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Courtney Gordner

Courtney Gordner | May 9, 2014 | 3 Comments

My Favorite WordPress Plugins – Courtney Gordner

wordpress

 

One of the greatest things about WordPress which makes the platform so accessible is that it supports third party plugins. Once you have the popular blogging platform installed on a server, you can customize your setup almost completely just by activating various extensions, otherwise called plugins. These plugins can change the way the site looks, and they can even introduce new functionality.

If you’re reading this, chances are you already know what WordPress is and, more importantly, what plugins are. They are quite easy to activate, too. If you don’t want to bother with FTP protocols you can install them directly from the WordPress admin dashboard.

There are hundreds – no, thousands – of third party plugins available right alongside a handful of official plugins from WordPress devs. In fact, there are so many it can be tough deciding which plugins one should install. So, which of them are considered the cream of the crop? There is a star-based rating system, but it doesn’t exactly help weed out the plugins you may or may not need.

To help, I want to tell you about my favorite WordPress plugins. Undoubtedly, these should be added to every new WordPress install.

W3 Total Cache

Website loading performance is important. If you have a slower site, your visitors may become frustrated, resulting in them leaving much sooner than normal. When you want your visitors to stick around, that’s never good.

W3 Total Cache essentially improves performance and boosts loading speeds through the use of several new functions to reduce download times. It speeds up loading times through several different advanced methods, all of which you can read about on the official plugin page. It’s always a good idea to install this plugin before you start uploading lots of images to your site.

WordPress SEO by Yoast

At some point you are going to employ the use of SEO optimization techniques, and maybe you already do. Instead of optimizing each post the difficult way, install this plugin to simplify everything. You can customize the meta title, description and keywords from within the post creation screen. The plugin also helps ensure your content and various elements are up to snuff before you publish.

Since even the smallest mistake can seriously harm your SEO ranking, resulting in lower traffic and exposure ratings, this plugin should definitely be considered essential.

404 to Start

404 error pages can be a real bother, especially when it comes to search engine optimization. This plugin fixes any and all 404 errors that may occur by redirecting traffic to another user-specified URL. For instance, instead of sending visitors to a 404 error page, you can send them to the website homepage or another one if you specify something different. This gives the impression that you haven’t made any glaring mistakes to visitors and search engines alike – which is clearly a boon.

You can also setup email alerts so that the plugin tells you when and where a 404 error would have occurred. It really helps turn a potential issue into a win-win scenario.

Digg Digg

One of the best ways to bring in more traffic is to encourage your visitors to share your content via social media. The Digg Digg plugin adds a floating share bar to pages you choose. It allows your visitors to share your blog and site content via several different networks like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Reddit, Pinterest and more. Next to each sharing button there is also a count that shows visitors how many times your content has been shared. Better yet, there are quite a few configurable options that allow you to customize how the bar operates.

Jetpack

If there’s only one plugin on this list you choose, make sure it is Jetpack. Hailing directly from the official WordPress devs, this plugin offers a comprehensive set of tools and features for every blog or site. What does it come with, exactly? Bundled within is a unique commenting system, traffic stats, email subscriptions, data forms, social networking integration and much more.

What I find absolutely necessary is the social publishing support which allows you to automatically post content updates across various social networks and connected accounts. This saves you from having to post the content manually every time you publish something new. You can also customize the related status message before it is posted via social.

One of the latest updates added cross-site support, meaning you can manage your Jetpack settings for multiple portals via any connected site. In the past, you could only manage each site individually through the local dashboard.

The List Goes On

We could write an endless list of great WordPress plugins. Just to name a few runner-ups you should check out Subscribe2, Akismet, Contact Form 7, WooCommerce and Google Analytics+. Don’t be afraid to look for alternate plugins related to functionality and support you may need for your site. Plugins are easy enough to install, activate and uninstall too if necessary.

Happy plugging WordPress users – and by that, I mean have fun hunting for and installing those plugins!

Do you have a favorite plugin not covered by this list? Tell us what it is in the comments below!

 

Image by John Fischer

Courtney Gordner | May 2, 2014 | 1 Comment

How to Launch a Podcast – Courtney Gordner

podcast

Podcasts are a great way for blogs and web sites to increase awareness of their content. By providing a podcast in addition to written content, bloggers and webmasters can additionally target those who prefer audible content. Podcast listeners represent a huge demographic; many people commute daily to work while playing podcasts in their car. Some prefer podcasts as a workout accompaniment instead of music.

