Affichage des articles dont le libellé est Ways. Afficher tous les articles
Affichage des articles dont le libellé est Ways. Afficher tous les articles

samedi 12 novembre 2016

12 Tested and Easy Ways to Grow Your Email List Faster



Are you looking for easy ways to grow your email list? Many beginners just install a sidebar optin form on their website and wait for users to subscribe. This results in slow growth. There is so much more you can do to grow your email list much faster. In this article, we will show you some of tested and proven ways to grow your email list that are actually easy to implement.


Grow your email list faster


Getting Started


First thing you need is to make sure that you are using a professional email marketing service.


Using the best email marketing company ensures that your emails don’t end up in the spam folder. It also provides you with the industry standard tools to build and grow your email list.


We recommend using Constant Contact. It is one of the largest and most popular email service provider in the world.


Next, you will need OptinMonster. It is the best lead generation software in the world. It helps you convert abandoning website visitors into email subscribers.


Having said that, let’s take a look at some of the most effective ways to grow your email list.


1. Use Multiple Sign up Forms


Using multiple signup forms


As we mentioned earlier many beginners start with just a simple signup form in their sidebar.


If you want to grow your email list quickly, then you need to use multiple sign up forms to give users more opportunity to join your email list.


We recommend combining your sidebar sign up form with a floating footer bar or a lightbox popup to make your signup forms more noticeable


2. Use an Exit Intent Popup


Exit intent popup


Exit-Intent® is an advanced technology built by OptinMonster that tracks your user’s mouse behavior and show them with a targeted form at the precise moment they are about to leave your website. Think of it as Onsite Retargeting.


You can use this technology in combination with full screen welcome gates, lightbox popups, or other optin types to convert abandoning visitors into subscribers.


We use an exit intent popup on WPBeginner, and it has helped increase our subscribers by 600%.


Michael Stelzner from Social Media Examiner used it to add over 250,000 new email subscribers.


3. Offer Content Upgrades


Content upgrades


Content upgrade is a marketing technique where you offer users a chance to get exclusive bonus content by signing up to your email list.


This additional premium content offered for completing an action is also known as content bribe.


Human psychology plays an important role in the effectiveness of content upgrades. The psychology principle known as Zeigarnik Effect states that people are most likely to complete a task if they initiate it themselves.


Because the user initiates (click to download the content upgrade), they are more likely to complete the task (subscribe to your list).


See our step by step guide on how to add content upgrades in WordPress to grow your email list.


4. Add Full or Partially Gated Content in WordPress


Adding gated content


Gated content is content on your website that can’t be accessed until the visitor enters their email address. You can use it to hide some of your content or hide the entire blog post until the user enters their email address.


Here’s a step by step guide on how to add content locking in WordPress.


5. Create Multiple Lead Magnet Pages


Lead magnet page example


Lead magnet (also known as opt-in bribe) is an incentive you offer to potential buyers in exchange for their contact information such as name, email, phone number, etc.


Your blog posts with locked content, content upgrades, and premium content all fall into the lead magnet category.


Lead magnets need to offer additional value to your users. This could be an ebook, a resources newsletter, checklists, workbooks, etc. See these 9 highly effective lead magnet ideas for inspiration.


6. Add Sign up Call to Action on Your Facebook Page


Facebook has introduced call to action buttons for business pages. These buttons are prominently displayed on top of your cover image and are visible without scrolling.


Call to action button on a Facebook business page


Here is how to add a sign up button as call to action on your Facebook page.


You need to visit your Facebook page, and you will notice a blue ‘Add a button’ button.


Adding a call to action button


This will bring up a popup with multiple choices. You need to click on ‘Get in touch with us’ tab and then select ‘Sign up’.


Next, you need to provide a link to your website where users will be taken when they click signup.


Add a link to your sign up page


Don’t forget to click on add button to save your changes.


6. Use Twitter Lead Generation Cards


Twitter Ads


Twitter Ads offers another social platform that you can use to boost your lead generation efforts.


In fact, Twitter even allows you to run lead generation directly from Twitter. This way users can sign up for your email list without leaving Twitter.


You can also drive traffic to your website and use email sign up as a conversion. You can create special offers for Twitter users and tweet the links to your followers.


7. Use YouTube Call to Action Cards


YouTube action cards


YouTube is one of the largest social media platforms, and the second most popular search engine in the world. If you are using YouTube videos as part of your marketing strategy, then you can utilize your YouTube channel to grow your email list.


YouTube action cards allow you to add interactive information cards to your videos. You can use them to add call to actions and link them to lead magnets on your website.


Here is how to add YouTube action cards to your videos.


8. Use After Post and In-Line Optin Forms


After post optin forms appear when a user has already scrolled down an entire article. This means that they are already interested in your content and are much more likely to sign up.


After post and in-line optin forms


You can also use in-line optin forms with in your blog posts and long reads. The middle of a long read is the point where users are most engaged with the content. Reminding them to sign up at that point, works like a charm.


9. Add Polite Slide-in Scroll Box Forms


As we mentioned earlier that users simply ignore most static signup forms. The goal is to divert user’s attention to your offer and sign up form.


Slide in scroll box


Slide-in scroll box forms do that beautifully. They stay out of the way so that users can look at the content while diverting user attention to the sign up form with slide in animation.


10. Prominent Headers with Call to Action


Prominent headers with call to action


Header is the area of your website most prominently visible to users when they arrive. This makes it the most effective spot to place your call to action.


You will need a WordPress theme that comes with large or full screen header. You can also use a page builder plugin like Beaver Builder to create custom pages with your own layout.


11. Use Social Proof to Encourage More Sign ups


WPBeginner social proof


Social proof is a psychological effect used to describe a social behavior where people feel more comfortable following other people. Marketers use social proof as a tactic for easing the minds of worried customers and increasing conversions.


There are many ways you can use social proof to get more subscribers. You can use testimonials on your landing pages, add reviews, show number of registered users, etc.


Many popular websites show the number of subscribers in their sign up forms to encourage new sign ups.


12. A/B Test Your Optin Forms


A/B test your optin forms


Many beginners continue to rely on guess work to understand what works on their website. You need to understand how your audience react to different call to actions, optin placements, colors, design, and copy.


With A/B testing, you can find out which optins work better on your website. You can use these A/B testing tips to continuously test and improve your optins.


We hope this article helped you find the best ways to grow your email list. You may also want to see our list of 10 WordPress plugins that will quickly help you get more traffic.


If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.


The post 12 Tested and Easy Ways to Grow Your Email List Faster appeared first on WPBeginner.







Ten Easy Ways to Amass Wealth and Friends on Facebook



alt="Ten Easy Ways to Amass Wealth and Friends on Facebook" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/default-image-500x308_c.jpg" />

Facebook (URL: href="http://www.facebook.com/" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/) is one of the most popular social networking sites in the online world and honestly, 9.5 out of 10 of my friends have a Facebook (FB) account these days.  Even me, checking my FB became a part of my daily routine – From the moment I greet the online world ‘good morning’ to the time I say ‘goodnight world’ – I know, it’s a sin for wasting this much of time.

I enjoy a good number of Facebook friends.  With Facebook, I can gain new friends or enhance existing relationships and you can, too. Take, for example, an acquaintance you met during an event or during a party of a common friend, Facebook can link you to your new acquaintance and enhance your relationship with him or her.  More so, you can even use Facebook to increase your sphere of influence and gain business success, but only if you know the right ways to do so.

How To Get Popular (And Rich Too) On FaceBook

src="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.com/images/2011/0324-1.jpg" alt="Facebook Maniac" class="border" />

So here you go, following up on my previous href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.com/web-marketing/how-to-convert-facebook-into-your-most-powerful-advertising-tool/">How To Convert FaceBook Into Your Most Powerful Advertising Tool, I present you 10 easy ways to amass wealth and friends on Facebook

Create a Compelling Public Profile. If you are aiming to increase your sphere of influence that could positively affect your business, then ease a bit on the security setting and create a compelling public profile.  This way, you can let strangers stay informed and updated of your activities since in the long run, your public profile will be your stepping stone in creating and nurturing a relationship with people outside your social network. 

