Or maybe they meant hours instead of minutes? Either way, WordPress made a mistake on their getting started guide.
While working as a website project manager at an agency, a coworker introduced me to WordPress. I immediately loved WordPress’s idea after dabbling with code-based websites for a year.
Starting the Timer
I looked up how to create a WordPress website and found their famous “5-Minute Install.” How could WordPress get any better, it helps stand up polished, functional websites, and it only takes 5 minutes to get started! I purchased a hosting plan and started building my first WordPress website. And, boy, those WordPress people were entirely off on how long it takes.
Five frustrating hours later, I had finally stood up a WordPress installation. That means it took me 60 times as long as it should have. Sixty! I felt duped by WordPress.
But, I was pretty happy with what was happening as I started to build. Even if it was just a black install screen:
To be fair to WordPress, I was a novice at best in terms of web stack items needed:
- FTP
- Hosting
- PHP
- Databases
- LAMP/MAMP
- Anything outside of CSS/HTML
That evening I spent hours googling about PHP, hosting, WordPress errors, how to use FTP, etc. After lots of trial and error, I installed WordPress, a bootstrap theme, and WooCommerce.
The first website I built on WordPress was actually for a client. And since it was only going to take me 5 minutes to install, I figured I could also finish the website in a few hours of work, even though it was an eCommerce site.
Time Well Spent
Fast forward some 40 hours, and I had launched my first website with WordPress! It even had a working shopping cart. I was mentally exhausted but had never felt so encouraged about my future career path.
Fast forward some ten more years, and I couldn’t be more grateful for those 5 hours that should’ve only taken 5 minutes. I have built over 200 WordPress websites since and no longer even go through the famous “5-Minute Install” process.
Now I use an automated process to stand up WordPress websites for me as I gather brand and content assets to build my next project.
Speeding Up Time
I can now say that my average time of installing a WordPress website is under 5 minutes. And I am recommending that WordPress change their lingo on their install guide. Here is what it should read:
“…WordPress is a very simple process and takes less than five minutes, on average, to complete.”
Useful marketing tools save time and help you produce value for your clients or business even if it takes 60 times as long to learn them as it should.
