintheformofpostsandpages. Posts(or“dynamicpages”)aretypicallyusedforblogsandportfoliosbecausetheyautomaticallyplaceyournewestwebsitecontentatthetopofyourfeaturedcontent.Pagesarestatic,whichiswhytheyappealmoretobusinessowners—theaddedcontentstaysinthesameplace. PostsandpagesarethemainposttypesinWordPress.Additionally,thereareothernativeposttypes,aswellascustomposttypes.Fornow,wecanjuststicktopagesandposts. Startbydecidingwhetheryouwantapostorpagetoserveasthehomepage(oranypage)ofyourwebsite.Toaddaposttoyourwebsite,gototheadmindashboard,clickPostsandthenAddNew. Youcanaddatitleforyourpost,placephotos,changetheformat,andinsertpageelementsviablocksandshortcodes.ClickSaveDrafttosaveyourchangesasadraft,orclickPublishtoimmediatelytakethepostlive. Addingapagetoyourwebsiteisasimilarprocess.Inyouradminarea,clickPages,thenAddNew. First,addatitletoyourpage.Next,youcaninsertphotos,embedvideos,andaddcontent.Followthesamestepstocreatemultiplepagesforyourwebsite.Whenfinished,clickSaveDraftorPublish. 6.Customizeyourwebsite. Beyondthethemeyouchoose,thereareanumberofwaystofurthercustomizeyourwebsite.Let'sreviewafewoptions. First,let'scustomizeyoursitetitle.Fromyouradmindashboard,selectSettings>General.Here,addyourwebsitetitleandtagline.YoucanalsotoggleotherbasicsiteinformationlikeyouURL,email,timezone,andmore. Next,let'scustomizeyourreadingsections.UnderSettings>Reading,youcanchangeyourhomepagetoastaticpage. Considerthisifyou’reabusinessownerwhoprefershavingcontentremaininoneplaceonyourwebsite.Considerusingadynamicpageifyou’reabloggerwhoprefershavingyournewestcontentappearatthetopofyourpages.Thisway,yourvisitorscaneasilyfindyourlatestposts. Thenavigationbariscustomizable,too.Thisenablesyourvisitorstoeasilyfindinformationonyourwebsite. Addanavigationbarbygoingtoyouradmindashboard,clickingAppearanceandthenMenus. Fromhere,youcandeterminehowyouwantyourbartolook,howmanypagesyouwanttoinclude,whatyouwanttotitlethosepages,andwhatorderyouwantthemtobelistedin. Ofcourse,thisisjustafractionofwhatyoucandointhedashboard—clickhereformoreinformationonyourWordPresssitesettingsandcustomizationoptions. 7.Installplugins. PluginsarepiecesofsoftwarethataddfunctionalitytoyourWordPresswebsiteandenhancetheuserexperience.Withover55,000availableplugins,thereareoptionsformosteverytypeofwebsiteanduser.Someofthemostpopularpluginsavailableinclude: HubSpotWordPressPlugin:Easilyaddpop-ups,forms,andlivechattoyourWordPresswebsite.Andasanaddedbonus,pairthisplugin,orotherCRMplugins,withyourHubSpotCRM. AllinOneSEO:Atop-ratedSEOpluginthat’susedbybusinessestoimprovetheirrankingsanduncovernewSEOgrowthopportunities.  TheEventsCalendar:Aneffortlesseventscalendarthatmakesschedulingeventsfromyoursiteeasy. YoastSEO:Thego-toplugintohelpyouwithon-pageSEO.Thisappmakessureyou’refollowingbestpracticesbeforeyoupushyoursitelive. TablePress:Needatableonyoursite?Looknofurther. TheSEOFramework:AnotherpluginthatcanhelpyoumasterSEOonyoursite. Tobegininstallation,headtothePluginssectioninyouradmindashboard.Thisshowsyouallthepluginscurrentlyinstalledonyoursite.Dependingonyourhost,youmighthaveseveralpluginsinstalledalready.Notethatforaplugintoworkyoumustactivateitafterinstalling. Toaddanewplugin,clickAddNew.SearchforyourdesiredpluginandthenclickInstallNow,waitafewseconds,thenclickActivate. GettheWordPressCRMpluginthathelpsyouorganize,track,andnurtureyourleads. 