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So you followed the step-by-step directions in last week's post and set up a WordPress blog in less than ten minutes and now you're ready to start writing! What you decide to write about is entirely up to you. Feel free to brainstorm on that a bit and experiment with several different topics – then come on back for further instructions because I'm here to show you how to write your first blog post in WordPress!
How To Get Started:
- Log in to your WordPress blog (you should have received your log in information in your WordPress introduction email but, just in case, the URL is usually http://www.yourURLhere.com/wp-login.php).
- Click on “Posts” once you are logged in. It can be found on the top left side of your blogging dashboard.
- Click on “Add New”. You should see a WYSIWIG Editor (AKA “What You See Is What You Get” – a program that allows you to see what the end result will look like while the interface or document is being created.). It is here that you'll write your first post.
- Write your post. Once you are done, click “Publish” on the right side and your blog post will be live!
How To Add An Image:
Images are extremely important when creating powerful blog posts that people like to read – they are also super helpful for social media traffic (readers are VERY visual). To add an image within your blog post, click on “Add Media” which is found at the top of the WYSWIG Editor. Then, click on “Upload Files”. You'll have the option to either drag and drop an image directly from your computer or use the Upload Tool to find it in your files. The cool thing about WordPress is that it hosts all your images for you (so, no messing with third party photo hosts and extra coding). Big Fat Tip: Take a moment to label your photo plus add the text for the alt and title tags – it all helps with social media sharing and search engine optimization.
How To Link To Another Website:
Sometimes, you find something really cool outside of your blog (like your social media profiles or a guide to writing stellar blog posts) and decide to share it with your readers. To link to another site within your blog post, you'll need to highlight the text that you want linked. So, you've written the sentence “I found an amazing fashion board on Pinterest!” and you want the phrase, “fashion board on Pinterest” to link to that fashion board. To do that, you will highlight “fashion board on Pinterest” then click the “Chain Link Icon” at the top of the WYSWIG Editor. This opens up a pop-up window where you can paste in the URL where you would like that phrase to link to. Big Fat Tip: That's exactly what I did with the phrases “social media profiles” and “a guide to writing stellar blog posts” above.
How To Link To One Of You Own Blog Posts:
But what if you've written an awesome older post and you'd like to link to it in your new post? Easy (because it's a lot like what you do to link to an outside website). To link to one of your own blog posts in a new blog post, highlight the phrase you want linked then click the “Chain Link Icon” at the top of the WYSWIG Editor. This opens up a pop-up window where you'll click on “Or Link To Existing Content”. This brings up a list of your published blog posts and you can choose which post you'd like to link to. Big Fat Tip: If you keep a separate list of your most linked to blog posts then you can add a link to one of your older posts by using the “How To Link To Another Website” instructions above – sometimes, that's faster.
How To Add Categories:
Right off the top, I'm going to give you this Big Fat Tip: Categorize your blog from your very first post! Categories help you to broadly group of your blog posts – like general topics or a table of contents. Categories are there to help your readers better find what they're looking for on your blog. To add categories to your post, find the “Categories” section on the right hand side of the dashboard. since your blog is new, you'll need to add categories. For example, if you're starting a travel blog then a few good categories would be: Packing, Europe, Airlines Deals, etc. You can experiment with the categories that work best for you and your readers (and edit/delete them later as needed).
How To Add Tags:
Another Big Fat Tip: Tags are not necessary; however, they can help to go into more specific details for each post – like index words (which often show up in your Google search results). You can add as many words as you like as tags. After writing your new post, add tags by typing the tag words in the “Tags” field on the right then click the “Add” button.
So, what will your first post be about? Be sure to share a link in he comments!
Click here if you're interested in creating your own blog in under ten minutes and for less than a new dress!
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