So you are finished installing WordPress on your first domain. But your job is not completed yet. There are lots of things that you should do just after successful installation of WordPress on your blog.
In today’s special guest post whom I’m writing specifically for the readers of We Blog Better, I’m going to share 10 points checklist that you should follow to get the most out of your WordPress blog.
1. Improve Your Permalink URL Structure
First of all, you need to improve default permalink structure. You can do so by going to Permalinks section under Settings from your WordPress admin panel. So how you go about improving the permalink structure:
Default Permalink Structure: http://weblogbetter.com/?p=123
If you want to include date and name use: http://weblogbetter.com/2012/09/07/sample-post/
For month and name use: http://weblogbetter.com/2012/09/sample-post/
Most optimized URL structure: http://weblogbetter.com/sample-post/
If you follow the last pattern, your post title will be used just after your blog base URL. This is how you will end up getting better and more optimized URL for your blog contents.
2. Create a Google Analytics Account
You should have Google Analytics installed on your blog from day one. You can create an account on Google Analytics from here and will need to add the java script given by Google Analytics team during sign up process in your blog header or footer section. Just after installing the script, you are ready to go and can start tracking activities of your blog readers through Google Analytics.
3. Set up an Account on GWT
Now you should set up an account on Google Webmasters Tools (GWT) by adding the meta verification code to your blog header section. You can use your GWT account for selecting the geo-targeting for your blog. You can also select the preferred display URL for your blog in Google search results. You should work closely with your GWT account if you want to generate any kind of business from your blog. You can keep track of incoming links to your blog, crawling errors and HTML errors etc. through GWT account.
4. Install Some Must Have WordPress Plugins
You cannot really survive without making use of WordPress plugins. There are plugins available for most of your feasible requirements. Initially I would suggest you install the following plugins at least:
- Nrelate plugin: for showing related posts
- Akismet plugin: for spam comments protection
- WordPress SEO by Yoast: for SEO activities
- W3 Total Cache: for improving the performance of your WordPress blog
- Contact Form 7: for adding a contact form on your blog
- Digg Digg Plugin: for Social Media icons at post level
5. Select the Preferred Domain Name
We need to make decision about whether we want to show our domain name with www or without www in address bar. We need to select one version and the other version should get redirected to selected version. Kiesha has selected non www version for her blog We Blog Better and if you try to open her blog with www, it will automatically get redirected to non www version. For standard websites, we need to make changes in .htaccess file to get this thing done manually. But in case of WordPress, there is much easier solution available. You can select your preferred domain name from General Settings section. Once you have made the changes here, required changes into your .htaccess file will be done automatically by WordPress system.
6. Select a Theme for Your Blog
If you are short of budget, you should pick a theme for your blog from WordPress themes directory. And if you can afford, you should buy a premium theme for your WordPress blog. There are some high quality premium theme providers available on internet you can give a try. My first priority will be thesis theme, but I have heard good words about genesis framework as well. Personally I’m using Thesis Theme on most of my blogs including Bloggers Passion. You can read my Thesis Theme Review from here.
7. Get Rid of Default Stuff on Your Blog
There are lots of default things available on your WordPress that need to be fixed.
- Make Changes into default categories and add new categories as per your need
- Edit or delete the default first post
- Edit or delete sample page
- Edit or delete the default Blogroll section
- Replace the default tagline with your own tagline
8. Create an Account on FeedBurner
You should burn your feed by creating an account on FeedBurner. After getting the feedburner URL for your Feed, you should update the same feed URL on your blog. You will be able to serve your blog content through Feedburner in a better way compared with the WordPress default RSS feed where you have limited options.
9. Set up an Account on Gravatar
it’s time to set up an account on Gravatar. Having an account on Gravatar has become a standard in blogging industry. You should set up your real image to look more authentic and for becoming popular in the blogging industry as your Gravatar avatar will be shown beside your name in your written posts and comments.
10. Add Titles and Meta Tags for Important Pages
By now, you have the list of some keywords you would like to target at different levels on your blog. There must be some generic keyword related to your niche that you may want to target on your blog home page. So you should add search engine friendly (as well as user friendly for higher CTR in search engine results) titles and meta tags for your blog home page first. Then you should work on titles and meta tags at pages level as per your plan of action for keyword targeting.
I used to follow this checklist after installing WordPress on my self-hosted blogs. Are you following any checklist after installing WordPress on your domain, share your thoughts in this regard in the comments section.
