This simple checklist is one you should print out and keep handy if you’re not yet 100% confident with the installation and usage of WordPress. You can also make use of my free WordPress video tutorials at PaulBarrs.net.

Design and Admin

1. Adjust your time zone under ‘general’ settings.

2. Change “Other comment settings” and check the “Enable threaded (nested) comments 5 levels deep”, in ‘Discussion’ settings. This helps highlight any replies to any comments and is easier for the visitor to read.

3. Get yourself a Gravatar that will be displayed whenever you comment. Having a Gravatar helps promote you and your brand across the internet. See: http://en.gravatar.com/

4. Get and install a personally designed header banner. Personally designed header banners make your blog stand out.

5. Change the “Display name publicly as” field to your name – under the “Users” menu tab. Doing this will display your name as the author of the blog posts you publish.

6. Delete the default “Blogroll links” and “Mr WordPress comment” – Under the “Blogroll” and “Comments” menu tabs.

7. Set up and install Google Analytics. The best free tool around to monitor your traffic stats.

8. Create an About Me page. You want to share a little about you and what you can do for your visitors.

9. Create a Contact page, so visitors can easily make contact with you.

10. Have a Favicon designed and installed – it’s all about your personal branding. This free tool will help you.

11. Delete the “hello world” default blog post.

12. Add a Privacy page. This is the page where you tell your visitor what you do with any data they give you.

13. Add a Disclaimer page. You also need to add a ‘Disclaimer’ page. This is the page that stipulates what you mention on your blog may not suit everyone and not everyone will get the same results.

14. Add an Affiliate Disclosure page. I believe in being totally open and honest with my visitors. If I am going to make some income from someone clicking on a link on my site, I like to tell them and so should you. This page should tell your visitors that you make an income using affiliate links on your blog.

15. Move to a premium theme. Those free WordPress themes are very ‘clunky’ – hard to change, difficult to maintain and restrictive in their design.

SEO

16. Add a blog title and tagline that includes your primary keyword phrase in the ‘General’ settings.

17. Change the ‘permalinks’ (‘permalinks’ under ‘settings’) structure to a custom structure: /%post_id%/%postname%/ This structure is deemed the best for SEO purposes.

18. Set up your categories using your keyword phrases.

19. By using the Google Webmaster tools, you can quickly get your blog indexed. Verifying ownership of your Blog via the Google Webmaster Tools.

Must Have Plugins

* Akismet
*All-In-One-SEO
*Google XML Sitemap
*Broken Link Checker: Identifies bad links anywhere on your site

There are many others and I’m sure some reading this will have their own. This short list is just for starters. I’d love to see your best suggestions in the comments section below.

Security

28. If you have used FTP to upload WordPress – store/remember your ftp login details. You can waste hours looking for access details.

29. Change the password of your WordPress Admin login. Some hosting sites provide the password when you first install WordPress – change it – you just never know who has also seen it.

30. Change the WordPress admin username – most hackers know that ‘admin’ is the username and then they only have to guess the password. Make it twice as hard and change the admin username to something other than ‘admin’

31. Keep WordPress and your plugins up to date. Often WordPress and plugins are updated due to security reasons. Keep your site updated on the latest versions. Make sure you backup before you upgrade and test after your upgrade.

Note on security… I keep a word doc of all my password on my PC (and no, it’s *not called passwords, LOL) – I also keep a backup copy on my external HD and on another zip drive. So should one drive ever get fried I will always have the backups. Also, by only copying and pasting I lesson the chance of any ‘key-logger’ software tracking my passwords.

However, back to WordPress. Once you’ve learnt how to get it up and running yourself, you open up a whole new arena of possibilities. Take a look at my free WordPress video tutorials at PaulBarrs.net.

Got a favorite WordPress Plugin? Leave a comment -