How to Make a WordPress Site That Won’t Die
WordPress is a wonderfully versatile content management system. It can be used to create anything from a simple blog to a sophisticated eCommerce website. When you’re first exploring the potential of WordPress, it can be a little overwhelming thinking about all the different features that it offers. It’s a bit like choosing a smartphone that you want to be your only device – in other words, you might end up with more than one headache!
Luckily, WPBeginner was created with the busy entrepreneur in mind. They have compiled this ultimate guide to WordPress so that you can have a good understanding of how to use it without needing to worry about running into any trouble.
The Ultimate Guide to WordPress
Whether you’ve been using WordPress for years or you’re just now getting familiar with it, this beginner’s guide is for you. We’ve covered the key aspects of WordPress that you need to know in order to build a successful blog or website. So whether you’re looking to create a new blog for yourself or want to use it as a marketing vehicle, these tips will help you make the most of WordPress.
Get Familiar With The Basics
You need to start by getting familiar with the basics. WordPress is based on HTML and CSS, making it easy to find tutorials on the internet. Take some time to learn the terminology and you’ll be able to find your way around WordPress easily.
You should also learn how to use the Dashboard. The Dashboard is where you’ll find all the tools and features that WordPress has to offer. When you’re first exploring the Dashboard, it can be a little overwhelming. However, once you learn how to use it effectively, it’ll become your best friend. The worst thing you can do is to not know how to get the most out of the Dashboard. So take some time to familiarize yourself with its tools and features.
Choose A Niche
Niche selection is one of the most important decisions that you’ll make when choosing a WordPress blog. Your niche will dictate the type of content that you’ll write about. The more specific your niche, the more likely you are to find an audience that agrees with your perspective. If you’re looking for inspiration, choose a niche that you’re passionate about. This will naturally translate to better content and, ultimately, a more successful blog.
For example, if you’re a fashion blogger, you might want to choose a niche that’s associated with fashion. This could be clothing brands, the fashion industry, or even a specific style such as grunge or retro.
If you’re looking for general inspiration, choose a niche that you find intriguing or that you believe has the potential to grow. For example, if you’re a travel blogger, you could choose to focus on world geography or map exploration. If you’re a fitness blogger, you could write about nutrition or the science of exercise.
Curate Content
The concept of curating content is relatively new. Essentially, curating involves gathering content from different sources and presenting it in one place. This way, you can easily find the content that you want to read without having to search through blog articles or social media posts. WordPress makes this very easy to do. You can use WordPress’ built-in content curation tools or download 3rd party apps that can do the same thing.
For example, if you’re a fashion blogger looking for inspiration, you could use Pinterest’s official app or Stylecope’s Fashion Discovery Tool to curate content. You could follow the well-designed tutorial here to learn how to build a Pinterest board with your own fashion blog content. With just a few clicks of the mouse, you’ll have all your favorite fashion blogs and websites right at your fingertips. Simply click on the board that you want to use and you’ll be transported to that website.
Make Use Of The Many Free Themes
WordPress comes with a bevy of free themes that you can download and install on your blog. These themes are designed to make building your blog easier. There are two types of free themes: those that are responsive and those that are designed to look the same on all devices. Responsive themes work great on all devices because their layout adjusts automatically to fit the screen size.
If your blog is simple and you don’t want to spend a ton of money on a theme, then go with one of the free responsive themes. They’ll make managing your blog a breeze and your visitors will love the fact that you don’t need to adjust your content to suit the small screen.
If you want more control over the design of your website, then go for a theme that’s specifically designed for big-screen displays. These themes are thicker than the others and they offer a greater degree of customization. Some of the premium themes go as far as offering a fully built-in shopify store, allowing you to sell your own products directly from your blog.
Blogs That Follow The Same Pattern
WordPress itself is incredibly flexible and customizable, which makes it easier to use but also makes it easier for anyone to replicate. This is why we see so many blogs that look the same as the one you just read. This is called a “copycat” blog and it’s usually a warning sign that something is amiss. When someone decides to copy another blog’s formula and puts in the same amount of work, they’re almost always doomed to fail.
You want to avoid this trap by sticking to one theme and one layout for your blog. This makes it easier for visitors to navigate and for you to keep track of what you’re doing. In addition, it makes for a more cohesive blogosphere, as well as a blog that’ll be easier for you to promote.
Focus On User Experience
In today’s connected world, everyone is a potential customer or a source of information. This means that your website’s visitors have unique needs and expectations. Before you put a single word of content on your site, think about how you can better the user experience. Here are some questions that you should be asking yourself:
– Is the font easily readable?
– Does the content flow nicely from one piece of content to the next?
– Is the website easy to navigate?
– Are the graphics easy to understand?
– Is there a call-to-action at the end of each piece of content?
– Is there an idea or information presented that I didn’t know about before landing on this particular page?
– Does everything fit the screen size perfectly?
– Does this template feel professional?
At the end of the day, a successful blog stands out for its clarity of message and its interesting content. But to truly succeed, you have to consider your audience and the experience that they have when reading your blog.