About anilagarwal
very Valueble Post For the Newbies but you missed Some Plugins Like Adsense.
Anyways you have done great Job on this Post,I really Apperciate it.
meet recently posted..How to Create a Free Website
Awesome Tips For the Beginners.I will Consider this post while creating a Blog on wordpress.Thankss for such a vital Info
These 10 points are worth noting. We should take care of all the things. We should use recommended plugins also.
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Fantastic …I really enjoy reading some good info. Thanks for your views on the subject. I will take a visit again.
Thats how good a website should and i do raelly beleave that a good content is of great help.Good luck.
You made some decent points there. I looked on the web to find out more about the issue and found most individuals will go along with your views on this site.
How to blog recently posted..Must Know Tips For Becoming A Well Known Blogger
There is certainly a great deal to learn about this subject. I really like all of the points you have made.
How to blog recently posted..Must Know Tips For Becoming A Well Known Blogger
I was very happy to discover this site. I wanted to thank you for your time for this particularly fantastic read!! I definitely really liked every bit of it and I have you saved as a favorite to see new information on your site.
Also install Redirection so that you can quickly fix any broken links that appear on your site and are reported by Google Webmaster Tools. Can also be used to shorten referral links for your site.
Lorenzo C. recently posted..Why I Recommend and use WP Engine
Twitter: IbangSR
says:
Hello Anilagarwal
You suggest to install SEO by Yoast, why you did not choose the all in one SEO Pack, is SEO by Yoast better than the all in one SEO Pack?
Thanks before.
Riki recently posted..Best Double Jogging Stroller
Awesome post!for newbie,now a days it is easy to create website but for newbie it is quite difficult as they do not know anything about it.according to me wordPress is best solution for them where they can create their own website very easily.
Thanks.
Manisha Singh recently posted..SEO: URL Optimization
always your post number 1 for me
????? ?????????? recently posted..???? ????? : the months of the year
Twitter: androguedotcom
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Very important is meta tag :) for seo optimiztation, for Keyword on google :),
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Twitter: okblogging
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This a great checklist for the beginners. i am using Mailchimp, it is very satified for me
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Hello there! This post couldn’t be written any better! Reading through this article reminds me of my previous roommate! He always kept preaching about this. I most certainly will forward this article to him. Pretty sure he\’ll have a very good read. Thanks for sharing!
Greetings! Very helpful advice in this particular post! It is the little changes which will make the most significant changes. Thanks a lot for sharing!
Affilliate Enthusiast recently posted..Affiliate Marketing Training, Software & Support – Affilorama
Twitter: Ajayudayagiri
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Permalink URL structure is very important in case of SEO. And the plugins we install on WordPress are important too. Installing more and more plugins sucks page loading speed.
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oops. Even i forgot one! Can you find which one?
bert recently posted..Eigen bedrijf starten? MKB Marketing geheimen voor de startende ondernemer
Twitter: Questdial
says:
Thank u. but I have now changed to the Genesis Framework which i have found very good.
great post i have followed the instruction and they are much informative and necessary that every blogger should adopt these techniques .
Twitter: lifenleisure
says:
Great list here, Anil! You pretty much covered everything. The only thing I would do is to change Akismet from the plugins and go with the GASP plugin that comes with CommentLuv. I’ve tried Akismet during the first few months having my blog up, and it was a nightmare having to go through hundreds of those spam comments that it doesn’t filter. My life actually got easier after I invested on CommentLuv Premium that had the GASP plugin along with it.
Adeline Yuboco recently posted..[Infographic] Going on Vacation the Social Media Way
Twitter: lifenleisure
says:
Great list here, Anil! You pretty much covered everything. The only thing I would change Akismet from the plugins and go with the GASP plugin that comes with CommentLuv. I’ve tried Akismet during the first few months having my blog up, and it was a nightmare having to go through hundreds of those spam comments that it doesn’t filter. My life actually got easier after I invested on CommentLuv Premium that had the GASP plugin along with it.
Adeline Yuboco recently posted..[Infographic] Going on Vacation the Social Media Way
Twitter: TheTechnoMAG
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Choosing a good theme should have a high priority after installing wordpress, after all that is something which should be eye catching for your visitors.
