Congratulations, you’ve successfully installed WordPress! But what to do now? Not to fear! We’ve devised a list of the top 10 essential steps to take next. Let’s dive right in.
1) Modify the Title, Tagline and Time Zone
This is the first step to making your site just a little more personal. In your WordPress Admin Dashboard, go to Settings -> General. You can change the timezone in the General Settings area as well. Be sure to save when you make a change!
2) Customize the Permalink Structure
In Settings, select Permalink and choose a new structure. We recommend that you choose the “Post Name” option. Again, don’t forget to save! This will make your site name more Google-friendly.
3) Keep Spam Out
Fight against spam comments by installing an anti-spam plugin. We recommend Antispam Bee– it’s free and can be a great first defence against spam.
4) Speed Up your Load Time
There are many ways to do this.
- First, install a caching plugin to reduce downloading time. A good free one to use is W3 Total Cache.
- Optimize your images – look into installing WP-SmushIt to reduce file sizes while maintaining the image quality.
- Install plugins to optimize your databases. WP-Optimize is a great one to clean up your databases.
A fast loading site will keep your visitors happy- and we all love happy visitors.
5) Use Social Sharing Plugins
This tip might be an unexpected item on the list- but this step is essential now more than ever. Allow your content to be shared and actually read. Check out the Social Share Button
Yes, we did promise to give you the top 10 steps to take after installing WordPress! Find the next 5 in Part Two.
Posted in: Beginner's Guide, Plugins, Security