Here are the answers to your questions that were submitted during various webinars in the past. On these webinars, I explain what WordPress is, show different examples and explain how you can use it in your business.
Q: Are the WordPress Pages easy to edit?
A: WordPress pages (and blog posts) are very easy to edit. WordPress was designed so that non-technical people could write and create web pages and blog posts quickly and easily. No HTML knowledge is required.
Q: Where do you find the different types of WordPress sites?
A: You can build virtually any type of website with WordPress. It all depends upon your goal. There are many case studies here on this site for you to look at for inspiration.
Q: Before one chooses to build a site, are there some questions to ask to determine what type of site we should build for ourselves?
A: The most important question is “What is the purpose of my website?” What do you want people to do once they get to your site. This is one of the things I coach you on during the 10 module course.
Q: Your pages are so professional…how can someone like me get to your level?
A: One of the keys to getting my pages to look current and professional is that I don’t try to design the website graphics myself. I use pre-made WordPress Themes which are easily installed from within your WordPress Dashboard with a few clicks of the mouse. Thousands of these WordPress Themes are available for free on the Internet, and there are many excellent paid themes available for a modest fee ($20-$100 typically) that you may wish to consider as well. You can create websites like this by taking my Website Creation Workshop. This will speed you through the learning curve and focus you on the right things so that you will come out of the Workshop with your first website built and ready for business. Look at some of the student examples here… https://websitecreationworkshop.com/blog/case-studies/
Q: Can you do a WordPress site like a store?
A: Yes, you can use WordPress as an ecommerce site.
Q: Can I link a WordPress website and a shopping cart?
A: Yes. You can link up any WordPress website with a shopping cart system.
Q: When you add a new page how do you specify where it goes? Will it add a new page to your blog, articles, etc.?
A: You can simply put your pages at the root/base level of your site, or you can define page hierarchies, and nest pages as deep as you like. You specify where the page goes by selecting a parent page from a drop-down list on the page editor screen. If you do nothing, then the page will reside at the root/base level (e.g. http://www.mydomain.com/about-us/). I teach this in the Website Creation Workshop
Q: Should I build a blog and then connected to a main site? I also want many squeeze pages capturing contact info that then emails them to go visit a sales page … which ultimately leads them to join a membership community?
A: You certainly could have all these capabilities within one website if you desired. As to whether you should separate out the squeeze(opt in page) and sales pages from the blog, there is no one best answer. It depends on your branding strategy, where you are getting your traffic from, and whether you are selling your own products or affiliate products are some considerations in such decisions. This is a great question to ask during my Workshop and something that I typically help my students with.
Q: Do the email sign-up boxes come with WordPress?
A: WordPress is for building websites and blogs. To build and manage your optin email list, you will need an email hosting service. The opt-in box on my website was easily created in WordPress and it adds your email to my AWeber email list. Some other good email list services are ActiveCampaign, GetResponse, and Aweber (http://www.christinasresources.com/aweber*), to name a few. See all resources here: https://websitecreationworkshop.com/blog/resources/
Q: Does WordPress work on Mac OS without Microsoft?
A: Yes. Whether you have a Mac or a Windows system is not relevant. WordPress runs on a webhosting service (such as Greengeeks*, SiteGround*, Bluehost*, and WPEngine*) that then serves up the pages you created across the Internet a browser (e.g. Internet Explorer, Firefox, etc.) on your Mac or PC.
Q: Is there a limit to the maximum # of pages you can have?
A: You can create an unlimited number of pages (or posts) with self-hosted WordPress
Q: Do you need to have your own image or can you select images from WordPress?
A: WordPress itself does not provide graphics or images. You need to have your own graphics and photos. However one of the bonuses you get when you register for the 10 module course is that you get a graphics package with graphics you can use on your site. You’ll also get access for the resources page where we list various free and low-cost stock photo sites.
Q: How do you find buttons to use with your WordPress website?
A: With the graphics package I mentioned above, you have a large variety of buttons to place on your website
Q: Can you move the images around to get a particular placement?
