Welcome to this tutorial on how to use Wordpress 2022! In just
15 minutes we are going to see how to build a complete and online website
from zero, even if this is your first time.
Wordpress is an open-source Content Management System (or CMS) based on
PHP language, used to build and launch websites online quickly and easily.
Through its user interface you can modify your website content and
appearance without coding, since it acts on your website HTML and CSS files
on the background. It also helps you keeping your website updated and safe.
To start with a new website you need a hosting server and a proper domain.
If you have these ready and you just want to know how to use Wordpress,
please skip to our Wordpress Dashboard chapter.
To run the website online you may need a hosting server (or host). This
is the physical computer that stores all your website files to make them
available online. The server is only accessible through complex IP
addresses, reason why a proper domain must be associated. The domain is the
alphanumeric name (such as theskillsfactory.com) that is easier to type,
remember, search on browser or rank on Google rather than IP addresses.
Once the domain is associated to your hosting IP address, your website is
online and ready to get discovered with the proper name!
To get host and domain you just have to type 'hosting' on Google and find
any plan that includes both of these, especially if you are a beginner.
Separate plans are possible, but you may need knowledge on DNS records.
Please check our video description to get suggested links for hosts and
domains!
Once you have host and domain you only need to install Wordpress on your
server. This is indeed a piece of software run on your host in order to
load the user interface that you will use to edit your website.
To do so you have two options: WordPress.com and WordPress.org.
WordPress.com offers a paid hosting service with up-to-date security
updates but with several limitations on website editing and plugins as a
free plan. So we suggest to go for WordPress.org, which is complete and
totally free, despite it requires a proper installation in your host.
Most of the hosting servers already include a quick option to install
WordPress. For example if you get a hosting plan with HostGator you just
have to log in with the username, password and link given to enter into its
main Control Panel (or CPanel) and then find WordPress in the list.
The process is fully guided: enter the website domain, specify the Home page
directory (which also collects all WordPress files), set administrator
username and password for WordPress and click on Install!
You can also install WordPress manually with its archive in your host or
in your local computer. Please check our video description to learn more!
When the installation ends you will get two links. The first one leads to your
website home page which is already online with the default WordPress
template. The second one made by your domain, your directory and wp-admin
leads to the login page for your admin account just created.
Once you log in you enter into the main WordPress dashboard, complete with
all the options to manage and edit your website! The first time you may
go to Updates to run any WordPress update to keep your website safe and
secure.
To get a quick preview go to My Blog, Visit Site. You can keep this tab
open on your browser to refresh it and check your modifications live.
Now let's see how to change the website Theme. This fixes the general
website appearance and layout, including the placement of several elements.
Go to Appearance, Themes and browse for the right theme among the ones
installed, applying any with Activate. You can also go to Add New Theme
to search and install other themes, complete with user reviews. Only once
they are installed they can be applied to your website.
To edit the current theme go to Appearance, Customize. On the left you get
several options for your theme with a live update on the website. Pay
attention that these options may be limited in case you use any free theme
version.
With Site Identity you can add a proper title and description on top,
making them live with Publish above. You can also import a proper logo from
your WordPress Media Library. At first this is empty so you may need to
upload such file from your computer. Make sure to remove title and
description if the logo includes these.
On Site Icon you can select any image to use as favicon - which is the
small logo appearing on the browser tab.
Below Site Identity go to Colors to choose the main colors for each site
element, applying with Publish above. Whereas with Background Image you
can apply any image to the whole site background adjusting size, position
or repeating it until you fill the background completely.
On Blog Posts Settings you can hide or show any post information or even
the complete sidebar on the right.
Some of these options may be available or not depending on the chosen
theme. In this case there is the possibility to add Header Contacts on top
or social icons on the footer at the bottom. You can also manage Menus and
Widgets that we are going to see in a while.
Switch to Homepage Settings to show your latest posts or any specific page
as Home page.
Now let's see how to write your first post! Click on Post on the left to
get the list of all your posts. By default you only have one called Hello
World but you can go to Add New to start writing another with the Block
Editor. This allows you to build your post by composing several independent
blocks together, each adding text, media files or pieces of HTML code.
