Eat, Pray, WordPress Designer Love…in that order. Maybe add some desk calisthenics in there. No, but seriously I wanna talk to you today about some of my secrets I use as a WordPress designer, and how I go about doing some of the little things I do. Sometimes I forget the simple things people want to do to their WordPress site, so hi ho cheerio let’s go.

#1 Adding social icons to your sidebar
Go download some social icons, 2 places I use: Iconsmysitemyway, and Iconspedia. *Tip: when downloading your icons, it is best to go ahead and download the size you are wanting to use, and download all in the same size so it saves you some time.

#2 Go to your WordPress dashboard, and go to the Media tab on the left, and select Add New.

#3 Click Select Files

#4 Browse your computers file and select the icons *Tip: To add more than 1 social icons at once make sure all icons are in the folder and hold shift+click icon and you can select more than one at once

#5 Click Show

#6 Copy File url

#7 Go to Appearance>Widgets *Tip: press Control+click to open this in a new tab so you still have those other file urls open in a separate tab

#8 In Widgets, select a text widget, drag and drop it into the sidebar

#9 Add the .html <a href=”http://yourlinklocation.com”><img src=”filerul”></a> *Tip: the href is where you want your social icon to link to and the img src is the path you just copied so you can paste it in there

#10 Save it, and go view your sidebar

#11 Rinse, wash, repeat and add each social icon, one right after another in your sidebar, and it will appear right next to one another. Like so: <a href=”http://yourlinklocation.com”><img src=”filerul”></a> <a href=”http://yourlinklocation.com”><img src=”filerul”></a> <a href=”http://yourlinklocation.com”><img src=”filerul”></a>

#12 This also applyies to ANY image you would like to appear in your sidebar, if you don’t want it linked just don’t use the ahref,

Thanks for joining me in my WordPress Designer Secrets Revealed- How to add social media icons to sidebar

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It is super important that you don’t forget to submit your Thesis WordPress site to Google, as well as add a sitemap in Google Webmaster Tools, so you can tell the Google spiders to come crawl your WordPress posts, and pages that you have added. The other benefit of adding you sitemap to Google is you can track crawl errors, check whos linking to you, set up robots.txt files, as well as other odds and ends. Google Analytics actually lets you track who is coming to visit your site, what keyword(s) they typed in to find you, and even where they live! It also shows what search engine they were in, and if they came and left right away also called “bounced”.

In the video tutorial below I am going to show you how to submit your WordPress site, and also a Thesis WordPress site to Google. I will show you how to download Google XML Sitemaps plugin, configure it, and submit that to Google, and lastly show you how to set up Google Analytics to track your SEO power!

So lets Go!

Part 2

Links to the Google Places You Will Need to Visit:
Google Webmaster Tools

Google Analytics

If you need assistance with Submitting your WordPress, or Thesis WordPress site to Google I am available to assist you.

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3. Customizing Thesis Theme for WordPress 102 | Firefox Add-On Tools Welcome to my 2nd tutorial in my new series,”Customizing Thesis...

In this tutorial I am going to show you how to add cool floating social icons to your Thesis 1.7 site for WordPress.

I used Trasy’s site as my example. Below is the video, and below the video is the code to copy and paste into your custom_functions and custom_css.

Copy and paste this code for the cool floating social icons into your Custom Functions ( the pink is where you should type in your own information:

/* SAVE THIS IN CUSTOM_FUNCTIONS.PHP FILE */
add_action('thesis_hook_before_header', 'sitewide_feedback_buttons');

/**************************************************************************/
/* FLOATING SOCIAL PROFILES ON SIDE OF SITE  */
/***************************************************************************/
function sitewide_feedback_buttons() { ?>
    <div id="feedback">
        <a href="http://www.twitter.com/yourusername" id="twitter" target="_blank" title="Follow @twitterid on Twitter">Follow @yourtwitterid on Twitter</a>
        <a href="http://www.facebook.com/yourusername" id="rss" target="_blank" title="Check out Your Name Facebook Page">Check out Your Name Facebook Page</a>
        <a href="http://www.yourdomain.com/contact" id="email" title="Contact Your Name by Email">Contact Your Name by Email</a>
        <a href="http://www.linkedin.com/yourusername" id="linkin" title="View Your Name LinkedIn Profile" target="_blank">View Your Name LinkedIn Profile</a>
        <a href="http://www.youtube.com/yourusername" id="skype" title="Watch my Videos on YouTube" target="_blank">Watch my Videos on YouTube</a>
    </div>
<?php }

