How to Access the Wordpress Dashboard

To access the WordPress dashboard, simply go to your browser and type in "yourdomainname.com/wp-admin." This will take you to a login page, where you can enter the username and password you set up during the installation process. Once logged in, you will be directed to the WordPress dashboard, which is the control center for your website. From here, you can manage all aspects of your site, including creating and editing content, installing themes and plugins, and monitoring site performance.

The dashboard can appear overwhelming at first, as it contains various elements and options. However, it's important to note that many of these are merely ads or suggested plugins. To streamline the dashboard and optimize your site's performance, it's recommended to remove unnecessary stock plugins. By deleting these plugins, you can create a blank slate and then selectively install the essential plugins required for your website.

Once signed in, navigate to the "Plugins" section and click on "Installed Plugins." Here, you can deactivate and uninstall all plugins except for essential ones like Akismet and Jetpack. This process allows you to declutter your dashboard and enhance the efficiency and speed of your website. With a clean slate, you can then proceed with setting up and integrating the necessary plugins to optimize your WordPress site.

Identifying and Deleting Stock Plugins

If you want to build a clean, efficient WordPress website from the ground up, it's crucial to identify and delete all the stock plugins that come with the platform. Many of these plugins are essentially ads or suggested options that might not align with the specific needs of your website. To begin this process, access your WordPress dashboard and navigate to the plugins section. From there, click on "Installed Plugins," which will display the full list of plugins currently active on your site.

It's important to deactivate and uninstall most of these plugins, keeping only the ones that are essential for your site's functionality. While some companies may partner with WordPress to have their plugins suggested by default, it's imperative to curate the plugins based on your site's actual requirements. By removing unnecessary plugins, your website is likely to perform better, resulting in improved speed and higher search engine rankings. After thoroughly cleaning up the stock plugins, you can create a blank canvas to build a well-structured and functional WordPress website tailored to your needs.

Setting Up Jetpack Account and Integrating with HostGator

To set up the Jetpack account and integrate it with HostGator, start by logging into your WordPress dashboard and navigating to the plugins section. Click on the "Installed Plugins" tab and begin by deactivating and uninstalling all plugins except for Akismet and Jetpack. Jetpack allows you to connect your HostGator hosted website with WordPress.com, offering various benefits including showcasing your posts and site content on WordPress.com's reader app, potentially driving organic traffic to your blog. Additionally, it enables you to monitor your website's statistics through the WordPress app, providing valuable insights into visitor traffic and engagement.

Upon clicking the "Setup Jetpack" button, you'll be prompted to either create a Jetpack account or integrate an existing one with your website. Following this, you'll be guided through a series of steps to customize settings such as enabling the site accelerator for improved speed and better user experience, and configuring anti-spam measures for a cleaner comment environment. It's essential to ensure that automatic updates are turned on for both Jetpack and Akismet, ensuring that your website remains efficient and secure without manual intervention. Once completed, you will have a clean, efficient WordPress site ready to be built from the ground up.

Configuring Jetpack Features

After deactivating and uninstalling all the stock WordPress plugins, you can begin configuring Jetpack features to optimize the performance of your website. Once Jetpack is installed and integrated into your WordPress site, you can proceed to set up its features. This includes connecting your website with jetpack, setting up anti-spam, and enabling automatic updates. By configuring these features, you can ensure your site’s security, performance, and accessibility.

To set up Jetpack, start by clicking the "Setup Jetpack" button. If you don't already have a Jetpack account, you will be prompted to create one. You will then be guided through the account setup process, which includes providing basic information such as your name and email address. After linking your existing Jetpack account to your website, you can proceed to configure its features.

When configuring Jetpack, you can choose various settings such as enabling the site accelerator feature for a faster website, connecting with WordPress.com for enhanced visibility, and setting up the anti-spam feature to protect your site from malicious content. Additionally, you can enable automatic updates for Jetpack to ensure that you are always utilizing the latest version of the plugin. Configuring these features will optimize your website's performance and security, providing a seamless experience for your visitors.

Setting Up an Anti-Spam Plugin

To set up the anti-spam plugin, go back to the "Plugins" section and click on "Installed Plugins." Once there, enable auto-updates for efficient maintenance. Then, navigate to the "Settings" option and click to connect with Jetpack. This simple integration streamlines the plugin setup. With Jetpack connected, decide on the strictness level for the anti-spam measures. Silently discarding the worst and persistent spam can ensure a streamlined user experience, free from undesirable content. Additionally, to ensure compliance with GDPR regulations, display the privacy notice under your comment forms. Save the changes, ensuring a seamless and efficient anti-spam setup. Finally, for good measure, double-check that automatic updates are enabled for both plugins, securing a solid foundation for a WordPress site.

Enabling Automatic Updates

Now that all the stock WordPress plugins have been deleted, it's important to ensure that the remaining plugins are set to automatically update. This will allow for seamless maintenance of the website without the need for manual intervention. To enable automatic updates, navigate to the "Installed Plugins" section in the WordPress dashboard. Once there, locate the plugins that have been retained, such as Jetpack and Akismet, and ensure that automatic updates are enabled for each of them.

