So you’ve just signed up for your Badass Network blog. Now you’re probably staring at a setup wizard wondering what each option actually means.
Here’s the quick version: The setup wizard walks you through your blog’s basic configuration—title, tagline, homepage preferences, and a few customization options. It takes about 5-8 minutes. You can skip parts if you want, but honestly, filling it out now saves you time later.
The wizard exists because starting with a blank blog is overwhelming. It’s easier when someone asks specific questions and you just answer them. That’s what we’re doing here—getting the basics set up so your blog feels like yours from the start.
Before You Begin
- Your Badass Network account credentials (you just signed up, so you’re probably already logged in)
- An idea of what you’ll blog about—doesn’t need to be super specific yet
- Maybe 10 minutes without interruptions
- Your logo or header image if you’ve got one ready (totally optional though)
Finding the Setup Wizard
Most people see the setup wizard automatically right after they verify their email and log in for the first time. It pops up front and center with a big “Get Started” button.
Complete the Setup Wizard
Setting Your Blog Title
The wizard starts by asking for your blog title. This appears at the top of your site, in browser tabs, and in search results.
Click in the “Blog Title” field and type what you want to call your blog. Could be your name (“Aron’s Travel Adventures”), a topic focus (“The Minimalist Baker”), or something creative that fits your brand.
Keep it under 60 characters if possible. Not a strict rule, but longer titles get cut off in Google results.
Writing Your Tagline
Right below the title field, you’ll see “Tagline.” This is a short description of what your blog’s about—usually shows up under your title in the header area.
Type something that explains your blog in 10-15 words or less. “Where I share recipes, travel tips, and life lessons” or “Helping small businesses grow through digital marketing.”
The tagline matters for SEO since search engines use it to understand your site’s purpose. But it’s also just helpful for visitors who stumble onto your blog and want to know what they’ll find.
Some people skip the tagline and leave it blank. That’s fine if your blog title already makes it obvious what you write about. I’d recommend having one though—it usually helps with clarity.
Choosing Your Homepage Display
Now the wizard asks: “What do you want visitors to see on your homepage?”
You’ve got two options here:
Your latest posts (Blog feed): This shows your most recent blog posts in reverse chronological order. Every time you publish, it automatically appears at the top. This is the classic blog setup. Pick this if you’re planning to post regularly and want your content front and center.
A static page (Custom homepage): This creates a fixed homepage that doesn’t change when you publish new posts. You’d build a custom welcome page with sections, images, an about blurb—whatever you want. Your blog posts would live on a separate “Blog” page. Pick this if you want your site to feel more like a website than a traditional blog.
Selecting Your Timezone
Scroll down and you’ll see a dropdown for timezone. This affects when scheduled posts go live and what timestamps show on your published content.
Click the dropdown and find your location. It’s organized by continent/city (like “America/New_York” or “Europe/London”).
Setting Your Date Format
Next up: How do you want dates to appear on your blog?
The wizard shows a few common formats:
- November 11, 2025
- 11/11/2025
- 2025-11-11
- 11 Nov 2025
Pick whichever feels natural to you. This is mostly a personal preference thing—doesn’t affect SEO or anything technical. Just makes your blog feel more “you.”
US audiences usually prefer “Month Day, Year” while international audiences often go with “Day Month Year” or numeric formats. Choose what fits your audience, or honestly, just what looks good to you.
Basic Theme Customization (Optional)
Depending on your Badass Network setup, the wizard might offer some quick theme customization options.
Site colors: Pick a primary color for links, buttons, and accents. The wizard usually shows a color picker or a set of preset options. Choose something that matches your brand or personality.
Font pairing: Select from a few font combinations. Each option shows a heading font and a body text font together. Pick one that’s readable and fits your vibe—clean and modern, classic and elegant, bold and creative, whatever.
Setting Up Your Profile (Sometimes)
Some wizards include a quick profile setup step. You’ll see fields for:
- Display Name: How your name appears on posts. Could be your full name, first name only, a nickname, or your business name.
- Bio: A short description about you (1-2 sentences). This shows up in your author box and profile page.
- Profile Photo: Upload a headshot or logo. Makes your blog feel more personal and professional. Skip this if you don’t have an image ready—you can add it later in Users > Profile.
Yeah, profile stuff seems minor, but it matters for credibility. People are more likely to trust and engage with blogs where they can see who’s writing.
Privacy and SEO Settings
Near the end, the wizard usually asks about search engine visibility.
You’ll see a checkbox: “Discourage search engines from indexing this site”
Review and Complete
The final screen usually shows a summary of everything you just configured. Quick recap of your:
- Blog title and tagline
- Homepage display setting
- Timezone and date format
- Theme choices
- Profile info
Look it over. Spot any typos or settings that don’t look right? Most wizards let you click “Back” or “Edit” to fix them.
