Almost every individual who has an established online business runs a WordPress website. The problem arises when they think that nothing can affect their business ever. There is no doubt about the fact that WP is one of the best CMS platforms that comprises several themes, capabilities and plugins. But it also is extremely vulnerable to hacking. Every minute it is estimated that 90,978 attacks take place. This makes WordPress security extremely valuable in today’s time or else it can lead to insertion of spyware, users unknowingly giving out their personal information, etc. Follow these 10 simple WordPress security tips in 2020 & protect your WP website like never before.
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4 Of The Best WordPress Search Plugins
A well placed and visible search bar is essential for your website or blog, a visitor who cant see what they are looking for is going to look for where they can search for the page or content they need, if they have to spend more than a few seconds looking for the search bar the chances are that they will lose interest and leave. Multiple this by hundreds or thousands of visitors all leaving your site and this could do serious damage to your website or business! Your search bar is also a treasure trove of user data which can be used to see what your audience is looking for on your site, this information can then be used to refine your content and keep readers engaged and staying on your site all of which result in positives from better time on site signals to Google that can improve your rankings in the SERPs.
WordPress comes with its own search function built in and it does a good job of bringing back search keyword information however its only been since the 3.7 update less than 18 months ago that ranks by relevancy were fixed and also cannot perform searches for specifics such as comments or tags.
Luckily there are many excellent alternatives out there for WordPress both paid and free, here’s a run down of 4 of the best: [Read more…] about 4 Of The Best WordPress Search Plugins
WordPress Plugins to Make Your Blog Look Better
WordPress is the father of all blogging platforms, at least in terms of usability, functionality, and customization. Of course, there will be some points of contention, but the chances are that the platform will be the one recommended if you ask the question, “Which blogging platform should I use?”
The default templates and settings of WordPress are normally more than good enough. If you have an eye for detail and pay attention to design more than the average person does, you might want to do some tweaking using WordPress plugins, of which there is no lack.
Here are some WordPress plugins that will help you prettify your blog, one way or another.
Vimeography
Arguable one of the best WordPress plugins for video, Vimeography allows bloggers to display video content that will fit the rest of the design without having to deal with workarounds. The result are beautiful posts with elements that blend excellently. The downside is that this obviously works with Vimeo only.
Galleriffic
If you work more with photos as opposed to videos, then the chances are that you want a plugin that will make displaying photos – lots of them – without giving you a headache. For this purpose, Galleriffic is an excellent choice. It’s a jQuery plugin that gives you the power to deal with lots of photos without having to worry too much about bandwidth, and it does look good!
SlideDeck 2
Truth be told, slideshows have received their fair share of flak – and for good reason. Then again, there are sites which continue to use slideshows without suffering for it. If you absolutely must use slideshows on your WordPress site, then you might as well go for a plugin that will not only make it easy on you, but also add to the visual experience of the reader: SlideDeck 2. The plugin has a free version and a premium version. The advantage of the latter is that you get more “lenses” or templates which you can choose from. The free version does give you the option of developing your own to suit your site’s design to a T. The plugin supports a wide variety of content: text, images, video, social media feeds, and even syndicated content.
WPtouch
Mobile is a niche that no blogger can ignore. With more and more users relying on their mobile devices to access information, blogs have to offer a comparable – maybe even better – viewing experience on mobile. You don’t have to be super techie to make this a reality with WPtouch, which basically does the job for you. All you need to do is install it and the plugin will make sure that your site displays properly on mobile browsers.
Slick Social Share Buttons
Social sharing is a must. We all know that, but how many sites have you seen that have horrible social sharing buttons that you just get turned off? It’s a pity if the buttons are what make readers NOT share your awesome content, so it’s best to pay attention to this not-so-little detail. Slick Social Share Buttons is one plugin that looks really clean and simple. I understand that the concept of beauty will differ from one person to another, but it’s difficult to find fault in these buttons.
About the Author
Timothy is a web writer by profession, and he has a strong interest in design. He highly recommends designer mag for those who want to improve their knowledge base on the topic.
Lead image via Softstribe
Top 20 Reasons Why We Need WordPress for Blogs
Initially when WordPress was launched it was a big flop, however, with passing time it has become the most widely used software for websites and particularly for blogging. WordPress offers a lot more than the few 5 to 10 benefits you normally hear about.
Before going into the detail why WordPress is a better tool for your blog, you must be aware what is exactly meant by WordPress. There is WordPress.com that is a free hosted blogging service similar to Blogger etc. and then there is WordPress.org that is the blogging software. We’ll talk about the top reasons of using the WordPress software here. [Read more…] about Top 20 Reasons Why We Need WordPress for Blogs
Top 5 Plugins to Backup WordPress Site to Cloud Storage
With sharp rise in the online business competition, nearly every company either smaller or larger needs a platform on the internet. Internet has brought some sort of revolution for the business establishments and many of them have got WordPress websites to market the services, products and solutions. WordPress is considered as the topmost and greatly reputed tool to create your blogs and its CMS services have attracted millions of websites till date. Backing up your website or blog periodically is the need of the hour and you will simply require some elegant tools and plugins that might help in accomplishing this task. The tools mentioned below are of external type and it indicates that bloggers and website owners will have to back the site manually. [Read more…] about Top 5 Plugins to Backup WordPress Site to Cloud Storage
8 WordPress blogs you should bookmark
We love using WordPress around these parts, and if you’re not already doing so, we have a feeling you will too. Whether you’re a professional or a newbie, make sure you’re reading these resources that get you more acquainted with inner workings of this versatile blogging and content management system.