Great list though Anil. Keep it up! :)
Joe Clark recently posted..Why free WordPress themes are risky for new bloggers
There is a Free alternative to Akismet called Defensio and I am using for the last year or so on several blogs of mine and never had problems with SPAM. Please have a look
http://www.defensio.com/
Nice Post – Regards
Kiril recently posted..Low Fat Diet Plan: An Ideal Weight Lose Alternative
Amazing. I really appreciate all these steps.next time i will strictly follow these steps.
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I started working on WP few months back…will try to keep these points in my mind on my upcoming projects…thanks for sharing your experience with us…
I was just googling and landed to your webpage and found myself satisfied, finally what i was searching for…read all other related articles..i have also followed you…Please keep me updated
Regards
Avneet kaur sodhi
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Twitter: AppliedVisual
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This is a great guide for newbies, but one thing I didn’t see is to make sure to make the website visible to search engines in the general tab. I know this is elementary but I had a friend contact me to find out why his site wasn’t being ranked in search engines and low and behold, it was still invisible to search engines. Another useful plugin could be a ping optimizer (cbnet?) to minimize excessive pinging for new posts. Great post!!!
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Twitter: technomeet
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Hey ,
Fantastic and useful blog thanks for publishing information great to read it WordPress customization .
Giselli Rosselli recently posted..ERP Services
Hey Anil,
A great post!!! These are great value points, which are indeed useful in having a successful WordPress installation. Thanks for providing this comprehensive list.
Great tips here specially for the newbies. But I would like to add, you can get rid of the WP cache and the whole tweaking your site process if you have a managed wordpress hosting that will take care of you for that.
BTW, the most common mistake is that people sometimes forget to remove the default stuff on a wordpress blog. And it doesn’t look cool specially when your site go live.
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Twitter: Ajayudayagiri
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Selecting the best theme is the prominent one among them as it is only part of the website that makes the page attractive.
Thanks for sharing.
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Twitter: HadleyHodgson
says:
Most of the websites I set up are now on WordPress and it’s fantastic! Considering myself fairly experienced in using it I was very happy to work through this list and not find any shockers :-) Thanks.
I wish I had read a list like that when I started my first WP-efforts… well, I learned some of this the hard way. I advise everyone who is new to blogging to follow those steps on this useful list, you won’t regret it.
Twitter: collegeocontent
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Does setting up an account on the Gravatar network help to get traffic to your blog pages?
CollegeofContent.com recently posted..Considerations When Buying Mens Suits
Twitter: bloggerspassion
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I don’t think setting up Gravatar has much to do with your website traffic. But having a Gravatar account gives you a great feeling. When people are able to see your original image which is coming from Gravatar, gives them the feeling as if they are talking to a real human being.
When you go for guest blogging, some blog owners would ask you about your gravatar account. Chances of click on your website increases to some extent I think if you have a real image compared with the blank or default icon.
Anil Agarwal recently posted..Crafting the Perfect Blog Post
Twitter: bbt0786
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Hello there,
I think using gravatar effect indirectly here because if we see someone by gravatar then it looks like that we are talking to real human and also want to add here that it makes all the bloggers mind clear and help to approve comment.
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Twitter: semaglive
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setting up a gravatar account will just make you a loyal visitor and when you are commenting at that moment having a gravatar account is better than an unknown visitor.
hrmehrotra recently posted..iPhone controlled bug available now
A step by step detailed explanation of every single thing which one has to do to make good use out of the website.Having a blog with a good theme and proper plugins used can make a lot of difference.
Aditya recently posted..Manufacturing ERP Software Providers
Twitter: bbt0786
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Hello there,
I have not seen these type of post before. it has all here blasting and smarty point here.
I think google analytics and feed burner account are necessary when we are on the way after WordPress installation.
I am here after making gravatar account and it make me original.
Thanks for this type of hardy post which is good for all and specially newbies.
Bhushan recently posted..Travel Portal Development
thanks for these wonderful checklist, I have almost everything covered except creating and using FeedBurner. I will check out FeedBurner right away
This is a great practical list that a newbie can follow to get his blog up and, more importantly, start ranking in the search engines. Thanks for this Anil.
Creating a website is quite easy nowadays. If you have the right resources, you will be able to create your own web page in no time at all and have the best professional look you want for your page.