Use Tags Sparingly and Only When Your Friends are in Their Best Behavior and Look.Tagging your friends in photos is one way to connect and reconnect with them. Yet posting unattractive photos of your friends may not get the positive result that you will want.  Rather than thanking you, the tagged photos may become an annoyance. 

Make Your Facebook Page Popular and Interesting for the Advertisers.  Having a good number of friends and establishing an influence over them is one way to help you make money.  Whether you are selling your own products online, you can always earn money by attracting advertisers. 

Spare Enough Space for Advertisers.  Knowing the different applications in your Facebook will help you customize and make your page attractive for your social network and possible advertisers.  Also, spare enough space where your possible advertisers can advertise. 

Explore the Marketplace in Facebook. You can participate in Facebook’s online business activities.  You can sell or buy different products or items.  Great thing is, items on sale are with corresponding photos, brief descriptions and other pertinent information that the buyer may want to know.  So, whether you are buying or selling, you can take advantage the Marketplace.

Group Your Friends’ List. You can tweak your privacy settings depending on the set or segment of your friends.  Managing your privacy will help you filter the contents that your particular set of friends can and may view.  This will also help you set the levels of priority and help you wisely spend your interaction time.

Maintain a Regular Facebook Visibility.  It is not enough that you successfully created a Facebook account and gain some friends.  Rather, maintaining a regular Facebook visibility added with interesting posts or updates will help you increase your social influence.

Post Interesting Stories and Updates; Don’t Brag in Your Posts, Too.Updating your status is not simply posting what you are doing, plan of doing or thinking like “Will go to the market,” or “Planning to read a book.”  Don’t you think seeing and reading status like that is boring?  It is.  So, post witty status updates and interesting stories rather than becoming a boring annoyance. Post more thought-provoking status like “Paolo Coelho’s novel, Veronika Decides to Die, will truly make you appreciate life and living more, right?” Furthermore, ask questions in your FB status because this will surely get feedback or comments. Also, don’t brag in your posts. The more you brag, the more annoying you become.  So, instead of giving personal validation on how good you are, let other people say so. 

Leave Interesting Comments on Your Friend’s Stories and Updates.  Leaving comments in your friends’ status or stories will make them feel that you are interested and attentive on what’s going on with them.  It is also a way to let them know that you enjoy what they share. Your simple, short and polite comments will help you establish a relationship and reconnect with even a long lost friend.  Your comments also reflect how sensible you can be; yet be wary of going overboard since commenting too much might spell that you ‘stalking’ someone. 

Post Public Compliments and Greetings on Special Days or Birthdays. Complimenting your friend privately is heartwarming, but posting your compliments in public holds greater value.  Public compliments are like your testimonials; however regularly complimenting your friends will somehow lessen the value of your compliments. It is also equally important to greet your friends or those in your social network during their birthdays or other special days.  But if time allows, spend effort calling or even perhaps visiting your friend.


Page 27 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed




77 Ways to Drive Traffic to Your Website



alt="77 Ways to Drive Traffic to Your Website" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/web-traffics-500x271_c.jpg" />

class="border" width="750px" alt="Massive traffics" src="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/images/2011/0418-1.jpg" />

Having been doing Internet marketing and developing websites that rely heavily on natural search engine traffic for the past few years I can say without a doubt the largest challenge that site owner’s face is getting traffic into their website and that doesn’t include getting highly targeted traffic which is looking for your content. “Build and they will come” is nothing more than a slogan on your car bumper sticker.

The second largest challenge, of course, is converting that traffic into your desired result. That could be newsletter signup, sale, new reader, blog comment, new StumbleUpon fans or Twitter followers, or even just a new friends on your facebook profile.

Key To Success: Multiple Traffic Sources

A website can look professional, have great content and be on the cutting edge of a new wave of creative ideas but without traffic, it’s just like a flyer in the wind. You’ve got to develop multiple inroads into your website using as many different methods and strategies as possible. Never place your eggs in one basket, keep things varied and then you will maximize the growth from your site.
The key to leveraging your efforts is to outsource the work through one of the many outsource services online.

Drive Massive Traffics To Your Site With These Methods

Here are 77 ways you can use right now to drive traffic to your website or blog.

  1. Create Articles and submit to EzineArticles and Goarticles
  2. Viral Ebooks/Reports
  3. Blogging
  4. Comment on others Blogs with Backlink to your site
  5. Get Guest Bloggers to post on your site
  6. Join Interest Groups – Yahoo, Google, MSN
  7. Create Widgets for WordPress ( outsource the work )
  8. Create Widgets for Google ( outsource the work )
  9. Create Extensions for Joomla ( outsource the work )
  10. Create templates, themes ( Outsource the work )
  11. Yahoo Answers – Posting Questions and Answering
  12. Write a Press Release submit to PRWeb
  13. Keep adding Content to Your Site
  14. Write a Book, Publish on LULU
  15. Write something controversial on your blog
  16. Create a review site of your site and others, list you at the top
  17. Keywords in your Image File names
  18. Create Small Product then Create Affiliate Program For it
  19. Email/Newsletters – Repeat Traffic
  20. AutoResponders
  21. Monthly Contests
  22. Social bookmarking using SocialMarker.com or similiar
  23. Safelists
  24. Giving away Website Award Banners
  25. Joint Ventures with other site owners
  26. Giving away articles, audio and video to other site owners
  27. Creating Tutorials on your site
  28. Submit Articles to Newsletters
  29. Ezines like http://www.ezezine.com/
  30. Organic SEO ( Good Titles, Description, Headers, Quality Content )
  31. Submit to Directories
  32. Using Search Boxes to Traffic Search Items then Provide That
  33. Creating or Using Free Viral Software, giving away or uploading to
  34. Shareware websites.
  35. One Way Links Back To Your Site
  36. Newsletter Directories
  37. Creating Videos and Uploading to Sites, Youtube, Revver etc.
  38. Linking Videos to Other High Traffic Videos on YouTube
  39. Craigs List Free Classified Ads
  40. Kijiji Free Classified Ads
  41. Ebay – Listing Reports
  42. Blogrolls ( To Related Blogs )
  43. Forum Posting
  44. Forum Signatures
  45. Create your own forum
  46. Tag Your Blog and Images
  47. Twitter
  48. Facebook
  49. Myspace
  50. Utterli
  51. Delicious
  52. Digg
  53. MyBlogLog
  54. Linkedin
  55. Bebo
  56. Orkut
  57. Squidoo Lenses
  58. Stumbleupon
  59. HubPages
  60. Free Online Teleseminar – Provide good content
  61. Write Testimonials for products provided by related sites
  62. Beta Test Products, sometimes leads to a testimonial and url back
  63. Get involved in a Community Site, there are 1000’s related
  64. Blog RSS Feeds
  65. Create a Freebies Section on your site
  66. Join Website Rings
  67. Join Business Associations Related
  68. Submit RSS Feeds to Directories
  69. Submit to Blog Directories
  70. Add a Directory to your site
  71. Add Classified Ads area to your site
  72. Create a Podcast
  73. Submit Podcast to Podcast Directories
  74. Submit to itunes Your Podcast
  75. Buy Ads on Sites
  76. Buy Ads in Newsletters
  77. Use Amazon profile and commenting

Page 27 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed




Top 10 Ways To Speed Up Your WordPress Blog



alt="Top 10 Ways To Speed Up Your WordPress Blog" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/reading-500x320_c.jpg" />

class="border" alt="Speeding Up Your WordPress" src="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/images/2010/1104-1.jpg" width="750" />

With unlimited information becoming available with the click of a mouse, internet users have lost their patience, when it comes to waiting for a WordPress blog to load. If a page is taking too long to become legible, most internet users will move on to the next page that offers similar information, news, views, images or whatever else they are seeking. Therefore, if you want to capture your audience long enough for them to read what you have to say, you need to not only make sure that your blog is attractive to look at but that it loads quickly, before you lose a prospective reader.

The good news is that there are some easy tips and tricks that you can use to maximize the speed of your WordPress blog. Let me take you through a tour of the 10 best ways to speed up your blog. Some of these tricks are so simple that they might seem obvious to some of you but all of them work brilliantly when it comes to reducing the page load time.

