In this series, we will cover some of the first 60 days of integrating social media into your overall business and marketing strategy. These trainings are designed to be completed in an hour (after all we have businesses to run).
With just a day or two before we launch (soft and quiet), let's grab a pizza and tie up some loose stuff:
- Make sure you have your dotcom (your domain name) reserved.
- Move from WordPress dot com (they host for you) to WordPress on a server (rent your own server)
- Pick a design template to start off with (a bigger, better, perfect-ish design comes a bit later)
- Choose the plugins that we deem necessary for launch
Domain Name:
If you don't already have a domain name for your site, you'll want to get one. Shorter lengths were once important, not so much anymore. Refrain from using .Net or .Org - get a .Com. Also avoid MY, YOUR, and THE to start your domain name.
Nobody's going to remember that. Almost all services have great customer service (be patient, be nice – it's amazing how much of the same you get in return.
WordPress Launch
Moving from WordPress "dot com" to the full on-your-server WP is very easy. Most domain name services offer WP now and will help you get that started. (I use and recommend GoDaddy). Once we get that setup, it's a super-simple, two-step process:
- From WordPress.com dashboard>Tools>Export. Choose all that apply (usually all) and remember where it saves on your computer.
- From your new WordPress dashboard>Tools>Import. Choose "from WordPress" and upload the file.
Told ya it was easy.
Also, you'll want to make sure you're set to have search engines to index your site now. That setting in WordPress can be found in your dashboard>Settings>Privacy.
Theme Template
At the beginning, not a lot of folks are going to be reading your blog. Still, they'll all be first time visitors. While it's up to you, I recommend a simple, well-designed but clean theme to start out with. We can redecorate later. Too many times have I seen colors and buttons interrupt writing – so let's avoid that for the next few weeks, hmm?
To find a theme, go to your new WordPress dashboard>Appearances>Add New Themes. I'd suggest you look at all of them rather than specify a search. Try to choose one with a main content columna and a single, right-side sidebar. Download the one you find and activate it. It's just that simple.
Plugins
We hear a lot about plugins for use in WordPress. And these add-ons are one reason I'm now recommending WP more than any other platform. Most are simple enough just to add and activate, though some require a bit of configuration (read the instructions).
Here are a few that I always start out with – and these are the simple ones (either plugin and play, or input a few parameters and activate):
- All-in-One SEO Pack
- LinkWithin
- TweetMeme Retweet button
- Sociable
- WordPress.com Stats
- Google XML Sitemaps
You can search for these from your WPdashboard>Plugins>Add New. There are others we'll do soon, such as an optin form (MailChimp or aWeber), traffic analysis, Social Network add-ons (Twitter, Facebook, Favorite videos, etc) – but for now, this is a good start.
Also, don't forget — you should be posting at least 3-5 times per week.
The Series:
