If you home based or want to get that elusive first project, creating a specialist website is an essential step. As a home for your business, your site can showcase your abilities, provide information on your experience, and present potential clients and customers a convenient way to get in touch.
What's more, being able to create or utilize a website is a good skill in itself. For many individuals that home based, the ability to obtain a website up and running can be an additional service that can be offered to your existing customers.
You don't need to spend a fortune obtaining a website developed for you. That can be done it yourself, even though you have never had any experience. Thankfully, there is a key - WordPress. WordPress is normally a free system that streamlines and simplifies the process of web development and, as you will find out, can still be flexible enough for virtually any website imaginable.
Many people have heard of WordPress, but don't realize the full features of the system. Most people think that WordPress is normally a platform for blogging when, in fact, it is far more than that.
Today, WordPress has grown into what would be called a content management system, or CMS. A CMS is normally a tool to store all the details required for your site and present it to these potential customers in a professional, organized way. Other content management systems include Joomla and Drupal, but the the truth is that WordPress is the least difficult to understand, the easiest to utilize, and the most conveniently adaptable.
Let's look in - in simple conditions - how precisely WordPress works once it is installed:
You access a convenient WYSIWYG (EVERYTHING YOU See Is EVERYTHING YOU Get) interface to securely use all the content on your own website
You can create new web pages in a variety of formats
The content that you create is kept in a database
You can use the same interface to edit your articles in the database
When visitors gain access to your website, the info in the data source is presented to them in a website layout. You can change this layout anytime and your content will immediately adopt the right look
In technical terms, WordPress is fairly advanced. In the nine years since the platform first launched, this advanced features has been found in all sorts of exciting ways.
You might be wondering why people choose WordPress as their CMS. The answer is basically because WordPress can make almost anything that you want to do far more convenient, easier and quicker!
Press company Reuters uses WordPress to preserve journalists updated with the most recent news since it happens. Music streaming service Spotify powers its whole website with WordPress.
WordPress makes creating, editing and organising your articles simple and, because of this, less time-consuming. That provides you more time to focus on other areas of your business. WordPress also gives you the chance to get yourself a professional design to create your site look great - often cost-free.
The simplest way to see how WordPress streamlines setting up your site is to try it for yourself. WordPress is normally easy to install on your own web hosting or, if you subscribe on the WordPress website, you can explore its features with no set-up required.
There are a few different ways to begin with with WordPress, depending on your budget, your expertise and whether you use a web hosting service. Many SEO experts also offer real estate services.
If you are just checking out WordPress and do not have your own web hosting, visit signup.wordpress.com and sign up for a free account. You will be guided through the entire procedure for creating your WordPress site, which will be kept on the WordPress servers for you. Additionally it is possible to cover a custom made domain name (the address of your site) through the sign-up process.
Alternatively, if you already have a web hosting plan that supports PHP and MySQL, you can install your own WordPress on your own server. This can be done at WordPress.org and downloading the required files. The website also offers a convenient instruction to installing WordPress in 5 minutes.
Start with a free website analysis here.
Finally, see if your web hosting provider provides an automated script installer such as Softaculous. If so, it is possible to log in from your own web hosting control panel and install WordPress in simply a few clicks.
Once WordPress is up and running, you will have to log in with the facts that you chose during set-up - usually in yourdomain.com/wp-admin. You will notice the WordPress dashboard, a control panel that enables you to work with your site, and a variety of different menu items on the left-hand aspect. A good spot to start is normally by selecting a theme, under the Appearance menu.
Using the 'Install Themes' tab near the top of your screen, you can explore an extensive data source of layouts and styles for your site. From typical business layouts to distinctive and unusual looks, there are currently 1,607 themes available. After finding one which you like, installing is really as easy as hitting the 'Install Now' button.
As well as these totally free WordPress themes that are offered from inside your control panel, many websites offer a great selection of themes - a few of which are totally free, and some which are 'premium' themes that incur a charge. If you are just getting started with WordPress, a free of charge theme is a good choice. Of course, spending money on reduced theme guarantees top quality, good performance, and continuing support from the theme developers.
For professional WordPress themes, check out these websites:
ThemeForest
WooThemes
GetYourThemes
After you have installed your theme, it is possible to conveniently customize it to fit your specific requirements. You can do this using Widgets.
Many people choose WordPress because there are so many professional-looking themes available for it. However, it can be useful to tweak your selected theme to create it more individual.
