September 25, 2015

1. WordPress Basics
Setup and Installation
(plus a whole lot more)

2. Colin Murphy: ProvidenceDesign.com
colin@providencedesign.com
Presenters
Daniella Norwood: EllaJDesigns.com
danni@ellajdesigns.com
Lydia Rogers: LydiaRogers.com
lydia@lydiarogers.com

3. COLIN MURPHY
PROVIDENCE DESIGN

4. PROVIDENCE DESIGN
WHERE YOU
WANT TO BE
WHERE YOU
ARE NOW
1
2
3

5. Daniella Norwood
My WordPress Story
I

6. True happiness comes from the joy of deeds well
done, the zest of creating things new.
~ Antoine de Saint-Exupery

7. Lydia Rogers

10. meetup.com/WordPressRI/

11. Agenda cmguest pw: welcoMe!
1. Domain names, web hosting, and installation
2. Configure settings
3. Navigate the WordPress Dashboard
4. Themes
5. Security and Maintenance
6. Small group instruction

12. Getting Started
What you need:
A domain name - easy to spell, .com is good but don’t discount other Top
Level Domains (TLDs) like .org, .agency, .club, etc.
ex: godaddy.com, namecheap.com
A hosting provider
examples: HostGator, BlueHost, WPEngine and FlyWheel
Recommendation: keep domain registrar and hosting provider separate.
*If using a different company for your domain name and your hosting, you will need to point your
domain name to your hosting provider.

13. Pointing Your Domain Name
Example for Changing GoDaddy Name Servers
1. Log into GoDaddy
2. Next to Domains click Manage

14. Pointing Your Domain (cont.)
3. Locate the domain you wish to register
private nameservers for and click the Gear
icon, then select Manage DNS:
4. In the Nameservers section of the
Settings tab, click Manage.
5. In the Nameserver Settings pop-up, select
the radio button for Custom, then click the
Edit Nameservers link.

15. Pointing Your Domain (cont.)
6. Enter your name servers in the spaces
provided, and click OK when you are
done making changes.
7. Click Save.
Note: Once you have made
changes to your name servers
at the registrar, there will be
24-48 hours of DNS
propagation time during
which your website and email
may not be available.

16. QuickInstall WordPress
*Most hosting providers have a one-click install of WP so you
don’t have to worry about doing it yourself.
Here’s an example using HostGator:
1. Log into your cPanel.
2. In the Software/Services section, click on the Quick
Install icon
3. In the left menu, under Popular Installs, click WordPress,
then click Install WordPress:
4. Complete the form that appears with the following
details:

17. QuickInstall WordPress (cont.)
4. Complete the form that appears with the following details:
1. The Base Domain for your installation.
2. The sub directory you would like the site to load from, if
desired.
3. Example: Should you wish your WordPress URL to be
mydomain.com/site instead of just mydomain.com. Your
site will always display this extension if you enter one.
4. For Admin Email, enter an email address where you want
the admin password emailed to. Make sure this is a
working email address.
5. For Blog Title, enter the name of the website. This is
what will appear in the header as the name of your site.
6. For Admin Username, enter your preferred username.
7. Your first name.

18. QuickInstall WordPress (cont.)
A progress bar at the top of the page will let you know when
installation is complete. Once complete, you will be able to start
working on your WordPress site. Check your email for your
WordPress username and password as well as a link to your
WordPress dashboard.

19. 1. Download the latest version of WordPress from WordPress.org
2. Create a database on your server
3. Configure the wp-config.php file with your database info
4. Copy the WordPress files to your server
5. Go to http://yourdomain.com/wp-admin/install.php and fill out the site
details.
6. Click Install and you’re ready to go.
http://codex.wordpress.org/Installing_WordPress
A True DIY

20. FRONT-END

21. FRONT-END
BACK-END
(database)

22. FRONT-END ADMIN
BACK-END
(database)

23. FRONT-END ADMIN
BACK-END
(database)
Login

24. FRONT-END ADMIN
BACK-END
(database)
Login
Settings

25. FRONT-END ADMIN
BACK-END
(database)
Login
Settings POSTS
PAGES

26. FRONT-END ADMIN
BACK-END
(database)
Login
Settings POSTS
PAGES
MEDIA

27. FRONT-END ADMIN
BACK-END
(database)
Login
Settings POSTS
PAGES
MEDIA
CATEGORIES
& TAGS

28. FRONT-END ADMIN
BACK-END
(database)
Login
Settings POSTS
PAGES
MEDIA
CATEGORIES
& TAGS
MENUSMENUS

29. FRONT-END ADMIN
BACK-END
(database)
Login
Settings POSTS
PAGES
MEDIA
CATEGORIES
& TAGS
MENUSWIDGETSPLUGINS

30. After you log in to your new site you’ll be taken to the Dashboard.
This is your control center.

31. Configure Basic Settings
● General
● Writing
● Reading
● Discussion
● Media
● Permalinks

32. General Settings
Change the Tagline.
Change the Timezone.

33. Writing Settings
Change the name of
the default post
category. Then select
that here...

34. Reading Settings
This depends on your
theme and the layout.
Make sure this is
unchecked!

35. Discussion & Media Settings
Depends on the purpose of your site.
It’s ok to go with the default values.
And now, the biggie...

