Let's Learn WordPress!

The Basics Workshop at Loveland CreatorSpace

Gordon Seirup

@coppergordon

gordon@copperleafcreative.com

What is WordPress?

A Blogging platform
A Content Management System
A publishing platform
Open-Source Software
Most popular in the world*
- 25% of all websites
- 50-60% of all websites using a CMS

*Source: https://www.codeinwp.com/blog/wordpress-statistics/

.org

Download source code
Your own hosting
Your own domain
Infinitely customizable
- Plugins, Themes
Maintenance: Updates, Security, Performance
Great for custom sites

.com

Hosted platform
Free to sign up
Premium add-ons
Limited Themes
No Plugins
Great for blogging!

WordPress

Database:

Content
Settings
In rare cases:
- Code

Files:

Code
Media
In rare cases:
- Content
- Settings

What's under the hood?

3 Areas of Code & Functionality

Core
Plugins
Themes

WordPress Core

Download from wp.org
Hosting 1-Click Install
Updates every 3-4 mo's
Do not hack core

Posts (Pages)
Media
Users
Comments
Menus
Widgets
Customizer
Plugin & Theme Installer

WordPress Plugins

Custom
Free vs. Premium
Once vs. Subscription
Updates
Compatibility
Security concerns
Avoid Bloat

Extend functionality
- Performance
- Security
- Backups
- Features:
  - Forms
  - Sliders
  - SEO
  - Social

WordPress Themes

Responsive
Free vs. Premium
Child Themes
DIY 'Builder' themes
Drag-and-drop
Avoid Bloat
- Unused features
- Functionality

Control layout & style
More Widget Areas
- Header
- Widgetized Home
- Footer Widgets
- Sidebars
- Custom
Menu Positions

Posts

Date-based
Most recent first
Categories
Tags

Content

Both:

Rich text editor
Status
Visibility
Publish Date
Featured Image

Custom Post Types

Media

Photos
- Basic editing
Video & Audio
- Locally hosted
- Auto-embed
Files (doc, pdf, etc.)

Demo Site Logins:

http://lcsdemo.wpengine.com/wp-admin

user: demo

password: lovelandcreatorspacerocks

Let's do some stuff!

Create a Post
Add Media
Create a Page
Add Menu Item

Watch me do some stuff...

Manage Widgets
Install & Activate a Theme
Install & Activate a Plugin
Settings

Settings

General
- Site Title, Tagline, Timezone
Writing
Reading
- Front Page (Posts/Widgets vs. Static Page)
- Search Engine Visibility
Discussion (comments)
Media
Permalinks
- set to Postname

Commodity

Cheap
Over-leveraged shared
Security concerns
"all in one" - domain, email, etc.

Managed

Security
Performance
Updates
WP Tools
Modular

Hosting

(not WordPress.com)

Picking a Theme

Ratings (and how many)
Version number
Support responsiveness
Business/Payment model
Avoid Bloat
- Unused features
- Functionality
Frameworks

Widget Areas
Menu Positions
Fonts & Spacing
Layout(s)
- Page, Single, Archive
- Sidebar(s)
Flexibility/Options
Customizer Capability
Responsive

Vetting Plugins

Ratings (and how many)
Version number
Support responsiveness
Screenshots
Live Demos
Free Trials / Guarantee

A Specific Purpose
Business/Payment model
- One-time
- Subscription
- Freemium
Avoid Bloat

Favorite Free Plugins

Akismet - Filters spam comments for review (be sure to license)
Ninja Forms - Forms
Shortcodes Ultimate - Create tabs, accordions, maps, etc
BlackStudio TinyMCE Visual Editor - Widget with visual editor
Easy FancyBox - Lightbox images on click
Menu Social Icons - Add social icons to menu
Simple Share Button Adder - Add social sharing to blog posts, etc
Simple Social Icons - Widget with social icons (link to your profiles)
TablePress - Create/import tables
WooCommerce - Complete basic e-commerce capabilities
WP Google Fonts - Lets you apply Google fonts
WP Google Maps - Insert a Google map with marker
WP Responsive Menu - Display a responsive menu on mobile sizes
Yoast SEO - Improve site's search engine readability

Favorite Premium Plugins

Easy Digital Downloads - for selling digital products
Gravity Forms - forms
GravityView - display Gravity Forms entries
Shortcodes Ultimate: Extra Shortcodes - freemium-model add-on
WooCommerce Extensions - shipping, payment methods, marketing, etc.