[01] Installing Hello and Setting Up Elementor

Welcome! You're about to start an exciting journey in building a website using Elementor's Hello Theme. This theme is well-suited for WordPress sites due to its fast loading speed and seamless compatibility with the Elementor website builder. You'll start by installing the Hello Theme from your WordPress dashboard and setting up the basic structure for your website. This includes creating essential pages like the Home page, a Contact Us page, and an Our Menu page.

Once your pages are in place, you'll focus on setting up a navigation menu to help visitors easily find their way around your site. Using the Appearance menu options, you'll organise your newly created pages and customise the menu to suit your needs. By the end of this lesson, you'll have the foundation of your website ready, with Hello Theme actively enhancing your WordPress experience.

Key Takeaways

• Install the Hello Theme for a quick and reliable website setup.
• Create essential website pages and organise them efficiently.
• Set up a user-friendly navigation menu for easy site navigation.

Putting in the Elementor Hello Theme

Opening Theme Installation

To start installing the Hello Theme by Elementor, head to your WordPress dashboard. Look for the Appearance section and click on Themes. Once you're in, click the Add New button.

Locating Hello Theme

In the search bar located on the top-right corner, type Hello. When the Hello Theme appears, click on the Install button. After installation, make sure to select the Activate option to switch to the Hello Theme.

Turning On Hello Theme

The Hello Theme provides a free header and footer when used with the Elementor plugin. To make sure they are active, go to Elementor Settings and find Experiments. Scroll down a bit until you see the options for the header and footer and ensure they are set to Active. Finally, press Save Changes to keep your settings.

Setting Up Header and Footer in Hello

Accessing Elementor Options

To get started with enabling the header and footer in the Hello theme, head over to the Elementor settings. Open your WordPress dashboard and locate the Elementor settings. You'll see a section called Experiments. Scroll down to find the header and footer settings.

Turning On Header and Footer

Once you're at the correct spot, ensure that the header and footer feature is switched to Active. Don't forget to hit the Save Changes button to apply your settings. Now the header and footer with Elementor are ready to use.

Building Website Pages

Adding a Fresh Page

To create a new page for your website, move your mouse over the Pages tab and select Add New. If this is your first time, a WordPress welcome box might appear. Just click outside of it to get started. Type the page title, such as "Home," in the title area. Click Publish to make it live. Repeat these steps to create more pages, like "Our Menu" and "Contact Us."

Making Pages Public

Once you've set up your pages, you need to publish them. Publishing lets everyone see what you've made. To do this, click on the Publish button after you've entered the page title. You have to click Publish twice to confirm. This makes sure your content is visible to your site visitors.

Handling Standard Pages

Every new WordPress installation includes a Privacy Policy and Sample Page by default. These can be found under the Pages section. If you want to tidy up, hover over the page you wish to remove and select Trash. Keep in mind that having a privacy policy could be useful, so decide if you want to edit and keep it or remove it.

Setting Up Your Navigation Menu

Building a Fresh Menu

To start setting up your navigation tool, head to the Appearance tab and select Menus in your WordPress dashboard. Here, you can create a new menu by entering a name in the provided field and clicking on Create Menu. This step is crucial for helping visitors easily get around your website.

Arranging Menu Links

Once you've created the menu, you should see the links to the pages you've previously made, like the home page, contact page, and menu page. If they aren't visible, look at the list on the left and select these pages, then click Add to Menu. To arrange them in the order you prefer, simply click and drag each link to the desired position.

Storing the Finalised Menu

Complete your menu setup by saving your work. After organising the links, click on Save Menu to ensure your changes stick. That's it – your navigation menu is ready for use in your site's header, making navigation simple for your visitors.

Getting Ready for Drag-and-Drop Editing

When you're ready to use Elementor's drag-and-drop editor, you'll find it's a flexible tool that lets you build your website design with ease. First, make sure you've installed the Hello theme. This theme is lightweight and made to work smoothly with Elementor. It's free and stays up to date, making it a great choice.

Next, focus on setting up your website's pages. You should have a Home Page, a Contact Us Page, and an Our Menu Page. These pages give your website structure and are easy to create directly from the WordPress dashboard.

With these pages in place, your next step is to establish a navigation menu. This ensures visitors can easily find their way around your website. Head to the Appearance settings and find the Menus tab. Here, create a new menu, add your pages, and organise them as you see fit. Deleting any unnecessary pages is straightforward, too.

Having the right setup with your theme and pages will make using Elementor's editing features much smoother. It prepares you to dive into actually designing and customising your site, ensuring everything is laid out just right for your visitors.