The next Websitetology seminars will be held, Monday January 21, 2008
8:30am to 5 pm
Location Nehemiah University, 750 S. Main Street Dayton OH 45410
If you are wondering if you should take this seminar: http://websitetology.com/?p=91
Sign up for it here: http://websitetology.com/?page_id=247
Having problems posting often enough? Always on the go when you see something that you want to share? Have a cell phone? Utterz might be the answer.
Although you’ve always had the ability to post via e-mail- without some serious pluginage, you would have a hard time adding cell phone multi-media to a post. Enter Utterz. Snap a pic, record a podcast, or a quick camera video and post it to your WordPress blog (even though they left WP off their FAQ-but use it for their own blog) with a simple call to their number (and yes- you pay for the call).
Utterz – Frequently Asked Questions
Utterz is the first way you can instantly blog your experiences, thoughts and ideas, anywhere, using all the capabilities of your mobile phone. Utterz mashes together the voice, video, pictures, and text you call or send in and creates an ‘Utter’ that can immediately update your existing web pages on sites like Blogger, Facebook, LiveJournal, MySpace and more. [See FAQ how do I grab a widget, how do I use auto-posting and how do I embed my Utter?]
Just remember, if you are posting (utterz) of audio or video- remember to add text to make your post searchable- or you’ll just be uttering to yourself and your subscribers.
Not quite sure what the revenue model is- maybe they’ll make you listen to an ad before you post, or because the site aggregates public “utterz” they will be a high value site and end up with revenue from Google ads etc. Read what Robert Scoble has to say about it here: http://scobleizer.com/2007/09/17/utterz-like-twitter-but-with-audiovideo/
There is a lot of buzz about Twitter as the dawn of instant mobjournalism- instant “Twitterquakes” when something relevant happens to a large group of people who are connected. An earthquake or terrorist attack would instantly fill the twitter-ether with reports.
You don’t have to use Utterz as a social media tool- just a way to post- but, the options are out there.
To create this post, to teach you how to use the Press It function of WordPress, I thought it was best if I actually used it to write the post. So, just like you would, I did a Google Search for “How to use WordPress Press It”. To get to the top of Google, it never hurts to link to content that’s already at the top (lesson 1).
Looking at the Google results- I saw the WordPress Codex link. And while it’s number one, I’ve often found the codex a little rough for reading. Looking over it, I was right. So, I looked to my online “friend” Lorelle. Her posts are usually pretty on the money. So, I clicked on the link and it took me to her post. Note- this is IMPORTANT- it took me to HER POST, not her site. For Press it to work, you need to select an article or post that has a unique url. Her site url is www.lorelle.wordpress.com
this post has the url:
http://lorelle.wordpress.com/2005/09/15/wordpress-power-user-features-just-press-it/
See the difference? A post can be one of 10 or 20 or so in reverse chronological order, or it can stand alone. You need the post alone. In most blog applications, and most CMS (content management system) systems- the way you do this is to click on the headline, or look for a link that says “permalink”. This will isolate the article you are interested in.
Now, I should mention, you need to do what Lorelle explains here at the beginning as a “click and drag to your link toolbar”- or what WordPress says to “Right click on the following link and choose “Add to favorites” to create a posting shortcut.”
However, there were changes from WordPress 2.5 to 2.7. In 2.5 you made the Press It link from the “Write post” page of your WordPress admin area- it’s at the bottom of the page. In 2.7 it’s been moved and renamed, now appearing in the Tools are of your left Dashboard column. However, you still do the same thing- drag the link to your toolbar, or bookmark/favorite it.
So, I’ve clicked to Lorelle’s post- then I highlight the part of her post I want to put on my blog to comment on. Then I look to my toolbar where I have the “Press it” bookmark stored- and click it. Voila- her highlighted content is in my write post pane- with her headline (more about this in a minute).
It’s below- and to show that I didn’t write it, I’m going to select it all and use the “Indent list/Blockquote” button from my Visual Text Editor tool bar (it’s the 7th icon over- with a blue arrow pointing at lines to move them right).
WordPress Power User Features – Just Press It « Lorelle on WordPress
With every installation of WordPress comes a little gem called Press It. It is a javascript “bookmarklet” found on the Write Post screen in your Admin. It’s at the very bottom. If you click and drag the link to your Link Toolbar in your Internet browser, it will put the javascript on the bar for you to quickly click and use.When visiting a site you want to create a link and post about on your blog or website, just click the link and a window will pop up with either your site’s login or, if you are already logged in, a condensed version of the Write Post screen. Inside will be the title filled out with the title of the website you are visiting if there is one and a link in the Editing textarea. You just fill in the text, mark the categories, then save it as a draft or private or publish it.
