If you haven’t started your blog yet, I highly recommend you checking out my easy step-by-step tutorial here on how to start your blog for as low as $2.95 a month.

I often get many questions about the Foodie Pro theme from my readers because they like how it looks on this blog you’re reading right now, Blog Savvy Panda, and my other blog about personal finance, Finsavvy Panda, so I decided to post this today to help you choose and install a new theme that you’ll love.

On top of that, I know many of you are frustrated with the limited options that come with the free no-frills themes and you’ve decided to invest in a more premium theme to have access to better options and customizations.

As a side note, I also use the Simply Pro theme for my lifestyle blog and it’s another beautiful theme you can consider. If you want me to write a review on that, simply send me an e-mail at ling@finsavvypanda.com and I’ll post it on this blog for you.

In this Foodie Pro Theme review, I’m also going to go through an easy step-by-step tutorial on how you can get it up and running for your blog in 15 to 20 minutes.

Even if you decide to go with a different theme, this tutorial should still give you an idea of how to choose and install the Genesis framework along with that theme for your blog.

Alright, let’s first dive into my honest review about the Foodie Pro Theme.

Foodie Pro Theme Review

I’m not a food blogger (I know, the name “Foodie Pro Theme” implies it’s for recipe bloggers), but I still chose this theme for my blogs because I just love how flexible this theme can work for literally any website.

Whether you’re a fashion, beauty, lifestyle, personal finance, business, or mom blogger, this theme was made to work for almost any blog niche, and it’s still a very popular choice in theme amongst bloggers who don’t blog about food or recipes.

I can’t say enough, but I absolutely LOVE everything about the Foodie Pro Theme due to its modern and clean look. It’s simple and minimalistic but it’s also beautiful and sleek at the same time.

The Foodie Pro Theme makes it extremely easy for your reader to navigate your website. To my surprise, I’ve had many readers who e-mailed me and told me they love the appearance of my blog. They appreciate how easy it is to browse around my site.

They’ve also said that although some of my articles are longer in length, they feel like it’s easy to go through without making their eyes feel tired.

The white space that comes with the Foodie Pro Theme gives your website a decluttered and clean feel. It’s also easy on the eye when your readers are going through your blog posts and pages.

You can also check out this post on how to write your first blog post for some tips and tricks about layout.

Trust me, you’d want to stay away from themes that look too complicated or fancy because this may distract, or even confuse, your reader when it comes to browsing around your website.

Less is always more.

Centering my Image Logo with Foodie Pro Theme

The only one thing I found challenging with the Foodie Pro Theme is adding my logo image at the top center of my blog for Finsavvy Panda, but it was working just fine with the blog you’re reading now.

It kept shifting towards the left end, but luckily, I was able to change this with a quick simple code for the Finsavvy Panda blog. I don’t know anything about coding, but I was able to find someone who was able to do this for me. Anyway, I don’t know what it was, but I doubt you will see an issue with yours when you upload your logo or image at the top of your blog.

Like any other theme you purchase, you’re likely going to experience a few things that you don’t like. This goes for any pre-made theme out there because, for one, it’s “pre-made” or “pre-designed” meaning it’s already customed for you.

If you know a thing or two about coding, you can always make minor tweaks to your theme. You can click around the demo site and browse to see how you like it.

Therefore, it’s important to do a “Live Demo” view before purchasing your theme.

That way, you can see sample pages of how it would look on different devices by clicking through the desktop, tablet, and mobile view.

Again, you won’t be able to get exactly everything you want unless you tweak it with some coding knowledge or hire a professional designer.

I personally don’t know any coding (EEEK), but I was still able to get the Foodie Pro Theme up and running great on both my blogs without any coding or technical knowledge. And no, I have not hired any professional designer.

Overall, purchasing a more premium theme will give you a lot more customization options compared to a basic free theme. Plus, it’s generally better for site speed and is much more user-friendly compared to the free themes.