First of all define a proper title, the first line of your body text
or simply copy-paste any content you have ready. Each text paragraph is indeed
an independent block with its own properties.
Moreover use the Enter key to start with a new line and either type a new
paragraph block or use the plus button on the right to search for a
specific block. Choose Heading to add any title by following the h tag,
bigger in size and bold in style. With Quote you can type any quoted text.
Click on Image to import any image by uploading any file from your
computer, from the Media Library or with any URL. Whereas add a YouTube
block to embed any video by providing its URL or a List block to make
bulleted or numbered lists.
Check our links in the video description to learn more about all the
blocks of WordPress Block Editor!
In the top left corner you can switch to Select mode to select any block
without interacting with its content and return to Edit mode to modify
each block in detail. Use the Undo and redo buttons to undo/redo actions
made and open the List view to check all the blocks composing your post.
To edit any block select it and use either its dialog box or the Block
panel on the right. When dealing with text blocks you can change style,
alignment and text color. You can also set the font size and select any
piece of text to apply modifications only where it is needed. You may not
be able to change the font family since this is fixed by the main theme.
You can also select any text and click on the link button to add an
hyperlink with a proper URL.
When selecting images you can add links or use the Crop tool to zoom in
and out, change its aspect ratio or rotate it. With Replace change the
image and switch to the Block section to manage corners, add any ALT text
(in case the image does not load correctly) or modify the image size.
You can also set alignment, add captions or apply duotone filters.
Moreover click on the three dots to copy any block, duplicate it or insert
a new block before or after it. Go to Remove block to delete it and use
Edit as HTML to edit its source code in HTML language, coming back with
Edit visually. You can also click and drag from the second button to move
each block up or down in the list.
From the Post section you can set the visibility for each post, its
release date (the current one or any scheduled one) and its custom URL
called Permalink. Under Featured image upload any image to present the
post.
In the top right corner save your article and click on Publish to make it
live online in your home page. Always check its appearance on Desktops,
Tablets and Smartphones.
The saved article appears in the posts list, with options to edit it again,
manage its properties with Quick Edit or delete it with Trash.
When you start getting lots of posts you may create Categories to group
these together. At first all posts belong to the default 'Uncategorized'
category. Go to Categories on the left to create a new one with proper
name and custom URL (or slug). You can also make Categories within any
main (or Parent) category.
At this point you can assign any post to specific categories directly with
Quick Edit. Each category URL shows all the posts matching such category,
each with its Featured Image applied.
Click on Pages to create static pages. In respect to posts these do not
have any author or publication date. You can create and build pages with
the same Block Editor, but you still need to share the page URL somewhere,
through any hyperlink or menu, or it won't be accessible.
For example let's make a menu by going to Appearance, Menus. Set any name,
click on Create Menu and then add its items, such as custom URL links,
your site pages or any category. You can also adjust their order or make
these dependent. Once done go to Save Menu and check the result online.
Go to Plugins to manage all your third-party applications and extend your
WordPress features. You can also go to Add New to browse for others, such
as the Classic Editor plugin. Once this is installed click on Activate to
turn it on and come back to the older editor.
To learn more about the Classic Editor make sure to check our dedicated
chapter of our previous WordPress 2021 tutorial!
You may also include Widgets such as additional elements added on your
site to improve the user experience, for example the lateral sidebar or the
custom footer at the bottom. Check these out!
On the left side you get further options to manage the comments left in
your website, your registered users or the basic website properties under
Settings. Here change the website title, its main description (or Tagline)
or its URL links as they should appear within the searches. Also manage
the admin address, the data format and other options.
To respect privacy regulations you may need to set a Privacy Policy page
as well. You can build a good one with the free privacypolicygenerator.info
website. Just insert your company name, your website name and its URL,
then reply to all questions, and finally copy the
entire HTML code resulted. At this point create a new page, paste the code
directly with CTRL (or CMD) and V and publish it. Make sure to include this
page to your menu or it won't be accessible!
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