How to Create a WordPress Blog

Wordpress getting started learners 1

What is WordPress?

WordPress is an online, open source website creation tool written in PHP. But in non-geek speak, it’s probably the easiest and most powerful blogging and website content management system (or CMS) in existence today. WordPress is highly customizable, and has literally thousands of plugin pieces of software so you can use your site for just about anything.

The Benefits of Using WordPress

Here are just the top 5 benefits of using WordPress:

  1. The software is free! How many times have you been given something for free that is fully functional and ready to use? And if you want to upscale your site a little with premium themes and plugins, you’re still going to save tons of money over what you would pay for a custom designed site.
  2.  It’s easy to use. Seriously. If you can send an email, use Microsoft Word, or set up a Facebook account, then you can use WordPress. In other words, if you’ve already used a computer, chances are you are already skilled enough for the WordPress basics. And even better, it’s hard to mess it up. You can easily add and delete pages and posts without accidentally messing up the overall design of your site.
  3. You are in control. Owning your own site, and being able to make changes to it yourself, is the ultimate in online freedom. You don’t have to rely on an expensive web designer to make changes or fix a tiny error for you whenever they can squeeze you in. You’re in control of
    your site—and your wallet.
  4. WordPress has search engine (SEO) advantages. Search engines love sites that are easy to index (WordPress is) and that have frequently updated content. That’s where blogging comes in to play so nicely. Just by running your business or personal site   and communicating with your readers in a way that’s natural to you, you’ll be producing fresh, relevant content the search engines can’t wait to get a hold of.
  5. There’s a HUGE support community. WordPress isn’t just a software, it has become a community. Some might even say a movement. In fact, WordCamps (1-3 day
    training sessions) have sprung up from grassroots efforts. They are informal, community-organized events put together by other WordPress users just like you. You’ll
    meet people of all backgrounds, ages, and nationalities at WordCamps. Plus, there are thousands of people and hundreds of resource and tutorial sites set up just to help
    you with your WordPress site.

Starting a WordPress Blog: Overview

The process of setting up a blog is mind-bogglingly simple. There are only a couple of steps to
go through which shouldn’t take too long. In all, you’ll have your site up and running

  1. How to get a domain and web hosting
  2. Installing WordPress
  3. How to change your WordPress theme
  4. Creating your your first blog post
  5. Organizing the site structure
  6. Adding helpful WordPress plugins

Follow along and you’ll have a WordPress blog in no time. Let’s begin.

Step 1. Buying a Domain and Web Hosting

The domain name is your Web identity. For example learnerscoach.co.ke
There are several domain registrars but for the sake of simplicity, we recommend using hostpinnacle for the following reasons. Click here to read more

Hundreds of Themes Available

Free and premium themes are available from the moment you create your account. Find the WordPress theme that best represents you and your unique talents. Installation is fast and easy, and switching themes can be completed in seconds.

 WordPress Hosting
Done Right

Designed with you in mind, Bluehost provides everything you need to create and manage a WordPress website. Enjoy powerful website management tools, automatic WordPress installation, and 24/7 expert support all at a price that fits any budget.

All WordPress Hosting Plans Include

Automatic WordPress Installation

Upon creation of your WordPress Hosting plan, Bluehost automatically installs the latest and most secure version of WordPress.

Microsoft Office 365 available

Access your email anywhere with Microsoft Office 365. Boost recognition with Microsoft Office email accounts branded with your domain name.

Free Domain Name for 1 Year

Enjoy a free domain of your choosing for one year upon the creation of your WordPress Hosting account.

Automatic WordPress Updates

We keep your WordPress Hosting plan secure even after account creation by keeping your account up to date everyday.

Secure Configuration of Login Credentials

Upon the creation of your WordPress Hosting account, your login credentials are changed from the standard WordPress admin/password to something of your choice.

Get Verified on Google My Business

List your local business online to quickly connect with customers in your area. Allow them to see your location and your hours of operation on Google Maps.

Bluehost provides a free domain when you sign up for their web hosting packages. This makes
management of your new website extremely easy. It will reduce the overall costs, too.
You probably already have a domain name in mind. Good!

Step 2. Installing WordPress

The final step is to install WordPress on your server. Most hosting companies offer thorough instructions on installing WordPress or services to install WordPress for you.
Using a quick-install service is a simple way to get your WordPress installation up and running, but the downside is that it does leave some security holes.
For that reason, you may want to consider installing WordPress manually.

What are the benefits of doing a manual installation?

  • It prevents the WordPress database tables being installed as a default, with default labels. These default labels can make your site more vulnerable.
  • It allows for full customization of the wp-config.php file, which opens up enormous potential in WordPress.
  • It allows you to work within the “best security practices” for your WordPress site.

Step 3. Logging Into Your New WordPress Site

Once WordPress has been installed on your web server, you can access your WordPress login pagewordpress Learners admin

Your WordPress Login URL
The first way to access your WordPress Login URL will be in this format:

http://yoursite.com/wp-login.php or http://yoursite.com/wp-admin For example, for a new WordPress installation, you can visit yoursite.com/wp-login.php or yoursite.com/wp-admin to login. It might be helpful if you bookmark your site’s login URL.