A: Yes, you can left justify, right justify, and center an image placed with the text of a post or page. You’ll learn how to do this in Module 4 of the course.
Q: Do I have to give my team my admin login? or can I have multiple logins for each person?
A: WordPress allows unlimited logins. You can customize how much authority each person has to author, edit, contribute, and modify your WordPress website. You could, for example, give an assistant the ability to post content and edit content in your name (using her own login) and it will display as if you posted it yourself. On the other hand you could give an assistant only limited capabilities such as reviewing and approving approving blog comments.
Q: Do you get kicked off for having multiple usernames such as on Facebook?
No, you will not get kicked off for having multiple logins when you use the free software from WordPress.org and pay to host them yourself under a web hosting account that you own and control. Having full control over your website is one of the primary benefits of paying to host your website yourself, instead of using a free website/blog hosting service such as Blogger or WordPress.com.
Q: Is there a way with Word Press to add search terms so that the internet can find you when someone searches those terms (i.e. Google Searches)?
A: Google and other search engines will crawl and index all of your WordPress pages just as well as a regular HTML site. Search engine algorithms constantly change. I recommend you review Google’s SEO Starter Guide.
Q: Does WordPress have built-in SEO tools or do you need to do special things to enhance your website getting found?
A. Yes. WordPress is naturally SEO-friendly, but there are also some excellent SEO plugins available for WordPress.
Q: With WordPress, do you have options for background color, format, etc. or are all of them formatted the same?
A: It all depends upon the theme design you choose. We spend a whole module (module 6) on design of your website.
Q: Are there unlimited possibilities in page layout, number of pictures and overall feel of the site when you build a web site in WordPress?
A: Yes, the possibilities are unlimited with WordPress hosted on your own servers. This is one of the reasons why I teach the self hosted version of WordPress (wordpress.org).
Q: Once the webpages have been created, can they be held in draft form or do they launch immediately?
A: When you are creating your web pages (or posts), they can be held in draft form for as long as necessary.
Q: How long did it take to make your Nutcracker site (my very first WordPress site)?
A: I had the basic site for the the Grass Valley Nutcracker up in about 15 minutes. From there we built the site as on-again, off-again project over a few days while my husband and I wrote the content and gathered the photos and videos.
Q: How much HTML does one need to know to do moderate-level WordPress development? For example the GrassValleyNutcracker site you have up now or whatever site you may choose to comment on. How long would that take in general?
A: You do not need to know any HTML to create a site like the Grass Valley Nutcracker. You just need to know how to cut and paste.
Q: What is the difference between HTML code and WordPress?
A: Prior to software like WordPress, you needed to know how to create HTML code directly and people used tools like DreamWeaver to do so. With WordPress, you don’t need to know any HTML at all. WordPress creates the HTML code in the background for your visitor’s web-browser to display.
Q: Could you send info in video form?
A: Yes. You can easily post videos on your WordPress website.
Q: How do I add a video on my site?
A: Video can be easily added to a WordPress page or blog post. If you host your video on YouTube, you can simply copy and paste the embed code from YouTube in the page/post editor (This is demonstrated in the webinar that I run before the next workshop opens.).
Q: Can you add video without going through YouTube?
A: You can also add a video to your pages or posts without hosting it at YouTube. The reason you would want to do this is to eliminate any links in the YouTube video that might distract your visitors and take them away from your site.
Q: How do you copyright your website?
A: Anytime you write something original, you have copyright to it automatically. The copyright mark © on my website merely states that I claim copyright to the works I present on my web pages. You can go further and register your copyright(s) with the U.S. Copyright Office, but this is not necessary as you are automatically entitled to copyright ownership over all your original work.
Q: Can you remove the WordPress info on the footer?
A: Yes.
Questions About the Website Creation Workshop
Q: Are the classes live? And will the classes be archived if I miss one?
A: Yes to both. Each week’s instruction/Q&A will be delivered by webinar. All sessions will be recorded and posted within the private members area for your review if you are unable or do not wish to attend live. There are also mini videos in the members area, to speed you through your learning.