When a developer creates a style, he will name specific areas of the layout that you can customize. For example, you may be able to modification the menu near the top of your layout, a sidebar that works down the side of each web page, or the footer.
Under the Appearance menu on your own WordPress control panel, select the Widgets choice. On the right, you will see a list of the different areas of your theme that you can customize. On the still left, there is a range of included widgets that you can basically drag and drop in to the relevant section.
Standard WordPress widgets include Links to other websites, an automatic set of your Webpages, and a calendar of when Posts have already been published. You can also install other Widgets cost-free, in the form of Plugins.
Make use of Widgets to personalize your theme. Once you are happy, it is time to start thinking about the most important thing of all - your content.
A common obstacle for people that are new to WordPress is the distinction between two related types of content - Web pages and Posts. Whenever you want to publish something on your own website, you will have to decide whether it is a full page or a Post and choose the appropriate option.
Originally, WordPress just offered the ability to create Posts - a term that's short for Blog Posts. Posts are content items that are time-specific and, when they are created, they have the existing time and date attached to them. Creating a new Post causes two things to happen:
An individual website is created with the content of your post
Your post is put into a single page that collects together each individual post
This is perhaps clearer for example - let's imagine you have a blog section on your own website, at yourdomain.com/blog. When you publish a new blog post, a single page will be developed - for example, this could be yourdomain.com/blog/my-post-name. But, simultaneously, your blog post will be put into the central web page at yourdomain.com/blog, giving your visitors the opportunity to see all of your most recent posts in a single convenient place.
Posts are also put into your website's Feed - more on that in our next article on advanced WordPress ideas. Pages, however, are static items that don't have a date attached to them. They are the pages of your site that stand alone, offering general information regarding your business.
If you are still unsure, ask yourself this query before you create your articles - is this a thing that will stand alone (a full page), or a thing that is part of a section of the website that I'll update regularly (a Post)?
You now understand the concepts of WordPress, including what it can carry out, common terminology, and just why you should be using WordPress to build your site. So start exploring!
The great thing about WordPress is that it's intuitive and easy to use. Whatever you create could be deleted or edited with ease, so the best tips is to check on the menu options included in your control panel and start working on your articles right now.
Once you've made a start, make sure to learn our next article in making the the majority of your WordPress installation to create a website that really stands out from the crowd.
What's more, being able to create or utilize a website is a good skill in itself. For many individuals that home based, the ability to obtain a website up and running can be an additional service that can be offered to your existing customers.
You don't need to spend a fortune obtaining a website developed for you. That can be done it yourself, even though you have never had any experience. Thankfully, there is a key - WordPress. WordPress is normally a free system that streamlines and simplifies the process of web development and, as you will find out, can still be flexible enough for virtually any website imaginable.
What Does WordPress Carry out Besides Blogging?
Many people have heard of WordPress, but don't realize the full features of the system. Most people think that WordPress is normally a platform for blogging when, in fact, it is far more than that.
Today, WordPress has grown into what would be called a content management system, or CMS. A CMS is normally a tool to store all the details required for your site and present it to these potential customers in a professional, organized way. Other content management systems include Joomla and Drupal, but the the truth is that WordPress is the least difficult to understand, the easiest to utilize, and the most conveniently adaptable.
Let's look in - in simple conditions - how precisely WordPress works once it is installed:
You access a convenient WYSIWYG (EVERYTHING YOU See Is EVERYTHING YOU Get) interface to securely use all the content on your own website
You can create new web pages in a variety of formats
The content that you create is kept in a database
You can use the same interface to edit your articles in the database
When visitors gain access to your website, the info in the data source is presented to them in a website layout. You can change this layout anytime and your content will immediately adopt the right look
In technical terms, WordPress is fairly advanced. In the nine years since the platform first launched, this advanced features has been found in all sorts of exciting ways.
Why Should You Use WordPress?
You might be wondering why people choose WordPress as their CMS. The answer is basically because WordPress can make almost anything that you want to do far more convenient, easier and quicker!
Press company Reuters uses WordPress to preserve journalists updated with the most recent news since it happens. Music streaming service Spotify powers its whole website with WordPress.
WordPress makes creating, editing and organising your articles simple and, because of this, less time-consuming. That provides you more time to focus on other areas of your business. WordPress also gives you the chance to get yourself a professional design to create your site look great - often cost-free.
The simplest way to see how WordPress streamlines setting up your site is to try it for yourself. WordPress is normally easy to install on your own web hosting or, if you subscribe on the WordPress website, you can explore its features with no set-up required.
