Free WordPress Hosting with a Subdomain – What You Need to Know

WordPress is the No. 1 content management system (CMS) in the world, and it’s just getting started in Australia. What is WordPress? It’s actually a free and open-source web software that helps you build and manage a blog or website.

The nice folks over at WordPress.com.au have put together a full guide to hosting a WordPress blog or website with them. In this guide, we’ll cover everything from installation and configuration to backups and security.

Why WordPress?

WordPress is perfect for beginners who want to blog or website. It’s incredibly easy to use, and it comes with a massive community who are ready and waiting to help you get started.

It also has a really high retention rate. The folks at WordPress actually state that you’ll probably only need to worry about your blog or website going down once a month. They suggest that this is due to the fact that WordPress is such a well-established platform with a lot of smart people constantly trying to improve it.

What Features Make WordPress Suitable For Blogging?

Users can build custom themes for WordPress, allowing you to completely change the way your website or blog looks. You can even create different versions of the same website or blog for different environments (e.g., desktop vs. mobile) using the same codebase.

Additionally, WordPress is equipped with a security layer that protects your content from being accessed by unauthorized persons. They also state that if you host your website or blog on their servers, you’re automatically provided with a free SSL certificate for encrypting all your web traffic.

WordPress’s unique “plug and play” feature makes it easy to connect various web services like Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ to your website or blog. You can use these services to enhance your content with social media and interactive features.

How Do I Install WordPress On My Server?

The nice folks at WordPress.com.au have created an entire guide to hosting a WordPress blog or website. In this guide, we’ll cover everything from installation and configuration to backups and security. Let’s get started.

First, you’ll need to decide what type of hosting you want for your WordPress site. Do you want free hosting that’s ad-supported or paid hosting that’s supported by your own funds?

In most cases, you’ll want to go with the free option (ad-supported) because it’s better suited to blogging than any other type of website. If you decide to go with the paid option, make sure that you’re aware of what you’re getting into.

Step one: Visit the WordPress.com.au website and click on the Get Started button.

This will take you to the WordPress.com.au homepage. You’ll see that there are different types of hosting plans available for you to choose from. As we previously discussed, we recommend going for the free option (ad-supported) because it’s better suited to blogging than any other type of website. If you decide to go with the paid option, make sure that you’re aware of what you’re getting into.

Step two: Click on the Get Started button to continue.

This will take you to the WordPress.com.au signup page. On this page, you’ll be asked to choose a username and a password for your WordPress account. The username should be your full name (first name + last name) and the password should be a combination of your first name, last name, and email address. Make sure to keep this password safe as the WordPress admins will need to have access to your account in order to set it up for you.

Step three: Fill out the details and click on the Continue button.

This will launch you into the WordPress installation process. First, you’ll need to choose a location for your website. This location will need to be accessible by your web server and must have at least 2GB of free space. You can choose any free domain you like for your site (e.g., myblog.com, wpsite.com, mywebsite.com, etc.) and should base it on a country code (e.g., us for United States, gb for United Kingdom, etc.).

You’ll then be prompted to choose a username and password for your WordPress installation. It’s best to choose a unique and memorable username for your blog or website and a strong password. Make sure to keep these safe as you’ll be needing them to log in to WordPress in the future.

Step four: Review the Terms and Conditions and click on the Agree button if you want to continue.

You’ll then be shown the Terms and Conditions for WordPress.com.au’s hosting services. Once you’ve read through these terms, you can click on the Agree button to continue to the next step.

Step five: Click on the Register button to continue.

This will launch you into the WordPress configuration process. First, you’ll need to enter a domain for your site (if you haven’t already created one on the Get Started page) and then pick a username and a password for your WordPress account. Keep these details safe as you’ll be needing them to log in to WordPress in the future.

You’ll then be shown the login form for WordPress.com.au. Fill out the form with your details and then click on the Login button. This will take you to the WordPress dashboard where you can start configuring your blog or website. From here, you can click on the various links/buttons to get started.

What Should I Configure First?

It’s a good idea to jump into the WordPress dashboard and look around the different sections. This way, you can get a feel for how things work and what all the different options do before you start fiddling with them.

The first thing you should do is go into the settings for your blog and change the appearance of your site. You can do this by clicking on the settings gear icon at the top right of the dashboard. From here, you can select the theme you want to use for your blog (there are hundreds of free themes out there) and change various formatting options (e.g., font, colors, layout, etc.). Make sure to switch to the classic editor once you’ve finished making your changes as this is easier to use. If you’re familiar with creating websites, then this will feel like second nature to you.

What Is The Classic Editor?

The classic editor is the default writing tool within WordPress. It was released with WordPress 4.0 and provides a simple yet effective way to create and publish content. If you’re not familiar with it, don’t worry – the interface is easy to use and will feel familiar to anyone who’s used a word processor before. Also, keep in mind that the WordPress dashboard is fully responsive so your formatting should look the same on all devices.

How Do I Backup My WordPress Blog?

One of the most important things you should do is create regular backups of your site. There are several different methods for doing this, but the simplest is to use a service like WP-Clone. This service allows you to create backups of your entire WordPress site including themes and plugins in a matter of minutes. To use this service, login to your WordPress dashboard and navigate to the Tools section. From here, you can select the WP-Clone icon and follow the on-screen instructions to install and use the plug-in.

Once you’ve done that, you can head over to wp-admin/backup-upgrade.php and click the Create New Restore button. This will launch you into the Backup Upgrade screen where you can choose the type of backup you want to create (e.g., database, wordpress, theme, or plugin).

Simply enter a description for your new backup and then click on the Create New Restore button to continue.

Do I Need To Configure My WordPress Blog For Local SEO?

If you’re looking to increase the number of people who find your blog or website through searches on Google, then you need to configure Google Analytics for your site. It’s actually very simple to do and doesn’t require any special skills. To begin, navigate to analytics.google.com in a web browser and log in with your Google account. Once you’re logged in, you can click on the Get Started button to begin configuring your site.