Are you new to WordPress and feeling overwhelmed at the thought of creating your first blog post? You‘re not alone. While WordPress is a powerful and user-friendly platform, there‘s still a learning curve when it comes to mastering the editor and crafting compelling posts that engage your audience.
In this comprehensive guide, I‘ll walk you through everything you need to know about WordPress posts in 2024. From understanding the difference between posts and pages to using the block editor like a pro, you‘ll gain the knowledge and confidence to create content that wows your readers and boosts your online presence.
Let‘s dive in!
Posts vs Pages: What‘s the Difference?
One of the most common questions I hear from WordPress newbies is: "What‘s the difference between a post and a page?" While both allow you to publish content on your website, they serve distinct purposes.
Think of WordPress pages as static, timeless content. They‘re the core pieces of your website that don‘t change often, such as your About, Contact, and Services pages. Pages aren‘t typically date-driven or part of a chronological series of content.
Posts, on the other hand, are dynamic, time-based pieces of content, usually displayed in reverse chronological order on your blog page. They‘re meant to be updated frequently and often center around news, ideas, or topics relevant to your niche. Posts can be organized using categories and tags, making it easy for readers to find related content.
Anatomy of the WordPress Block Editor
Gone are the days of the classic WordPress editor. With the introduction of Gutenberg in WordPress 5.0, creating posts has become more intuitive and flexible than ever before. The block editor allows you to build rich, multimedia content using individual "blocks" for each element, like paragraphs, headings, images, and more.
Here‘s a quick rundown of the key components you‘ll find in the post editor:
Post Title
This is your post‘s headline – the first thing readers will see when they land on your blog. Aim to create titles that are clear, compelling, and optimized for search engines. Include your focus keyword if possible and keep it under 60 characters to avoid truncation in search results.
Post Content
This is where the magic happens – the meat of your post where you‘ll use blocks to build your content. I‘ll dive into the most common blocks and how to use them effectively later in this guide.
Post Author
If you have multiple contributors to your blog, you can assign posts to different authors. This not only gives credit where it‘s due but also helps establish expertise and builds trust with your audience.
Permalink
The permalink is the URL where your post will live. WordPress automatically generates a permalink based on your post title, but you can customize it to be more concise and keyword-rich. Avoid using stop words like "and," "the," or "of."
Categories and Tags
Categories are broad topics that help organize your posts into logical groupings. For example, if you run a recipe blog, you might have categories like "Breakfast," "Appetizers," and "Desserts."
Tags provide a more granular way to label and associate posts. Think of tags as specific keywords or phrases that describe the post‘s content. So for a post in the "Breakfast" category, you might use tags like "vegan," "gluten-free," or "meal prep."
Keep in mind that while categories are hierarchical (meaning you can create subcategories), tags are not. Use them strategically to improve your content‘s discoverability.
Featured Image
The featured image serves as the visual representation of your post – it‘s what will appear in your post feed, social shares, and other places your content is promoted. Make sure to choose a high-quality, relevant photo that grabs attention and communicates your post‘s topic.
Excerpt
The excerpt is a brief summary of your post, usually displayed in post feeds, search results, and other areas where the full post content isn‘t shown. While WordPress can automatically generate an excerpt from the first 55 words of your post, it‘s often better to write a custom excerpt that teases your post‘s main points and entices clicks.
Discussion Settings
Depending on your preferences, you can allow or disable comments and pingbacks on a per-post basis. Keep in mind that while comments can be a great way to engage with readers and build community, they also require moderation to prevent spam and maintain a positive discourse.
Creating a New WordPress Post: Two Ways
Now that you‘re familiar with the anatomy of a WordPress post, let‘s walk through the process of creating one from start to finish. There are two main ways to go about it:
1. Writing a Post from Scratch
If you prefer to compose your posts directly in WordPress, simply navigate to Posts > Add New in your dashboard. You‘ll be taken to a blank post editor where you can start crafting your content.
Here‘s a step-by-step breakdown:
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Enter your post title in the "Add title" field at the top of the page. Keep in mind the best practices we discussed earlier – aim for clarity, conciseness, and keyword optimization.
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In the post content area, start building out your post using blocks. Click the "+" icon to browse available blocks and add them to your post. Some of the most commonly used blocks include:
- Paragraph: For standard text, like the body of your post.
- Heading: To break up your content into sections and signal hierarchy. Stick to a logical structure, using H2 for main sections, H3 for subsections, and so on.
