The Complete WordPress Website Business Course Download

Are you looking to create a profit-generating website for yourself, family or friends? Perhaps you are passionate about a particular niche market and want to use your skillset to help others in the same industry. Or perhaps you simply want to build a portfolio of work that you can use to land yourself a dream job. No matter your reasons for wanting to create a website, one thing is for sure – you need some training wheels to get started.

Welcome to the wonderful world of WordPress. Although the name might sound pretty intimidating, WordPress is actually a very easy content management system to use. In fact, it is so easy to use that even non-techy people can learn to master it in no time flat. What is more, because WordPress is based on a very powerful content management framework, just about anyone can launch a high-quality website using the tool relatively hassle-free.

If you’re looking for a one-stop-shop to gain the skills you need to launch a lucrative business, then this comprehensive, step-by-step guide is for you.

Why WordPress?

WordPress is one of the most popular and highly regarded content management systems out there, supported by a thriving community and a phenomenal track record. In the last 14 years, WordPress has amassed a massive following and an incredible reputation for empowering consumers, businesses and bloggers to tell their story and showcase their work.

What is more is that, as a content management system, WordPress was designed to be both flexible and extensible. So, even if you don’t intend to use all of the pieces of functionality introduced in the guide, you will still be able to take full advantage of what WordPress has to offer. Plus, since it is open-source software, you can potentially access the source code and tweak it to suit your needs.

Key Features

WordPress has an incredible feature set, including everything from a built-in spellchecker to automatically generated navigation bars for your website’s content. WordPress manages all of the technicalities of setting up and maintaining a website for you, so that all you have to do is populate it with content.

One of the most useful features of WordPress is the ability to add custom fields to your site’s posts and pages. For example, if you have a blog about fashion and you want to add a new field to your blog post’s content to track the popularity of that particular article, you could create a text field and then perform a quick data pull to get an idea of how many views your article has received. You can even go a step further and use third-party tools to track the performance of your articles and see which ones are gaining the most traction.

WordPress also supports the installation of multiple blogs and sites on a single hosting account. This is a godsend for business owners who want to launch a professional website to promote their brand but don’t have the time to maintain multiple blogs. They can simply set up a WordPress account and import the content from their established brands or sites to create a single, cohesive narrative.

How Do I Use WordPress?

If you’ve decided that WordPress is the right tool for you, the first thing you should do is head over to www.wordpress.com and create an account. Don’t worry – you don’t have to reveal any personal information to register. You can simply use an email alias to create an account and then configure your WordPress dashboard to operate under its default settings.

From there, you can begin using the tool to add content to your site. To start, simply click on the Add New button located in the dashboard’s upper right-hand corner, as shown in Figure 1. This will launch the WordPress editor, where you can start typing to add content to your website.

Figure 1: The WordPress Dashboard with the Add New button clicked to launch the editor

Alternatively, you can click on the Welcome button at the top of the dashboard to access a few WordPress-specific shortcuts that can make adding content simpler. These are:

• Write – Use this button to access a toolbar that contains all the basic writing tools, like a spellchecker, which can be helpful if you’re prone to spelling errors.
• Edit – Use this button to edit any existing content on your site.
• Format – Use this button to change the overall format of your site, like its color scheme or the way content is displayed.
• Plugins – Use this button to install new plugins that can enhance your blogging experience.
• Media – Use this button to upload an image or a video to your site.
• Backing Up – Use this button to back up your site regularly, in case you make any major changes. You should do this using a tool like One Backup, which can create automatic backups that restore your site to its previous state anytime you desire.
• Site Stats – Use this button to access a dashboard that contains all the basic site statistics for your WordPress site, like its page views, visits, bounce rate and much more.
• Theme – Use this button to download a pre-made WordPress theme that you can install directly from the dashboard.

As you can see, after you register for an account on wordpress.com, the only public interface you will have is the dashboard. From there, you can add new content, edit existing content, install new plugins, and set your site’s general theme using a few simple clicks of the mouse.

Why go through all of this when you could simply follow these simple steps?

Setting Up A Basic WordPress Blog

To begin creating your blog, click on Settings from the dashboard, as shown in Figure 2. You will then be presented with the WordPress dashboard, where you can begin configuring the look and feel of your blog. Before you begin editing any of the blog’s content, it is advised that you take some time to familiarize yourself with the WordPress dashboard’s layout.

Figure 2: The WordPress Dashboard where you can begin configuring your blog’s look and feel

You can access all of the blog’s settings from this same screen, including those for content display, drafts, password protection and more.

As you can see in Figure 2, the dashboard’s interface is very sleek and easy to use, which is great if you’re looking for something simple yet functional. If, however, you are interested in creating a more custom-look blog where the general layout and theme of the site match the content being published, you can access the Twenty Ten WordPress theme by clicking on Appearance from the dashboard, as shown in Figure 3. This will bring you to the Themes screen within the WordPress dashboard, where you can choose from a variety of sleek and custom-looking themes. One of the best things about WordPress is that it allows for both, so if you can’t find what you’re looking for in the themes available on the Appearance screen, simply return to the Dashboard, click on Settings and then click on Themes at the top of the screen to view the entire WordPress theme repository. From there, you can download and install any theme that you see fit for your particular needs.

Adding Content To Your Blog

Once you’ve downloaded and installed the WordPress theme that you desire, you can begin adding content to your blog. To add a new blog post, click on New at the top of the dashboard, as shown in Figure 2. This will launch the WordPress editor, where you can start writing your post. If you’re doing this online, make sure that you adhere to the site’s WordPress Rules: