Archive for the ‘ Blogs ’ Category

10 Popular WordPress Plugins

Monday, October 4th, 2010

Tags:
Posted in Blogs, Wordpress Plugins |

Without a doubt, WordPress is the most popular platform in use today for creating websites and blogs. However, many people aren’t taking advantage of the useful plugins that WordPress has to offer. These plugins are tools integrated into WordPress that add extra functionality and can be used in your marketing efforts as well.

We’re going to take a look at some of the more popular WordPress plugins that you can consider employing into your WordPress site.

1.  Google Analytics

If you’re using your blog or website for business purposes, then it’s vital that you track the traffic that’s coming to your site. By using Google Analytics, you can get a clear picture of how many hits your site is getting, how many of those hits are returning visitors, and even where in the world those people are coming from. Google Analytics will even tell you which posts or pages are attracting the most attention, which can help you tailor your site to meet the needs of your visitors.

You can learn more about Google Analytics here: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/google-analytics-for-wordpress/

2.  All-in-one SEO Pack

Search engine optimization is the technique used to help draw visitors into your website, and this plugin will help you optimize your site to get the kind of traffic you’re looking for.

The All-in-one SEO pack will automatically optimize your post titles for the search engines; will generate META tags; and allows you to fine tune the navigation links on your pages.

Learn more about the All-in-one SEO Pack here: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/all-in-one-seo-pack/

3.  Akismet

If your site has any posts that allow users to comment on, then you’re sure to get your fair share of spam comments. These comments not only take away from the useful discussion and interaction you have with your readers, but it also looks bad. Akismet does a great job of finding the comments that are spam and placing them in a queue for your review before they ever appear on the page.

Read about Akismet here: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/akismet/

4.  XML Sitemap

Search engines like Google, Yahoo, Bing, and Ask.com use programs called crawlers to search and index web pages. This crawling of websites makes it easier and faster for people to find exactly what they’re looking for when they type something into a search engine.

The XML Sitemap plugin helps these crawlers by creating a better index of your site, which means that it can be retrieved more efficiently. XML Sitemap also benefits you by alerting the major search engines every time you post new content on your site.

Find out more about XML Sitemap here: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/google-sitemap-generator/

5.  Contact Form

Having a contact form on your website makes it easy for your visitors to contact you. Instead of having to scour the site for an e-mail address, they can simply enter in their contact information and any comments they have, which will then be e-mailed right to you.

This plugin is fast, secure, and works with Akismet to weed out spam. It’s highly customizable to your specific needs and allows you to have as many different forms as you want.

You can learn more about the Contact Form plugin here: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/si-contact-form/

6.  Post Videos and Photo Galleries

If you’re a photographer, movie maker or someone who has products to sell, this plugin allows for easy addition of photo galleries, slideshows, videos, and music to be added to your site. It will automatically re-size your photos so they don’t take up too much space, and offers support for mobile devices such as iPhones and Blackberries.

Read about Post Videos and Photo Galleries here: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/post-rich-videos-and-photos-galleries/

7.  Add to Any

When people find good content on the Web, they immediately want to share it with their friends on they myriad of social networks that are out there. This plugin allows your visitors to choose which social media outlets to post your content to. There are options for over 100 social bookmarking and sharing sites available and you can even have your URLs shortened for services like Twitter.

You can find out more about Add to Any here: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/add-to-any/

8.  Twitter Tools

Next to Facebook, Twitter is probably the most popular social media site. What this plugin does is allow you to fully integrate your site with your Twitter account. You can easily alert your followers to your new posts and allow them to share with their followers.

Twitter Tools can be found here: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/twitter-tools/

9.  WP to Twitter

As we’ve learned, Twitter is one of the most popular social media sites around. This plugin allows you to post status updates to your Twitter account and will shorten your URLs either through Bit.ly or Cli.gs. You can also use these URL shortening services to track how many hits you’re getting on the links you post. If you’re a power tweeter, this plugin is a must have.

Find it here: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-to-twitter/

10.  Facebook Like Button

The current king of the hill of social networking sites is definitely Facebook. One of Facebook’s most popular utilities is the option for people to “like” something. This alerts your Facebook friends to something you find cool or worth checking out, which is why you want to make it easy for Facebook users to “like” something on your site. This plugin is perfect for that. With one click, your visitors can tell their Facebook friends about your site.

You can learn more about the Facebook Like Button here: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/facebook-like-button/

These are just a few of the hundreds of WordPress plugins available, and the great part is that they’re all free and can be installed with one click.

You may not need every one of these plugins, but these are some of the more popular ones that are worth checking out.

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50 Signs You Are A Blogaholic

Tuesday, March 3rd, 2009

Posted in Blogs |

Are you are a blogaholic? Read this post by Jonathan Deamer to find out…
http://jonathandeamer.com/2007/06/10/50-signs-you-blog-too-much/

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The Benefits of Microblogging

Saturday, February 21st, 2009

Posted in Blogs, Twitter |

What is microblogging?

Like traditional blogging, microblogging is a form of communicating with people who share a common interest. However, a microblog’s posts are much shorter, and are generally more personal.

A microblog post might let people know what you’re currently doing, what projects you’re working on, or what you have planned for tomorrow.

Microblog benefits

Traditional blogs are great because there’s virtually no limit to what you can talk about, and unlike printed material, there’s no restriction on length of content. However, because of the length of most blog postings, many bloggers don’t have the ability to deliver high-quality content day in and day out. They may write three posts a week, but sometimes readers want more.

A microblog allows your readers to stay connected to you because the posts can be read in a few seconds. These abbreviated posts will keep people interested in what you have to say between your longer, regular postings.

Another big advantage to microblogging is in the delivery of content. While most people still read blogs on the computer, more and more people are getting content via their cell phones and PDAs. These devices, while handy, aren’t set up for reading lengthy articles and blog posts because of their small screens, which make the microblog post even more attractive for readers.

You’ve no doubt heard about social networking by now. Sites like Facebook and Myspace have exploded onto the web, and have enticed millions of people to sign up. These sites are great for fostering communities and helping people stay in contact with one another. Microblogging takes the basic idea of social networking and strips it down to its core component – communication.

In addition, from a marketing standpoint, developing a relationship with your potential customers is vital to building trust (and sales.) Microblog posts will help keep people in touch with what you’re up to, allow them to interact with you, and build a community.

How do you do it?

Use one of the popular microblogging sites available online. The most popular site right now is Twitter. Twitter accounts are free, and are gaining in popularity. With Twitter, you won’t have to worry about being too wordy because you’re given a character limit that you can’t exceed. While some may see this as a hindrance, it’s actually very beneficial because it forces you to boil your post down to the most important point. You can also post links to your articles, blogs etc.

Another aspect of Twitter (and sites like it) is that it allows plenty of customization. You can set up your Twitter page to resemble your main website, which is a great idea if you’re trying to build brand recognition. There are also plenty of widgets (tiny applications) that you can run on your website that will display your most recent Twitter posts so readers won’t have to log into Twitter’s main page every time they want to read what you’re up to.

And, just like a blog, people can subscribe to your microblog’s feed and follow it like they would your primary blog.

If you’re finding that blogging has lost a bit of its luster, try setting up a microblog; it’s easy, it’s fun and the community you build can lead to increased traffic to your main site.

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Blogs, Social Bookmarking & Social Networking

Monday, May 26th, 2008

Posted in Blogs, Social Bookmarking, Social Networking |

Here are three short, informative videos about Blogs, Social Networking & Social Bookmarking by Commoncraft. Check out http://www.commoncraft.com/ for other cool videos.

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