Now, this is even more powerful than you first may think. If you select text on the page and then click Press It, the text you highlighted will be copied and pasted into the post. Wow That is cool and I love it. What a great feature.
You can learn more about how to use the Press It in the WordPress Codex.
When I want to return to my writing, I use the “Outdent” button (to the left of the blockquote button) and we’re back to normal. Depending on how your theme is configured, your “blockquoted” text could have a pair of apostrophes {“} or a line on the left side, or appear in a bubble, or shaded area. All this says is: “this content is quoted.”
I never use the Title of my quoted text for my title- instead, I write my own. Their title will appear as the link at the top of the blockquote. Remember, this is my take on it- not a wholesale steal. One thing about Pressit- it doesn’t know what to alt title the link- so you have to do it. Select the link, click the link tool- and write a descriptive explanation of what the link is to. While Lorelles post title is pretty clear- it’s not great: so I wrote: Link to Lorelle on Wordpress explaining the PressIt function (roll over the link to see this text). The “Title” function is critical for blind people- and a good habit to adopt. Think of one of those Amazon.com links with a million digits and letters, a blind person wouldn’t know what the link is taking him to- and remember, Google is just like a blind person.
So, we’re almost done. Only a few things to pay attention to.
If we’re Pressit’ing from a WordPress site- this works like clockwork. But, if you are quoting a TypePad site or other CMS- you may need to find a “Trackback” address that may be different than the article’s “permalink” or direct URL. This is because WordPress is elegant- and the others, well, they aren’t.
So- get that “Trackback” url and paste it below your post window in the area called “Trackback” (it’s below the upload tool- and usually under the “optional excerpt” pane). Put it in and then make sure to add your post to some categories- and hit “Publish” and you are done.
Now, while you are so proud of yourself for adding someone else’s content to your site, legally- there is one other fringe benefit, if all of this works right: there will now be a comment (or trackback) on Lorelle’s site, with an excerpt and a link to this post. Voila, we’ve built a link and a relationship! Yee-Haw!
Some people with a lot of readers don’t allow comments anymore- just trackbacks to their posts. Need an example- look at Seth Godin’s blog. Note- I have to use one URL for the post, and a second to create a trackback since Seth use TypePad.
Now- while that may seem like a lot, it’s really easy once you get the hang of it. Hopefully, this step-by-step instruction post will help.
Remember, good content brings more readers, more links, and more google love, so make sure what you add to someone else’s content actually adds value to their post.
Lorelle, how’d I do?
Here is a video tutorial from the WordPress crew:
Please enable Javascript and Flash to view this VideoPress video.
We often learn more from our students than from our studies, and in the last seminar someone asked what the difference between blogs and forums.
I don’t feel that I offered the best answer, since blog posts offer a forum for discussion.
While this is simplistic: a forum is a place where a community can post and discuss things- many to many- mostly posed as short questions. A well moderated forum keeps new users from reposting the same questions and makes sure questions are framed in useful language. “Help, my blog is broken” isn’t a good forum question- “My categories in wordpress aren’t working” is a better question.
A blog is a place where a single user posts ideas- and builds a community- that may eventually add a forum to the site. WordPress allows for multiple authors, with different degrees of access, so this model can be adapted to a forum concept, but generally, blog posts are longer questions, and the tools of moderation are structured differently. The developers of WordPress have built a forum software that integrates closely with WordPress- bbPress, and over time, the functions may begin to overlap. Some blogs leave the base level of ownership as “author” allowing anyone to publish- this turns a blog into a forum.
The reality is, the difference is in the eye of the beholder. The true measurement really comes in the size and activity of the audience. A blog that is read by nobody, with few comments or trackbacks isn’t much of a forum just as a forum with no participants is really just a blog.
The thread that got this idea going is linked to below- where a bunch of academics discuss it at length- in a “forum”- I found the following bit interesting.
SCoPE: Seminars: Distinction between forums and blogs
From Formal courses: Blog protocol, Public/Private, Forums/Blogs (Long Post) by derekc on Fri Feb 16 22:24:00 2007:
1. the blog owner posts without an awareness of audience
2. the blog owner posts with an attempt to identify audience (at this stage, the poster finishes their entries with questions or invites “invisible” readers to comment)
3. the blog owner posts for a clear audience (e.g. the poster refers back to blog commentators or includes links to other blogs or sites by them)
4. a regular group of commentators is set, and dialogues take place via blog comments
5. some of these commentators start making entries (as “guest bloggers”), and each of them goes through stages #1 to #4.
6. a regular group of posters is thread, with a group voice gradually developed.
Either way, the idea of community and community generated content is key to the whole “web 2.0″ experience. If your site is built for business- and you aren’t involving your customers- you won’t be in business for long. Either customers will discuss your products and services on your site- or they will do it on someone elses (including their own). Consider yourself informed and go out and let the community discussion begin.