Copy and paste this code for the cool floating social icons into your Custom CSS( the pink is where you type in your own image path)( If you would like to change where the image floats you can change top:10% to top:20% to move it down, you can put any % you want to give it the position you want:

/* SAVE THIS IN CUSTOM.CSS FILE */
.custom #feedback {background: transparent; width: 3.2em; position: fixed; top: 10%; left: 0.55%;}
.custom #feedback a {display: block; text-indent: -9999px; height: 3.2em;}
.custom #feedback #twitter {background: url('http://www.yourdomain.com/images/yourimage.png')}
.custom #feedback #rss {background: url('http://www.yourdomain.com/images/yourimage.png')}
.custom #feedback #email {background: url('http://www.yourdomain.com/Blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/contact-new.png')}
.custom #feedback #linkin {background: url('http://www.yourdomain.com/images/linkedin.png')}
.custom #feedback #skype {background: url('http://www.yourdomain.com/images/youtube.png')}

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3. Customizing Thesis Theme for WordPress 102 | Firefox Add-On Tools Welcome to my 2nd tutorial in my new series,”Customizing Thesis...

Welcome to my 2nd tutorial in my new series,”Customizing Thesis Theme for WordPress 102 | Firefox Add-On Tools”.

Firefox add-ons are little mini-programs for your Firefox browser, kind of like plugins for a WordPress website. They help you do all sorts of fabulous things, like inspecting .css and php elements and changing them in the browser before actually coding it into your site. How cool is that!?

The firefox add-ons that I am sharing with you today are:

1. Firebug -The most popular and powerful web development tool

• Inspect HTML and modify style and layout in real-time
• Use the most advanced JavaScript debugger available for any browser
• Accurately analyze network usage and performance
• Extend Firebug and add features to make Firebug even more powerful
• Get the information you need to get it done with Firebug.

2. Colorzilla-Advanced Eyedropper, Color Picker, Palette Viewer and other colorful goodies for your Firefox

3. Measureit-Draw out a ruler to get the pixel width and height of any elements on a webpage.

I tried out the internet explorer tab, but I thought it kind of sucked and was inaccurate :p

Check out the video on me using the 3 tools above that I use for Thesis WordPress design and development.

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Hey guys and gals! I am kicking off my new series of posts Thesis for WordPress 101. As you probably could guess right now I am BIG Thesis nut. Mainly because I once was like you, scared and timid of messing with my sites design. What did I know, I went to school for Graphic Design, not Web! Well, a many moons ago WordPress came along, ok, not that long ago, but you get my drift, and if you didn’t know jack about web design all you could pretty much do is change your header on the Kubrik theme. Now, so many developers are making it easier for people will little to no skills what-so-ever create and customize their WordPress site. Thesis is just that. A framework that is technically a WordPress theme, but it is really just a framework that let’s you customize the crap out of it! Take for instance my site. It’s Thesis, and so are 99% of the sites in my portfolio.

Why I use Thesis

1. The main reason I use Thesis is because it is light and airy. A lot of plugins that I would have to add to a site for SEO are already there.Things it replaces: all-in-one SEO pack, no-follow plugin, SEO date exclusion, etc. etc. Plugins can slow your site down, become incompatible with other plugins and almost always seem to cause an error. With Thesis it is all built right in. Pretty nifty!

2. Design, Design Design-It is incredible you can take a theme and turn it into infinite possibilities. In my portfolio you can see the diversity that is Thesis.

3. User Friendly- I train clients on how to blog for SEO purposes, and also so people can be able to update and manage their site themselves. This is kind of a “mission” for me. I was that person back in the day too that had to call someone to change some text or graphic that I made on my site. No MORE! I said. Although I could change anything on any theme or what have you. I feel the learning curve for Thesis is much better for my clients.

Ok, Ok, Get on With it Show Us Already How to Add Our Header

Watch the Video and my 1.2.3 steps are below.

Below I show you how to install your already made header into Thesis. If you don’t have a header graphic I make them for a mere $45 bucks. I picked this as the first tutorial in my series, because a header is pretty much one of the best things to transform a site. It tells a story, shows who you are, and sets you apart from everyone else. Even if it is ugly :p

1. Have a header graphic made. If you don’t know what size to tell your designer, or me ( hehe) I suggest using this AWESOME Firefox plugin called Measure-It.

a. Install it

b. Restart FF

c. You will see it in your lower right hand tool bar.

d. Click on it and drag it across the header area on your website.

2. After you got the size figured out. Do some magic to your graphic, or wait to receive your 3 header revisions from your designer.