From your WordPress login screen, you’ll enter the username and password that you set up during the WordPress installation process.

If you’ve forgotten your WordPress login password, you can click the “Lost Your password?” link to retrieve it via email.

Step 3. Exploring the WordPress Dashboard

Once you’ve logged in to your WordPress site, you’ll land here, the WordPress dashboard

wordpress dashboard Learners


Exploring the WordPress Dashboard

The WordPress dashboard allows you to control all of the behind-the-scene details of managing your site. Once you find your way around the dashboard, you’ll realize it’s
really easy to use and navigate.

After you first log in, you’ll see a top Welcome to WordPress section with some quick links to help you get started. You can always dismiss this box using the link in the top right corner.

The next section is the At a Glance section. Here you’ll see the number of posts and pages for your site’s content. You’ll also see discussion information for comments, like the total number of comments and the number in moderation.

In the At a Glance section, you’ll also see what WordPress theme you’re currently running
on your site plus your current version of WordPress.

The Activity section shows recently-published posts, pingbacks and recent comments. From here, you can quickly approve comments, reply back, mark as spam or send to trash.

The last section is the WordPress News section. These are updates from the official WordPress project.
If you’d like to customize what sections you see from the WordPress dashboard, visit the Screen Options tab on the top right side of your screen. Click the arrow to expand this section and you’ll see checkboxes for each of the sections usually included in the WordPress dashboard.

To remove any of the sections, just unclick the checkbox beside the section you’d like to hide. You can also choose the number of columns for the screen layout, too.

If you return to the dashboard home, you can also expand each of the sections by clicking the arrow to the right. You can also drag and drop the boxes to change the order.

Left-hand Navigation Menu
In addition to the WordPress dashboard home screen, the other major component of the WordPress dashboard is the left-hand navigation menu. This navigation menu provides links to all of the WordPress administration screens for posts, the media library, pages, comments, appearance options, plugins, users, tools and settings.

What Next

If you ever find yourself needing extra help, just click the image below, getting started with word press, you will find helpful information that will make you understand word press in detailsgetting started with Wordpress

How to Create an Online Course in WordPress

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7 Easy Steps!

If you’re planning to start teaching online or maybe you want to move your classroom online- this is for you. One of the best ways to do it starting your own WordPress online course.

The process to create online courses is simple enough especially if you do it with an LMS plugin. In fact, it’s so easy that we were able to compile a list of only 7 steps that would leave you with a fully functional WordPress online course system. So let’s jump right in!

STEP 1: The Right LMS Plugin

The first important step to create online courses is definitely finding the right LMS plugin. There are quite a few reasons for using a WordPress LMS plugin, especially as WordPress is the most user-friendly interface. If you’re completely new to WordPress or site building as a whole, you can get LMS plugins catered to that need. There are quite a few plugins that help you to create courses like Learndash, LearnPress, and LifterLMS.

Themeum’s own solution is the Tutor LMS with the aim to create online courses with great UI experience and many functionalities.
So, you must be wondering what features do you need in the right LMS plugin for you:
  – Course Builder to simplify course creation processes
  – Quiz Creator to create interactive yet challenging quizzes
  – Analytics to monitor course performance
  – Multiple payment gateways supported by WooCommerce or Easy Digital     Downloads
  – Complete theme compatibility for a responsive site where you create online courses
  – Option to add multiple instructors to create online courses that’s very resourceful
  – Promoting interactions through Email connectivity, social shares, and Q&A
If you’re in the market for a WordPress LMS plugin to create online courses, then Tutor LMS is a great option. It comes with all the necessary options as mentioned above and even more! Tutor LMS is the plugin we’re going to try out in this article to guide you through the steps to create online courses easily.

STEP 2. Set Up Your WordPress Website

One of the major reasons why a lot of you have not already started to create online courses is because of all the technical hassles it brings. Hiring a website developer can get pretty expensive quite fast and to make the smallest customizations you’ll have to reach out to them. So getting yourself a handy page builder is a great option to create online courses. WP Page Builder is one of the page builders that’s Gutenberg compatible, has 30+ addons, predesigned sections and more.

The best part is you get the maximum design flexibility without having to write a single line of code. If you don’t plan to invest in a page builder, there’s a free version too that helps you build a site to create online courses in minutes.
To begin a self-hosted site on WordPress.org, you’ll need a domain name, WordPress hosting and SSL certificate that enables you to accept online payments. To get the best performance, speed, reliability and other great hosting options- bluehost is an amazing option. It’s starting price is as low as $30/month and you’ll get better security, load impact options, and more page visits compared to other affordable options out there.

STEP 3. Install Tutor LMS

Now that your site is all set, it’s time to install one of the easiest WordPress LMS plugins to use- Tutor LMS. The reason why you might want to begin with a plugin is to provide a huge range of functionalities to create online courses but it also is great for people who have no technical skills or coding knowledge. All you need to do is set up WordPress and install Tutor LMS plugin and you’re ready to start.

