5 Trust Signals to Make Your Blog More Trustworthy

Posted on August 11, 2015August 15, 2015 by sitemanager

Lack of trust is a serious problem that can cost blogs and other websites tons of sales. If visitors view your blog as being untrustworthy, they won't feel comfortable making a purchase or taking any other direct action. Trust Seals What the heck is a trust seal? It's exactly what it sounds like: a seal (kind of like a logo) that's designed to instill trust in visitors. One of the most common and well-known trust seals is the Better Business Bureau (BBB) logo, which is found on numerous websites, big and small. Surprisingly, though, BBB isn't the most effective trust seal. A study conducted ...

Top 5 Reasons to Use a Responsive Web Design for Your Blog

Posted on August 7, 2015August 16, 2015 by sitemanager

Tablet illustrating responsive web design

Does your blog have a Responsive Web Design (RWD)? If not, it should. There's been a growing trend towards the use of Responsive designs, and for good reason. It's a simple and effective way to improve your site's traffic and functionality, but this is really just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the benefits offered by RWD. To learn more about Responsive designs and why you should use it, keep reading. What is Responsive Web Design? Basically, it means designing a website or blog to function the same across all devices -- smartphones, tablets, desktops with huge monitors, and laptops...

Top Tips to Build a Loyal Blog Following

Posted on August 7, 2015August 15, 2015 by sitemanager

The success of a blog relies heavily on the loyalty (or lack thereof) of its readers. If visitors feel a connection with the blog, they'll return to it regularly to check out its new posts and articles. But how do you develop a strong following of loyal readers? Be Consistent With Your Blog's Content You won't develop a strong following of loyal users unless you are consistent with your blog's content. Google has said that publishing high-quality content is the single most important thing webmasters can do. Content is the force that drives people to visit websites, and it's the force that en...

How to Promote Your Blog via Article Marketing

Posted on August 1, 2015August 2, 2015 by sitemanager

Article marketing is one of the oldest forms of web promotion. It involves writing and submitting articles to various directories, in which you can include a link pointing back to your website or blog. This can be simple way to promote your blog. If this is your first time attempting article marketing, however, there are a few things you should know. How Article Marketing Works The basic principle behind article marketing is fairly simple and straightforward. There are hundreds of websites out there which allow users to write and submit articles on a topic of their choosing. Known as article...

What Is Microblogging?

Posted on July 30, 2015August 2, 2015 by sitemanager

Screenshot of social media and Twitter handles

Microblogging has become increasingly popular over the past few years, with millions of people using it for both personal and commercial purposes. But what exactly is microblogging? And does it offer any real benefits over traditional blogging? These are just a few of the many questions that we're going to tackle today. The Origins of Microblogging According to Wikipedia, political writer and blogger Jonathan Gillette (AKA why the lucky stiff) coined the term "microblogging" when describing Christian Neukirchen's Anarchaia.org online activities. Gillette said blogging had "mutated into simpl...

How to Use WordPress More Effectively

Posted on July 26, 2015July 26, 2015 by sitemanager

Do you use WordPress to blog? There's no denying the fact that WordPress is a powerful blogging platform. It features a massive directory of plugins and themes while preserving a clean and user-friendly interface. Backup Your Files Don't forget to backup your files. Many first-time WordPress users make the mistake of only downloading their core files via a File Transfer Protocol (FTP) program. But WordPress isn't static, and most of its data is stored in the form of a database. Therefore, you'll need to download both your core files, as well as the database associated with your site. If all ...

WordPress Plugins to Reduce Your Blog’s Load Times

Posted on July 25, 2015July 26, 2015 by sitemanager

How long does it take visitors to load your blog? Load times play an important role in the usability and overall function of a blog. If visitors are forced to stare at a loading screen for a long time, some will click their browser back button. Thankfully, WordPress has a massive directory of plugins, many of which can be used to reduce a blog's load times. W3 Total Cache Arguably, one of the most effective ways to reduce a blog's load time is to enable browser caching. Rather than forcing visitors to reload the same files each time they visit your site, browser caching will automatically st...

How to Create a ‘Blogger’ Blog

Posted on July 21, 2015July 23, 2015 by sitemanager

Formerly known as Blogspot, Blogger is Google's own self-blogging platform. Much like WordPress.com, it allows individuals and business owners to blog without the need for a third-party hosting service. All files and data are stored are Google's servers, eliminating the need for a domain name and web host. If you are thinking about creating a Blogger blog, however, there are a few things you should know. Getting Started In order to create a Blogger blog, you'll need a Google account. This can be the same account used to access Gmail or other Google services. If you don't have one already, vi...

How to Secure Your Blog Against Hackers

Posted on July 16, 2015July 16, 2015 by sitemanager

Are you doing enough to protect your blog against hackers? It's frustrating when you invest countless hours of hard work into building a blog, only to discover that it's been taken over by a hacker. The good news is that you can reduce your chances of being attacked by following some simple steps to secure your blog. Use a Strong Password A strong password is your blog's first line of defense against hackers. Sure, it's easier to remember "myspace123" (note: that used to be the most commonly used password), but that also means hackers can infiltrate your blog more easily. A better and more s...

Should I Blog Under My Real Name or a Pen Name?

Posted on July 15, 2015July 15, 2015 by sitemanager

This is a question many first-time bloggers ask (and some seasoned bloggers, as well). One of the key differences between a traditional content-driven website and a blog is that blogs have a more personal touch. The author usually includes his or her name along with a thumbnail photo to create a stronger connection with their readers. But should you use your real name or a pen name when blogging? Pen Name Let's go ahead and discuss the most obvious benefit of using a pen name: identity protection. By blogging under a pen name, you can conceal your real identity from the public. Why is this i...

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