3.Upload your header graphic in your FTP or file manager. I normally make a file called “images” inside of my “custom” folder in Thesis. That way when I go to code the path into my .css all I have to type is /images/header.jpg. ( Remember the path to the image, and the image name. I just copy and paste into notepad, so I have it handy)

4. Log into your Thesis WordPress site.

5. Scroll down to Thesis Options>Custom File Editor. * Make sure you have your permissions set in your FTP to 666 or it will not directly edit from your WordPress dashboard. Check out how to change file permissions for Thesis if you don’t know how.

6. You are going to add this code to your custom.css and click save after you paste in: .custom #header
{
height: 250px;width: 850px;
background: url(‘/images/header.jpg’) left top no-repeat;
}

A couple things to remember. Change the height and width to the size that you made your header, and change the file name if you did not make yours header.jpg.

*Some things you might encounter:

1.The site title and tagline are still showing. Very easy go to Thesis Option>Thesis Options> Display Options> Header> Uncheck show title and tagline, then click your big ass save button.

2. There is padding around your header and you want it to be flush with your sidebars, borders, and navigation. Simply add padding:0px; to your header code like so:.custom #header
{
height: 250px;width: 850px;
background: url(‘/images/header.jpg’) left top no-repeat;padding:0px;
}

Also you can look inside Thesis Options>Design Options>Framework Options> .HTML Framework>Select Full Width, Then >Outter Page Padding and bring the padding down to 0.5 or 0, then click your big ass save button.

You DID IT!

I also can do this for you if you have thrown your hands in the air, and also can also make custom headers and graphics for you.

Contact me for info. Happy Thesis Designing!

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Due to the recent events surround some websites. I want to talk to you about security for your WordPress site, and how you can prevent bad things from happening to good people.

First let’s talk about backing up the site you already have just in case the worst comes to worst, and someone hacks it. So, you can say f*&@ you to whomever tampers with your site, because you will have all of your info. All you need to do is install a DB Backup plugin, and it will email you a daily backup of your website. Very handy, and extremely easy. I just install it through my WordPress dashboard by going to >Plugins>Add New> and then type DB Backup select the plugin, and click install. Then find it under settings and personalize the setting you would like.

A couple other ways to backup your site is through your host. If your site is running on a cpanel you can set it up for weekly or daily backups to be stored on your sever, very handy as well. If it isn’t cpanel like GoDaddy, they have a 30 day calender that has your site saved each day for 30 days. I don’t like GoDaddy, but this is cool.

So, first we will talk about some of the simple things to do to your WordPress blog.

1.When creating and installing WordPress , you should create a username other than admin.If you have it already, simply delete it and make a new one.

2. Activate the Askimet plugin which filters spam comments. To do this all you need to do is create a WordPress account and it will give you an API key to place in your blog.

Now these next 3 are larger precautions.

3. Install Maximum Security Shield plugin. The powerful Maximum Security plugin for WordPress is packed with strong protection that makes your site extremely secure. It guards against intrusion; tracks a plethora of events; blocks malicious content that could harm your readers and your search engine ranking; and includes a strong Web application firewall along with a full blown intrusion prevention system.

4. Install WP Security Scan The regularly updated WP Security Scan scans your WordPress installation for security vulnerabilities and suggests corrective actions.
It checks for vulnerable passwords, file permissions, database security, it hides the WP version, WordPress admin protection/security and it removes the WP Generator META tag from the core code. Powerful plugin.

5. Install Secure WordPress. As the title says, Secure WordPress, helps to secure your WordPress installation by removing error information on login pages, adds index.html to the plugin directory; removes the WP-version, except in the admin area.

6. This doesn’t have to do with installing a plugin, but it is a good idea to update WordPress to the latest version, and also your theme to the latest version once it is past beta.

7. Change your FTP login if you have give it out, you never know who will become bitter and cross the line.

If you need help installing these features. I am available for updating, and securing your WordPress. Let’s fight crime together!

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• 5 SEO Factors When Choosing a Domain Name.
  Posted on Saturday, March 27th, 2010 in SEO – Comments: (2)

  SEO for Domain names, your "lipstick".

