How to Learn Drupal: A Complete Beginner’s Guide to Getting Started

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Are you ready to upgrade your website to Drupal?

Believe it or not, sites will use a content management system other than WordPress. Drupal runs about 5% of the top million websites. It’s quickly becoming the choice of web developers and designers because it can handle the most complex designs and it is more secure than WordPress.

All of that complexity can be intimidating for beginners to learn. That being said, it’s not as difficult as you think it is.

Read on to learn Drupal and get your website set up easily.

Start with a Wireframe

The best place to start when building a website is with a wireframe. This allows you to figure out how the many pages of your site fit together.

It’s also easier to map out the customer experience. For example, if your site has a lot of products or pages, you want to make sure that users can easily find what they need without having to dig through many levels of your site.

Creating a wireframe also helps you minimize mistakes in the design and development process. Once you’re creating the site in Drupal, or any CMS can become difficult or timely to correct those changes.

Get Ready to Learn Drupal

You know what your website should look like and how it’s structured. Are you ready to get started with Drupal? Let’s get started!

The place to begin is by installing Drupal. Depending on your host, this can be done very easy or it can be a little complex.

Most hosts these days offer Softaculous, which is a one-click installation tool for over 400 apps. Yes, Softaculous allows you to install Drupal with one-click. Otherwise, you’ll have to install Drupal via FTP.

When you install Drupal, you’ll have a choice to select the protocol, either HTTP or https. If you have an SSL certificate choose https. That can help your site’s security and SEO.

If you’re not sure if you have an SSL certificate, check with your web host. Some of them will offer a free SSL certificate through Let’s Encrypt.

As you install, you’ll get a series of prompt asking you to choose the domain name, the directory, database, and CRON job. In these instances, you need to choose the right domain for the installation, and you can accept the default option for the others.

Start Building Your Site

Now that Drupal is installed on your hosting account, it’s time to get to work. This is where you’re in the CMS and you can start to build your site.

There are a couple of options for you to build a site. You can download and install a theme on Drupal or you can build your site from scratch.

If you choose to download and install a theme, you’ll need to download it first. Then you go to your main Dashboard and go to Admin -> Appearance. Click on the option to install a new theme. You can then upload your theme from this option.

If you are going to build your site without a theme, you can do so, but it’s going to be a longer process. You can do this one page at a time.

If you want to create a page, go to the ‘Content page’ from the Dashboard. Then click on the ‘Add Content’ button. You can create a page or an article. An article would be like a blog post, where a page would be a static page on your site, such as a home page.

When you make your selection, you’ll soon realize that the CMS is pretty similar to other content management systems. You add your content, customize the URL and you’re on your way.

Customize and Add Modules

If you’ve worked in WordPress, you’re very likely to be familiar with plugins. These are the small pieces of code that you can plug into your site that can perform just about any function.

Drupal has similar functionality in the form of modules. Drupal offers over 42,000 modules that help you do anything from installing Google Analytics to creating an XML sitemap.

Further Your Drupal Knowledge

The great thing about Drupal is that as easy it is to start using, there is so much to learn Drupal. Drupal is a growing community of developers, that makes it easier to learn on your own.

You want to make sure that you’re taking advantage of all of the features that Drupal offers. Think of Drupal as driving a high-performance car. You know how to drive, but do you know how to get the most out of the car? It’s the same with Drupal.

When you learn Drupal, you never really stop learning because there’s a lot to know. You can start with these sites and learn which sites are using Drupal. It can also give you ideas to grow your site.

Drupal.org is the place to begin learning Drupal. It has a wealth of resources and you’ll find the latest information on updates and new releases.

There are plenty of blogs like this on that offer tutorials and advice to help you further your Drupal knowledge.

Learn Drupal and Become a Web Pro

There are a number of reasons why Drupal is starting to gain in popularity. This CMS can handle complex website structures and offer stronger levels of security than you’d find in other CMS options.

Want to learn Drupal? The secret to learning Drupal is simple: take one step at a time. Know that there’s a ton to learn about the functionalities of Drupal. Learn the basics of setting up Drupal and then take advantage of everything that Drupal offers. You’ll soon realize that the possibilities are endless.

Are you ready to become an internet pro? Check out this guide to own local SEO to make sure your site shows up in search results.