WordPress has been touted by bloggers and those who write web content as a platform that is helpful and intuitive. Sadly, many aspiring bloggers still do not know enough about WordPress to make it really work for them. Keep reading for tips on how to change all that.
Select a unique design when creating your site. It is tempting, but it is not going to help people think the best of you. You need to show your individuality with your site.
Be sure to choose a design that is not the same as those chosen by others who have WordPress sites. You may be tempted to choose from the first couple of pages, but if you do, your blog will be very commonplace. Your site should be unique and reflect your personality.
Get familiar with the tools on WordPress to help you blog. For instance, clicking on the button called KITCHEN SINK provides you with many options with regard to formatting and importing that can help you to customize your posts. SCREEN OPTIONS is another tab you are likely to see on the admin pages. That will help you with formatting.
Become familiar with the tools available to use with WordPress. Use the Kitchen Sink icon to see all the extra things you can do with your blog. Use this for many formatting options.
Use Alt and Title. This adds searchable text to the posts. These areas allow you to add even more SEO key phrases to the content of your page, plus they allow viewers who have images turned off to know what they’re missing on your site.
Make sure you use “title” and “alt.” text as you are uploading images to your posts. These areas give you more space for SEO keywords for your site, while simultaneously letting visitors know what the images are, in case they do not see them.
Video blogging is a snap with WordPress. This will require you to spend more time prepping, but this is worth it. A lot of web users are drawn to video blogging because of their personal visual preferences. Videos can sometimes convey information more quickly and effectively than the written word.
When using WordPress, you can even add videos to your site. It can takes some extra preparation time, but it can be worth the effort. Most Internet surfers respond to visuals. Videos offer perspectives that written content cannot, so they are quite helpful.
Clean up the content and comments that do not add any value to your website. This will ensure your site remains user friendly. Trying using a plugin like Akismet to filter out spam.
Blog post URLs should not have special characters in them. These characters are hard for search engine spiders to decipher. Attempt to keep your URLs simple for visitors as well.
Get rid of the special characters in your post URL’s. These characters negatively affect how a search engine crawls and indexes your content. It would also be useful to use shorter URLs that contain the necessary keywords.
Do you have lots of comments? If so, you and other visitors might find it difficult to weed through all of them. Simply create pages by adding a plugin for that purpose. This navigational tool will save time and make your site look organized.
When you take time to adjust a WordPress blog, you may not realize that your changes weren’t saved at all. That is usually not the case. You can solve this by clearing the cache of your browser. Save changes by holding the ‘shift’ key while refreshing the browser.
Make sure you have a unique greeting. A good greeting is more intimate for visitors and can relate to how this visitor found your blog. Using a plugin like WP Greet Box will make your blog appear less robotic.
Are your posts receiving a considerable number of comments? If you do, scanning through every comment can be hard on you and on your other readers. Try using a plugin that adds page numbers to the comment section. It will be easier to navigate your site, and it will look more organized.
Provide a link that allows all your users to easily email themselves a copy of your articles. There are some people who cannot look at Twitter or Facebook in the office;however, they want to share your information with others. You can do this by using a WP-Email plugin.
Improve upon the greeting you’ve put on your landing page. This allows you to communicate better with your audience. It will also make things look more human and less robotic.
Keep your WordPress password safe and to yourself. Also, only download reputable plugins and check the reviews before installing them. It just takes one instance of malware to mess up all your hard work.
Ensure that your readers can send content to an e-mail as they please. This is critical when it comes to sharing too, because those who do not have access to social media at work may still want to send your articles to their friends. WordPress has an email plugin just for this purpose.
Keep your WordPress updated. There are security patches in updates, which decreases vulnerabilities. Your site is more vulnerable if you use an old version. Install every update possible that you can.
Never use a word like “admin” as your username. Using a username like admin or administrator ups your chances of being hacked. This is a risk to the security of your site. Take a look at the users page to get rid of any names such as “admin” or even “administrator.” Choose another username.
Do you want to be able to post without issues? You can write it in advance and have WordPress post it for you at a preselected time. When you start making a new post, you have the option to schedule a future publication. That way, you can write things in advance and post them later.
Make sure you have the latest versions of all your plugins. One of the best ways to have a strong presence is through well-made, up-to-date plugins. They are updated, like any other software. Make sure to install the updates so you can keep the plugin running smoothly.
Avoid using a drop-down menu to choose headers for your blog posts. Use keyboard shortcuts instead. To use, simply use CTRL and the numbers 1 through 6. This is a time saver if you use lots of headers.
Write blog posts in advance and then schedule them to be posted later. You can schedule them to post, even if you aren’t around. You can easily do this using the Publish command located on your Edit screen. Beneath that, there will be an option labeled: Publish Immediately. Use military time that indicates the exact date. When the correct time and date are on your screen, select ‘ok’. Make sure the information on the “Schedule For” display screen is correct and then hit “Schedule”.
Do you have too much going on with the functions in WordPress? Turn several of the boxes off to clear it up. Do this from ‘Screen Options’ near the top of your window. Click on that button and you will see a drop-down menu. Use this to control the various boxes.
Is it hard to post updates to your blog when you want to do so? It is possible to get a story or blog post written in advance and then schedule it to post whenever you want. Whenever you open up a new post page, you will see the option to set up a future publication. You can write your posts without worrying about remembering to post them.
Make your choice for host when it comes to your WordPress blog simple, meaning you can install the platform with a simple click. This way, you won’t have to create a separate database. Use a host that lets you create a blog domain and a database simultaneously.
You don’t have to use the standard dro-down menu when choosing a header. Keyboard shortcuts are the way to go! You can hold down CTRL, and choose from one to six for the different options. This can save time if you frequently use headers.
Permit comments to go up on your blog. This will help foster a community feeling and will allow you to get to know your readers better. Plugins allow you to approve particular comments before they show up online, so spammers and advertisers are not a problem.
Do you want to get rid of the WordPress clutter? Eliminate a few of the boxes appearing on the page. Go to: Screen Options on the window. In there, you’ll see a full menu of boxes that you can turn on and off.
Blog Authoring
Let your WordPress sites allow comments to be posted. This lets you connect with your readers more. Plugins are available to help you approve comments prior to having them published on the site, keeping it free from spammers.
Use a variety of tools for blog authoring. Don’t find WordPress’ dashboard particularly helpful? Consider Windows Live Writer or another program that does blog authoring. WordPress is compatible with a variety of tools that make it more efficient. Try some of them to find one that works the best for you.
Differentiate the author’s comments by highlighting them. Sometimes, the comments section becomes a place to ask questions. Responding to one of these questions can easily be overlooked, swallowed up in a sea of comments. You should use a different font color for the author’s comments. In this way, they will be easy to find.
Don’t forget to make use of the “read more” button. No one wants to click on to your blog’s front page and be greeted by a huge wall of text. Let visitors decide how much they want to see. Not doing this could make the blog appear unfriendly and cluttered.
Create a plan prior to beginning work on your WordPress site. List your goals and what you think readers want to know about. The time spent drafting a plan will help you when setting up your blog.
Make sure to place images on your website. It is true that a picture can “say” so many things. This will add a bit of drama to your site. Be certain to utilize title as well as alternate text tags in order to make pictures and their context clear to search engines and readers alike.
Use images on your sites. After all, pictures are worth thousands of words. This will add a bit of drama to your site. Make sure you use title and alternate text tags to describe the picture so that it seems clear for readers and the search engines.
If you want to work on your site without the changes being made live in order to test them, duplicate your blog in a second folder with a second, identical database. This keeps those changes from potentially damaging your entire site causing lost sales.
Make sure that you copy your blog into an alternate folder. This will keep any mistakes from ruining your entire site or hampering your sales.
It’s not necessary for you to do all your site work alone. You could hire someone to help you make your website or blog.
The export function comes in quite handy when you want to back up everything you created on WordPress. This will make sure that your site has a database of historical backups, allowing you to choose an older, clean copy of your site if you get hacked, or the most recent backup in case of a server crash.
When planning your site, look up help resources. One thing you can do is look for good social media forums where you can get your questions answered. Regardless of your question, you can find someone with advice and answers.
When using the function of Export in WordPress, remember to backup all the images and files related to your site. Log into your server control panel or FTP and copy the folders and their contents.
Backup all of the images that you include. Copy all of it from the control panel after you log in.
Think about your current set of WordPress plugins before leaping into the latest WordPress upgrades. If you have plugins that really must work, postpone a WordPress upgrade until testing can be complete. If you do not wait, some plugins and widget may lose their functionality.
Anyone who has dedicated some time to understanding WordPress can use it successfully. Remembering these tips will allow you to have a great experience with WordPress. Stop delaying and start using WordPress this very day.
Don’t forget that content published on the Internet is permanent. If you write a rant about the President, all of your readers and everyone on Google will now have access to it for eternity. Before posting, consider whether you want to always be associated with what you’re about to post.
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