Here are some easy steps to install Tutor LMS free version:
• Go to your WordPress site dashboard
• Navigate to Plugins > Add New
• On the top-right corner, type Tutor on the search field
Click on the Install Now button. Once the plugin is installed, activate the plugin.

For a complete guide on how to install Tutor LMS, click here.

Once Tutor LMS is all set up, you need to enable WooCommerce or Easy Digital Downloads to support by going to the settings. That way you’ll be able to enable multiple payment gateways when you create online courses for students who want to purchase your courses.
Now that your WordPress is set up, Tutor LMS is installed and payment gateway all set, you’re almost halfway through your process to create online courses.

If you really want to build a professional and serious educational platform to create online courses, you can check out the pro version of Tutor LMS.
The premium Tutor LMS comes with some amazing features:

• 5 unique question types
• Tutor Email
• Certificates
• Multi-instructors
• Reports for analytics
• Course Preview
• Multimedia Attachments
• Course Prerequisites

STEP 4. Use a WordPress LMS-based Theme

This is definitely not a mandatory step if you want to use an existing theme. However, it’s highly suggested that you use an LMS-based theme. The reason for this is it makes the process to create online courses much more simplified by showcasing information and courses in a more structured way.
An education based theme is made with all the industry trends in mind. It comes with options that are catered to attracting prospective students and making them convert.

Simply install your preferred theme and use it with Tutor LMS. Tutor LMS helps you to create online courses with any WordPress theme as it has complete theme compatibility.
Another awesome part is Themeum is releasing a complete education theme based on Tutor LMS- Edumax. This theme will let you have your site up and ready in minutes literally.
Never miss our useful tutorials, announcements, and all the astonishing offers!

STEP 5. Create Online Courses

Tutor LMS makes it super easy to create online courses with its drag & drop course builder.
Below we describe a quick easy method that will get you on your way to create online courses in minutes.

Navigate to Tutor LMS> Courses> Add New

Once you do that, this will take you to the course creation page. Enter your course title, a detailed course description, tags and the featured image for your course. This is the image that will show up as your course thumbnail.
Then you can add a course excerpt. This is basically a short summary you insert when you create online courses which are great for people who don’t want to read a detailed description.

Include all the useful course attachments after that and also define the set of prerequisites that students need to complete before enrolling in your course. To create online courses, you need to make sure you’re reaching the right prospective students. Completing all the above fields are made to ensure that exactly.

After that, you get to select the course name from the product list, and WooCommerce will handle all the purchases.
To include additional information to create online courses, you can insert the course duration, course difficulty level, benefits of the course, target audience, requirements, list of the assets in the course and more.
Finally, you get to include a video trailer and instructors who will be joining the course. That’s about it, you have just completed your process to create online courses.
You’re only two steps away from creating a complete educational platform.
Watch the Tutor LMS Demo to know more!

STEP 6. Include Lessons & Quizzes

Now that you’re done with creating your first course, it’s time to add lessons.
Navigate to the course builder, and click on “Add New Topic”. Write the topic title and include a topic summary for students to know what’s it about.

After that, go to the “Add New Lesson” option. Upon clicking this, you’ll get a new page similar to the one you got to create online courses in the previous step. Include all the relevant information on the given fields. Then choose the video source of your lesson and upload your lesson video. Upload any attachment that you want to add to create online courses to make your courses resourceful.

Tutor LMS comes with the course preview addon that lets you keep certain lessons unlocked for free. That way, students can try out a few lessons before paying for the course. To create online courses with this option, simply “Enable Course Preview” for the lessons you want to keep unlocked.

Quizzes
Quizzes are the most important part of your lessons when you create online courses as that’s where you get to judge your students thoroughly.

When you create online courses, one thing to keep in mind is to align your courses and lessons with respect to the quiz you’d be creating later on. One of the things that will make your courses really popular are the quizzes. If they’re fun and interactive, students will keep coming for them.

Tutor LMS comes with 10 unique question types to make sure you can offer a set of versatile quizzes when you create online courses.

Moreover, the quizzes are randomized and reordered every time any student attempts a quiz. You can even set quiz timers and limit quiz attempts. Set the passing grade and the results will auto-update to show the result status. Moreover, for preset answers, the results are generated automatically and for answers that need reviewing, you can grade them anytime and the results will change accordingly.

One of the perks of using Tutor LMS to create online courses is that it helps students and instructors stay connected via emails. So, you can use email addon, and send customized emails when students complete a quiz, course or any other occasion.

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STEP 7. Offer Certificates

Upon course completion, you can reward students with a beautiful certificate. Tutor LMS comes with many certificate templates that allow you to customize it. Include authorized name, authorized company name, and signature to the certificate. You can achieve all this without having any HTML knowledge to create online courses. Here’s how you do it.

Simply go to the settings and select Tutor Certificate. Here you’ll find all the certificate templates and the fields to customize them.

You’ve just now offered a certificate on a course that you created!

Wrapping Up
You’re now all set to create courses online! That’s exactly how easy things become when you use Tutor LMS. You can easily earn from your online courses as Tutor LMS effortlessly integrates with WooCommerce and EDD. Take your WordPress online course to the next level with these simple 7 steps. If you’ve been wanting to get your class online, now is the perfect time to do so!