Twitter: SarviSolutions
says:
Very helpful for the newbies! A great post indeed but I think you skipped on one plugin. I’d recommend one more plugin for the newbies and that is the “Facebook” plugin which makes your website so much more integrated with facebook that you can recommend your post on your timeline and on your page (if you own one for the website). It also integrates comments, so a newbie won’t feel left out if in his initial days there is no traffic from search engines. He/She can always get traffic from facebook.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= If I’m allowed to add this, please remove this line and continue with the same comment. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
I made a similar website for my client, an apparel brand, http://www.desidhagaa.com/ because the client base was on facebook and people from facebook were attracted to the website via a page and many more timeline updates which reflected in the news feed.
Hope you will want t o add the plugin if you think likewise, but it was my personal experience, so shared it.
Thanks,
Chetan Vengurlekar.
Chetan Vengurlekar recently posted..Meta Tags
Twitter: JessicaKihara
says:
Good checklist – I do most of these myself. It’s useful that you put it into a checklist format. I often forget to add my analytics code for days. And the worst is when you forget to update your permalink structure and start getting ranked!
Jessica Kihara recently posted..PLR 5 Pack – Wii U Reviews
Twitter: rankingedge
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Jessica, I’ve used the 301 redirect plugin for changing permalink structure or if I just decided to change a particular permalink for better keywords etc. Its a great and easy WP plugin.
Eliz C recently posted..Why Should You Use Google Webmaster Tools?
Twitter: freeman4all44
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This is a great practical list that a newbie can follow to get his blog up and, more importantly, start ranking in the search engines. Thanks for this Anil.
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Moving to WordPress is a lot easier than most people think. It’s a bit of an initial time investment to get used to it as it’s not quite as user-friendly as some other options but it’s worth it to do. I still have some sites (including this blog) that should be moved so I need to stop being lazy and get it done!
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Twitter: jayblogtips
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great post i have followed the instruction and they are much informative and necessary that every blogger should adopt these techniques . Thanks anil ji for such an informative post .
Jaykrishna recently posted..Top Three Reasons Why You Should Start Blogging?
Twitter: jayblogtips
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all the methods are good and easy to adopt will surely work on this because i have recently owned a blog and the post is very informative for me .
Jaykrishna recently posted..Top Three Reasons Why You Should Start Blogging?
This is a MUCH more useful list than most I’ve seen. Blogging has seen serious growth in technical understanding and know-how, and it’s good to see these techniques being laid out for new users to understand. I am getting tired of reading how-to-blog articles giving zero concrete information and leaving them totally unable to adapt or even understand successful blogging techniques. I love seeing stuff like this!
This is a MUCH more useless list than most I’ve seen. Blogging has seen serious growth in technical understanding and know-how, and it’s good to see these techniques being laid out for new users to understand. I am getting tired of reading how-to-blog articles giving zero concrete information and leaving them totally unable to adapt or even understand successful blogging techniques. I love seeing stuff like this!
Twitter: bloggerspassion
says:
That’s true Anton. Then we have to use paid options like MailChimp and Aweber etc
Anil Agarwal recently posted..Review: Top 5 Hosting Providers in 2012
Twitter: issuesEthical
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These are great reminders for a newbie blogger. I wish I was told so clearly on what to do. I had to learn almost everything the hard way.
Michael Belk recently posted..In response to Seth Godin’s “Denying facts you do not like”.
Great tips for the beginner. Likely myself! have been looking around for a Spam Filter as I get loads. i did use the basic theme with WordPress when I set up my Car Valeting in Eastbourne website, but I have now changed to the Genesis Framework which i have found very good.
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Twitter: bihar
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Good check list. I can’t say I do all of them but I am sure most of the check list is covered. You talk about the domain name, should we be careful on what we must register given the fact that many business have lost rankings due to certain updates recently?
Shalu Sharma recently posted..State of Bihar – Places of interest and tourist attractions
Twitter: bloggerspassion
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Keyword based penalty only hit those websites which were in top 10 on Google just because of their domain name. Google did not placed any kind of penalty of quality websites.
Anil Agarwal recently posted..Review: Top 5 Hosting Providers in 2012
always your post number 1 for me
Twitter: antonrsa
says:
Hi ,
Great post – One of the most valuable points you’ve made is to get rid of all the default stuff on your blog. And then second – There is a lot of talks that Feedburner will / might close in the near future – Not sure if Feedburner is the right way to go with RSS. If you manage to build a list of followers then they all have to re-subscribe to the new RSS feed.