Installing WordPress Made Easy
There are a few different ways to begin with with WordPress, depending on your budget, your expertise and whether you use a web hosting service. Many SEO experts also offer real estate services.
If you are just checking out WordPress and do not have your own web hosting, visit signup.wordpress.com and sign up for a free account. You will be guided through the entire procedure for creating your WordPress site, which will be kept on the WordPress servers for you. Additionally it is possible to cover a custom made domain name (the address of your site) through the sign-up process.
Alternatively, if you already have a web hosting plan that supports PHP and MySQL, you can install your own WordPress on your own server. This can be done at WordPress.org and downloading the required files. The website also offers a convenient instruction to installing WordPress in 5 minutes.
Start with a free website analysis here.
Finally, see if your web hosting provider provides an automated script installer such as Softaculous. If so, it is possible to log in from your own web hosting control panel and install WordPress in simply a few clicks.
Finding A Great Theme
Once WordPress is up and running, you will have to log in with the facts that you chose during set-up - usually in yourdomain.com/wp-admin. You will notice the WordPress dashboard, a control panel that enables you to work with your site, and a variety of different menu items on the left-hand aspect. A good spot to start is normally by selecting a theme, under the Appearance menu.
Using the 'Install Themes' tab near the top of your screen, you can explore an extensive data source of layouts and styles for your site. From typical business layouts to distinctive and unusual looks, there are currently 1,607 themes available. After finding one which you like, installing is really as easy as hitting the 'Install Now' button.
As well as these totally free WordPress themes that are offered from inside your control panel, many websites offer a great selection of themes - a few of which are totally free, and some which are 'premium' themes that incur a charge. If you are just getting started with WordPress, a free of charge theme is a good choice. Of course, spending money on reduced theme guarantees top quality, good performance, and continuing support from the theme developers.
For professional WordPress themes, check out these websites:
ThemeForest
WooThemes
GetYourThemes
After you have installed your theme, it is possible to conveniently customize it to fit your specific requirements. You can do this using Widgets.
Using Widgets
Many people choose WordPress because there are so many professional-looking themes available for it. However, it can be useful to tweak your selected theme to create it more individual.
When a developer creates a style, he will name specific areas of the layout that you can customize. For example, you may be able to modification the menu near the top of your layout, a sidebar that works down the side of each web page, or the footer.
Under the Appearance menu on your own WordPress control panel, select the Widgets choice. On the right, you will see a list of the different areas of your theme that you can customize. On the still left, there is a range of included widgets that you can basically drag and drop in to the relevant section.
Standard WordPress widgets include Links to other websites, an automatic set of your Webpages, and a calendar of when Posts have already been published. You can also install other Widgets cost-free, in the form of Plugins.
Make use of Widgets to personalize your theme. Once you are happy, it is time to start thinking about the most important thing of all - your content.
Pages And Posts
A common obstacle for people that are new to WordPress is the distinction between two related types of content - Web pages and Posts. Whenever you want to publish something on your own website, you will have to decide whether it is a full page or a Post and choose the appropriate option.
Originally, WordPress just offered the ability to create Posts - a term that's short for Blog Posts. Posts are content items that are time-specific and, when they are created, they have the existing time and date attached to them. Creating a new Post causes two things to happen:
An individual website is created with the content of your post
Your post is put into a single page that collects together each individual post
This is perhaps clearer for example - let's imagine you have a blog section on your own website, at yourdomain.com/blog. When you publish a new blog post, a single page will be developed - for example, this could be yourdomain.com/blog/my-post-name. But, simultaneously, your blog post will be put into the central web page at yourdomain.com/blog, giving your visitors the opportunity to see all of your most recent posts in a single convenient place.
Posts are also put into your website's Feed - more on that in our next article on advanced WordPress ideas. Pages, however, are static items that don't have a date attached to them. They are the pages of your site that stand alone, offering general information regarding your business.
If you are still unsure, ask yourself this query before you create your articles - is this a thing that will stand alone (a full page), or a thing that is part of a section of the website that I'll update regularly (a Post)?
Explore And Learn On The Fly
You now understand the concepts of WordPress, including what it can carry out, common terminology, and just why you should be using WordPress to build your site. So start exploring!
The great thing about WordPress is that it's intuitive and easy to use. Whatever you create could be deleted or edited with ease, so the best tips is to check on the menu options included in your control panel and start working on your articles right now.
Once you've made a start, make sure to learn our next article in making the the majority of your WordPress installation to create a website that really stands out from the crowd.
Comments
Post a Comment