Looking to build a few skills to create a website using WordPress? Although the Content Management System comes with an array of easy-to-use tools, the CMS has great potential for customizing. However, not everyone has a degree in web programming. Luckily, one of the finer points of WordPress is that it’s ultra-easy to use.
Below are five of the best tutorial sites for WordPress. Whether it’s for a novice developer or an experienced programmer, these sites are full of useful tidbits for people of all skills levels.
- WordPress Lessons
One of the biggest collections of in-depth tutorials for this CMS is located at WordPress Lessons. This area is based within the actual WordPress.org website and features everything from beginning texts to advanced lessons in CSS management.
The lessons themselves are well developed and many come with a table of contents for quick access. This isn’t the only aspect of WordPress.org that can be helpful when developing in the popular CMS, though. The site also features a forum that offers solutions to topics that are not covered in the tutorial section.
Each tutorial is extremely detailed and comes with screenshots to show visitors what they should be looking at when completing a certain task. Unfortunately, these long details may seem overwhelming to some because so much information is shared in each segment. However, WordPress Lessons may be one of the best locations to go for developing in the popular CMS.
- WP Beginner
When it comes to specific tutorials for certain tasks within WordPress, WP Beginner is an excellent choice. Instead of long and drawn out informational pieces, WP Beginner focuses more on exact specifics. For example, users can learn how to disable PDF thumbnail previews or how to remove a welcome panel in the dashboard from separate articles.
Because each tutorial is based on a specific issue, some of them can be quite limited. In some instances, not a lot of alternative information is available for the specific topic. Sometimes, users will also come across a tutorial that is severely outdated to the point where the content no longer fits with the current version of WordPress.
One of the best parts about WP Beginner is the frequency in which tutorials are created. Each month, the developers create a handful of new topics to create an ever-growing list of informational pieces that are useful.
- iThemes WordPress Tutorials
Unlike other websites in this list, iThemes WordPress Tutorials combines the power of video with text content. This is greatly beneficial for those who learn better from watching how something is done as opposed to reading about it. These videos vary in length depending on the topic and the instruction that goes into the lesson.
iThemes has an extensive collection of videos available ranging from the difference of WordPress.com and WordPress.org to building CSS templates. These videos range in difficulty and are helpful for anyone looking to expand his or her knowledge of WordPress.
The content is arranged in various categories to help with everything from plugins developed by iThemes to enhancing security and web development. The only real downside to iThemes is that many of the tutorials lack text to follow. For those who like to have reference content, the video is the only information to go by.
- GreenGeeks
GreenGeeks has an extensive collection of easy to follow tutorials within the company’s Knowledge Base. These pieces cover a wide scope of content and are separated out into specific issues. Some of these tutorials will even include best practices and alternatives. Many of these lessons also include why certain things are important in the WordPress environment.
The database at GreenGeeks is an ever-growing platform as more tutorials are added each month. New materials are based on the most current version of the CMS. What sets GreenGeeks aside from some of the others is the fact that the company doesn’t focus on outdated plugins and only uses those that are currently in use and updated.
Overall, the content is developed in a way that is easy to follow even by the most novice of users. The images are exceptionally useful and easy to see without having to zoom in or open in a new window.
- LevelUp Tutorials
LevelUp Tutorials provides a platform of more than 30 tutorials that are video-based. Although this site has fewer instructional pieces than some of the others on this list, the site itself is worth mentioning because of the quality.
The layout is easy to use whether the site is viewed from a desktop computer or a mobile device. The tutorials themselves are currently separated in two sections: WordPress Basics and Customizing WordPress. Unfortunately, some of the more pressing issues are not covered in LevelUp, but it’s a great place to start for those who are new to the CMS.
LevelUp is another source that doesn’t provide text-based information to follow. Users will have to make notes themselves or keep the video open when learning to make adjustments when they create a website.
Learn to Get More Out of WordPress
It takes more than an idea to create a website that is successful at driving traffic. Understanding what can be done in WordPress only serves to help developers engage that audience. From themes to plugins, some of the simplest tutorials may have a profound impact on the quality of a website. Embrace what WordPress can do and get more out of creating content.