Creating a Wordpress Website

Who should use Wordpress?

Pros of using a WordPress website:

  1. ContentManagementSystem: WordPress is a popular content management system thatmakes it relatively simple forusers to create, edit, and publishcontent without any coding skills (although changing aspects of the website design itself may take more knowledge).

  1. Scalability: WordPress websites are easily scalable, which means they can better handle large amounts of traffic and can be expanded as the website grows.

  2. Search engine optimization (SEO): WordPress has built-in SEO tools that help optimize the website for search engines, which can improve the website’s visibility and ranking.

  3. Support: WordPress has a large community of developers and usersand is well-established as a website creation tool. This provides you with long-term support with the assistance ofCardinal Labs if your organization wishes to change major features of the website in the future.

Cons of using a WordPress website:

  1. Complexity: Although WordPress is relatively easy to use, it can be complex for beginners to set up and customize, and may require some technical knowledge to manage effectively.

  1. Maintenance: WordPress requires regular updates and maintenance to keep it secure and up-to-date, which can potentially cause downtime, be time-consuming, and require technical expertise.

  2. Security: WordPress is a popular platform and is therefore a common target for hackers, so users must take additional security measures to protect their website from vulnerabilities and threats.

  3. Cost: While WordPress itself is free, users may need to purchase premium themes and plugins to get the features they need, which can add up over time.

  4. Performance: WordPress can be resource-intensive and may slow down the website’s performance if not optimized properly.

Installing Wordpress

  1. Click on the “WordPress” Application.

  1. Press the “install this application” button in the top right corner.

  2. In the ensuingInstallatronpage, change the domain to thehttps:// version as shown below (click on the circled option, your domain name will obviously be different).

  3. In the optional directory box, to keep things organized, enter the name of your website. This will create a separate folder where all of your website materials will be located.You cannot use spaces, so replace them with underscores (snake_case).

  4. Leave the other settings unchanged, but in theSettings box, enter a username and password for the Administrator. You can choose whatever you want, but make sure towrite this down on paper! Regaining access will require creating a help ticket that can take a long time to be addressed. Clickinstallafterwards.

**Installing the Cardinal Labs Template

Before we dive into the steps for installing a custom template to your WordPress website, it’s important to note that although the default version of WordPress’ built-in theme and website builder can be used to create a website, it may not look unique or have all the design features you require.Cardinal Labs provides plenty of extra theme options, color palettes, tools, and design knowledge that can help you customize your website to meet your needs and stand out from the crowd!

Now, let’s move on to the steps for installing a custom template to WordPress:

Step 1: Choose your template

First, you’ll need to choose a custom template that you want to install on your WordPress website. You can purchase templates from third-party websites like ThemeForest, or you can use a free template from the WordPress repository. We highly recommend utilizing the sophisticated theme developed byCardinal Labs, developed specifically for Stanford VSOs!

Step 2: Download the template

Once you’ve chosen your template, you’ll need to download it to your computer. The template will usually be in a zip file format.

Step 3: Log in to your WordPress dashboard

Next, log in to your WordPress dashboard. You can do this by adding /wp-admin to the end of your website URL.

Step 4: Go to the Appearance section

From the WordPress dashboard, go to the “Appearance” section and click on “Themes.”

Step 5: Upload the template

On the Themes page, click the “Add New” button at the top of the page. Next, click the “Upload Theme” button, and then click the “Choose File” button to browse your computer for the template zip file you downloaded in Step 2. Once you’ve selected the file, click the “Install Now” button.

Step 6: Activate the template

After the template is installed, click the “Activate” button to activate it on your website.

Step 7: Customize the template

Once you’ve activated the template, you can customize it to meet your specific needs. Depending on the template you chose, you may have access to customization options through the WordPress Customizer or through the template’s own customization panel.

That’s it! You’ve now installed and activated a custom template on your WordPress website and can start customizing it to your liking.