2. Today’s Presentation Objectives
• Who is this guy talking to us?
• Our Audience: What’s your Comfort-Level
with WordPress? …
• Introducing WordPress, WWWWY
• Understanding your Brand
• Design Process
• Digitally Marketing your Website
3. • 20 years designing/developing websites. Technology GURU.
• Started Web Development Company in Jacksonville, FL in 2012.
• Works with graphic designers, front-end developers, back-end
developers, coders, content writers, SEO experts every day.
• Previous life: Doctor of Chiropractic!?
Dr. Kristopher Daia DC
Twitter @kristopherdaia
4. How important is a website?
• Every business needs a website!
• At the very least, they need a web presence
• 1 shot to make a great first impression
• Project the image of professionalism of a much larger company
• If you don't have a website you are losing business to companies that
do have one.
“Websites promote you 24/7: No employee will do
that.” ― Paul Cookson
12. • WordPress is a content management system
(CMS) that lets you build and publish
websites from your browser.
• CMS uses a different technology than standard
html/css sites.
• Uses a database to store information. (Electronic
Filing System)
• CMS is very widely used these days as opposed
to static websites.
What is ?
16. • Before WordPress came along users were shackled to HTML, PHP, FTP
and all the other barriers to entry that were necessary to learn to
share your message.
• Whenever you wanted to make a change to your website, you had to
pay your webmaster to do it for you.
What is ?
18. When is ?
• Best Buy
• The Walt Disney
Company
• The New Yorker
• Xerox
• Bloomberg
Professional
• Sony Music
• MTV News
• Beyonce
• Variety
19. Why ?
• Your company might already have a website, but perhaps it's not as
easy to update as you'd like.
• Or maybe you are interested in creating a dynamic new company
blog.
• WordPress is a cost effective and easy to manage platform.
23. WordPress is
WordPress.org can serve users at all
price points.
• Free
• Not so Free
From the start, the only cost will be
the price of hosting your site.
24.
25.
26. WordPress is open source.
• Open source means that the technology that powers WordPress is
transparent for easier development. As a result, there are people all
over the world developing new themes and plugins to share with
other WordPress users.
28. WordPress is easy to update.
• 70% of people put off updating their website because they have to
rely on somebody else for updates. Not with WordPress.
30. WordPress Plugins
• The simple way to think of a plugin is that it is something that does a
job on your blog or website.
• Captures Email Addresses
• Shows your Twitter feed
• Lets your put advertisements on your blog
• Etc.…
CodeCanyon.net
Wordpress.org/plugins
31.
32. WordPress has a supportive community.
• WordPress users and developers have online support networks on
various forums.
forums.wordpress.com
wordpress.org/support
33. WordPress allows multiple users.
Multiple people at your company can have access to update your
website or blog without fear of them messing something up.
34. WordPress Posts
Posts are entries listed in reverse chronological order on the blog home
page.
• Uses Tags and
Categories
• For Blogging
• Great for SEO
35. WordPress Pages
• Static and not listed by date
• Do not use tags or categories.
• About us page is an example
36. WordPress Widgets
• A WordPress Widget is a small block that performs a specific
function.
40. Define your Brand
• What product or service are you selling?
• Who are you?
• How do you want your customer to feel?
• What differentiates you from your competitors?
• Customer Service Philosophy?
• Superior Product?
• Quicker Turnaround?
41. Create a brand identity that echoes culture
and values
• The old way of stamping your logo on everything, won't cut it.
• The future of branding is fluid and engaging — respect your
customers' intelligence by NOT giving everything away up front.
• Generate some intrigue and allow them to unearth more about your
brand for themselves.
• This is the way to foster ambassadors who revel in telling other
people what they have discovered.
42. Define your audience
• When you are planning your website, don’t feel like you need to
reinvent the wheel. Look to your competitors websites for ideas.
• Who is buying their product or service?
• Where do those people hang out online?
• Twitter
• Google it
• Find forums
43. What do you want to achieve with your site?
• Some of the more popular goals for websites include things like:
• Generating leads
• Selling a product
• Improving brand awareness
• Once you know what you want to achieve,
then you can continue to build the whole
site around it.
44. Parts of a Website
• A Homepage
• A Portfolio
• A Blog
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Client Testimonials and Feedback Forms
• Contact Form
• Terms and Privacy Statements
www.pixelshock.com
46. Picking a Theme Template
• WordPress offers several free
themes to get you started.
• Must have a Responsive Design
• There are premium themes available
that average around the $59 mark.
• They have industry specific themes
available.
• Ranging in technical support.
48. The Design Process
Picking a Theme
• Available for most industries
• Cuts out a lot of development work
• Tested and supported by the developer
49. Example: Philanthropy/Non-Profit
• You are a non-profit organization whose goal is to raise money for
your cause.
• Your design should be focused around this.
• Photos are key
• Mission statement is key
• Ability to donate directly on your site is another key.
The Design Process
50. New Design and Template = Better Results for Business
OLD
NEW
51. Example: E-Commerce Business
• You sell products or services online to individuals locally, nationally
and/or internationally.
• You may have a brick and mortar business OR your company may be
based purely online.
• Your design should be focused on your product/service.
• Your products are your key.
• Having them displayed in an appealing way is key.
• Ease of navigation is key.
• A template that supports e-commerce is key.
The Design Process
52. • It’s not about you, it’s about your product or service.
The Design Process
54. Digitally Marketing Your Site
Different ways to market your site online.