Q: What are the advantages of paying for your class vs. paying a web designer to create a site?
A: For the cost of typically ONE website built by a decent webmaster, you will be able to create unlimited sites quickly and easily after taking the Website Creation Workshop. Also, by paying someone else, you are now on their time table and their time frame, and you have to WAIT for them to get back to you. I believe that you should be able to take charge in your business and be able to move forward with new ideas as you get them.
Q: What is the name of the WordPress theme you are using on the Website Creation Workshop Blog Site?
A: I use Elegant themes Divi Theme and the Extra Theme. go to http://www.ChristinasResources.com/divi to learn more*
Q: What level is your course aimed at? Beginner, Intermediate, or Advanced?
A: This course will start out at the beginning, giving you the foundation of how to create pages and posts with WordPress. We will then advance through to more intermediate topics. So if you are a newbie who is just getting started with your first website, or if you are a person who has a site, and wants to take more control of it using WordPress, then this course is perfect for you.
If you would like a more advanced training, go to https://www.websitemarketingworkshop.com/
WordPress and Hosting Questions
Q: What is a domain? Why have different names?
A: A domain is what appears in the address bar of your browser (e.g. Firefox, Chrome, or Internet Explorer). It acts as your address or location on the internet. Why have different names? Each domain name represents a different website.
Q: wordpress.com and wordpress.org which do you recommend?
A: I recommend using your own hosting and using the self hosted version of wordpress (wordpress.org) mainly because with the self hosted version, you are not limited to what and how you sell products and services on your site. With WordPress.com you are limited in that.
Q: How do you get a custom URL for your blog that does not include ‘WordPress’ in the name?
A: The only type of websites that have the name WordPress in the URL are websites hosted using the WordPress’s free service at WordPress.com. I do not recommend hosting your site there as there are many restrictions and limitations placed on such accounts that make this impractical for commercial use. (With WordPress.com, you can use your own domain name without “wordpress.com” in it by paying extra, but even with that setup, there are other restrictions. Learn more here.)
To avoid having a website URL such as http://mydomainname.wordpress.com/ and other limitations, then you need to pay for your own website hosting with a service that supports WordPress. I recommend Greengeeks (https://christinasresources.com/greengeeks*), SiteGround (http://www.christinasresources.com/siteground/*), BlueHost (http://www.christinasresources.com/bluehost*), and WP Engine (http://www.christinasresources.com/wpengine/*). I have been using these services for quite a while now. They are all excellent, and have great customer service (being able to quickly reach a competent person by phone is very important with your web hosting company).
Q: Do you use forwarding and masking to avoid having the WordPress name in the URL?
A: No. I host all my websites with Greengeeks (https://christinasresources.com/greengeeks*), SiteGround (http://www.christinasresources.com/siteground/*), BlueHost (http://www.christinasresources.com/bluehost*), and WP Engine (http://www.christinasresources.com/wpengine/*). Because I pay for my hosting, I can use the domain names/URLs of my choosing. Only people who use free hosting, such as Blogger or WordPress.com get stuck with URLs such as http://mydomainname.wordpress.com/
(FYI, you can have an URL without WordPress on WordPress.com for a fee.)
See the article here I wrote on Domain Forwarding
Q: If you have already created a blog site in Blogger or WordPress.com, can you transfer the content to a WordPress site?
A: Yes, WordPress has a built in import feature to import content from various blogging systems.
Q: Why is WordPress better than Typepad?
A: WordPress now has way more market share than Typepad and any other blogging platforms. With millions of WordPress blogs, and thousands of WordPress developers out there there is tremendous support for WordPress. (also, Typepad is a paid service. WordPress is free.)
Q: How difficult is it to replace an existing website with a WordPress site so that you can use the same URL?
A: You can use the same URL/domain name that you currently have an established website at. During the Website Creation Workshop, I show how to easily build your new site WordPress while keeping your established site live until your new site is ready for the changeover. When you register for the 10 module course, you get a wordpress ‘student project’ website to start learning and develop your site right away, off from your live site.
