I have already imported the demo content (provided by the theme developer) and personalized my WordPress settings. The next step is to customize WordPress the way I want. The goal here is to create a WordPress site exactly as it is on the demo site. Here's a quick glance at what we're going to do:

• Customize WordPress Menus
• Customize WordPress Widgets
• Install Essential WordPress Plugins
• Setup Essential Blogging Tools
  • WordPress Related Posts
  • Yoast SEO
• Add Contact Form
• Add Logo/Header

So let’s get started!

Now let’s get to know the various settings of WordPress and configure the same. The good thing is, most of them are set and forget kind of settings. So let’s get started!

When you browse a WordPress theme, you need to visualize your future website. That's why picking a theme/template is the toughest part of setting up any WordPress site. Seriously. There are a large number of free and paid WordPress themes out there so selecting one from so many themes can be extremely difficult. The problem with free WordPress themes is that its developers may not update their themes regularly. And when the codes of your themes are not up-to-date, it becomes vulnerable to attacks in the future. The same applies when you buy a paid WordPress theme from an independent theme developer (or freelancer). You may get the theme you really like at first, but eventually, the theme will become outdated. I personally recommend buying WordPress themes from a premium WordPress theme marketplace because they make sure that their WordPress themes are up-to-date. And that’s why they release new updates regularly and even add additional features when WordPress updates its core software. Out of the premium WordPress theme marketplaces, my personal favorite is StudioPress.com (oh yeah, I am also using one of their themes). First things first. There’s every chance that you will come across few terms like WordPress Framework, Child Theme (also known as Skin), and WordPress Hooks to name a few. So let us just explore those terms before getting started.

Plugins extend the functionality of your WordPress site (just like we add new features and functions to a web browser like Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox) with custom features. WordPress Plugins are independently developed by third-party developers across the world. There are over 50,000 plugins in the official WordPress Plugin Directory and you can install any of them using the plugin browser or the installer available in your WordPress dashboard. If you know what you want then you can use the Search to find it. Or, you can browse the Featured, Popular, Recommended, or Favorites (favorite plugins of a particular WordPress.org user) to get an idea of what’s possible. So let’s get started!

Now that you have purchased a domain name and a web hosting plan, it’s time to setup WordPress on your server. Login to Hawk Host Client Area when you receive the New Account Information email, and it's from there that you manage various aspects of your web hosting account. So let’s get started!

Now you have purchased a domain name, a web hosting plan and have updated the nameservers as well. So what happens after that? Basically, once you purchase a domain name + web hosting plan, you need to do 3 things. First, setup your web hosting account (including nameserver updates, update passwords, etc.). Second, upload the website files from your computer to the server. Third, setup your custom email accounts ([email protected]). When your web hosting account is activated, you will receive a welcome email from the web hosting company with the account information. Some web hosting companies offer instant account activation and hence you receive the account information email almost instantly. I have received the account information email in less than 30 minutes. Now I will simply go through the Hawk Host Client Area --- just in case. So let’s get started!