How to Create a WordPress Website for Beginners – A2 Hosting

Learning how to create a WordPress website can be a daunting task. There are lots of moving parts that you have to keep in mind, and not all of them are made equal. Once you have your basic site set up, going live isn’t as simple as clicking a button.

If you’re looking to create a WordPress website for beginners but have no idea where to start, this guide will help you out. We’ll cover the fundamentals of creating a WordPress website, including installing and launching the software. Then we’ll dig into the nitty-gritty of structuring your content and creating a website map to help you navigate your way around.

Step 1: Install WordPress

WordPress is a content management system, which functions as a publishing platform for websites. It is free and open-source software, meaning that anyone can download it and use it for free. The best part is that it is very easy to use for anyone regardless of technological experience. If you are looking to create a WordPress website, the first step is to

• download WordPress
• install it
• create a username and password
• launch the admin area

Installing WordPress is probably the simplest step to creating a website. All you need to do is visit the WordPress website and click the big green button that says “Get WordPress” or “Get WP.”

This will download and install the software on your computer. Once installed, you can access the WordPress dashboard through your web browser. From here you can create a new website, edit your current one, or download a free theme to get started.

In case you’re curious, WordPress is the most downloaded and the most used content management system in the world. It was originally created in 2005 by Mike Little and Johnathan Kummerer. Today it is owned by Automattic, the company behind the WordPress.com website. So not only is WordPress easy to use, but it is also very popular.

Step 2: Create a Username and Password

You’ll need a unique username and password to log into the WordPress dashboard. You can use these two pieces of information to access your site whenever you want. The best practice is to create a password that is unique to your site and store it in a safe place. Your username should be unique as well, but it doesn’t have to be. You can use your name or a made-up name as your username.

If you are using a shared hosting account with WordPress, the account username and password will be provided to you. Otherwise, you will need to create them on your own.

Step 3: Launch the Admin Area

Now that you have WordPress installed on your computer, you need to launch the administration area. To do this, you visit the dashboard and click the link that says “Go to WordPress admin area.” You’ll then be transported to the WordPress admin area, which you can access via a web browser.

The WordPress admin area is where you can configure almost everything about your website. From here you can create new posts and pages, change the appearance of your site, and set up advanced functions like Ajax powered editing and more.

This is also the place where you should write down the login credentials for your site (username and password). Remember these because they will be needed frequently while you are working on your site. In case you’re curious, the “admin” in the name WordPress admin area stands for “administrator,” which is a person who can perform administrative tasks on a WordPress site. In other words, the WordPress admin area is where you can control the functions of your site, install and update plugins, and make general changes to content.

Step 4: Create Your Blog

Once you’re in the WordPress admin area, you can click on the “Add New” button in the upper left corner. This will open up a blank page where you can write your first post. You can either use the built-in blog editor or type the content out manually.

The first step is to

• choose a name for your blog
• upload a logo for your blog (optional)
• add a description for your blog
• add your blog’s url
• select a category for your blog
• select a tag (optional)
• click “Publish”

Naming your blog is important. A blog called “How to Create a WordPress Website for Beginners” wouldn’t make much sense, would it? When someone clicks on that blog’s link, they will have no idea what they are getting into. Choose a short, descriptive name that makes sense for your blog topic. In our example, the name could be “A2 Hosting Review,” because we are reviewing the services of A2 Hosting.

After you’ve published your first post, you can continue to

• write new posts
• edit posts
• moderate comments
• track your blog’s performance
• set up email notifications for new posts
• export your blog’s posts as PDFs
• use your blog to build a digital library
• embed videos from YouTube and Vimeo
• link to other blogs and websites
• take advantage of the features in WordPress
• install and configure other WordPress plugins

Step 5: Map the Site

WordPress makes it very easy to visually map out your site and identify the different areas and functions. To do this, you can either

• use the WordPress built-in map function
• use a WordPress plugin like Minimo that has a built-in map function
• or draw it yourself on a whiteboard with a dry-erase pen

Once you’ve drawn your map, you can use it to navigate your way around the WordPress admin area. You can click on any item in the map to bring up a description of that item. For example, you could click on the “posts” icon to see a list of all your blog posts. You can also click on the “settings” icon to open up the WordPress admin area’s settings.

This is also the place where you can check out the analytics for your blog. You can find this under the “tools” menu in the WordPress admin area. Some blog owners I’ve spoken to say that they use this to track which content is performing the best and decide what to work on next. From here you can

• configure email notifications
• link your social media accounts
• view your site in different languages
• customize the layout of your site
• and much more

After you’ve configured all the basic items in your WordPress admin area, you can

• visit the “Appearance” menu and click on the “Settings” tab
• make any necessary adjustments to the settings here
• and then click “Save Changes”
• to confirm

Step 6: Launch the Website

Once you’ve finished making all the tweaks you want to make to your blog and are ready to launch it, you can

• visit the “Tools” menu in the WordPress Admin area
• click on the “Web Hosting Options” tab
• and then click on the “Create New Site” button
• to launch the tool
• and then select A2 Hosting when prompted
• to continue

This will open up the A2 Hosting admin area. You’ll see a box at the top that says “Congratulations! You’ve created a wonderful website!” along with a short link to take you back to your blog.

If you’ve followed this guide carefully, you’ll have a working WordPress site in no time. And the best part is that you can continue to grow your site and make it more functional and engaging by following the tips and tricks below.