  [/caption]What better place to pick up where we left off than talking about a domain name. We have been doing all these tutorials on your site for SEO, and haven’t really touched on the most basic make-up of your site. No not lipstick and blush, but the first thing that Google sees.
• Phoenix SEO Link Building Tutorial Step 8| dofollow Forums
  Posted on Thursday, March 4th, 2010 in SEO – Comments: (0)
  This is my Link Building Tutorial Step 8Sorry I skipped this step because I was off in some mystical realm. Don’t ask it is a secret.So, forums are a great way to get some links to your site form a niche.Warning! Do not over spam this , because it can make you look worse than you started out.I like to find forums that interest me, and I actually want to gather some info on, and meet other people who are like me.
• Phoenix SEO Rachael Butts Link Building Tutorial Step 12 | Social Media
  Posted on Monday, March 15th, 2010 in SEO – Comments: (0)
  Social Media for SEO can sometimes become overwhelming. Trust me I know. Update status here, tagged photo there, a new Farmville animal gathered, and eventually you throw your hands up in defeat because there is no way you can keep up.That is why I set the whole thing on autopilot by setting my RSS feed to automatically post to Twitter and Facebook, and in doing that it leaves me a wonderful super fantastic link to my post!
• Testimonial from Leanne at SavingDinner.com
  Posted on Wednesday, March 17th, 2010 in Testimonials – Comments: (0)
  Rachael,After all we put you through, the end result is STUNNING!! If you were running for president, I’d vote for you!You totally “get” us and what we’re trying to achieve and you made that apparent in our newly improved website. It sparkles from your touch! You have such an eye for detail, color, and respect for both SEO and what our customers are looking for when they come to our site.

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SEO for Domain names, your "lipstick".

What better place to pick up where we left off than talking about a domain name. We have been doing all these tutorials on your site for SEO, and haven’t really touched on the most basic make-up of your site. No not lipstick and blush, but the first thing that Google sees. Your domain name.

Now, a long time ago, people could put up a site, keyword stuff a title, and description and rank in 24 hrs. Now, it requires a lot more skill than typing.

So, let’s look at some of the factors when choosing a domain.

1. Stick with the highest level domain extension. This means .com. If the domain name you want is taken, and is only available in .net, I’d skip it and try and find a different domain. Underneath that is .org and .net. There has been debate under which is better, but generally I have had more success with a .org site. Another thing to remember when choosing and extension is “.com” is much more brandable than a “.net”.

2. Choose a site that ideally has your keyphrase in it. Now, I know what you are thinking, your site is “rachaelbutts.com” You are a hypocrite. I have had success with non keyphrase and keyphrase sites , don’t get me wrong. In the end the most important part is on page content and links. Which designers get plenty of . So, look for sites that have your phrase in the order it is searched, or try adding a word before or after the phrase. Say for example that wordpressdesigners.com is taken, but bestwordpressdesigners.com is available then the latter is perfectly acceptable.

3. Avoid dashes. Dashes are bad for two reason. a. It breaks up your keyphrase, and b. It isn’t user friendly. No one says, ” Hey, visit my site at rachael dash butts.com. See it looks and sounds weird.

4. Pluralizing a word is perfectly fine, and if you have done your keyword research you might find the “s” , or pluralized version is actually searched more than the singular.

5. When purchasing a domain that is an “aged” domain, and has established backlinks and PR. Make sure that the domain isn’t in any bad neighborhoods, and only got all those backlinks by paying for link farms. An aged domain is most of the time better than a newly registered domain, but not if it is associated with bad sites. It is like dating a guy you don’t get a background check on.

In conclusion, there are several things to look at when choosing a domain for yourself, especially for SEO. Remember, .com, keyphrase, no dashes, can be plural, and no bad neighborhoods. Good Luck!

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savingdinner.com

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Social Media for SEO can sometimes become overwhelming. Trust me I know. Update status here, tagged photo there, a new Farmville animal gathered, and eventually you throw your hands up in defeat because there is no way you can keep up.

That is why I set the whole thing on autopilot by setting my RSS feed to automatically post to Twitter and Facebook, and in doing that it leaves me a wonderful super fantastic link to my post! It also uses my title and description, so I am using my keyphrases as well. A double win.

So, to do that I use Twitterfeed along with my RSS feed burned by FeedBurner. Now, you do not have to burn your RSS feed with FeedBurner, but I highly recommend it. If you don’t know  how check out my Phoenix SEO tutorial on it. Very easy, and takes 5 minutes.

How to set up your Feed to Automatically Post to Twitter and Facebook:

1. Create a Twitter Feed Account

2. Get your Feed Title /Feed Url and copy and paste them into TwitterFeed.

3. Create Services ( Facebook and Twitter) It will ask you to authenticate and make sure you are authenticating it with the account you want. This is for people with multiple blogs and social media sites.

4. Save it and write a post to test it if you like.

5. Warning…it does take about an hour sometimes to have the post appear on the social media sites,  because it only updates every hour, so if it doesn’t show up right away…Don’t freak out! ( I did)

* A few words in leaving. Always remember that spamming is for losers, and you won’t gain any friends by being spammy and leaving your shameless links all over the place. Social media is a great way to share other people’s content and in turn they will share yours. It is like that Bible verse. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

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