1. Email
2. Social Media
3. Search Engine Optimization
-Organic vs Paid
55. Digitally Marketing Your Site
Email marketing is a great way to reach your customers where they are without
spending a lot of money. But it’s a big responsibility too—people don’t give their
email addresses to just anyone.
Tips to keep in mind.
1. Make it easy to subscribe
2. Tell subscribers what to expect
3. Send a welcome email
4. Design the newsletter to fit the brand
5. Make it easy to scan
6. Commit to a schedule
7. Proofread
8. Test
9. Mobile Optimized?
10. Know the SPAM rules
Email
57. Digitally Marketing Your Site
Organic Search Engine Optimization
• Search engine crawlers look at keywords and phrases from
• Blogs/other posted content
• Articles
• Defined images/videos
• Search engines look at how many times your
site appears on other reputable sites.
• Yelp
• Yellow Pages
• Business Directories
Search Engine Optimization
58. • Google Analytics is a freemium web analytics service offered by
Google that tracks and reports website traffic.
Digitally Marketing Your Site
Search Engine Optimization
BIG DATA!
59. Simple SEO Tips
1. Always write with human readers in mind.
2. Don’t cram your keywords.
3. Never try to cheat the Search Engine, or you could be penalized, or
worse!
4. Use Headers and Sub-Headers which feature your keywords
5. Label your images descriptively
Digitally Marketing Your Site
Search Engine Optimization
60. Simple Security Measures
• Always update to the latest version of WordPress
• Do not use the default “admin” username
• Use a secure password (LastPass)
• Keep your theme and plugins updated
• Spam comments are going to happen. Try a plugin to eliminate them.
61. Final Thoughts
• Embrace email; it keeps a record
• Get a quote system
• When you don’t have money for SEO, do it yourself. There are many
resources out there. The only cost is time.
Yoast SEO Plugin
If I use any terms that you don’t understand please don’t hesitate to ask.
Stick with what you are good at . I bet your asking why the heck did you put off all those student loans, and all that time, and now you are a web developer that has a love triangle with Wordpress? Because it’s easy.
Database is a structured collection of information organized in such a way that a computer program can quickly select desired pieces of data. Battleship- human is computer.
Might as well get you acquainted with it now.
More on this later
Database is a structured collection of information organized in such a way that a computer program can quickly select desired pieces of data.
Whatever phase you're in of creating or cultivating a web presence for your business.
WordPress can be self-hosted
If you decide to use the self-hosted version of WordPress, there is more flexibility in terms of features and design.
If you want to host it you have the ability, but if your company is not there yet you can manipulate WordPress to fit your brand and your needs.
For those who want to start with a free theme that they install themselves
To those with more specific needs who can hire a web designer to create a custom theme that integrates with their site and supports their branding.
Little lesson on open source. Microsoft Windows, Adobe Flash Player, PS3 OS, iTunes, Adobe Photoshop, Google Earth, Mac OS X, Skype, WinRAR, Oracle's version of Java and some versions of Unix. Transparency is the key, whether in business or in life. People can tell when you are hiding something and they won’t always say something.
SEO = Search Engine Optimization
The code behind WordPress is very clean and simple, making it easy for search engines to read and index a site’s content.
In addition, each page, post, and image can have its own meta tag keywords, description, and title, and be optimized for specific keywords, allowing for very precise search engine optimization.
You can also use tags to further enhance your search engine optimization efforts.
You want to do the same for pictures.
One of the major complaints of business owners is that they can't update their website themselves, and that having someone else update it costs them money. "Not only is WordPress free it is simple to install," "It takes no more than five minutes to set up the software." Once WordPress is set up you can easily update content or create new pages without knowing HTML.
There is a large community of WordPress developers who create free themes, widgets and plug-ins. There are extensions for polling, contact forms, backing up your site, blocking spam, making your pages load faster and thousands more that can be found on the WordPress Plug-In Directory. "Any enhancement you can think of, type it in to Google and you will find an answer or search the WordPress Plug-In Directory," said Armeda. From there, you add the new features to your website or blog without having to hire a web developer.
One of the many reasons that I love WP so much are the plug-ins.
Each plug-in function would cost you a lot of money to code but they are usually free or very inexpensive.
Users post step-by-step video tutorials that can walk new users through the most basic as well as complex concepts.
In addition to a host of free online WordPress resources, if you simply can't find what you're looking for or don't have the time to work on something highly customized for your site, it's easy to find WordPress developers for hire. *wink wink*
WordPress has core role base management and you are able to extend it as the need arises for you and your organization,"
You can set permission levels of each user to maintain the security and integrity of your website or blog.
In a world with endless opportunities to cut corners and compromise values, it is important for your customer to know who you are and how can you help them.
A company’s success is largely based on its ability to articulate and execute why it is DIFFERENT and BETTER than the competition.
I’m guilty of this .
Tell them what you do when you are defining a audience for a client.
Twitter – search for keywords in your industry. Great way to find out about the conversations that are already going on among your target audience
Google it – This might seem obvious, but Google is the perfect research assistant. Search for your keywords and leverage the search engine to find the top 50 people in your field who already have access to your ideal clients.
Find Forums- Forums are online meeting places where like-minded people can chat, ask questions, and support each other. These are available for almost every industry. Example someone give me an industry.
What you want to achieve: which should be just one main thing and not 5-10 different things, by the way
People make the mistake of trying to serve everyone. Let me tell you it is a waste of time and money.
Why spend all that time creating a theme when there are already so many to customize.
Collecting email addresses with your website is a tried and true way to get more leads. But be responsible for your list.