- List: To create bulleted or numbered lists, which are great for organizing information and making your posts more scannable.
- Image: For adding visual interest and supporting your content. Make sure to optimize your images for web and include descriptive alt text for accessibility.
- Video: To embed videos from YouTube, Vimeo, or other hosting platforms. This is a great way to engage readers and add multimedia to your posts.
- Buttons: To create clickable call-to-action buttons that direct readers to landing pages, products, or other important links.
- Columns: To structure your content into multiple columns, which can be useful for comparing items or showcasing features side-by-side.
- Spacer: To add white space between blocks and give your content some breathing room. Don‘t underestimate the power of visual breathing room in your posts!
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As you build your post, make sure to save your draft periodically to avoid losing your work. WordPress automatically saves your content every few minutes, but it never hurts to manually save often, especially if you‘re working on a longer piece.
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Once you‘re happy with your post, it‘s time to get it ready for publication (more on that in a moment).
2. Copying and Pasting from a Word Processor
If you prefer to write your posts in a word processor like Google Docs or Microsoft Word, you can easily copy and paste your content into WordPress. Here‘s how:
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In your word processor, select the entire post and copy it to your clipboard.
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In the WordPress post editor, place your cursor where you want the content to appear and paste it in.
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WordPress will automatically convert your content into blocks based on the formatting in your original document. For example, headings will become heading blocks, paragraphs will become paragraph blocks, and so on.
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Review your post to make sure everything transferred over correctly. You may need to make some minor adjustments, like adding alt text to images or reformatting lists.
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Save your draft and proceed to the pre-publication checklist.
Prepping Your Post for Publication
Congratulations – you‘ve written a amazing post and you‘re almost ready to share it with the world! Before you hit that "Publish" button, run through this checklist to ensure your post is polished and optimized:
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Set the post author: If you have multiple contributors, make sure the correct person is credited for the post.
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Customize the permalink: Edit the post URL to be concise, descriptive, and keyword-rich.
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Assign categories and tags: Choose the most relevant categories and tags to help readers find your post and understand its context.
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Upload a featured image: Select a high-quality, eye-catching photo that represents your post‘s content. Make sure it‘s optimized for web and includes descriptive alt text.
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Write a custom excerpt: Summarize your post‘s key points in a couple of sentences to entice readers to click through from post feeds and search results.
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Optimize for SEO: If you‘re using an SEO plugin like Yoast or RankMath, fill in the meta title and description, and make sure your post is optimized for your target keyword.
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Preview the post: Click the "Preview" button to see how your post will look to readers. Check for any formatting issues, broken links, or other errors.
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Schedule or publish: If you‘re ready to make your post live, hit the "Publish" button. Alternatively, you can schedule the post for a future date and time by clicking the "Edit" link next to "Publish immediately."
Editing and Updating Published Posts
Just because a post is published doesn‘t mean it has to stay static. In fact, regularly updating your old posts is a great way to keep your content fresh, accurate, and optimized for search engines.
To edit a published post, simply navigate to Posts > All Posts in your WordPress dashboard. Hover over the post you want to edit and click "Edit." Make your changes in the post editor, then click "Update" to save them.
Some reasons you might want to update a post include:
- Correcting errors or typos
- Adding new information or examples
- Optimizing for new keywords
- Improving formatting or readability
- Adding internal links to new, relevant posts
- Removing outdated content or broken links
Whenever you make significant changes to a post, consider adding a note at the bottom indicating when it was last updated. This helps build trust with readers and signals to search engines that your content is current and relevant.
Wrapping Up
Whew, that was a lot of information! Let‘s recap the key points:
- WordPress posts are dynamic, time-based pieces of content that are typically displayed in reverse chronological order on your blog page.
- The WordPress block editor allows you to create content using individual blocks for each element, like paragraphs, headings, images, and more.
- When creating a post, pay attention to key elements like the title, permalink, categories, tags, featured image, and excerpt.
- You can either write a post from scratch in the WordPress editor or copy and paste your content from an external word processor.
- Before publishing, make sure to optimize your post for search engines, preview it for errors, and either publish immediately or schedule for later.
- Don‘t forget to regularly update and optimize your old posts to keep your content fresh and relevant.
With this knowledge under your belt, you‘re well on your way to creating compelling, high-performing WordPress posts that engage readers and drive results for your website.
I hope you found this guide helpful! If you have any lingering questions or tips of your own to share, leave a comment below. Happy blogging!