8.Optimizeyourwebsitetoincreasepagespeed. Websiteperformanceisacriticalpartoftheuserexperience.Ifapagetakestoolongtoload,yourvisitorswillmovequicklytoanothersite.Youdon'twanttofrustratevisitorswithslowspeeds. Youcanimproveyourwebsite'sperformancebyenablingbrowsercaching.Browsercachingistheprocessoftemporarilystoringyourwebsite'sdataonyourvisitors'browsers.Thatway,yourcontentdoesn'tneedtobesentfromthewebserverforittoappearinthebrowser,whichincreasesthewebsitespeed. Toenablecachingforyourwebsite,installandactivateacachingpluginwiththeprocessdescribedabove. 9.GetinspiredfromWordPresswebsiteexamples. Asyoubegintocustomizeyourwebsite,youmayfeeloverwhelmedbyalltheoptionsyouhave.Insteadofstartingcompletelyfromscratch,ithelpstograbsomeinspirationfromotherexemplaryWordPresswebsites.Herearesomeofourfavorites: 99%Invisibleisapopularpodcastthatfocusesondesignandarchitecture.Theirwebsiteissleek,modern,andofferseasynavigationforvisitorstoquicklyaccesseachpodcastepisode. ImageSource TheHoustonZoo'swebsitedisplaysitsmainattractiononthehomepage.Themagnifyingglassicononthetopmenubarmakessearchingthesiteeffortless. ImageSource AwesomeMotive,thecreatorsbehindseveralWordPressprojects,engagestheirvisitorswithapolished,yetsimplewebsite.Itfeaturessubtleanimationtograbpeople'sattention. ImageSource WordPressWebsiteTipsandTricks ThereareanumberofWordPresstipsandtrickstomakeyourwebsiteasimpactfulanduser-friendlyaspossible—we’velisted20ofthembelowtohelpyoudojustthat. 1.FocusonthebasicsandcreateagreatuserexperiencewithaWordPressthemethatcomplementsyourbusinessandwebsitecontent. 2.UsedashesandnotunderscoreswhennamingyourfilesinWordPress.Googlelooksasunderscoresasjoiners,meaningyourfilewilllooklikeonebigword.Thatwon’thelpyouwithyourSEO.Usedashestomakeitobviousthereareseparatewords.(Forexample,usewww.example.com/this-is-an-example,notwww.example.com/this_is_an_example). 3.UseWordPress’onlinesupportforanyquestionsorconcernsyoumayhavewhilecreatingorusingyourwebsite.ThereareanumberofforumsandwaystoreachouttoWordPressexpertslistedontheirwebsite. 4.UseImageAltTexttoyouradvantage.ImageAltTextcanbeusedtoimproveyourSEOandGooglerankings. 5.Keepyoursidebarasorganizedaspossible.Sticktotheessentialsandthinkaboutwhatyourwebsitevisitorsandbuyerpersonasreallyneedquickandeasyaccessto. 6.Backupyourwebsiteregularly,soifyoueverloseaccessorhavetechnologicaldifficulties,youhaveeverythingyouneedtocompletelyrestoreyourcontent.Thereareanumberofplugins,suchasSnapshotPro,madespecificallyforbackingupyourWordPresscontent. 7.LearnandunderstandSEObasicstoensureyourwebsiteiscompletelyoptimizedsoyoucanboostyourconversions. 8.Createacustomhomepage.Asmentionedearlier,WordPresswillprovideyouwithadefaulthomepage.Takethetimetocreateyourownwithathemethatworksforyourbusiness—remember,thisisyourvisitor’sfirstimpressionofyourbusiness,blog,orportfolio. 