Free Strategy Bundle Bonus with Foodie Pro Theme purchase!

This nice little extra bonus will be helpful for you!

When you use this specific page here to purchase the Genesis framework + Foodie Pro Theme bundle, you’ll also receive the Bonus Strategy Bundle in your Foodie Pro Theme folder.

This BONUS Strategy Bundle is created by the creator of Foodie Pro Theme, and it includes PDF resources, worksheets, along with quick actionable tips for bloggers such as:

• 5 Extra Time Saving Tips For Bloggers
• 6 Best Places To Find Stock Images For Your Blog
• 6 Things To NOT Do When Writing a Sponsored Post
• Blog Post Checklist
• Creating Your Blog Work Plan
• Daily Reflection Worksheet
• Do I Really Need This Plugin For My Blog?
• Finding Your Most Productive Time of Day To Blog
• Pitch Your Blog With This Email Template
• Start Your Blog Checklist
• What Makes A Blog Graphic Pinnable on Pinterest
• Writing Your About Me Page

Once you’re ready to purchase and install The Foodie Pro Theme, you can click here to purchase your Genesis framework + bundle.

IMPORTANT NOTE: If you are a brand-new blogger, or a first-time buyer, who has never purchased the Genesis Framework before, you will NEED to buy the Genesis framework + Foodie Pro Theme bundle package. I will explain what that means in a bit.

On the other hand, if you already have the Genesis framework, you can just simply buy the Foodie Pro Theme alone.

When you use either link on this post, you’ll receive the Strategy Bundle by the creator of the theme as a bonus gift after purchasing it!

Genesis Framework and Foodie Pro Theme Bundle

In the remainder of this article, I will show you a step-by-step tutorial on how to install both the Genesis Framework and Foodie Pro Theme on your WordPress.

But before I move onto the tutorial, earlier I mentioned that if it’s your first time installing a theme, you’ll also need to purchase what they call the “Genesis framework” for your theme.

Without this framework, your theme won’t work or function.

You can think of the “framework” as the foundation for building your blog, which you need, and the “theme” is the cosmetic appearance where you can play around with the design such as colors, fonts, sidebars, etc.

To give you a simple analogy, think of your house with a strong support foundation as “the framework”, which you need before painting and decorating your home. You can think of the paint and decoration as cosmetic appearances much like the blog “theme” that looks beautiful on the surface.

You only need to buy the Genesis framework once, and when you have the Genesis framework uploaded onto your WordPress, you can purchase as many different themes and switch things up as many times as you like going forward.

I’ve had people e-mail me in the past asking me why their theme isn’t working and it’s because they didn’t buy the bundle package that comes with the Genesis framework. They only purchased the theme alone.

If you’ve already purchased a theme from studiopress, but without the Genesis framework yet, you can use this page to purchase the Genesis framework alone.

Buying The Genesis Framework and Foodie Pro Theme

Whenever you’re ready, you can click here to purchase the Genesis Framework + Foodie Pro Theme bundle package. This is the exact same bundle I purchased and use for my blogs!

By the way, there are many other gorgeous and popular themes to choose from such as:

• Niche Pro Theme Package (I love how simple, pretty, and chic this looks)
• Simply Pro Theme Package (Similar to the Foodie Pro Theme, I love how minimalistic and clean it looks)
• Modern Studio Pro Theme Package (You can’t go wrong with clutter-free simple black and white)

You can use still use and follow this tutorial even if you decide to go with another theme. I really do think the simpler you go, the easier it will be for you to customize a beautiful blog without feeling overwhelmed by too many options!

Okay, it will now take you to this page, so you can follow the steps to buy the Genesis Framework and theme.

Step 1: Click on “Buy Theme + Framework Package”.

Before buying, you can always click on “Live Demo” to get a quick tour of how it would look on your desktop and mobile

Step 2: Enter your information

Fill in the fields by entering your personal information.