Q: Can you save your WordPress blog so you always have a back up to use if you lose your site somehow?
A: Yes. It’s very important to have a backup of your site so that you won’t lose all the hard work should anything happens to your live site. There are great plugins to make this job easy. Some hosting companies also offer backup services.
Q: About the domain names for each WordPress site and squeeze pages – Can they all be under the same domain?
A: You can put your squeeze pages under the same domain as the rest of your website and/or blog if you wish. And they will still be true squeeze pages with no linkage to other pages of your website. This is covered in my Website Creation Workshop 10 module course.
Q: If I use WordPress as my website/home page – can I have another theme for my blog inside that site?
A: Yes. You simply have two copies of WordPress installed. One at the root/home-page level and a second where you wish to have your Blog (e.g. mydomain.com/blog).
Q: Where do you go to purchase a domain name and how much do they cost?
A: Domain names can be purchased at GoDaddy*, DomainNameQueen.com, and any other domain name registrar. You can also purchase your domain name at BlueHost* when you setup your hosting account. Although I recommend keeping your domain registration and your website hosting separate.
Q: Then, if I have my own hosting and domain, how do I get WordPress on it? Do I use FTP to do so?
A: The hard way to get WordPress on your site is to go to WordPress.org and download the software, then upload it via FTP. I do not teach that. In my course, I go over the easy way to get it installed on your website. Good web hosting services like Bluehost* now give you the ability to install the most current version of WordPress in just a few mouse clicks.
Q: How is web hosting different from WordPress?
A: Web hosting hosts your website, and WordPress is a software that runs on the hosting server.
Q: I already have hosting elsewhere, do I need to use Bluehost to use WordPress?
A: No, just check with your hosting company that they support WordPress and that they have 1 click installs, instead of FTP installs. The companies I use and recommend for hosting are Greengeeks (https://christinasresources.com/greengeeks*), SiteGround (http://www.christinasresources.com/siteground/*), BlueHost (http://www.christinasresources.com/bluehost*), and WP Engine (http://www.christinasresources.com/wpengine/*).
Q: Having multiple domain names under one hosting account affect SEO?
A: If you are using above-board, white-hat, SEO techniques, then no, having multiple domains hosted in one hosting account will not effect your search engine rankings.
Q: Can I use any web hosting company?
A: Before you sign up for web hosting, make sure they offer WordPress and cPanel. We recommend Greengeeks*, Siteground*, and Bluehost*.
Q: Can I just use a contact form within WordPress to build my list?
A: To build a list, you want to have an opt-in form, not just a contact form. To learn the difference and find out what you need, please read this blog post.
Q: Is maintaining a WordPress site difficult in terms of updating the software?
A: It is very important to keep your WordPress, theme, and plugins up-to-date. It might sound scary to run any updates, but as long as you know which basic precautions to take and take easy steps, you can do that by yourself. I teach how in my Website Creation Workshop, too!
*Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. And if clicked and purchased, we may receive a small compensation for the recommendation.
Excellent information. Christina to me you are gifted in teaching. Maybe I’m at a different spot in understanding, but find lots of value in your wisdom and sharing unconditionally. May you be blessed abundantly.
New website name above for my ladies over 50 who want to thrive in health/wellness and dream bigger, but still blogging under http://www.carolgiambri.com, both will be Word Press blogs. New site intentions teleseminars, newsletters, selling, building my list. Thanks.
I love your social media widget on your sidebar of your site! What is the name of that? I want to use it too!
🙂 Christina
Do you back up your WordPress sites?
What about those who use Hostgator vs. bluehost? Both work same way for hosting or advantage using Bluehost.com? I’m fixed into Hostgator. Think we can also have several websites through them too. I know for sure two I have.
Thanks bunches.
Carol Giambri
Carol,
I have never used hostgator, so just check with them to see if they have WordPress with an easy way to install it. I’m sure it will work just fine for you. See how good their phone customer service is too
-Christina
HI Christina,
Hostgator customer service for WP is not their gig as they said they can’t support that application; was a short while back so may have changed and didn’t ask.