1. Cache Fully Generated Pages

The reason why WordPress is slow is that it is a PHP script, which means that the page is dynamic and WordPress needs to execute all queries before the page can load. The best way to get around this problem is to use static pages. All you need to do is install a plugin called href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-super-cache/">WP Super Cache, which will cache the fully generated pages that can be brought up quickly by users rather than waiting for dynamic queries to be processed. As soon as you install this plugin, you will find a noticeable decline in the load time of page, as well as more efficient usage of server resources.

2. Disable Hotlinking

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Hotlinking is basically href="http://altlab.com/hotlinking.html">bandwidth theft, where other sites create direct links from their articles to the images on your page, slowing down your server load time. One person doing this doesn’t really matter. But the reality is that hordes of spammers hotlink and copy your write-ups and images. Even the best web hosting service will be adversely affected by this. Rather than looking for a cure, what you need to do is prevent hotlinking from being attempted in the first place.

One way that you can do this is by placing a code in your root .htaccess file.

The code you need to place is as follows:

#disable hotlinking of images with forbidden or custom image option
RewriteEngine on
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^$
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^http(s)?://(www.)?wpbeginner.com [NC]
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^http(s)?://(www.)?google.com [NC]
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^http(s)?://(www.)?feeds2.feedburner.com/wpbeginner [NC]
RewriteRule .(jpg|jpeg|png|gif)$ – [NC,F,L]

3. Create Smaller WordPress Pages

Even if you intend to create a huge resource of information that also includes many images, it is best to split up a long post into smaller pages with a few images. This way you will be able to increase your page views and get people to read long enough to want to know more. All you need to do is to use the WordPress admin panel to add the <!—nextpage> code at the end of each split page. Also, ensure that your template functions properly.

4. Use Excerpts on the Main Blog Page

Okay, I am not a big fans of the usage of Excerpts in WordPress but without doubt it is a good way to speed up WordPress blog – especially if you are featuring several loooooooooong blogposts at your index page. Rather than showing full posts on the main page itself and burdening this page, you can display excerpts of up to 10 posts on the main blog page. For this, you need to visit the index.php and set a limit to the number of pages displayed through the WorldPress admin panel under the tab of Settings > Reading. You can do this in the following way:

Go to index.php and find:

<?php the_content(__(‘(more…)’)); ?>

Replace this code with:

<?php the_excerpt(__(‘(more…)’)); ?>

Limit the number of posts displayed via the tabs Settings > Reading in the admin panel:

5. Optimize the MySQL Database

You can either do this manually or by using a plugin. In the manual method, you will need to access phpMyAdmin and choose your database. There will be an option for you to select the tables and optimize them. On the other hand, you could use a plugin called href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/optimize-db/">Optimize DB by Joost De Valk. This plugin will do exactly the same thing as you would have done manually but will minimal effort on your part.

6. Minimize external websites and scripts

You can avoid the use of external scripts, both directly and through plugins. Some plugins can take a long time to load and often lead to your page not loading properly, especially during times of heavy traffic. Also, displaying widgets on your sidebar will only slow down your site.

7. Use Expires Header for Static Resources

This header helps you specify the time period for which a visitor will be able to bring up specific static content, including CSS files, images, javascript, etc.) and thereby cut down on load time. Use the following code in your root .htaccess file:

ExpiresActive On
ExpiresByType image/gif A2628000
ExpiresByType image/png A2628000
ExpiresByType image/jpg A2628000
ExpiresByType image/jpeg A2628000

Here, the figure 2628000 represents the number of seconds in a month. You can change this figure to any time frame of your choice.

8. Remove All Unwanted plugins and PHP tags

If your page is using more than 15 plugins, look for those that can be directly integrated into your theme.

At the same time, check whether you actually need those plugins or whether you can do without them. Also, look at your header.php and other theme files to check for php tags. You will find numerous redundant tags or unnecessary queries that can be removed without harming your site.

9. Compress All Java Script files

Regardless of the size of these files, if they are repeatedly loaded, they will use up huge server resources and increase load time. Various compressors are available online that will help you save on resources and speed up your WordPress blog.

10. Minimize Database Calls

Database calls are what make WordPress dynamic. Although having a dynamic page is at times unavoidable, replacing database calls with simple text can significantly decrease WordPress load time.

For instance, if your header.php code looks like this:

<html xmlns=”http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml” <?php language_attributes(); ?>>
<head profile=”http://gmpg.org/xfn/11″>
<meta http-equiv=”Content-Type” content=”<?php bloginfo(‘html_type’); ?>;
charset=<?php bloginfo(‘charset’); ?>” />

This means that useless database queries are being called up. These can easily be put in simple text form, like this:

<html xmlns=”http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml” dir=”ltr”>
<head profile=”http://gmpg.org/xfn/11″>
<meta http-equiv=”Content-Type” content=”text/html; charset=UTF-8″ />

Some other ways in which you can bring down the number of database calls including having a static stylesheet URL, having a static pingback URL, having a static feed URL, as well as removing the WordPress version of the blog.

For more site speed optimization, also read my href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/seo/speed-up-your-website/">How to speed up your website for better search rankings.


Page 28 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed




Blogging Tips: 10 Ways To Make Your Blog Attractive



alt="Blogging Tips: 10 Ways To Make Your Blog Attractive" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/default-image-500x308_c.jpg" />

src="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.com/images/2011/0719-1.jpg" alt="Blogging Tips" class="border" />

It’s commonly known that you only have minutes if not seconds to grab the attention of readers and potential advertisers when they arrive at your site. People are consumed with information and the internet provides it in the bucket loads. So how do you stands out from the crowd? How do you make sure that visually everything looks appealing? And, site navigation is clear and direct?

Well in case you need some ideas, here are 10 ways you can make your blog look more attractive. Feel free to use’em; and share if you have other ways in your list.

1. Keep advertisement limited and related

It’s terrible to land on a blog that serves more ads than the yellow pages. Worse if the ads are unrelated. Imagine: DirecTV ads on a web development site? I bet one will actually take your blog seriously and stay longer than 30 seconds.  

Yes, bloggers need to eat too and it is alright to place advertisement on your blog. But remember: never, ever, oversell your blog and always keep ads related to your content. Your readers will thank you for promoting a product they are interested; and you get to increase your advertisers’ sales – that’s a win-win.

id='right'>src="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.com/images/2011/0719-2.jpg" alt="Focus on your blog topic" />

2. Stay focus

I can’t stress how important it is to concentrate on your blog topic. If you are writing about Java code, STOP yelling about your cats (or your plants in the garden).

Think about it, what’s the main objective of your blog? You can’t attract 15 year old girl who’s searching for Justin Bieber and 28 year old programmer who is searching for coding advice. So before you start your next blogpost; make up your mind, decide who are your target audiences, and keep your content flows focus on the same direction.

3. Use a professional  theme or buy a custom blog theme/>

Sure there are lots of blog themes that are out there for free, but to stand out from the crowd its vital that you use one that is good.  I would go as far as to say that it’s worth investing in having a professional designed theme – which explains why I am using Nick’s Quadro Theme (from Elegant Themes) here at WHSR.
It doesn’t have to cost you an arm and leg to get a designer to build you a theme that only you will have. Having a blog themes membership like me or outsourcing the work through freelancers via Elance should be good enough.

In case you are using WordPress and would like some recommendation, check out: href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.com/wpt.php" target="_blank">Elegant Themes, href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.com/woo.php" target="_blank">Woo Themes, as well as href="http://www.blogohblog.com/" target="_blank">Blog Oh Blog.

4. Remove the clutter from your site

I don’t know how many websites that I have come across online that are choker block full of unnecessary design elements such as flash clips, audio, shockwaves. The focus of your blog should be to draw the reader to the content.

If you insist to do all those cosmetic stuffs for your blog, remember the golden key: less is more.

5. Google Adsense is NOT a fit-for-all solution

Repeat after me: Google Adsense is not for everyone. While you might be keen on making a buck from Adsense it doesn’t exactly provide the most professional appearance for your website. People have become accustomed to it and many spam based sites are using it all over their websites. It puts off other advertisers especially if some of the advertisers listed in your Google ads are competitors of potential advertisers.

6. (Bonus tips on advertisement) Let people know who you are and give your web stats upfront

Don’t hide your stats or assume that an advertiser is going to email you to request them. People don’t have the time or patience for that. href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.com/about/">Give them up front, let them know your audience, demographics, Google PR and Alexa rank. They should be able to see clearly how many unique visitors you get and number of impressions.