This includes your first and last name, creating a password to create an account, address, and your credit card information.

Step 3: Check your e-mail

Once you’ve made your purchase, you should get an e-mail in your inbox that confirms your purchase along with the next steps of instructions.

It should also come with a user manual on how to upload and design your blog, but I will cover the part on how to upload it onto your WordPress here.

How To Install The Foodie Pro Theme With Genesis Framework Using WordPress

Follow these steps to install the framework along with your blog theme.

Step 1: Log in to your WordPress dashboard and go to Appearance >> Themes.

Step 2: Click the “Add New” button at the top of the page of your WordPress dashboard.

Step 3: Click the “Upload Theme” button at the top of your WordPress dashboard.

Step 4: Click the “Choose File” button and find the file for your genesis theme on your computer.

The file name may have an ending of .zip (example: genesis.zip or genesis-sample.zip). Mine was genesis.3.2.1.zip

Step 5: Once you’ve chosen the genesis zip file, click the “Install Now” button for upload.

Note that you do NOT have to activate the Genesis framework.

Step 6: Go back to Appearance >> Themes page.

Here you can see all your previously installed themes and you should now be able to see “Genesis Framework” here like this.

Step 7: Congratulations! You’ve installed the Genesis Framework, so now it’s time to install the theme of your choice.

You can repeat steps 1 – 5 to install the theme you just purchased (e.g. Foodie Pro Theme) and activate it. It should be in the Foodie Pro Theme folder and the name of the zip file should contain “foodiepro” along with the version. For example, when I installed mine, it looked like “foodiepro-v440” in the folder.

Step 8: Time to design your website with your new theme!

Inside your WordPress dashboard, go to Genesis >> Theme Settings and configure this to your liking.

This is how my other blog, Finsavvy Panda, looks with the Foodie Pro Theme:

And here is the current one you’re reading now with the same theme:

At the time of writing this, this new blog of mine is still a work-in-progress, and I didn’t add too many things to it yet.

Many people have asked me if they should prepare and get everything ready before launching their sites officially.

I am publishing my posts and building this blog at the same time. I don’t go by any “official launch date” because the truth is no one will see or read your blog unless you are actively sharing them on social media or Pinterest. So, it really doesn’t matter if you are putting it up live as you are building it.

This is what I did to my first website, Finsavvy Panda, and yet it was still consistently earning over thousands of dollars every month in income despite it not being “officially ready” or “complete.” The truth is, your blog will never feel ready for launch, so don’t be afraid to learn, build and make your content go live all at the same time!

Having that said, go ahead and play with all those options and settings and preview it on the right-hand side to see how you like it.

Also, please know that all pre-made themes are created differently, so the settings and customization options may be different.

That is it for today, my friends!

If you haven’t started your WordPress blog yet, be sure to check out my easy step by step tutorial on how to start a WordPress blog using Bluehost here.

For more blogging tips for beginners, you can check out this page with a ton of information that will answer all of your questions about starting your blog.

I hope you found this review and tutorial on the Foodie Pro Theme helpful!

The post Foodie Pro Theme Review appeared first on Blog Savvy Panda.

Chances are if you’ve just started a self-hosted WordPress blog with this Bluehost tutorial, you’re trying to figure out how to install a plugin in your WordPress dashboard.

If you’re new to blogging or creating your own self-hosted website, and not sure what a plugin is, you can think of WordPress plugins as apps. They allow you to add new features and improve the functionality of your blog.

The beauty of these WordPress plugins is you don’t need to learn how to code something in order to get a feature you want on your blog.

This will make creating and launching your blog easier! Think of how you use apps on your smartphone.

And there’s no need to panic because it’s really simple to add or remove plugins in WordPress.

Now, before you start, please note that you cannot install plugins if you are using a free or personal account on WordPress.com (this is different from the WordPress.org powered by Bluehost that I talk about all the time).

