Originally designed for bloggers, WordPress has become a fully fledged and one of the most popular open source web design content management system over the past few years. In fact it is the go-to tool for many designers (including yours truly) to create visually appealing sites with a wide array of functionalities (membership sites, e-shops, portfolios etc.). In the opening bit of this module we will check out the three options to “park” your WP site, ie at WordPress.com, WordPress.org or at a hosting company of your choice and how these options differ from each other.

Once you figured out where you want your WordPress site to be, you’ll need to install it. If you go with either one of the WordPress sites, all you’ll have to do is fill in a form and you’re good to go. And if you are self-hosting, most providers offer the one-click install, which will set WordPress up in a matter of moments for you. We will look at the install options and perform a one click-set in a test environment.

With the install sorted, you want to proceed to making your site look awesome. This is where the templates come in. WordPress comes with a few default templates, so we look at the templates function in general and what the difference is between free and paid premium templates. We also check out how to find, install and activate new templates.

With the basics for your site installed. we look into the two different faces of WordPress (and basically any website): The frontend and the backend. Understanding the difference between what your visitor sees of your site (frontend) and how you work the magic behind the scenes (backend) is important before moving on to adding content. We’ll look at the layout of the backend and explain some basic information that has to go into the backend before you add content (such as your site’s title).

Moving  on to adding content to your pages, we’ll discuss the difference between posts and pages, how to add, group and categorize the content and how to create the main menu to navigate your since once you have your first pages in place. How to feed blog posts into a blog site is also part of this section of the module.

One of the many benefits from working with WordPress is the possibility to add almost unlimited functions via plugins. A plugin a piece of software that you can add to your WordPress to add specific functions. The services range is huge and if you can think of a cool feature for your WP website, chances are there’s a plugin for it. From calendars to image optimizers, contact forms, membership tools and much more, there are currently almost 50’000 available plugins for WordPress. How to install, update and deactivate interfering plugins will be covered in this part of the training.

Widgets are small design blocks that can be placed in sidebars or other widget-ready areas such as the footer of the website. Basic widgets come with every theme, more but can be added via plugins. We’ll check out default widgets and how to add more to your site if needed.

Choosing a good theme can make or break a WordPress site. It is the backbone on which any additional add-on such as a plugin or widget will have to rely on. We check out how to spot a good theme, both free and paid, what to look for from developers, also with a view to support and modifications and how to regularly update your themes.

Having some tried and true plugins in place can make a huge difference in your site’s performance and functionality: We’ll look at essential plugins for image optimisation, site efficiency, security, membership and marketing (including pop-ups) among others. We will also discuss what to do if a plugin interferes with the theme template or other plugins.

Once you have your WordPress site up and running, you’ll have to regularly update its components, as a good developer regularly adapts the software to fend off new threats and to keep up with the latest technology. In most cases making the updates is a matter of clicking a few buttons or can even be set to happen automatically in the background. But there are instants, where you will also have to update a plugin manually. We’ll find out how that is done in this section of the WordPress module.

If you have ever experienced a nasty hack attack, your laptop’s battery spontaneously combusting (yep, that happens) or some other form of digital disaster, you know that backing up your data is the only thing that will help you sleep through the night. Depending on your hosting solution daily back-ups may be included in your subscription, but if it is not, this section of the module covers how to easily create and store your WordPress backups.

Moving a WordPress site from one host to another is not as big of a deal as some providers want you to believe. Which steps have to be taken if you want to do it yourself, how much it’ll cost and how long it’ll take for the process to be finished will be covered in this section of the module. We’ll also keep an eye out for some potential bumps during the move.

You need somebody? Not just anybody? Don’t fret if your WordPress site acts up. Being open source the WordPress community is actually an awesome bunch of helpful people. In this part we’ll look into how to get help from the developer of your theme or plugin, which is always the first step when something goes awry. Beyond that we’ll check out how to research and reach out in forums if you need assistance and find out you can get by with a little help from your friends.