36. Permalink Settings
Please remember to
change this if it is not
already changed.
I like this one.

37. Now You’re Ready to Party

38. Create Content
Pages:
About
Contact
Landing page
Posts:
News items
Recipes
How to articles

39. Pages/Posts
Click the title or ‘Edit’ to edit the
page.

40. Pages/Posts: Quick Edit

41. Pages/Posts: Editor
Open the page in a separate tab/window.
Hit refresh after changes.

42. Insert images into the page/post.
Click “Add Media”
Pages/Posts: Add Media

43. Insert images into the page/post.
Upload your file and fill out the
information.
Don’t forget the attachment
settings.
Insert Images

44. Add the Featured Image.
Settings: Title, Alt tag
Add Featured Image
SEO

45. Add Audio
Adding audio is almost the same as
adding an image. Upload the file,
select the appropriate setting and
the file will be embedded:

46. Add Video
Adding video is as simple as adding the link to the Editor:
Back end: Front end:

47. Add SEO
SEO

48. Posts: Categories & Tags
What’s the difference?
Categories are meant to be a broad grouping and tags are more specific.
You do need to categorize your posts, but you don’t need to tag them.
The goal is to always make the site user-friendly.

49. Publish

50. Create a Menu
1 2
3

51. Here it is...

52. Widgets
Drag and Drop!
Need more
functionality?

53. Plugins
Keep in mind:
● compatibility with your current version of WP
● does the developer have other plugins?
● is the plugin being updated consistently?
● are the support tickets being answered?

54. Plugins: Our Favorites
1. Akismet
2. WordPress SEO by Yoast
3. Google Analytics (Yoast)
4. Gravity Forms (Premium) or Contact Form 7 (free)
5. Duplicator
6. Ultimate Maintenance Mode
7. Jetpack
8. Backup Buddy
9. Login Lockdown

55. Choose a Theme
Guidelines:
1. Your website’s purpose.
1. Your brand.
1. Ease of use.
1. Mobile Responsive!

56. Free v. Premium
There are plenty of wonderful free themes to choose from.
However, if you need support, I would recommend buying a premium theme.
My favorite company is StudioPress but there are many others like
WooThemes and Elegant Themes.
Why StudioPress? I like using a framework. What’s that, you ask?

57. Theme Frameworks
At it’s simplest, a framework can be described
as a theme where the functionality resides.
This allows you to use a child theme where
the styling resides, but you don’t lose the
functionality.

58. Why would you use a Framework?
Instead of creating a theme from scratch and
modifying all the files, creating a child theme
can be as simple as creating a new style.css
file and customize a few functions using the
functions.php file.
This speeds up development of a new website.

59. Security & Maintenance
41% were hacked through a security vulnerability on their hosting platform
29% were hacked via a security issue in the WordPress Theme they were using
22% were hacked via a security issue in the WordPress Plugins they were using
8% were hacked because they had a weak password
Source: WP White Security, http://www.wpwhitesecurity.com/wordpress-security-news-
updates/state-of-security-of-wordpress-blogs-and-websites/

60. Safe & Secure
1. Have a good hosting provider!
2. Keep WordPress Updated
3. Be Careful with Plugins and Themes
4. Don’t use admin as your username.
5. Have a strong password.
6. Keep themes and plugins up to date.
7. Always backup your site!

61. Plugins/Solutions
➔ VaultPress, CodeGuard, Blogvault - all in one
solutions
➔ iThemes Security & Backup Buddy - can bundle
together
➔ WordFence - security
➔ Sucuri - security
➔ Duplicator - backup,
https://wordpress.org/plugins/duplicator/
➔ WordPress Backup to Dropbox,
https://wordpress.org/plugins/wordpress-
backup-to-dropbox/

62. Plugins/Solutions (cont.)
➔ Good Hosting providers like Flywheel and WPEngine
➔ Companies that maintain your site for you

63. Let’s Dive In!
Sample Sites

64. Small Groups
Questions
Troubleshooting

65. Glossary
http://codex.wordpress.org/Glossary
Menu
Page
Password
Post
Privacy Settings
Profile
Publicize
Responsive
Self-hosting
Shortcode
Sidebar
Slideshow
Blog
Categories
Comments
Dashboard
Domain
Gravatar
Header
HTML Editor
Images
Insights/Statistics
Likes
Logo
Spam
Sticky Post
Tags
Tagline
Theme
Toolbar
URL
Visual Editor
Web Address
Widget

66. Resources
https://codex.wordpress.org
http://www.wpbeginner.com/
http://wpshout.com/
https://wordpress.org/support/
http://codex.wordpress.org/WordPress_Lessons
https://en.support.wordpress.com
wordpress.tv
http://www.meetup.com/WordPressRI/
premium.wpmudev.org/blog
http://wpplugindirectory.org/ (unoffical WordPress plugin directory)

67. meetup.com/WordPressRI/

68. Thank you!
Questions?
Topics for future meetups?