You can come to Chicago in June for a two day conference and spend $800, or you can visit Dayton and get a day for $79 (Everything is cheaper in Dayton OH). We’re proud to have our chief Websitetologist, David Esrati be one of the featured speakers at this conference:
Web Content 2007 – Chicago Business Conference on Internet Website Content June 18 & 19
Know the State-of-the-Art in Website Content ManagementWeb Content 2007 is for business professionals involved with creating, organizing and maintaining web content. The two-day conference provides three tracks: content design and access,content development and management and emerging tools and technologies. Each track offers attendees a selection of workshops, case studies, and presentations lead by recognized Internet authorities. Attend all sessions in one track or mix-and-match sessions in any track to create a customized program. Held in an intimate setting in Downtown Chicago participation is limited. Registration is now open. Save $100 if you register before May 4, 2007.
If you don’t believe that this Websitetology thing works: think again. We’ve never met any of the people who are speaking, or contacted them- they found us, from our online presence. Same goes for clients in Minneapolis, Austin, Raleigh and Jacksonville. Using the proper Content Management System, utilizing webstats and understanding search and web 2.0 will grow your business.
We’re not a huge fan of buying keywords, but having the right keywords in your posts sure helps you get placement.
If you aren’t sure what keywords you should use, think about what you would use to find your post in Google (or Yahoo if you must) and then try them, see who pops up. But, what about the related words? That’s where the Overture Keyword selector tool comes in handy:
Overture- Keyword Selector Tool
Keyword Selector Tool• Enter a term related to your site and we will show you: Related searches that include your term
• How many times that term was searched on last month
Or you can use the Google tool:
Google AdWords: Keyword Tool
Keyword Tool
The Keyword Tool generates potential keywords for your ad campaign and reports their Google statistics, including search performance and seasonal trends. Start your search by entering your own keyword phrases or a specific URL. You can then add new keywords to the green box at the right.
Either tool should help you focus your posts for maximum web search rank.
This is probably the easiest way to understand what web 2.0 is in under 5 minutes. Highly recommended.
So, every person qualified to teach you how to build a website that gets to the top of Google reads your site (like this one)- and you want to make money off your site- add a job listing board!
Job-a-matic makes it easy to do. I’m not saying it’s for everyone, but Ernie Schenck, advertising grand master, decided to do it on his blog: using Job-a-matic.
Job-a-matic | Home
Make More from Your Site with Job-a-matic!
Add Paid Listings to
Your Site Today
Why Job-a-matic?* Sell your own job listings. You set the price.
* Earn additional revenue with paid listings from Simply Hired
* Wow your audience with useful content
* Watch the money roll in.
We’re not a big fan of guestbooks- but a client asked us about having one in WordPress. Right now, the WordPress world is in a tizzy over switching to 2.1 or continuing with 2.0- but here is one that claims to work with WordPress 2.1:
Alleba Blog » Wordpress Guestbook Generator Plugin
Plugin Name: Guestbook Generator
Description: Generates a guestbook for Wordpress blogs. Once activated, click on Options > Guestbook Generator.
Version: 0.8
Author: Andrew dela Serna
Notice: Compatible only with Wordpress 2.1. Support for older versions will continue but updates/upgrades will be focused on the newest versions of Wordpress. Scroll down to download Version 0.7 which is designed for Wordress 2.0.X.Features:
1. No files to edit. Just upload the plugin, activate it then run the generator.
2. Guestbook template seamlessly integrates with your current theme.
3. When changing themes, simply run the generator to create the necessary files.
4. Like a true-blue guestbook, entries are arranged from newest to oldest.
5. Remember the time when guestbooks were the “in” thing? Hopefully this plugin will bring back the ol’ days. Hehe.
I don’t share the authors romantic view of guestbooks- for the most part, I find them silly. Comments are just as effective- and when using the amazing “subscribe to comments” plugin, you can actually carry on a great conversation on your site.
Please note- a lot of themes are behaving badly with WordPress 2.1 right now- so it may not be your plugin that’s broken- it may be the theme. It’s a trial and error world for a bit. If in doubt, stick with WordPress 2.0 if you aren’t ready to invest some time in the upgrade. Always remember to back up your complete database- and all files, before making a change.
The great part about running a WordPress enabled business website is that you can answer your customers questions and share the answers with the world.
So, someone asks, where do I get started with business blogs- or blogging in general, and of course I suggest Websitetology. We teach you what you need to know, but, we also share things we find online with you here. So when I found this page, I used the PressIt function of WordPress to put the link into this post.
Jump on over to:
My 50 favorite blogging resources
and explore some more. Hopefully, one day, they’ll add websitetology to their list.