WordPress plugin Installation section carries the post-install work
Use the readme Installation section for custom setup notes the admin needs right after activation, not as a generic unzip tutorial.
Why this can grow a startup
WordPress is unusually clear that the Installation section can be omitted for simple plugins, but it becomes the right place when custom configuration is required after install. That matters because the plugin directory is often the last calm screen before the admin has to do real setup work. When the readme names the next steps plainly, the install feels supported. When it stays generic, the admin lands inside WordPress still guessing what has to be configured before the plugin is actually useful.
Source-backed example
The handbook says plugins without custom install settings may omit the Installation section, and that plugins with configuration notes after install should put that guidance there.
Source-reported evidence
Source: WordPress Plugin Handbook: Plugin Readmes · Browse WordPress Plugin Handbook: Plugin Readmes tactics
WordPress explicitly reserves the Installation section for custom post-install configuration when that work exists.
Attributed to the cited source; GrowthDex has not independently verified it. Use this as context, not as a forecast, benchmark, or recommended target.
Evidence scope: claims and metrics are attributed to the linked source; GrowthDex has not independently replicated the reported result. Check the original context and validate fit before applying it. Read the evidence methodology.
When to use it
Use this when Onboarding, Marketplaces, Documentation is relevant to installation, setup docs, activation and you can run a bounded test with a free budget.
When not to use it
Do not use it as a substitute for customer evidence, a clear owner, or a measurable stop condition. Local platform rules and market behavior still need checking.
How to do it
- Choose one target segment and define the exact next action this tactic should prompt.
- Adapt the tactic to Onboarding and Marketplaces, using evidence from WordPress Plugin Handbook: Plugin Readmes as context—not as a promised result.
- Record a baseline for: Share of target users completing the product's first-value action. Set a guardrail that would make you pause the test.
- Run a narrow pilot and choose a test window that fits the normal decision or use cycle; do not scale before you have observed the full cycle.
- Compare the signal with its baseline. Scale only if the intended action improves without crossing the guardrail; otherwise revise one variable or stop and record what you learned.
Compare a stack for your situation
Compare source-backed tactics against your product, stage, budget and channel strengths, then choose one experiment to test.
Explore the context
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Apply this with an operator
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