When it comes to mastering WordPress, elements such as web design and site content need to be taken into consideration. Luckily, WordPress is extremely user friendly and straightforward making it a great choice for those beginning their own blog or website.
In order to take full advantage of WordPress and become a master, there are a few beginner steps that’ll make the journey easier. The following briefly outlines some of the more helpful steps to take when first learning how to use WordPress.
1. Becoming Familiar With The Dashboard
The WordPress Dashboard is where it all begins. The Dashboard covers everything from website settings, choosing a web design, and keeping up with follower stats. It’s a beginner’s best friend and once it’s mastered, everything else will begin to fall into place. The appearance, posts, pages, links and comments for WordPress websites can all be manipulated through the Dashboard.
2. Choosing A Theme
Located within the dashboard is a page titled “Appearance.” Explore the appearance page in order to find the best theme according to the type of WordPress website desired. Themes are basically web designs that set the tone for any given website. Types of themes include basic text designs all the way to photo heavy, animated websites complete with interactive images. Some Themes are free, some are not, so pick the one that best fits the content of the website.
3. Adding Pages
Now that the Dashboard is a walk in the park and the theme is squared away, it’s time to add some pages to that new WordPress website. Page links can be found anywhere on a WordPress website depending on the theme layout that was chosen. Pages can be used to separate different content just as a homepage’s content is separate from a contact page’s content. WordPress pages are a great way to keep that WordPress website clean and streamlined.
4. Posting Content
When it comes time to post content, the Dashboard is again the first step. The “Posts” page in the Dashboard column allows content to be posted and published. Content can be written directly in post prompts and will continuously auto draft. Not only that, any post can be edited and easily republished through the “quick edit” feature. Also, published posts are categorized by posting date making any previously posted content easy to find.
5. Managing Comments
Once that WordPress website starts generating some followers, it’s important to know how to manage all the great comments they’ll surely be making. In the Dashboard is a page titled “Comments.” If a comment left on a WordPress website needs to be approved or removed, the comments page is the way to do just that. Responding to comments is crucial to keeping a fan base of followers for any website.
These are just a few beginner steps to mastering WordPress whether it’s used for blog posts, professional reasons, or both. As the Dashboard becomes more familiar, so will the techniques used to maintain a great website. So, follow the above guidelines, post often, and respond to comments. Do that and WordPress will be mastered in no time.
