Whether you’re a budding blogger or web development professional, WordPress is a brilliant tool for creating websites—if you know how to tap its impressive features. This jargon-free Missing Manual shows you how to use WordPress and its themes, plug-ins, and widgets to build just about any website you can imagine, from a classy blog to a basic e-commerce site.

The important stuff you need to know:

• Create a blog. Get a free WordPress.com account, choose the right theme, and start publishing content.
• Build a website. Produce a professional-looking business site by customizing a WordPress theme.
• Add features. Choose from thousands of WordPress widgets and plug-ins to extend your site’s features.
• Mix in multimedia. Include slideshows, video clips, webcasts, podcasts, and music players.
• Involve your readers. Let readers leave comments, contribute to your site, and carry on a dialog.
• Build an audience. Learn search-engine optimization, measure your reader’s favorite pages, and publicize your site.
• Create a community. Use social media tools such as “Like” and sharing buttons, and provide RSS feeds of your posts.