I only bring this point up because I get many readers who ask me how to make money with a blog, and my top recommendation is to start a self-hosted (not a free) blog if you want to start monetizing.

Now that this is clear, let’s walk through the steps on how to install a WordPress plugin on your website.

How To Install A Plugin in WordPress

Follow these steps below to install any WordPress Plugin.

Step 1: Go to your WordPress dashboard

Log onto your WordPress as usual. Go to “Plugins” >> “Add New” from your Dashboard menu as per the screenshot below.

Step 2: Search for your plugin

Type in the name of the plugin you’re looking for into the “Search plugins…” bar.

Step 3: Install the WordPress plugin

Click on the “Install Now” button of the plugin you want to download.

Step 4: Activate your plugin in WordPress

Click on the “Activate” button to activate the plugin.

Step 5: Play Around With Your Settings

You are done installing and activating the plugin!

Depending on your plugin, some require you to do nothing, but if you want to dabble with the settings, you can do that too.

You can do this by clicking on “Settings” and customize it to what you want.

Whenever you need to go back to any of your plugin’s settings, simply go to “Plugins” >> “Installed Plugins” of your WordPress dashboard to do this.

Deactivating or Deleting a Plugin

Whenever you don’t want your plugin to be active, just simply log into your WordPress dashboard and go back to “Plugins” >> “Installed Plugins” of the menu.

You can go through the list of all your installed plugins and decide which ones you want to deactivate temporarily.

If you want to delete your plugin, simply click on “Delete” and your plugin will be removed.

I hope you found this quick WordPress plugin tutorial easy and helpful!

The post How To Install A Plugin In WordPress For Beginners appeared first on Blog Savvy Panda.

If you haven’t started a blog yet, you can follow this easy step by step tutorial here that is meant to help total beginners like yourself start.

In this post, I am going to show you step by step how to set up a Google Analytics account.

Setting up Google Analytics for your website is simple and requires only 2 main steps:

1. Creating a Google Analytics account (only 8 simple steps in the tutorial below)
2. Connecting your Google Analytics account with your website on WordPress (only 5 simple steps in the tutorial below)

For those of you who don’t know yet, Google Analytics is a free application and it allows you to track your daily visitors and their browsing behavior.

You’ll have access to data such as pageviews and where they’re coming from (e.g. Google, Bing, Yahoo, Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc.), unique users, their location, gender, age group, interests, hobbies, etc.

All of this information will help you, as a website owner, or blog content creator, understand your readers, customers, and visitors better.

Having access to analyze this data will help you grow your website and blog. Depending on your business goals, this will help you create content, products, and offer services on your website that tailor to your visitors’ wants and needs.

Now that you understand how and why Google Analytics will be a useful tool and application for your blog, website, or business, let’s help you create and set up an account!

1. How To Create And Set Up A Google Analytics Account

Again, signing up for and using Google Analytics is free!

All you need is to have a Google account or Gmail to get started. If you are a beginner, I recommend creating a new Google Gmail account for your blog or website if you haven’t already done so.

Step 1: Go to Google Analytics here.

Step 2: Sign in using your Google account information and click on the “Next” button. 

This next screen will ask you to enter your password. If you don’t have a Google account, you can create a free account by clicking on the “Create account” button.

Step 3: Click the “Set up for free” button.

If you haven’t created an account before, you will see this screenshot, and you can click on the “Set up for free” button. But if you already have an account, and once you’re logged in, click on the “Start measuring” button.

Step 4: Fill in “My New Account Name” in the boxed field.

Enter the account name you want to use in the Account name field and select your Account Data Sharing Settings. Click on the “Next” button when you’re done.

The account name can be the name of your blog or business name. For the Account Data Sharing Settings, I selected the recommended settings.

Step 5: Create a Google Analytics property.

Type in the name you want to use in the Property name field (the property represents your website). Your Property name can be your blog name or whatever you want to call it. For example, I used finsavvypanda because that is my blog name.

