One of my favorite clients — no, I won’t name names this time — just gave me the green light to start building her new website. I love kicking off a new project because it’s a chance to either help a brand new business grow or create something that will improve an existing business. Every single new site I build kicks off the same way, with me looking over the design files for any questions, hiccups or details that will need some flushing out. Did you think that I was…
building a website
Go beyond WordPress + dive into strategy for online marketers + business owners.
Check that you have these 404 page essentials
It doesn’t matter whether you have a funny, simple, or extensive error page on your site. Ditching these 404 page essentials could leave your site visitors so frustrated that they leave your site behind. That’s because a 404 page isn’t something you want visitors to land on. Usually they find it due to a dead end. That could be through a mistyped URL on your own content, a page you deleted on accident, or a link on social media that shouldn’t be out there. When users land on your error…
Is the WordPress Gutenberg builder right for you?
WordPress released Gutenberg in 2020… So by now a lot of site owners + bloggers are wondering if the WordPress Gutenberg builder is right for them. While there’s no one perfect website solution for everyone using WP, there are some questions you can ask yourself before you dive into planning your next site design or revamp project. How to know if Gutenberg will work for you The reality is that Gutenberg will work for pretty much any site. Just like WordPress as a tool will work for most businesses. Which…
Signs of a good WordPress theme: error or 404 page
With hundreds + thousands of WordPress themes in existence, everyone has an opinion on which is the best. I think it’s tough to label a clear winner, but there are specific features + functions that a good WordPress theme will have. And one of those often overlooked details is a custom WordPress 404 page. What is a 404 page? We all try our best to make sure our sites are user friendly** + free of broken links. But shit happens + when a link doesn’t work because the page has…
Signs of a good WordPress theme: documentation
There are so many theme options in the world, from custom to customizable to plug + play. But what makes any of them a good WordPress theme? It depends… on your needs + goals. However, everyone using WordPress for their website would benefit from having help along the way. And that help can come in the form of documentation. Even if you have a developer on speed dial for your site, documentation can help your team with the areas of the site that they frequently access. There could be custom…
Signs of a good WordPress theme: one H1
How do you know that you have a good WordPress theme? It depends. We all have different business goals + different website goals. That said, it’s a pretty safe bet that most of us want our sites to be discoverable on Google. And one way that a bad theme can hurt your business or blog is by not following this one simple SEO rule: use one single H1 or Heading 1 per page. Speaking of… H1 + Heading 1 are the same thing. H1 is the HTML tag that labels…
Adding anchor links in WordPress
Anchor links in WordPress have another name — one that I think helps define them more clearly — page jumps. These HTML anchors require the tiniest bit of code but give you the ability to send readers + site visitors directly to the spot you want them to see. Let’s dive in. What are anchor links? Websites have lots of links on them. Some are internal + take users to other pages or posts within the website. Others are external + take users to different websites or URLs. Yet there’s…
How to create a redirect
If you make changes to your WordPress site content, you’ll likely need to create a redirect. Redirects help you avoid broken links, aka traffic landing on a dead end on your site. The good news is that they are really simple to set up + you can do so right in your site dashboard. Install a redirect plugin When you’re ready to create your redirect in WordPress, you’ll want to start with installing a redirection plugin. There are 3 that I recommend for clients Redirection: This free plugin is easy…
Launching your new website
Launching a new website (or a new product, service, etc) is more party planning than anything else. Why? Because you’ve already put in the work for the first 4 phases: Planning, Design, Development, Testing + Launch. Spending time getting your ducks in a row + testing the outcome can make this final phase your time to unwind… with a tiny bit of structure. Phase Five — Launching your new website For most business owners + bloggers, this is the perfect way to follow the non-sexy testing phase. Think of it…