How to Create a Blog Post on WordPress

Now, you have a website. What’s next? You should create a blog post. Why? Well, think about it.

Why do you search with Google, Bing, or Yahoo? Generally, it’s to get an answer to a question. Most people use Google to get their questions answered. In return, Google, generally, will put the best response at the top of the search results.

Your organization is more than just a pretty website with pictures. If it doesn’t serve a purpose of answering people’s questions, then your site is a waste of space. The best way to answer people’s questions and give them a reason to visit your site in the first place is to create blog posts (like this one) with an answer to that person’s question.

WordPress was originally designed for bloggers to create articles to post on the internet. Even though WordPress has evolved into more of a web builder, the foundation of blogging has always been there. With that being said, you now have the tools that you need to blog. Now, you need to learn how.

Using WordPress to Create A Blog Post

Here’s how you can create a simple blog post. You can watch the video below and follow along with the instructions.

Finding Blog Posts from the Admin Dashboard

1. From your website’s admin dashboard, hover over “posts”.
2. Click on “Add New” in the flyout menu.
3. Most of you will see this screen.  WordPress recently updated the blog editor to what they call the “Gutenberg” Editor.  The point of this editor is to make it easier to see how your post will look like before you make it live.  I could go over each specific part, but right now I want to focus on the most basic things for creating a blog post:  adding a title, adding text, adding a picture, categorizing it, and publishing it.
4. This area is where you would put the title of your post.  Just simply click in this field and type the title of your blog post.  This title will be seen on the front end.
5. Down here is where you would add blocks to your blog post.  Blocks are different items that make up the content for your blog post, such as text, video, photos, code, and links.  Right now we’re going to do a default blog post with a picture.  Unity Tenth builds websites using the Divi Builder, so you might see a notice like this.  If you do, just click on “use default editor” to use “Gutenberg”.
6. Now, click in this block to start typing your post, or you can type your post in a separate editor, such as Microsoft Word, and copy and paste it directly into your post.  If you decide to type directly into the blog post, WordPress automatically saves the post as you go.  I’ve prepared some text already, so I will copy and paste it into the editor. (copy and paste paragraphs from Microsoft Word into the editor)
7. Now, let’s add a picture!  To add a picture to the blog post, click on the button with a plus inside of a circle between the two paragraph blocks.
8. Look for “Image”.  You can also type “image” in the search box.  When you find it, click on it.
9. From here, you have three choices.  The most common choice is to pull it off of your computer.  You can just drag the picture from your computer and drop it into the gray box.
10. In the far right, you can add alternative text, which will show just in case the picture doesn’t load on the website.  Also, the visually impaired can use special software that will read what you put in this field.  It’s not required to fill out this form, but it’s highly recommended, especially if you want to increase your chances on getting on the first page of Google.  A short description will do.
11. Back in the main editor, just above the picture, there are 5 options for how you want the picture to be laid out.  The options are pretty much self-explanatory.  I want this picture to be at the left of the text, so I will use the left justify button.
12. You’ll notice that the text automatically wraps around the image.  You can use the two blue dots to drag and resize the image.
13. Finally, if you want to, you can add a caption by clicking and typing where it says “write caption…”
14. Now just click somewhere outside in the white space and click on the arrow next to “categories” on the right.
15. Find the category that best represents what your blog is about and click on the box next to it.  You can choose as many categories if you want.  If your category isn’t listed, just click on the “Add New Category” link below, type in the new category, determine if it’s a parent or “main” category or if it’s a sub category, then click “add new category.”
16. Now, it’s time to make your blog post live.  If you want to make it live as soon as you click on publish, then make sure that the publish link says “Immediately” and click “Publish…”.  If not, click on “Immediately” and choose a date you want to schedule your post.  Then hit “Publish…”
17. It will ask you if you are sure you want to publish it.  Just confirm it by pressing publish again.
18. Now your post, if it wasn’t scheduled, is live on the front end.  You can tell because you’re given a link to the post and the “Publish…” button now says “Update”.  If you want to see how it looks like on the front end of your website, right click on the link and open it in a new browser tab. 
19. If you want to make some corrections, then just go back to your editor in the open browser tab, make your changes, and click the “Update” button.  Otherwise, you’re done!

Other Resources

There are a lot more features in the editor that I don’t have time to show you.  If you want to learn more, such as adding YouTube Videos, creating links, or more, then I suggest registering for free at WPBeginner.com.  They have a free video tutorial library and easy to read documentation for a variety of WordPress functions.  I highly recommend this resource to learn more about doing basic things on WordPress.

Also, don’t forget about the Unity Tenth Support Marketplace at UnityTenth.com.  If you need more hands on, in-depth support, feel free to visit the Marketplace, complete a ticket, and submit it.