Use an about page, contact, privacy and disclaimer. Let people know about your blog, who you are and how to contact you. Keep your site transparent in how it uses visitor information. Any attempt to hide this only increases distrust.

7. Create a fight if necessary

That’s right. Create a (civilized) fight with other blogger if that’s what it takes. Nothing wrong with taking pride and standing up straight for your opinion.

Fact: Fights gain attention, simple and direct. In SEO term, this is what we call ‘link baiting’. Quoting href="http://scobleizer.com/2011/07/10/sometimes-i-really-get-it-wrong-my-apology-to-seo-industry/" target="_blank">Robert Scoble, "Truth is, if you bash the SEO world they will all link to you, argue with you, etc." Accept it. The Internet crowds love to watch fights and good bloggers should never refuse an (constructive) argument.

8. User friendly and convenient to use

An attractive blog is more than just some nice theme designs and colourful icons. It also need to be user-friendly and convenient to use. I believe you don’t need me to tell you how important a good site navigation is. So let’s talk about the convenience of sharing your content online (which is very important these days).

In the era of Web 2.0 we have href="http://twitter.com/" target="_blank">Twitter, href="http://www.facebook.com">Facebook, href="http://www.stumbleupon.com" target="_blank">StumbleUpon, href="http://www.reddit.com" target="_blank">Reddit, href="http://www.delicious.com">Delicious, href="http://www.myspace.com">MySpace, href="http://www.digg.com">Digg, and other thousands of unnamed networking sites. I bet you are at least using a few of them. But, have you maximize the usage of these social tools? It’s extremely easy to share a piece of good article and it’s a sin to not leverage the power of these tools nowadays.

Install Tweeter gadgets, Facebook addon, or better, use plugin like Share to encourage users sharing your blogposts with their friends.

9. Post regularly

Readers will be more likely to follow id="IL_AD9">your blog if you are posting regularly – publish blogpost weekly, bi-monthly, or even monthly – it doesn’t matter what it is (although it should be at least once a week in my opinion) – but you should always stick to a schedule so your readers know when to expect new reading materials from your blog.

(Unfortunately I am not doing too well in this section. But hey, I am sure you can do better than me, right?)

10. Quality, well researched, useful content is gold

Take your time to write quality content. Don’t just follow others and have your own opinion. Some says you should spend 90% of your effort researching out what you’re going to blog (and the remaining 10% effort for typing it out). Well the figure might not be perfect for everyone but I guess it tells clearly that how important is your research to your blog. People are searching for strong quality content and if you focus on giving that you will attract a loyal readership.

11. Post from your experience

Quoting href="http://www.bloggingtips.com/2008/12/31/10-blogging-tips-for-2009-to-make-it-your-most-successful-blogging-year-ever/">Yuwanda Black from BloggingTips.com   

I like first-hand information. In fact, many web surfers are looking for this type of info. It’s no coincidence that “how to” information is the number one selling product on the web. Most of it comes from first-hand information. So use case studies, write in the first person (eg, use “I”), tell your readers how you solved a particular problem, etc. I sell a lot of ebooks by doing just this. It lets readers know that you know what you’re talking about; hence, you become an authority voice in your niche.

To prove Black’s point, my blogpost on href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.com/featured-articles/bluehost-hostmonster-user-alert-cpu-throttling/">BlueHost/HostMonster CPU Throttling Features is a good example. The blogpost tells the story of my difficulties dealing with Bluehost/Hostmonster’s CPU throttling features back in year 2009. Because the story is coming first-hand from a user’s point of view, it sparks quite a discussion (I got BlueHost CEO Matt Heaton joining into the discussion) in the blogsphere. In fact, it’s still attracts comments and attention (free links!) from bloggers until today (after almost two years!).

So hey, next time if you are running out idea, perhaps it’s time to look around and see if there’s anything in your life that’s worth mentioning. ;)


Page 27 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed




10 Surefire Ways to Market Your Products on Twitter



alt="10 Surefire Ways to Market Your Products on Twitter" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/tweeting-500x311_c.jpg" />

class="border" style="line-height: 1.5em;" alt="Twitter Marketing" src="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/images/2011/0208-4.jpg" width="750" />

The internet paved way to another opportunity for marketers or sellers. Through the internet, I’ve seen that any marketer could make his product known and visible without spending a fortune or without breaking the bank. Some cost-effective online approaches I’ve known and tested are online advertisements, href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/web-tools/my-quick-review-on-getresponse/">email marketing, article directories, and search engine optimization. But apart from the usual online marketing strategies, I saw that you can promote your products in a social networking site like Twitter.

Tweeting is fun and somehow addicting. Anyone could access Twitter since it is a free social site and registering for an account is easy. Once registered, you can search for friends, acquaintances or even those people who share the same interest like yours. They can become your followers and it means that it will be possible for them to receive updates or Tweets from you regularly, while you also can receive Tweets from your Twitter friends.

But since Twitter is foremost a social networking site, your followers then would expect you to post social messages rather than product advertisements. Otherwise, you will be losing followers than gaining more. So, advertising or making your product href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/socialmedia-marketing/49-data-proven-tips-on-how-to-get-more-retweets/">known and visible in Twitter should be approached properly and cleverly.

To do this, follow the 10 Surefire Ways to Market Your Products on Twitter.

1. Make use of Search.Twitter.com to build contacts that could be your prospective clients.

id="floatright">alt="Twitter Marketing" src="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.com/images/2011/0208-5.jpg" />

For example, you are selling environment-friendly products, then look for an environment conscious group or search for forums or Tweets that mentions anything to do with environment, green earth, etc. You can search for Twitter friends using their names, and email addresses.

2. Disguise your advertisement through Tweets.

Twitter only allows you to post 140 words at a time, then make use of it to mask or disguise your advertisement by asking questions about a particular product or sharing your experience with it. Rather than Tweeting a direct advertisement like “Buy Green Bags and help save the environment,” rephrase it in a question format that could entice participation from your followers. You can also add a link that can direct your followers to your product Web site – after all, tweets with links are more likely to href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/socialmedia-marketing/49-data-proven-tips-on-how-to-get-more-retweets/">get more retweets.

3. Tweets for Feedback.

If you feel strongly about saving the environment, then ask for feedback on how Green Bags can help your cause. This way, you are enticing your Twitter friends to leave comments and eventually visit your product Web site.

4. Use your Tweets to create awareness about your product.

This is what many href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/hosting-review/ipage/">web hosting companies are doing nowadays. Posting updates about your company, sales statistics, promos, interesting stories like client testimonials or even funny stories could attract more followers. The interesting short anecdotes you Tweet will help get recognized by other Twitter users thus expanding your network of potential clients.

5. Offer incentives for those who belong to your network.

If you are selling, then offer incentives to your Twitter network of friends when they buy your products. It creates a sense of exclusiveness and that you regard them specially.

6. Personalize your online offer.

Adding a personal touch to your product offer will create an ambience or feeling that you do not only want to sell them your product but you also want to help them save money. You may experiment on Tweets like “Only for my friends in Twitter: Enjoy 25% Discounts at Green Bag by attaching the promo codes I provided.”

7. Run an online contest and Tweet it.

Any Twitter follower or any person for that matter will want to have something free or will want to win something. So, if you’ll run an online contest with freebies for the lucky few, it will not fail to generate Web site traffic and it could eventually generate sales.

8. Do not spam your Tweets (advertisements).

It is given that you can mention your products or services in your Tweets but mentioning it more than five or seven times a day will look spamming. So, place yourself in the shoes of your followers. Wouldn’t you be irritated if you are receiving 5 or more messages about the same product or service in day? So, be subtle, discreet and keep in mind that it is a social networking site.

9. Cleverly use the @replies.

Avoid posting 10 or more Tweets about your product even though it only answers inquiries of 5 people. Rather, use the @replies to avoid seemingly spamming Tweets that could possibly irritate your other followers. Thus, it is important to know the right timing when to post your product advertisement.