Launching a podcast is not overly difficult if you already have a following on your blog or web site. With some equipment and tools, you can start a podcast in no time. Start with the step-by-step instructions below:

1. Purchase a Microphone

Your computer’s built-in microphone is not ideal if you wish to launch a successful podcast. Podcast listeners will be playing your podcasts through stereo speakers or headphones, so audio miscues like pops and distortion would be big turn-offs. In order to prevent this, it’s wise to purchase a high-quality USB microphone.

Good USB microphones will cost you anywhere from $100 to $300, though it’s fine staying on the cheaper end of the scale. A Blue Yeti USB Microphone is below $100 on Amazon and is capable of producing the high-quality sound every good podcast needs. Once you get the microphone, simply plug it into your USB port and use free recording software like Audacity to begin recording your content.

2. Prepare a Host and Feed

After recording your content and exporting it to MP3 or WAV, you need a place to host your podcast audio. You can use the host you’re already using for your web site, but for better analytics and accessibility it is better to use a different host. Some audio-friendly options include SoundCloud and Amazon’s S3 service, both of which are only a few dollars per month.

You should also set up a feed, so people can subscribe and receive updates based on your podcast. Feedburner is great for that; just create a new feed and name it after your podcast. Share your feed’s link with interested subscribers.

3. Integrate Analytics

Using a host like SoundCloud is recommended because it provides built-in analytics, where you can see data like number of daily listeners, geographic trends, referral sources and other listener data. If you use the WordPress plugin Powerpress to publish your podcasts on your blog posts, then a tool like Blubrry Podcast Statistics can track its analytics. Still, SoundCloud is recommended for its built-in analytics features and ease-of-use.

4. Consider Additional Promotion Sources

You can easily embed your SoundCloud podcast into your site using the provided code, but there are other sources – like iTunes and YouTube – that have the potential to offer additional exposure for your podcast.

With iTunes, you – or a hired graphic designer – should create a well-designed image to represent your podcast. For example, if your podcast is about great wedding venues, use a logo that incorporates a scenic church or loving couple. This will increase the potential of it standing out to those interested in the topic browsing on iTunes.

In addition, you’ll need a podcast name, description and summary. Once you have all these, open iTunes, go to the iTunes store, click on ‘Podcasts’ and then click on ‘Submit a Podcast.’ Here, you can submit your podcast’s Feedburner feed from step two. Be sure to use only your sounds to avoid copyright issues. If you need special effects, use a free source like Audio Jungle.

5. Stay Committed

Once you launch your podcast, maintain a consistent focus while providing engaging content. If you do so, your podcast’s listeners will continue to increase. Integrate your blog or web site for sustained additional exposure, as well. As your podcast continues to grow, you should remain committed to releasing new podcasts on a consistent basis to accommodate new listeners and regulars alike.

What kind of podcast do you hope to launch? Tell us in the comments section below!

Image by mr brown

hootsuite alternatives

Courtney Gordner | April 25, 2014 | 8 Comments

Hootsuite Alternatives Provide Small Business Assistance

 

HootSuite was certainly the first well-known multi-social media management tool to be developed and used by small and large businesses, making its debut in 2008. While it’s a great platform for various reasons, there are also some features that can be problematic for some. One of the biggest downsides to HootSuite is the cost for its more professional features – fifty bucks a month per analytics report after the monthly free one; and using more than 10 team members starts at 18 G’s a year.  You could buy a brand new car for that kind of money. Also, Facebook post audience responses- such as likes, comments and shares – cannot be tracked or credited by Facebook Insights when posts are made from HootSuite. Additionally, in my opinion and personal experience, HootSuite isn’t all that user-friendly. It takes a while to figure out how to optimize your social media via HootSuite features – even more so, if you pay for social media analysis and tracking.  We all know time is money, so if you have a social media management team – all who need to learn how to use it- then it’s going to cost you even more. This isn’t a HootSuite-bashing blog post — HootSuite is great in a lot of ways and ideal for a lot of people.  For smaller businesses and individuals, though, there are Hootsuite alternatives that could work much better for you.

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Hi, my name is Adam Smith and welcome to asmithblog.com. I am the author of the new book, The Bravest You. Because of my work as an entrepreneur, consultant, writer, and speaker, I have been named a top industry influencer by American Genius. I live with my wife, Jasmine, and three children in Shenandoah, IA.

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