Code Poet
If you’ve been a patron of WordPress for sometime now you’ll find the slogan “Code is poetry” familiar. Code Poet, built by the makers of WP (Automattic), contains ebooks, interviews, guides, and other resources for building sites on the platform. Soaked up enough knowledge yet? Try taking the quiz!
WPLover
Minimalist and straightforward, WPLover shares a comprehensive amount of links on the theme design and development side of the fence with Hafiz Rahman at the helm.
Digging into WordPress
Homepage of the definitive dead-tree guide to WordPress, Digging into WordPress contains news about the community and links to nuts-and-bolts type articles that explore cool ideas you can do with WP. The book and the website is authored by veterans in both WP and web development circles: Jeff Star & Chris Coyier.
WPCandy
WPCandy is another treat for WordPress fans as not only does it feature podcasts and interviews with great resource persons, it keeps you up to date with who’s doing what in the WP community, from the latest Automattic hires, to WordCamp liveblogs, to companies making a living through WordPress. They also recently kicked off a new project, the WPCandy Quarterly, a print magazine.
WP Realm
Much like Automattic’s global operations, WP Realm sets out to cover WordPress stories all over the world, and not just the United States. Aside from news, there’s a bunch of editorial pieces worth checking out.
WordPress Tavern
The WP Tavern is another comprehensive news site founded by an active contributor to the WordPress project, Jeff Chandler, but it also boasts of its equally active forum community, and a podcast to boot.
WP Nuggets
Plugin information from WordPress Extend is sometimes not enough and what you need is a good old fashioned review to see what it offers and how it works. That’s where WP Nuggets comes in: you get a walkthrough of the plugin features, ample screenshots, star ratings that help you make a better choice in downloading WordPress plugins.
WP Snippets
Sometimes you don’t need a full-blown plugin to accomplish a little tweak to your site or modify a certain setting. WP Snippets, a repository of code snippets for WordPress, should help you do the trick.
The Best Free iPhone Applications for Social Media Marketing
More and more consultants and professionals in the internet and social media marketing realm are using their smartphones (especially the Apple iPhone) to stay connected and maintain their online presence. There are several social media marketing applications available for the iPhone for free that can allow a social media marketing consultant or professional to stay connected and updated on the go.
Popular Social Media Applications
Twitter: Twitter allows the user to add multiple accounts and switch between them. You cannot post on two accounts at one time. However, the interface is easy to use and loads quickly.
Facebook: The newest Facebook update allows users to write wall posts and publish photos onto the pages they are administrator of, but they cannot delete posts or comments.
LinkedIn: However, the LinkedIn application only allows for one account to be logged in at a time. The LinkedIn application is good for reading posts by other users, accepting requests, and sending InMail. Users cannot edit groups or company profiles.
Blogging Applications
WordPress: The iPhone WordPress application has a lot of versatility and allows users to add, update, and view posts on multiple blogs through the one application. Users can also view and edit pages and approve blog post comments. Additionally, if users have added the stats plugin, they are able to view basic stats about their blog, including traffic.
Tumblr: Tumblr iPhone app users can post photos, video, audio, quotes, links, and text from their phone, as well as handle multiple blogs via the single application. Tumblr posts can also be scheduled or tweets can be customized. Users can search the iPhone contacts to see if they have a Tumblr account.
Blogger: The Blogger application allows users to monitor and edit more than one blog and add photos instantly to posts. Users can also labels, save drafts, or automatically publish posts.
Social Media Marketing Applications
Sendible: The Sendible user via an iPhone experiences a similar interface to the online computer version of Sendible.com. Users can send the same message from multiple accounts as well as schedule when messages go out. Sendible has a free account version, as well as paid monthly membership, depending on usage and accounts.
Tweetdeck: Tweetdeck is similar to Sendible, but most users use the free version of this service.
These are just a sample of the several iPhone applications that are available for internet and social media marketing professionals.
What are your favorite iPhone applications?
5 Great Security Plugins Every WordPress Blog Should Be Using
Online security is always a topic of hot debate. Not a day goes by where someone isn’t hacked, whether they own a small site or a hugely popular one. The problem is that the more popular your site becomes, the more of a target it can be to those with unsavory intentions.
WordPress websites are often targeted by hackers due to a lack of security. The problem, however, is that there are dozens of great security plugins you could be using to ensure the safety of your layout and contents. Here are 7 to keep in mind. [Read more…] about 5 Great Security Plugins Every WordPress Blog Should Be Using