10. Use Twitter to build your contacts with complementary businesses.

Your social networking site is not only for building a list of possible clients but it can also be your venue to href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/socialmedia-marketing/twitter-is-like-a-cocktail-party/">build a network of other businesses that complements what you sell. Thus, you may have some Twitter friends who can be your suppliers, while some can be product researchers that could help you further develop and improve your products.

Bottom line: You can’t go wrong with 190 million users

So, with more than 100 million Twitter users in the U.S. alone (href="http://techcrunch.com/2010/06/08/twitter-190-million-users/" target="_blank">190 millions in the world), Twitter holds opportunities for you to make your product known, increase your sales and income. Just properly position yourself within your targeted group and keep in mind the 10 surefire ways. Lastly, understand Twitter’s Terms of Service (TOS) to avoid possible inconveniences.


Page 28 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed




15 Ways to Develop your Brand on a Budget



alt="15 Ways to Develop your Brand on a Budget" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/blogging-terms-500x372_c.jpg" />

There’s never been a better time to start your own business, and the internet provides the perfect tool to do so with very little financial investment. One of the key aspects that contributes to business success is branding. Developing a strong, recognizable brand is crucial if your company is going to succeed in a competitive market.

If you’re just starting out with a new business idea, you need to start building a client base. Until you do that, however, you might not have much spare cash to pump into marketing. This stage can become a vicious cycle, as you need to market your business in order to attract those crucial first clients. We’ve compiled a list of steps you can take to break that cycle, enabling you to develop your brand and attract new customers, without having to spend a fortune.

class="border" alt="Branding on budget" src="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/images/2012/0611-2.jpg" width="750" />

1. Create a tag line

Creating a catchy tag line will help make your business more memorable to those who come into contact with you or your website. As a general rule, you should be able to sum up what your business does in three to five key words. For example, one of the American Dairy Association’s tag lines was “href="http://www.ilovecheese.com/" target="_blank">Behold the power of cheese”, while Cisco Systems used “href="http://blogs.cisco.com/video/empowering-the-internet-generation/" target="_blank">Empowering the internet generation”.

2. Create a branding guide (and stick to it)

Creating a branding guide doesn’t necessarily mean hiring a professional. It’s true that branding covers things like your logo – and it’s worth getting quotes from a few designers if you don’t already have one of these – but it also incorporates stylistic choices like font, and color schemes too. You can easily create a basic guide yourself that specifies which font you and your co-workers or employees should use when sending branded communications. Sticking to this guide will help create a recognizable appearance for your business.

3. Use social media

Pick two or three social media sites and use them effectively. The kind of sites you pick will depend on your business and your target customer, but they are a free and easy way to get in contact with potential clients. If you need help, read up Dani’s previous article on href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/socialmedia-marketing/twitter-facebook-linkedin-youtube-which-is-right-for-me/">Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube – Which Social Media Platform Is Right for Me?

4. Submit guest content

If you have a blog, look for other blogs that cover similar topics and submit a suggestion for a href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/write-for-us/">guest post. Showcasing your work on other relevant websites exposes your brand to a wider audience, and is an effective way of drawing new readers over to your website. Also consider asking to contribute pieces in other organizations’ newsletters and trade publications to get your voice heard.

5. Use article submission websites

As well as guest posts on other sites, submitting your work to article submission websites like href="http://ezinearticles.com/" target="_blank"> Ezine Articles and href="http://www.articlesbase.com/" target="_blank"> Articlesbase can help establish you as an expert in your field, as well as create links back to your website.

6. Use your email signature

Include your website URL, tagline, and social media links in your email signature to make your correspondence more professional and increase exposure to your branding.

7. Gather testimonials

Every time you perform a service for a new client, ask them for a testimonial. Post the top three to five testimonials on your website, and compile the best of the rest into a PDF that you can send to potential clients if requested, or that they can download from your website.

8. Start a blog or newsletter

class="border" alt="Branding on budget" src="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/images/2012/0611-1.jpg" width="750" height="366" />

Starting a blog or newsletter can help you develop your brand in three ways. it helps readers get to know – and trust – you and your company. Secondly, it can act as a vehicle for running other brand-building promotions, such as competitions. Lastly, a blog or newsletter can help you develop your brand into a community. To incentivize people to join your newsletter, offer them a reward, for example a discount on their next purchase. Online marketing resource href="http://www.copyblogger.com/"> Copyblogger encourage readers to sign up to their mailing list by offering a free course.

Read also Liz Alton’s href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/featured-articles/6-strategies-to-brand-your-blog/">6 Strategies to Brand Your Blog

9. Purchase and redirect relevant domains

Purchase the domain for your company’s name, if you haven’t already, and redirect it to your company’s website, if the URL is different. If you are a public figurehead of the company, purchase the domain name of your name too and also redirect it to your company’s website. This way, if people are searching for either you or your company, they will always end up back at your company website.

10. Find local groups

Online networking and promotion is important, but offline networking and marketing can be just as effective in helping to build your brand. Industry conferences are expensive, so smaller networking opportunities can be more cost effective. Find local networking groups or meet ups, and take some business cards. You never know which interactions might result in a big referral, so keep an open mind.

11. Offer something for free

We’ve already mentioned the importance of showcasing your work, and one way of doing this directly from your website is to offer a small sample of your work for free. This is an effective way of demonstrating the value of your products or services to potential clients, without spending a lot of time or money. Depending on your business, freebies you could consider offering include a short ebook, an audio recording, a worksheet or a brief taster coaching session. The Copyblogger course from number eight is a good example of how giving out a free product can build credibility.

12. Keep track of potential clients

Start a spreadsheet containing details of people who have expressed interest in your products and services. This tool is separate from your mailing list, and helps you develop a system for following up with potential clients. Keeping track of potential clients helps you avoid missing out on sales, and following up on queries and pending sales can make the difference between a happy customer and a lost opportunity.

13. Reward for referrals

Good customer service doesn’t end with a sale, and acknowledging people who have referred new clients and customers to your business can go a long way towards building your credibility. Send a thank you note, offer a discount, or give out vouchers to people who make referrals. The more you can encourage current clients and customers to spread the word about your business, the less time you have to spend on marketing yourself.

14. Specialize

Trying to cover too many areas at once will leave customers confused about your brand, whereas developing your presence in a specific niche will help you promote your expertise in a certain topic. Being specific about the niche your business fills helps you focus on developing a reputation for offering a quality service within that area. Once you’ve decided what you’re going to specialize in, you can start developing services around that, such as specialist talks and products.

15. Update regularly

You’ve set up your social networks, your blog is up and running, and you’ve rolled out your newsletter. Now you need to make sure you update your public outlets regularly to maintain a constant presence. A major part of developing a strong brand presence is to make sure people think about you in a positive way. Sending out communications and social networking updates once a week will help you build your brand much more effectively than contacting fans and followers twice a year, simply because they will think about you more.


Page 23 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed




10 Ways to Get Pinterest Followers Fast and Drive More Traffic to Your Site



alt="10 Ways to Get Pinterest Followers Fast and Drive More Traffic to Your Site" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/0529-2-500x256_c.jpg" />

style="text-align: center;">class="border aligncenter" src="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.com/images/2012/0621-11.jpg" alt="Pinterest Homepage" width="750" />

As the popularity of visually based social networks grows, one question comes up again and again. “I know that these sites are really popular, but what’s the best way to engage and get a return on investment for my time?”

Every entrepreneur and marketer considering investing time in these sites, including the exponentially growing Pinterest, need to make sure that their content strategy is href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/socialmedia-marketing/10-essential-rules-for-effective-pinterest-marketing-in-2015/" target="_blank">optimized to get the best returns, which include high engagement on the platform itself as well as derivative benefits like website traffic and an SEO bump.

Here are ten strategies that will help you achieve these goals fast.

1. Connect your existing accounts and list Pinterest where appropriate

One of the biggest mistakes people new to Pinterest make is not connecting their Pinterest account with their other existing social media accounts.  If your Twitter, Facebook, and email contacts are on Pinterest, follow them.  There’s a high probability that they will follow you back.  Likewise, if you link your accounts together and your networks see when you pin new content via venues like Facebook, they are more likely to engage with you through follows, repins, and comments.