Automatic updates are crucial for keeping the website secure and functioning optimally. By enabling this feature, users can rest assured that their plugins will always be up to date with the latest releases, including important security patches and bug fixes. This not only streamlines the website management process but also helps to mitigate the risk of potential vulnerabilities that outdated plugins may pose.

By having automatic updates activated, users can focus on creating and maintaining content without the distraction of manual update notifications and procedures. This set-and-forget approach to plugin updates ensures that the website remains current and operates smoothly, empowering users to concentrate on their core objectives without being burdened by routine maintenance tasks.

Conclusion

In conclusion, by cleansing your WordPress site of unnecessary stock plugins and setting up essential ones, you have set the stage for an optimized and efficient website. The process of decluttering the plugins dashboard may seem daunting at first, but it's crucial to remember that keeping only the necessary plugins ensures a smooth and speedy website performance. This approach also enhances the site's search engine ranking and overall user experience.

The integration of Jetpack brings numerous benefits, such as connecting your website to WordPress.com and enabling easy access to site statistics. Additionally, setting up an anti-spam plugin, such as Akismet, is essential to protect your site from unwanted and potentially harmful comments.

Moreover, enabling automatic updates for essential plugins ensures that your site will always be running the latest versions without requiring manual intervention. With a clean and optimized WordPress site, you are now well-positioned to build and develop a professional and impactful web presence.

Highlight

In this video tutorial, the presenter demonstrates how to clean up all the stock WordPress plugins to create a blank canvas for building a proper website from the ground up. He navigates through the WordPress dashboard, guiding viewers on how to deactivate and uninstall unnecessary plugins and set up essential ones like Jetpack for website stats and connectivity.

The presenter emphasizes the importance of removing unnecessary plugins, which can potentially slow down a website and affect its search engine ranking. He advises keeping only a few essential plugins to ensure optimal website performance.

The step-by-step guide covers setting up Jetpack, connecting it to the website, and configuring settings such as privacy notices and spam protection. The presenter also provides insights into GDPR compliance and the significance of enabling automatic updates for the installed plugins.

By the end of the tutorial, the presenter ensures that the unnecessary plugins have been deleted, leaving the viewer with a clean, well-organized WordPress site ready for further development. The tutorial provides valuable insight into managing WordPress plugins effectively to enhance website performance.

FAQ

Q: What is the purpose of this tutorial?

A: The purpose of this tutorial is to guide users on how to clean up and reset their WordPress website by removing all stock plugins and setting up essential plugins for optimal performance.

Q: Why should I delete the stock WordPress plugins?

A: Deleting the stock WordPress plugins can help in creating a clean slate for building a website from scratch. It also enables users to streamline their site by removing unnecessary and potentially performance-burdening plugins.

Q: What is the significance of setting up Jetpack?

A: Jetpack allows users to connect their website to WordPress.com, which facilitates organic traffic through the reader app and provides reliable statistics for the site's performance.

Q: How does the anti-spam plugin benefit my website?

A: The anti-spam plugin helps in keeping the website free from intrusive and offensive comments, enhancing the overall user experience. It also ensures GDPR compliance by displaying the necessary privacy notice under comment forms.

Q: Why is enabling automatic updates important?

A: Enabling automatic updates for plugins ensures that the site is regularly maintained and secure without requiring manual intervention. It helps in keeping the website's functionality up-to-date without the need for constant monitoring.

Q: What are the potential benefits of having a clean WordPress site?

A: A clean WordPress site provides a solid foundation for building and customizing a website, enhances site performance, and can lead to improved search engine rankings. It also reduces clutter and potential security vulnerabilities.

Q: Are there recommended alternative plugins to consider for site acceleration?

A: Yes, WP Rocket is recommended as an additional plugin for speeding up the site. It is complementary to the site accelerator features provided by Jetpack.

Q: Can related posts be incorporated without using Thrive Themes?

A: Yes, related posts can be enabled to suggest additional content to visitors, improving user engagement and potentially boosting search ranking signals. This can be beneficial even without using Thrive Themes.

Q: What are the key features of Jetpack that make it valuable for website owners?

A: Jetpack enables website owners to not only connect their site to WordPress.com for increased visibility but also provides easy access to site statistics, mobile app integration, and various site improvement features such as related posts and site acceleration.

Q: How does cleaning up stock plugins contribute to better site performance?

A: Cleaning up stock plugins reduces the clutter and potential conflicts, which ultimately leads to a streamlined website with improved loading times and user experience. It paves the way for creating a more efficient and effective website.

Conclusion

In conclusion, by cleaning up and removing the stock WordPress plugins, we have set up a clean slate for building a proper website from scratch. The process involved deactivating and uninstalling all unnecessary plugins except for Akismet and Jetpack. Jetpack was then set up to enable connections between the hostgator hosted website and wordpress.com, thereby allowing access to site content and reader app on wordpress.com as well as providing easy access to site stats through the WordPress app on a phone. Additionally, the anti-spam plugin was integrated and set up, and automatic updates for both plugins were ensured. As a result, we now have a well-prepared and optimized WordPress site ready for further development and customization.