So if we are using Hostgator and switch to Bluehost, how easy is that transition.
All I hear about is Hostgator mostly.
Thanks for being so interactive here. Gotta sound the alarm so others at twitter know.
I gotta see your upcoming class prices. Many suggest outsourcing via VA, but wondering how long it really takes to get things up and running. Maybe VA for the other parts including copywriting perhaps, etc. Beginners have to use money wisely but being informed too. Thanks again.
carol
Hostgator has Fantastico for simple WP installation and also has excellent support in both video form and quick phone resolution.
Bert,
Glad you are happy with hostgator.
I’ve used Fantastico, but I now teach Simple Scripts because I find it’s better than Fantastico.
Hi Christina
Love your Q & A. I wanted to alert you to this topic related to backups. I brought my site down and lost all of my content because I assumed that Bluehost was creating backups automatically. They do but only until your account reaches 2 gig. After that, they can no longer do the backups. http://www.thesavvyva.com/how-i-brought-down-my-wordpress-site/
Kathleen,
I didn’t know about that backup issue.
It’s always best to backup yourself. It only takes 5 min to do, and is a habit to get into.
Yesterday I went around and backed up all my sites.
the wp db backup plugin makes it very easy.
I am installing that on all my new students wordpress websites that my team is preparing for the course that starts this month.
Hi Christina
Yes, I was taken by surprise as well by the backup issue.
I am now using a plugin called WordPress Online Automated Backup. It seems to be working well. It does require a (free) account where the backups are stored–and that gives me some peace of mind.
Kathleen,
I always use the wp db backup plugin. It backs up your content to your desktop for safe keeping
Great info site — Love It! 🙂
I have three questions
1- I am using the free blogware at storeblogs.com (link enclosed), do you know if I will be able to transfer the content over to WordPress?
2-If WordPress.org is also free, what do they get out of giving it to us? Since they now have removed their branding.
3- I already have a hosting account with Godaddy.com, do you happen to know if they have 1 click installs for WordPress and/or other features similar to Bluehost?
Joe,
you need to ask storeblogs what system it is that they are using.
Here is what wordpress.org has to say about why it’s free “WordPress is an Open Source project, which means there are hundreds of people all over the world working on it. (More than most commercial platforms.) ”
you can read more about that here:
http://wordpress.org/about/
Godaddy is not the best place for wordpress. their interface is lacking.
Will you explain how to use istock photos on the wordpress site in your webinar or how can I find out how that works?
Tina,
istock photos is just a place to get stock photography to put onto any website. In my workshop, I explain how to post photos, audio, and PDFs to your site without knowing anything about FTP. I believe I covered this in the free webinar I did. Go back and check your email for that link
Thank you! I came in late to the webinar…I will check it out!!
I got my domains on Godaddy. So where else can we have then live? Will they refund or can I transfer domain somewhere else? Where? Thanks. Live and learn….
carol
Carol,
Clarification: it’s fine to register your domain names at godaddy. That’s what I do, at my private label of godaddy http://www.DomainNameQueen.com
It’s the web hosting that is lacking at godaddy.
So I register at domainnamequeen.com and then host at Blue Host
so no need to transfer your domain registration
🙂
Oh thanks I get it now. Waiting on friend still–he was unclear about my question not posted here.
Hi Christina, I have wanted to take this class for awhile now, even back when you offered it last time. However, I need to know what the cost is and the different payment options so I can save that amount of money. I have looked everywhere for this information and I can’t find it. It would really be great to know that upfront, as it would help people plan their finances accordingly. Can you please email me at [email protected] and tell me the class cost and payment options? I would REALLY appreciate it. Also, if I already purchased domain names, can they be used to make a wordpress site, or is that totally separate?
Thank you!
Sincerely,
Melanie
Melanie,
all the details for the Workshop will be announced on Thursday September 10th.
yes, if you purchased domain names you can use them to connect to your hosting for your wordpress site
Hello Christina,
I attended your webinar and look forward to learning about your upcoming workshop. I have a “temporary” site up at http://www.drtrachharris.com for the first of several books on college success for teens and adults. I have spent so much time thinking (and worrying) about how I can get an affordable professional website up, as most of my resources are going toward the book itself.