2. Add a Pinterest Button to your content

It’s standard practice now to have a variety of share buttons on key content you produce, from important pages on your site to every blog post you write.  Does your site feature a Pinterest button yet?  How about your blog posts? Make sure that your set of social share buttons includes a Pinterest button. Some of the most common share modules currently don’t. Then when you’re creating content, consider whether the presentation can be more visually friendly (can you include a high quality image?) to make it more likely to be pinned.

3. Participate (Pin) regularly

Many users find Pinterest to have a naturally high degree of engagement.  But one of the key factors is active use.  It’s important to be on the site, pinning regularly.  Every day, make an effort to pin between five and thirty pieces of content as you go about your content development, web browsing, etc.  The nature of Pinterest is such that you don’t need to sit down and have a Pinterest Power Session.  Use the integrated pin button in your browser to share interesting images, videos, and infographics on topics related to your boards as you go about your day.  Consistency is key.

4. Engage: Follow other pinners, repin, comment, like, etc.

Here’s where the social aspect comes in.  When you first start using Pinterest, it might not be completely obvious that there is a hierarchy of engagement for users on the site.  The highest acknowledgement is to follow another pinner – you will see and follow the full body of their work.  You can repin images that you like, like images that appeal to you, and leave a comment if they inspire you to do so.  Think about the kinds of engagement you’re hoping to get from Pinterest, and then dive in by leading the way by modeling that engagement yourself.

5. Put keywords in your board names and pin descriptions

On Pinterest, SEO is very important.

People use the search feature of Pinterest like a big search engine, and input keywords to identify content and other pinners with shared interests.

Let’s assume that you’re in the bridal business, and you maintain a variety of boards.  Perhaps one of your boards is comprised of images of bridal veils, a collection of over 100 items that you sell on your website.  If you named your board “Hip Bridal Veils for 2012” people can find it; if you called it “Halos for Brides” it’s going to be harder to identify.  If each of those one hundred images includes a description with things like the name and model info and specific details like lace veil, veil with pearls, Cathedral veil, etc, this will increase the chances that people interested in your content will find your materials.

6. Content Part I – How you choose your images

The first aspect of figuring out your content strategy for a site like Pinterest is figuring out what aspect of your business is most appropriate to convey through imagery.

In some instances, your business which might be product based, and so the choices are obvious.  If you sell fishing rods, your boards could feature everything from images of rods and lures to dream fishing destinations, cute gone fishing signs, and more.  If you sell a service, like for example you operate a yoga studio, you will need to be more creative.  You might feature athletes performing specific poses, you might feature quotes, or you might feature images that evoke feelings of relaxation, meditation, etc.  The key is to find the visual angle that works with your content.

7. Content Part II – Connect content choices to Pinterest community

class="aligncenter size-large wp-image-1534" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/info-1-750x708.jpg" alt="Pinterest Infographic" width="750" height="708" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/info-1-750x708.jpg 750w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/info-1-300x283.jpg 300w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/info-1.jpg 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" />

Estimates put the user base of Pinterest at anywhere between 70 and 97% female.

Home décor, bridal inspiration, DIY crafting, fashion, and inspirational quotes are among the content that dominate the site.

Once you’ve taken the first step of determining what aspect of your business or subject will most effectively present visually, you must also determine what will connect best with this audience.  Sometimes it will be items itself; other times it will be how you market them.  In the fishing example above, you might focus on destinations and call the board “Great fishing destinations and family getaways” or the board of rods might be “Best fishing rods for Father’s Day 2012.”

8. Consider clustering your boards via niche accounts

You can learn a lot about people and the diversity of their interests by looking at the boards they promote.  My own boards range from Alaska to the sport of rodeo to a collection of infographics explaining social media.  But what if you’re on Pinterest representing a business or trying to effectively market? If you market hair products to women but then also have boards that focus on guns and hunting, customers may be unwilling to engage because your message from a marketing perspective isn’t clear.  Consider clustering related boards and themes into accounts, and maintaining multiple accounts if your interests are diverse.  It can be a bit more work administratively, but it can be a smart strategy when you’re trying to reach very different customer bases.

9. Include your URL in your photo (strategically) and post photos from your site

When you pin a photo, where you pin that photo to will be referenced as the source.

Whenever possible, pin photos from your own website. Consider using subtle watermarks on photos for additional branding.  You can also list the URL in the description wherever appropriate.  This helps drive traffic to your site, creates links with SEO value, and also helps build recognition for your brand.

10. Invest in followers (selectively)

Just to address the loaded question – should you ever buy followers?  It depends on your goals.  But the bottom line is that bought followers are unlikely to be actual human beings that are interested in your content and willing to engage with your brand in real life.  I’d encourage you to focus on tactics 1 – 9, as they will yield faster and more valuable results in your Pinterest efforts.

Also read: href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/blogging-tips/10-pinterest-boards-every-blogger-must-follow/" target="_blank">10 Pinterest boards every blogger should follow


Page 23 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed




10 Non-Technical Ways To Boost Site Speed For WordPress



alt="10 Non-Technical Ways To Boost Site Speed For WordPress" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/9-500x233_c.jpg" />

Website speed can have a huge impact on visitor experience. If your webpages load slowly, visitors will leave or read fewer pages. More to the point, research shows that a 1 second decrease in page load speed can rel="nofollow" href="http://blog.kissmetrics.com/loading-time/" target="_blank">reduce your conversion rates by 7%.

src="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/images/2012/1210-1.jpg" alt="Site Loading Time vs Conversion Rate" width="750" height="400" />

Source: rel="nofollow" href="http://blog.tagman.com/2012/03/just-one-second-delay-in-page-load-can-cause-7-loss-in-customer-conversions/" target="_blank">Tagman Blog.

WHSR has already reviewed some great ways to href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/seo/speed-up-your-website/">speed up your website here. But many of these solutions may be beyond the technical skill of everyday website owners.

So we thought we’d revisit the topic and look for simple steps that everyday website users can implement with limited investments of time and energy.

First, Test Your Speed With Pingdom

class="border" src="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/images/2012/1210-2.jpg" alt="Pingdom Site Run Time Test" width="750"" />

First, if you haven’t done so, check your site’s loading speed for free using a great rel="nofollow" href="http://tools.pingdom.com" target="_blank">loading speed tool from Pingom. This tool will show you if there’s a problem by comparing your site speed to others they’ve tested. If you do have a problem, it will point to where the specific issue may be. Finally, it will give you a baseline to judge any improvements.

1. Use A Quality WordPress Theme

The WordPress theme you use can have an impact on speed. Themes differ dramatically in the amount of code they include, how well organized and executed the code is, the number and quantity of images they use, and other factors that affect load speed.

Look for themes that are relatively new or frequently updated, and themes by well-established WordPress developers. If you are open to spending a few bucks, consider investing in a premium theme, especially those build on prominent frameworks like Thesis, Genesis, or Hybrid.

2. Reduce The Number Of Plugins You Use

It’s so easy to add WordPress plugins. That’s great. But means most of us end up with dozens of plugins installed on our sites, half of which we’re not really using. Yet, each of the active plugins add more code and scripts that slow down your site.

Your goal should be to keep it as light as possible. Go through your plugin list and deactivate and delete any plugins you are no longer using, and even those you are using but can get along without.

3. Delete Spam Comments And Post Revisions

Both spam comments and post revisions can accumulate at incredible rates. Once they do, they slow down database response times for your site.

For post revisions, install and run the rel="nofollow" href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/better-delete-revision/" target="_blank">Better Delete Revision plugin. This plugin will allow you to delete hundreds, possibly thousands of revisions across your website quickly and easily.

For spam comments, you can delete them manually, or if you have accumulated an unmanageable number of them, you can use a bulk delete plugin like rel="nofollow" href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/bulk-comment-remove/" target="_blank">Bulk Comment Remove.

4. Reduce The Number And Size Of Your Images

This one is obvious, but oh-so-often overlooked. It’s surprisingly common for website owners to upload images from their hard drives as-is. They’re usually way larger than they need to be.

Before uploading images, optimize them for the web by resizing them to the smallest resolution you need – definitely less than 1000px in the longest dimension. You should also save them as compressed JPEGs at a medium quality level.

If you are a photographer or designer, or have a habit of writing round-up posts, you should also consider reducing the number images you load on any given page.