9.Keepaneyeonyourwebsite’sperformanceandknowwhatisandisn’tworkingforyourvisitors.ThereareanumberofusefulWordPressplugins,aswellasGoogleAnalyticssoftware,tohelpwiththisperformance. 10.Includean“AboutUs”pageonyourwebsitetoshowyourvisitorsyou’reatrustworthypersonand/orbusiness.“AboutUs”pagesareknowntobethesecondmost-visitedpagesonwebsites(afterhomepages)—sointroducingyourselfisimportant. 11.Makesureyoursiteissecuretoensuretherearenohackersgainingentry.Again,thereareplentyofpluginssuchasWPDefendertohelpyouwithsecurity. 12.Createcustompermalinks.PermalinksarethepermanentURLsthatyouplantokeepstaticfortheforeseeablefuture.They’reimportantbecausetheyimproveuserexperienceandenhanceyourWordpresswebsiteSEO. 13.Createacustomnavigationbar(aswereviewedearlier)tomakeyoursiteeasytouseforyourvisitors. 14.Includeexcerptsonyourblogpostssopeopledon’tlandonyourblogpageandseeyourentirepieceatonce.Byonlyincludingexcerptsonyourblogpage,youmakeroomtolistallofyourblogsinonelocation.Visitorscanthenreadtheexcerptsandclick-throughtoreadthepoststheyaremostinterestedin. 15.Structureyourwebsiteinawaythatmakessenseforyourbusiness,visitors,andbuyerpersonas.Forexample,usepostsifyou’reabloggerandusepagesifyou’reabusinessowner. 16.Remove“Comment”and“Share”buttonsfromspecificpagesofyourwebsite.Youdon’tneed(orwant)a“Comment”or“Share”buttononyour“AboutUs”page,oranyofyourservicepagesforthatmatter. 17.Considerwhatyourwebsitelookslikeonmobile.It’snosecretpeoplearesearchingtheInternetwhileontheirphones,tablets,andothermobiledevicesthesedays.Considerusingaplugintohelpyouachievearesponsive,mobileWordPressdesign. 18.Usevisualsandvideocontentwhenpossibletobreakupthetextonyourwebsitepages. 19.UpdateyourWordPresssiteandpluginsregularly.WordPresswilltellyouwhenupdatesarereleased.Thiswillkeepyourwebsitelookingfreshandworkingefficiently. 20.Usesocialprooftoshowyournewwebsitevisitorshowmanyotherpeoplehavealreadyviewedyoursiteandcontent.Therearepluginstohelpyoudothisinamatterofminutes. 21.PickaCRMthatworkswithyourWordPresssite.ACRMcanhelpyoukeeptrackofthewayusersareinteractingwithyourwebsiteandcompany.Here'salistofsomeofthebestWordPressCRMoptions. BuildaWebsiteWithWordPress Havingagreatwebsitematters.It’showyouconnectwithyourvisitorsandleads,createapositivefirstimpressionwithnewusers,andboostconversions.Thegoodnewsiscreatingyourownwebsitedoesn’thavetobeadauntingprocess…atleastnotwithWordPress. Theeasy-to-useCMSofferscompletelycustomizableplanssuitableforallneeds.Withnopriorknowledgenecessary,youcanstartbuildingyourownsiteforyourbusiness,blog,portfolio,oronlinestoreimmediately.   OriginallypublishedAug30,20217:00:00AM,updatedFebruary032022 Topics: WordPressWebsite Don'tforgettosharethispost! RelatedArticles 30+BestWordPressPluginsforMarketers Marketing  |16minread The14BestWordPressEmailPluginsin2021 Marketing  |12minread HowtoSetUpGoogleAnalyticsforWordPress Marketing  |8minread ExpandOffer SocialMediaContentCalendarTemplate Getitnow Getitnow DownloadforLater