I also purchased other .com domains such as askdrharris and have been concerned that I would not be able to get them up (product sites) in in addition to an author site. What is important to me is that I can easily build several sites affordably until I have someone else handle those tasks.
Best of luck in all of your endeavors.
Dr. Tracy
I am also anxious to see the pricing, as my resources are very think these days… but this is something I’m very interested in.
At the end of the course, will we take away some sort of resource, cd, dvd, notebook, access to videos, etc.?
I was wondering if the course will cover customizing a theme…
Some themes are nice but are nicer if you can change up the header (and hide the default text header from WP), change the color or overall color theme and/or background, etc.
(that’s the graphic artist in me, I guess…kind of like never ordering exactly off the menu)… 🙂
I assume it will also cover how to modify the sidebar… widgets, ads, sign up boxes, etc. set up RSS and email feed, etc. right?
all details on the full course to be announced tomorrow sep 10th (just like Julia said!)
😉
Thanks for providing the very good questions and answers.Thanks for sharing.
I took the plunge, but surely the investment secretively. My hubby is not into investing in others but yet he is comfortable performing labor for sprinkler services and getting paid. He doesn’t understand value in mentors or teachers I assume, but he can’t be alone. I need to jump start me so I’m in. Getting older by the second, but still no time to waste as I just found WHAT I want to do and my audience. I privately made a choice for US here.
I not only look at the upcoming class as a way of networking and spreading word about others here. Instead of just you shouting about you, there will be massive ways for others to shout about us all.
After the second preview call and already in before it, I am wowing at the endless possibilities. I hope my ladies over 50 get this same enthusiasm from me that I am getting from Christina even before the class. Imagine that!
Cool site, love the info. I do a lot of research online on a daily basis and for the most part, people lack substance but, I just wanted to make a quick comment to say I’m glad I found your blog. Thanks,
A definite great read.. 🙂
-Bill-Bartmann
Bill,
I’m glad you stopped by my blog!
🙂
Christina
This info is awesome and was exactly what I was looking for! I just missed your recent class but did listen to your preview teleseminar and plan to be in the next one. My 2 sites are HTML and my blog is wordpress.com and I’d like to get them all over to wordpress.org I only found out about wordpress.org a few weeks ago!
Thanks for great info
Trudy
Trudy,
well you are in the right place. I may be doing a shorter summer program before my next Fall course. Get on the email list to be notified
Hi again Christina! I am in love with this post, it has all the info I need regarding WordPress.
I’m so glad you like this post on WordPress!
Although i feel you are the type of teacher/coach i have been looking for, i have two important concerns.
1) I am going through a serious financial problem at this point in time and i need to know what your fees are for
“The Website Creation Workshop” and additional coaching?
2) In addition to having very limited computor experience(ie. send a basic email and surf the web), i am a slow learner.
With that said, do you believe your workshops, teaching and
coaching methods will work for me?
Sincerely,
Ralph S. Chiavone, managing member
ALLIED ENTERPRISES, LLC.
Ralph,
1) The details and fees will be ready next Tuesday September 14th, so get on the email list for the early announcement.
There will be a payment plan, to make it easier for folks.
2) yes, I do believe that you can do it. I have taught many ‘newbies’ how to have a website without a webmaster.
Just read the testimonials here:
https://websitecreationworkshop.com/blog/testimonials/
Here is the link to my next workshop:
https://websitecreationworkshop.com/blog/next-workshop/
That will give you a good idea of my teaching style.
Hope it works out that you can join us,
Christina
You are exactly the teacher I’m looking for! Thanks for your clarity and know-how:)
Sally,
You are so welcome!
Make sure you see the post I did on getting your photo to show up when you comment on a WordPress site
When is your next WordPress Workshop and how much will it cost?
You just have to watch your email for the announcements. If you are not on the email list, go to https://websitecreationworkshop.com/blog/next-workshop