When everything looks good, click Finish Setup or Complete or whatever the big button says.
Congrats. Your blog’s configured.
What Happens After the Wizard
Once you complete the setup wizard, WordPress saves all your settings and takes you to your main dashboard. You’ll see the standard WordPress interface with the sidebar menu, widgets showing your recent posts and site stats, and probably a welcome message.
Your blog’s now live at badassnetwork.com/yourusername with all the settings you just chose. Visitors can access it, though there’s no content yet besides maybe a default “Hello World” post that WordPress creates automatically.
Next steps? Most people either:
- Head to Appearance > Customize to tweak colors, fonts, and layout further
- Go to Posts > Add New to write their first blog post
- Jump to Pages to create an About page or Contact page
- Explore the settings in more depth through Settings > General, Settings > Reading, etc.
There’s no wrong move here. Just start wherever feels most important for your blog.
Common Questions
No big deal. All the settings in the wizard are accessible through your WordPress dashboard under Settings and Appearance. The wizard just organizes them conveniently. You can configure everything manually—it’ll just take a bit longer to find where each setting lives.
Usually no. Once you complete it, the wizard doesn’t show up anymore. But you can change every single setting manually through your dashboard. The wizard was just a one-time helper to get you started quickly.
Easy fix. Go to Settings > Reading and look for “Your homepage displays.” Switch between “Your latest posts” and “A static page” anytime. If you choose static page, you’ll need to create a page first and then select it from the dropdown.
Double-check that you saved the wizard settings at the end. If you did and it’s still off, go to Settings > General, verify your timezone selection, and click Save Changes at the bottom. Sometimes the wizard doesn’t apply settings if you close it early or your browser does something weird.
Technically yes, but I wouldn’t. Search engines use your title as a ranking signal, so constantly changing it can confuse Google about what your site’s about. Pick something and stick with it for at least a few months. Small tweaks are fine; complete overhauls every week aren’t great for SEO.
Things We’ve Learned About Blog Setup
- Your blog title’s more important than the tagline. Spend a few extra minutes on the title. The tagline’s helpful, but if you’re stuck, you can always refine it later. Your title appears everywhere, so get that one right first.
- Don’t obsess over theme colors during initial setup. Yeah, pick something you like, but you’ll probably change it after you publish a few posts and see how everything actually looks together. Initial setup colors are just a starting point.
- Set your timezone correctly from day one. It’s annoying to fix later if you’ve already scheduled a bunch of posts. Takes 10 seconds now, saves headaches later.
- The homepage decision matters. Think about your goals. If you’re blogging regularly (weekly or more), go with the blog feed. If you’re using your blog more as a portfolio or business site with occasional updates, consider the static homepage.
- Profile pictures build trust. If you’ve got a decent headshot, upload it during setup. People connect with faces. Doesn’t need to be professional studio quality—just clear and friendly-looking.
When Things Get Weird
Refresh your browser and log back into your dashboard. WordPress probably saved your settings up to the point where it crashed. The wizard might restart from the beginning, but you can skip sections you already completed. Or just go to Settings and configure the rest manually.
Head to Settings > General and fill in your blog title and tagline. Then go to Appearance > Customize and set your theme colors and fonts. You’re basically doing the wizard steps manually, but it’s the same stuff.
Edit it in Settings > General. Make sure there aren’t extra spaces at the beginning or end. WordPress displays exactly what you type, so if it looks weird, go back and clean it up.
Your blog’s at badassnetwork.com/yourusername (replace “yourusername” with your actual username). Type that URL into your browser. If you’re logged in, you’ll see it with admin controls. If you’re not logged in, you’ll see the public view. If nothing appears, contact Badass Network support—something’s misconfigured on the backend.
What You’ve Accomplished
You’ve completed the initial setup wizard and configured your blog’s essential settings. Your blog has a title, a tagline, the right timezone, a homepage display preference, and some basic customization. It’s ready for you to start creating content.
The setup wizard’s job was to get you from zero to functional as quickly as possible. You succeeded. Everything else—fine-tuning design, writing posts, building an audience—happens gradually as you use your blog.
Next move? Most people write their first post or start customizing their theme further. Both are good choices. Pick whatever excites you more.
We’re here.
- Contact Badass Network Support with specifics about where you got stuck
- Include a screenshot if something looks broken or confusing
- Let us know which step in the wizard caused problems
- Share your blog URL so we can check your configuration
We’ll get back to you within 24 hours and help sort things out.