Select your Reporting time zone and Currency preferences. Click on the “Next” button when you’re done.

Step 6: Go through the Property setup.

Providing information about your business or website is optional. Completing these fields is not required to set up Google Analytics.

If you want to provide this information, select the options that best describe your business (i.e., Industry category, Business size, What do you want to achieve with Google Analytics, etc.).

Once you’re done, click on the “Create” button.

Step 7: Google Analytics Terms of Service Agreement.

Check off all the required boxes for Google Analytics’ Terms of Services and then click the “I Accept” button.

Step 8: Your email communication preference.

Select your preferences for email communications with Google Analytics and then click on the “Save” button.

You can select all or select none for this part. It’s entirely up to you.

At this point, your Google Analytics account is created!

The first page Google Analytics brings you to is the Admin page. This is where you’ll find your unique Google Analytics measurement ID.

The measurement ID is the key to connect your WordPress website with Google Analytics.

You can always find your Google Analytics measurement ID by going to your “Google Analytics dashboard homepage > Admin > Data Streams (under the “Property” box) > Click on your website.”

There’s just one more thing you need to do to complete your Google Analytics setup. And that is to install Google Analytics on your WordPress website.

2. How To Install Google Analytics on WordPress

There are various ways to install Google Analytics on WordPress, but I’ll show you how to use the Insert Headers and Footers plugin.

This method of installing Google Analytics is great because there’s no coding involved, and you don’t need to edit your WordPress theme files.

Step 1: Click on the “Web” icon.

Under the “Data Streams > Choose a platform” section, select the “Web” option.

Step 2: Set up your data stream.

Type in your website address (aka your blog domain name) in the “Website URL” field and enter a name for the “Stream name.” For example, I used my domain name, finsavvypanda.com, for illustration purposes.

Select your preferences for “Enhanced measurement.” You can leave the options on default, which is enabled for all events.

Click on the “Create stream” button.

Step 3: Tagging instructions.

Under the “Tagging Instructions” section, click on the “Global Site Tag (gtag.js)” text to expand the area to get your Google Analytics trading code.

Copy the Google Analytics tracking code.

Step 4: Go into your WordPress dashboard.

Open a separate browser and log in to your WordPress site.

You can go to your WordPress dashboard through https://www.yourdomainname.com/wp-admin. Make sure your “yourdomainname.com” is your blog or website domain name and enter your WordPress login and password.

Click on “Settings > Insert Headers and Footers” from your WordPress dashboard.

If you haven’t done so already, install the “Insert Headers and Footers” plugin in your WordPress. This is plugin is required to move onto the next step.

Step 5: Simply copy and paste.

Copy and paste the Global Site Tag (gtag.js) code that Google Analytics gave you into the “Scripts in Header” box. It should look something like this:

Make sure you hit the “Save” button at the bottom of the screen after you paste the code into the “Scripts in Header” box.

TA-DA – you’re done! Congratulations! You’ve successfully set up Google Analytics on WordPress!

Need extra help with setting up and launching your new blog?

If you’re brand new to the blogging world and you want a profitable roadmap to help you start and launch your blog, I highly recommend checking out this super affordable ebook, The Treasure Map To Blogging Success in Just 30 Days.

This ebook is jam-packed with a ton of valuable information to help beginners like you get started without feeling overwhelmed or spending hours and hours trying to search for information. Many of my students and readers have followed this in-depth guide to successfully launch their blogs the right way!

The Treasure Map To Blogging Success was created by me to help you save loads of time and money to help you get started on the right foot!

The Treasure Map To Blogging Success in Just 30 Days ebook

I hope you found this step by step tutorial on how to set up your Google Analytics account helpful!

As always, you can shoot me an email at ling@finsavvypanda.com and let me know if you have any questions about starting your blog. I’m happy to help!

Until then, happy blogging, my friend!

The post How To Setup A Google Analytics Account appeared first on Blog Savvy Panda.