Building a website from scratch is now easier than ever, thanks to an array of content management systems available to users. Options such as Joomla and Drupal are used most often by those with a familiarity in web design, but for many, WordPress offers a more convenient and easy-to-use solution.

WordPress is used by more people than any other content management solution in the world, making it immensely popular and capable of offering a wide array of plug-ins and features. Setting up a new WordPress website is easy enough, but where do people go from there?

Today, let’s look at some initial actions any webmaster will want to take in order to unleash the true power of WordPress.

Improving Page Speed

Those who have spent any meaningful amount of time using WordPress websites know one fundamental truth: WordPress can be kind of slow. This reality – especially when bogged down with numerous plugins and add-ons – only poses risks and complications for brands seeking to drive traffic and boost visibility in search engines.

A variety of page optimization tactics exist, including image/file size optimization, minimal plug-in usage and (perhaps ironically) plug-ins that optimize functions throughout the website. The faster your pages load, the more likely your website will be pinging servers and search results in a prominent fashion.

Mobile Optimization

Before any WordPress website can be fully usable and ideal, it must first cater to the majority of people who are likely to find it. These days, most search engine and social media users navigate these platforms via mobile devices. If you intend to be found on these platforms, then offering a mobile responsive experience to audiences is crucial.

WordPress can be easily configured to adapt to any mobile device or resolution, so implementing a strategy for this in the beginning is paramount. With a mobile responsive design, you’ll also be more likely to rank prominently in search results and avoid losing traffic due to resolution, navigation or other UI-related issues.

Tags & Meta Descriptions

As you begin to build out various pages and posts, you’ll need to properly optimize them for search engines, social media and more. Title tags and meta descriptions are important aspects of this process, and must be optimized on any WordPress website for optimal performance.

These pieces of HTML code help search engines, browsers and crawlers accurately identify information based on the header of each website and page. These elements also display in search engine results, providing users with valuable information about the contents of the page in question. Simply put, optimizing these elements helps attract more worthwhile attention and visitors.

Internal Navigation

Last but not least, optimizing any new installation of WordPress should focus on improving the navigational aspects of the website. Internal navigation matters both in pinging servers and search engines, as well as providing an optimal user experience. Poor navigation options – common with fresh WordPress installs – can frustrate users and make it more difficult for search engines to index all of your content. As such, pay careful attention to this detail as soon as your new site is published.

These simple tweaks should be made as soon as possible after site deployment. While WordPress provides many useful features, not everything is optimized from day one. By addressing these concerns, you’ll create a website optimized both for search engines and people alike.