WordPress, which was initially designed for bloggers, has now evolved into a full-fledged content management site. This evolution has meant that people use WordPress for a lot more other things than just blogging and also maintain their own websites using WordPress. As it is completely free and offers great services, many bloggers, celebrities and even companies use it for their own benefits. One does not need any prior coding skills and the tools on offer make website creation an easy task.
There are a lot of options for website developers who can make virtually any customisations they want to their websites. But with increased customizability comes increased complexity. It is easy to get lost in the world of WordPress and its features and to forget your original objectives. A fish does not need to learn how to climb trees, similarly not every feature is useful for everybody. Focussing on what one wants out of WordPress should clarify most of the doubts about the way forward.
Nevertheless, the WordPress environment is huge and it is easy for one to lose their footing once in a while. Hence here are some tips which should always be followed to manage your WordPress site and gain the maximum utility out of it.
Make the most of plug-ins
WordPress plug-ins have been designed to make life easier for website owners. Want better indexing of your blog? You have a plug-in. Want better security? Plug-ins like “Wordfence” provide protection against malicious software and hackers. Want your content to be Search Engine Optimised? You have a plug-in for that too.
Additionally, an excellent review system allows one to view and select those plug-ins that actually work effectively. Plug-ins depending on one’s need are a must have if you want to save some of your hair for old age.
Also Read: Top 10 Speed Optimization WordPress Plugins
Communicate with readers well
Use clear and concise language in your posts. Understanding your readers gives a better idea of how to communicate your points to them. And for this a dialogue between the author and the audience is necessary. Communication is not a one way road; effective communication involves both listening and speaking. Even though a blog post is about putting one’s point forward, asking for feedback at the end of each post never did anyone harm.
Also, have a description of the author after every Blog post. It is important that people understand that it was a human being who wrote that article and he/she has a personality and qualities. Also, refrain from too much self-praise.
Also Read: How To Create A Custom 404 Page In WordPress
Man is a social animal. Anything that enables him to be social, gains traction. WordPress itself is such a tool. But why not make use of the other tools to become even more social? A majority of people open Facebook once a day. Other social media sites like LinkedIn, Quora are immensely popular too.
Post content on these sites, allow sharing of your blog posts to these sites, and also advertise your blog on social media. The advertisements do not have to be paid. If the content is good, readers will find a way to your blog.
Have guest writers write for you and contribute to your blog
Guest posts are a great way to create superior quality content. These provide one’s content a different viewpoint. Sometimes some interesting observations or facts might be lying right under one’s nose but one might be blind to them. Working in a team minimises the chances of such negligence. Also, an outreach of the blog increases as the guest blogger does everything within their power to spread the post as much as possible.
However, remain skeptical of guest posts that seem to appear out of nowhere and have no connection to your blog. Spammers almost always find a way to ruin good things. Again, refer to point 1 about security plug-ins.
Also Read: 20 Places You Should Be Sharing Your Content
Remain active
Do not have a blog just for the sake of having a blog. Your posts need to have a personality and need to send across a message or provide unique insights or information to the readers. Along with this being active and posting regularly helps maintain a loyal reader best. Posting on particular days or times is an even better practice. People like reliability and there is nothing more reliable than good quality, punctual author.
The above guidelines are applicable for almost every kind of WordPress user. However, a touch of caution is advisable when dealing with third parties like guest bloggers. Prevention is always better than cure.
