Help With Wordpress

Thanks for the in-depth reply Martijn: very useful for focusing my mind! I think that one of my main concerns is that the sites that appeal look quite complex and I assume that I require a level of knowledge that is a step-up from something like a WordPress blog to a website proper (even using WordPress as a template). This concern is really as a result of my lack of experience with all things website-y.


I think that I have what I want to do pretty clear in my mind - to have a "footprint" on the internet where I can, 1) summarise my capabilities and what I have to offer, 2) briefly detail my experience and show how that experience can deliver what customers would want, and 3) to provide a way for potential clients to contact me. So, I think that that's a basis for what I want to have in a website, and the example I showed with the Medica template for WordPress is a good example of what I want: a "homepage" with tabbed sections that cover the points I want to express. I am not looking for things like social media linking to Facebook or Twitter as I do not want to have an ongoing blog-type presence for my work.

There is the potential for me to act as a place where people come to find the latest news on my particular field - wound care - but that would be a mammoth task to keep up-to-date. I don't think that I could keep that sort of thing current and (currently) I feel I want to focus on what I can offer rather than have any site content being present but out-of-date.


That's a good question! In the arena of internet presence WordPress is something that I am familiar with. This is the main reason. I am reasonably familiar with the dashboard and this familiarity has led me to assume that using WordPress would be the best way forward for someone who has no experience with setting up and running a "proper" website. I have this assumption that in order for me to set up a website I would need to become familiar with a program that would allow me to create and publish a website (and to administer as well.) I probably did not realise that there were website templates I could use.



I was asking clumsily whether the same WordPress templates would be available from a number of these template-offering sites. Could I "shop around" for the Medica template if this was the template I favoured?

Finding a template and setting it up doesn't seem easy part to me - the content is the easy part for me at the moment it seems! - but that's down to my inexperience.

What you'll probably find is that that template contains a great amount of functionality that you simply won't use and will cut out. That may well mean you'll find yourself paying for a template that aesthetically may look good but at the end of the day is rather overpriced for what you get out of it (but only you can make that call).

Have you had a good look through the templates stats and do they fulfill your needs? Or is it massive overkill? Look through all the options at the right hand side. Will you use them or some of them? If so, do they justify the quite heavy price?

At the end of the day the question is: does the price warrant the functionality that YOU need?
Will it make your life easier?
Will it make setting up and administration easier?
DOes it give you the tweaking and customisation options that you need?

To answer these questions you already need to have very clearly in your mind what your site is going to look like.
You made a good step by listing your requirements, and it seems you have your content sorted out as well.
So what is left is Step 2: go sit down for an evening, and simply create a model. On paper.
Sketch what needs to go where. How pages interact. What the user will see.

Then, at step 2.5 (yeah, I'm cheating by inserting substeps ) if at all possible, SHOW your sketches to an internet-savvy person. Do you count among your friends a web developer? A professional (or highly experienced) blogger? Is there a cousin or friendly neighbour who is webmaster of the Dalek Appreciation Society's web site?
Let them/him have a look and make a rough estimate of the effort involved.

Then match all that input to the template you want to buy.
If there's a match (doesn't need to be one-on-one, just enough to fit your stuff), then you're in business.
If not, it pays to keep on looking at templates that may fit your needs better.
You're probably already aware of this, but this is a really good start for customisable inspiration!


I understand your preference for WordPress and indeed even if it's not intended originally for static websites, there's no reason NOT to set it up like that. I'd say it's a definite plus that you are already aware of its workings, rather than having to start from scratch.

Shopping around for the same template is amost always pointless: these are unique templates that are developed in house and sold through the developer's company or outlet. Even if they are sold elsewhere (which is highly unlikely) you'll pay the same price.