Welcome to another edition of Sites Weekly.
This week, we have a special treat: all Copyblogger articles!
I’ve built up a stash of articles from the Copyblogger blog that I haven’t been able to fit in to an issue of Sites Weekly yet. So I decided to put them all in one.
In this week’s edition, you will find links to articles about the following:
- Content. Essential editing advice from a master
- Design. Expert tips for creating an effective visual brand
- Technology. Have you neglected any of these essential security steps?
- Strategy. Is your content marketing strategy on point?
- Bonus. The internet doesn’t care about your hopes and dreams
But first …
Last week on Sites
Affiliate marketing is a great way to enhance the income from your site — if you know how to do it right. At StudioPress, we have a lot of experience with affiliates — and have learned the tactics that work and those that don’t.
And the affiliates who are successful focus on helping people at different stages of their personal journeys to find solutions to their problems. In this 26-minute episode, Chris Garrett from StudioPress joins the show to share his insights and tactics for successful affiliate marketing.
Listen: [27] How to Be a Successful Affiliate Marketer in the WordPress Ecosystem
And now, on to this week’s links …
Content: Editing tips from a master
In all of my years writing online, one of the greatest resources I’ve ever had is Stefanie Flaxman as an editor.
She excels at her job because she cares deeply about doing good work and because she can simultaneously empathize with both the writer and the reader.
So when Stefanie writes something about editing, I listen. Carefully. She knows what she’s talking about, and she knows which of the lessons from her vast cache of them will be most impactful for the modern content marketer.
If you want to create a more professional online production and deliver the best product to your visitors, pay attention to these 10 tips from Stefanie.
10 Modern Editing Tips for Meticulous Bloggers
Design: Expert tips for creating an effective visual brand
This one is by Rafal Tomal, our VP of Design. Here’s a taste:
“On the internet, your competition is just a few clicks away, so it’s really important to have a strong visual presence. You want to capture attention immediately and invite people to engage with your content.
Visual branding alone won’t sell your product or service, but it’ll help you connect with the right audience on many different levels.”
I should tell you that this post includes many Star Wars examples. Always a winner, especially in this company. 😉
How to Create a Visual Brand and Fight the Dark Forces
Two of the most important decisions you will make about your WordPress website are your theme and your hosting. Wouldn’t it be great if they worked together to make your website more powerful?
Now they can.
Discover why over 213,675 website owners trust StudioPress.
Technology: Have you neglected any of these essential security steps?
You know how important website security is.
And with WordPress, the power of the platform is also the reason that security holes can arise and be exploited. While being able to mix different themes and plugins with the content management system provides flexible power, it also increases the potential for malicious access.
So … how can you protect your website from trouble? Here are five important steps you should make sure you take.
5 Steps to Website Security You Can Trust
Strategy: Is your content marketing strategy on point?
This article from Brian Clark kicked off his 2017 year-opening series on creating a winning content marketing strategy. It’s a must-read.
The blog post linked below provides the overview, and then subsequent posts (which Brian links to at the end) dive into each component he outlines.
Read it for the first time to get yourself primed for a successful 2018, or review it as a reminder so that you can reverse course if anything in your content marketing strategy has gotten out of whack.
The Simple 3-Step Process for Creating a Winning Content Marketing Strategy
Bonus article: The internet doesn’t care about your hopes and dreams
Wise words from Sonia Simone:
“There is no great spirit of abundance that wants to make you rich. There is only your effort, your strategy, and your willingness to serve your audience.
If you have a solid business model, an engaged audience, a product or service that they’re willing to pay for, and good marketing skills — and if you stick with it long enough — you will probably have a healthy business.”
In this blog post, Sonia explains some basic, big picture ideas to keep in mind that will give you a chance to succeed online.
So …
Which of the ideas in these posts will you put to good use immediately?
I’ll be back with a new edition next week.
Keep building.