Finally, once images are uploaded, you can optimize them even further by using WordPress plugins like rel="nofollow" href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-smushit/">WP Smush.it.

5. Install A Caching Plugin

One of the biggest steps you can take to improve loading speeds is to install a solid caching plugin like rel="nofollow" href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/w3-total-cache/" target="_blank">WP Total Cache.

This plugin speeds up your site in a few ways. It loads saved ‘copies’ of pages on your site, including all their various elements, rather than running to the database to ask for needed page elements each time the page is loaded. It minifies code and files on your site for faster retrieval. And it helps browsers cache the right site elements locally on your visitors computers so they don’t have to be resent.

While there are a lot of ways you can tweak caching plugins, if you just install WP Total Cache and use default settings, you’ll already be well set.

6. Optimize Databases With The WP-Optimize Plugin

rel="nofollow" href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-optimize/" target="_blank">WP-Optimize and several other similar plugins allow you to easily clean up your databases. As you add content, posts, pages, images, plugins, new themes, and more to your WordPress site, all of these elements at content to your databases that hangs around even it’s no longer used.

This plugin will cleaning out unused and unneeded content. Above I mentioned reducing the number of plugins you use. This is the kind of plugin you can install and run periodically and then deactivate and remove.

7. Prevent Malicious Code With A Great Security Plugin

WordPress is notoriously susceptible to hacks and malicious code. In addition to creating a huge headache that needs to be cleaned up, malicious code can also cause dramatic speed and performance problems.

Fortunately, there are some great and simple security plugins out there like rel="nofollow" href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/bulletproof-security/" target="_blank">Bulletproof and rel="nofollow" href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wordfence/" target="_blank">WordFence that will protect your site as well as periodically scan it and let you know if any suspicious problems.

8. Add Google And Other Scipts To The Footer VS Header

Most likely, you’ve added snippets of code for things like Google Analytics or possibly some advertising networks to your site. You can add this directly to your WordPress theme’s header or footer files files, but most WordPress themes now include an easy box for such scripts in their options panels.

If you have the choice, add these scripts to the footer area of your theme (just before the close of the body tag) rather than the header. Since these scripts aren’t needed to view the page content, placing them in the footer allows critical content to load before browsers execute the scripts.

9. Try JetPack’s Photon: A CDN For The Rest Of Us

rel="nofollow" href="http://jetpack.me/support/photon/" target="_blank">class="border" src="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/images/2012/1210-3.jpg" alt="JetPack Me" width="750" />

Many articles on website speed mention using a CDN or content delivery network. In simple terms, a CDN is global array of servers that stores your information in various places, and then serves your website content from the server closest to your visitor. Because the server is geographically closer, it’s faster.

Great stuff. The main problem is that setting up and using a CDN generally requires advanced technical skills.

Enter Jetpack and Photon. rel="nofollow" href="http://jetpack.me/support/photon/">Photon is relatively new feature of Jetpack that makes using CDN possible for the rest of us. With Photon enabled, your media files will be copied to the same server platform used by WordPress.com, and served to your visitors via WordPress.com’s CDN. Amazingly, they don’t even charge you for the storage or bandwidth you consume.

To get set up, you just need to install and enable the Jetpack plugin. By default, Jetpack comes with lots functionality. Be sure to go through and deactivate or disable any functionality you don’t specifically want. Then just enable Photon.

You will need to have an account with WordPress.com, but that’s also free. Otherwise, this is by far the simplest way to get on the CDN train.

10. Consider A More Advanced Hosting Solution

OK, this one is not so quick or simple, but it needs to be said. Most smaller websites are on shared hosting plans. And if you still have a smaller site, shared hosting is a great place to start. It’s both simple and inexpensive.

But if your site is getting more than, say, 10,000 visitors per month, you need to consider more advanced web hosting. The most likely candidates are VPS or cloud hosting.

If you’re in this boat, WHSR has some great articles covering shared, VPS, and cloud hosting. Check them out in this href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/web-hosting-beginner-guide/" target="_blank">awesome one-page guide.

Have more tips on low-tech ways to improve loading speed? Let us know in the comments.


Page 22 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed




10 Ways to Generate Original Blog Content



alt="10 Ways to Generate Original Blog Content" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/default-image-500x308_c.jpg" />

Writer’s block is a tricky beast to tame: when it strikes, it’s all we can think about. Yet, the more we think about it, the more it sticks. Different writers have their own tips and techniques for overcoming writer’s block, and no matter how bad it feels, it does end at some point.

This post describes 10 ways of pushing through the idea-less fog, and coming out the other end with inspiration galore.
class="border" alt="Blogging Brainstorming" src="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/images/2012/0514-3.jpg" width="750" />

1. Change your routine

A stale routine can lead to a stale mind, which, in turn, can lead to a case of writer’s block. Shake things up a bit by changing your workplace for one day. If you normally work at home using a laptop, try taking your notebook to a cafe instead. Even small shifts, like going for a walk at lunch-time instead of staying at your computer, can make a big difference in your thinking.

2. Ask for guest posts

If you’re stuck for content to write yourself, why not try getting href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/write-for-us/">someone else to write it for you?

If your blog has a large audience, you might find yourself inundated with requests from other people who would like to showcase their work on your website. Even if no one has ever suggested this, try creating an advert for the site saying you accept guest posts and see what comes in. You could even write a blog post about it! Remember that no matter how desperate you might feel about putting content on your website, you want to make sure any guest posts you publish are in line with your blog’s ethos and relevant to its audience.

3. Publish an interview

class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-6690" alt="broadcasting on radio" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/broadcasting-on-radio.jpg" width="750" height="600" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/broadcasting-on-radio.jpg 750w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/broadcasting-on-radio-300x240.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" />

If the number of forthcoming guest posts isn’t encouraging, try contacting a leading figure in your field for an interview.

This can be conducted in person, over the phone, or by email, and you can simply transcribe the content into a blog post yourself. Many people are happy to give interviews as it offers them extra exposure, however it might be worth contacting more than one person so that you have back-up posts waiting for use in the future.

For your references, here are some interviews we did here at WHSR – href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/interviews/web-host-interview-qa-with-siteground-ceo-tenko-nikolov/">Tenko Nikolov (SiteGround), href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/interviews/blogger-interview-5-questions-with-mauro-dandrea/">Mauro D’Andrea (Blog Growth), and href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/interviews/blogger-interview-devesh-sharma/">Devesh Sharma (WP Kube).

4. Reviews and case studies

Depending on your field of business, writing a review of a related product, book, event or service, can provide valuable content for readers.

When writing a review, start by thinking what questions you readers might have about the product, event or service. href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/hosting-reviews/">Keep the content focused on the product, not on yourself, and try and make your feedback as objective as possible.

5. Collecting others’ posts

Curating other notable blog posts is an easy way of creating new content on a regular basis. Running a weekly round-up of the best content you’ve read over the last seven days provides readers with an insight into what inspires you and your business, as long as the posts are relevant to your website. When writing about other websites’ content, provide a link to the post, and a summary of what it is about, as well as what you thought was interesting.

id="floatright">class="alignright" alt="Blogging Ideas" src="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/images/2012/0514-4.jpg" width="260" height="185" />

6. Ask readers what they want to see

If you have a social media presence or an email list, turn writer’s block into an opportunity to find out what your readers want to hear about. Soliciting feedback can be challenging, but some of your readers might jump at the chance to tell you what they think. Their suggestions could provide material for future blog posts, and you could get valuable feedback and what topics they would like to read more about, as well as those they feel might not be so relevant.

7. Think of a problem readers have told you about or you have faced

Personal anecdotes make great blog posts, as people facing a certain problem or obstacles always want to hear that they’re not alone. Writing a more personal post might be challenge, as it can feel quite exposing. If you don’t feel comfortable writing about yourself, think of conversations you’ve had with friends about this certain issue, and keep the people involved anonymous. However you choose to present the issue, the most important thing is that you demonstrate to readers the outcome or solution you reached. Hearing how other people have overcome problems can provide more value for readers in similar situations than you might realize.

8. Write a list

List posts are not only a good way to generate new content, but they are also a very popular format among readers too. Creating a post about “10 Ways to do X” or “5 Best Y” helps you provide valuable, structured content that can make the post easier to write, and to read. This post is an example of a list post, and its sub-headings enable readers to scan the main points of the article without having to take the time to read the whole post.

More examples href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/web-design/30-latest-css3-tutorials-you-probably-have-not-read-before/">here, href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/web-design/30-latest-css3-tutorials-you-probably-have-not-read-before/">here, href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/web-tools/40-must-see-free-web-design-tools/">here, and href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/web-design/design-inspiration-30-unique-javascript-website/">here.

9. Brainstorm

Brainstorming might sound obvious – after all, isn’t that what you do every time you think about what to write? Unless you’re writing down every idea for a potential post, no matter how outlandish, controversial or silly it seems, you’re not properly brainstorming, and, consequently, you could miss out on some valuable ideas. When we brainstorm, we set aside our internal censors for a few minutes, letting all our ideas pour out. Once we’ve exhausted our fountain of creative wisdom, then we can start eliminating the ideas that really are too offensive, silly or inappropriate, leaving us with a wealth of ideas for future posts.

10. Journalling

When we sit down to write a blog post, often we find that what comes to mind is anything but the subject at hand. We might think about other tasks we have to do that day, what we want for dinner, an argument we had earlier with our spouse/child/colleague, or last night’s episode of Mad Men. None of these things are necessarily going to help us write our blog post, yet it can be very hard to forget them, and try to focus on relevant topics. Julia Cameron, author of “The Artist’s Way”, describes a practice called ‘morning pages’, which can help free up creative blocks. Morning pages consists of sitting down to write three A4 stream-of-consciousness pages each morning before starting work. As the pages are stream-of-consciousness, you don’t censor anything – just like when brainstorming. The idea behind this practice is that it allows you to get most, if not all, of the thoughts swimming around your head onto paper, freeing up space in your mind for you to think more productive, work-focused thoughts.


Page 24 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed




4 Ways to Improve the Mobile Version of Your WordPress Theme



alt="4 Ways to Improve the Mobile Version of Your WordPress Theme" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/0514-1-500x254_c.jpg" />

class="alignright size-full wp-image-932 border" alt="Mobile Version WordPress" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0427-1.jpg" width="300" height="450" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0427-1.jpg 300w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0427-1-200x300.jpg 200w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />

Let’s face the truth, mobile devices are getting more and more popular. Desktop browsing is not growing anymore,  it’s decreasing actually, while mobile is growing fast with all those awesome smart phones and tables out there.

According to Net MarketShare, mobile devices represent 10% of the total web traffic. It’s a big figure, and it’s even bigger in some niches and countries. But the important thing here is the special attention that mobile devices require, because of the limited screen space and the fact that mobile connections are usually slower than desktop connection.

A lot of WordPress themes are responsive but you know, we’ll always have room for improvements. So here we’ll see 4 technologies and ways to use them in order to improve the mobile experience for your users.

#1 Ol’ Media Types

A few years back, when IE5.5 and IE6 were considered alive, mobile browsers were just starting to popping out (and Opera was by far the best one), and people started to realize that things were just breaking since phones back then just couldn’t process simple things like CSS (not to mention JS, flash and so on).

So, doing a completely separated mobile site was the only option when the media types came to save us. The idea was simple, you could tell the browser if the file that you are providing is “advanced” CSS rules (for desktops) or simple CSS rules (for handheld or print). The syntax is as simple as this:

<link rel="stylesheet" href="handheld.css" type="text/css" media="handheld" />

This can be a good option to create a completely different design for your mobile site. But you just shouldn’t use it.

Media types may sound good at first but a simple problem came with modern smart phones: the lack of browser support. Most major players out there were just ignoring this kind of functionality (like apple)
Then media queries come to save us.

#2 Media Queries and how to really improve mobile experience

This is by far the most popular way to create a mobile version of your site.

You can target certain points based on a rage of browser size, device screen size, pixel density (yeah, retina!), and even media types.

Here is a simple media query:

@media (max-width: 700px) {
body { background: red; }
}

This is pretty much the same as programming. IF “browser width is 700 or lower”, THEN “apply the following CSS code”.

Child Theme

Let’s create a new folder in your /themes and name it twentyMobile. I know, twenty twelve already uses media queries, but we’re here to learn, aren’t we?

So, create a style.css file and add this content:

/*
Theme Name: mobile theme
Template: twentytwelve
*/
@import url(“../twentytwelve/style.css”);

@media handheld, only screen and (max-width: 767px){
nav ul { display: none;}
nav select {display:block}
}

Above we created the child theme CSS and also we’ve added a rule that will target only mobile devices, that will hide the main menu and show a select. So if you have a menu in a select you could save a lot of space instead of displaying it as ul / li items

#3 Extreme makeover with jQuery Mobile

jQuery mobile is an awesome framework that uses jQuery functionality to improve mobile experience, with optimized widgets and UI elements.

The HTML needed o make it work is quite simple, it just uses the HTML data attributes to and JS to detect and create UI widgets.

But in order to make the jQuery Mobile work properly in your WordPress blog you’ll need to call the jQuery mobile script first. Getting back to our child theme, duplicate main theme’s header.php file and add these lines in the head tag:

<link rel="stylesheet" href="http://code.jquery.com/mobile/1.3.1/jquery.mobile-1.3.1.min.css" />
<script src="http://code.jquery.com/mobile/1.3.1/jquery.mobile-1.3.1.min.js"></script>

I should mention that for commercial proposes you should use wp_enqueue _script, so you’ll avoid duplicating libraries in your site.
Now we can play around with pretty much any UI element you want. jQuery mobile has a lot of UI widgets that you can use in a theme, but let’s apply the page and collapsible panels.
This is the basic HTML syntax:

<div data-role=“page”>
<div data-role=“header”></div>
<div data-role=“content”></div>
<div data-role=“footer”></div>
</div>

With this code you’ll create a new “page” and the header, content and footer areas. The header and footer are fixed, and the content will change based on current page, so you can load multiple pages once and just hide them by assigning different IDs.
This is the basic HTML for collapsible panels:

<div data-role=“collapsible-set”>
<div data-role=“collapsible-set” data-collapsed=“true”>
<p>Collapsible area content</p>
</div>
</div>

It’s quite simple to implement a loop there, isn’t it? Well, your code will look like this:

<div data-role="collapsible-set">
<? while ( have_posts() ){
...
?>
<div data-role="collapsible" data-collapsed="true"></div>

<?
...
}
?>
</div>

The select menu revised

With the code we’ve seen above (in the media queries section) you could hide your usual menu and show a special select menu. jQuery allows you to add it without much PHP code (to be honest we won’t need PHP at all). Let’s create a new file and add this code there:

jQuery(function($){
    //when the DOM is ready
    $(document).ready(function(){
        // let’s create the select element
        $("<select />").appendTo("nav");
        //With the new option, go to…
            $("<option/>", {
                "value" : "",
                "text" : "Go to…"
            }).appendTo("nav select");
    });

    //Now we have the select created let’s populate it:
    $("nav .menu a").each(function(){
        // for each LINK you find in the menu
        var aux = $(this);
        $("<option />",
        {
            "value" : aux.attr("href"),
            "html" : aux.text();
        }).appendTo("nav select"); // append a new item to the select
    )};

    //then we set the dropdown functionality to redirect when we select a new item
    $("nav select").change(function(){
        window.location = $(this).find("option: selected").val();
    });

});

Doing this will create a new mobile menu, BUT the problem is, we’re loading jquery mobile even in the “normal” version of the site. That’s why we can use also a few plugins to help us improving our site.

#4 – Wrapping everything up with Mobile Detector

This awesome plugin creates a new functionality that allows us to conditionally load themes depending on user device. And it works with simple conditional rules, like this:

<?php
if(MobileDTS::is(‘android’)){
....
} elseif(MobileDTS::is(‘mobile’)){
....
} else {
}
?>

The MobileDTS method checks current device then returns a simple true / false. Then we can use a magic function called switch_theme( ) to set a new theme, and you can use plugin conditionals like MobileDTS::is_switcher_enabled() to create a link to a desktop version when using mobile, for instance.

Conclusion

So, have you ever used mobile plugins or functions in your WordPress theme? Which method do you prefer? Don’t be shy and share your thoughts!


Page 21 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed