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10 Ways To Improve Any Website Or Blog Best Practices For Web Publishers
Session Description
๏ In this class we’ll explore practical techniques to improve your website.
๏ From design to technology, this class will take a look at techniques that work.
๏ Rich Harrington published his first website in 1996, and with nearly 20 years publishing experience he’s got a lot of life lessons to share.
๏ We’ll look at essential tools that increase time on site as well as explore helper services for automation.
๏ You’ll also discover essential strategies to enhance your posts with graphics and video.
Richard HarringtonI'm a visual storyteller exploring the fusion of photography and video. I'm all a husband & father
Vital StatisticsAuthor 40+ Books
Author 100+ Video Courses
Publisher of 2 Websites
Adjunct Professor
Conference Speaker
Business Owner
Photographer
Getting In Touch
twitter.com/rhedpixel
facebook.com/RichHarringtonStuff
plus.google.com/+RichardHarrington/
linkedin.com/in/richardharrington
RichardHarrington.com
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www.pinterest.com/rhedpixel/
– I N D I R A G A N D H I
“There are two kinds of people, those who do the work and those who take the credit. Try to be in the first group;
there is less competition there.”
A Brain IntegratedHow I try to serve both halves and put them to work for creative problem solving
The Logical Side
๏ Project Management Professional
๏ Business Owner – RHED Pixel & Media Factory
๏ Technical Consultant
๏ Instructor And Lecturer
๏ Book Publisher
๏ Website Publisher
The Logical Side
๏ Strategic Planning
๏ Risk Analysis
๏ Budgeting
๏ Negotiation
๏ Technology Integration
๏ Market Identification & Targeting
Past Projects
๏ Adobe
๏ America Online
๏ American Diabetes Association
๏ American Israel Public Affairs Committee
๏ American Red Cross
๏ Apple
๏ Children's National Medical Center
๏ CNN
๏ Department of Veterans Administration
๏ Drobo
๏ Federal Communications Commission
๏ lynda.com
๏ Major League Baseball
๏ Microsoft
๏ Smithsonian Institute
๏ Under Armour
๏ US Air Force
The Creative Side
๏ Director And Executive Producer
๏ Photographer
๏ Film & Video Editor
๏ Motion Graphics Designer
๏ Journalist
๏ Podcaster
The Creative Side
๏ Design
๏ Creative Writing
๏ Documentary Storytelling
๏ Performance
๏ Inspiration & Motivation
๏ Emotional Connections
Consultant
Consultant
๏ Work with a variety of high-tech clients
๏ Consultant to television networks for broadcast workflow
๏ Combine technical expertise with project management knowledge
๏ Manage migration and audience growth
Advisory and Consultant Projects
๏ Television Networks ๏ ABC News
๏ CNN
๏ Discovery Channel
๏ Major League Baseball Network
๏ NASCAR
๏ Turner Networks
๏ Technology ๏ Adobe Creative Cloud
Advisory Board
๏ Apple
๏ Athentech
๏ Pearson Education
Publisher
Publisher
๏ Publisher of photofocus.com
๏ Publisher personal blog RichardHarrington.com
๏ Publisher of eBooks ThinkTapLearn
๏ Manager of Moving to Premiere Pro Facebook Group
StatisticsThe numbers tell part of the story
Add CommunitiesGive people a place they can connect
STRATEGY ONE
7 RULES FOR ONLINE
COMMUNITIES
Be Genuine
Be Well-Rounded
Be Passionate
Be Respectful
Be an Expert
Be Involved
Be Consistent
Maintaining a CommunityHow to keep the connections you’ve built
LISTEN
FOLLOW
CURATE
Community on YouTube
๏ Comments: provides a single place to review and manage comments across your channel and its videos
๏ Messages: send and receive private messages
๏ Subscribers: lists all subscribers to your channel
๏ Fans/Insights: shows your most engaged subscribers and allows for interaction
๏ Credits: lists all videos you have been credited in (10K+ subscribers)
Community on YouTube
๏ Automatically filter new comments and messages - approved users, banned users or blacklisted users
๏ Set up highlights
๏ Set default settings for comments
๏ Recommend reviewing comments before publishing
TRY TO HELP
ORIGINAL CONTENT
Increase the VisualsPictures mean a lot
STRATEGY TWO
Photos and Videos are Key
๏ 54% of adult internet users post original photos or videos online that they themselves have created. We call them creators and their number has grown from 46% of internet users last year.
๏ 47% of adult internet users take photos or videos that they have found online and repost them on sites designed for sharing images with many people. We call them curators and their number has grown from 41% of internet users last year.
http://www.pewinternet.org/2013/10/28/photo-and-video-sharing-grow-online/
Why Use Images?
๏ Visual Interest. Appealing images attract readers' attention to the copy, and encourage them to stick around to read the post.
๏ Layout. Images can be used to break up long blocks of text and create hierarchy to the content.
๏ Information. Visuals can add a lot of information to a story
๏ SEO. Use alt tags and a file names so that images can be optimized for search engines.
๏ Search. Google image search offers another way for people to find your content.
Images for Your Posts
๏ People are far more likely to read a post with an image than without one
๏ Include at least one image and alt-tag it
๏ Don’t borrow images or content from other blogs or online content
๏ Use images in public domain (Government, Wikipedia Commons, Flickr) or your own images
๏ Use stock sites like iStockphoto
Royalty Free Images
๏ Pay a one-time fee to use the image multiple times for multiple purposes
๏ No time limits on when the image can be used
๏ No exclusive rights of a Royalty-free image
๏ Less administrative tracking issues
Add Diverse VoicesSharing the stage with someone else
STRATEGY THREE
Analyze the Market
๏ Who is your competition?
๏ What makes your site different?
๏ What can you do better?
๏ Who do you want to attract?
๏ What weaknesses does your competition show?
๏ How can you take advantage of these?
Know Your Audience
๏ Make-Up of Audience?
๏ Gender Balance
๏ Connection Speeds?
๏ Career Status
๏ Desires?
Allow Social SharingBuilding connections across platforms
STRATEGY FOUR
Social Media Usage 2013—2015
0
20
40
60
80
100
Facebook LinkedIn Instagram Google+ Twitter Pinterest Snapchat Vine
8
1821181824
18
62
9131316171922
58
0310
15121217
58
2013 2014 2015 Edison Research
Social Media Usage 2012 vs. 2013 vs. 2014
0
20
40
60
80
100
Facebook LinkedIn Pinterest Twitter Instagram
26232828
71
17182122
71
13161520
67
http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/01/09/social-media-update-2014/
Have a Profile on a Social Networking Site
0%
25%
50%
75%
100%
29
43
58
7380
8683
12–17 18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65+
Edison Research
Social Media Outlets■ Twitter
■ Google+
Creator’s Networks■ Instagram
■ Flickr
■ Vimeo
■ YouTube
■ Vine
Commenting Plugins for WP
๏ Jetpack By WordPress
๏ Social Comments
๏ Disqus Comment System
๏ Intense Debate
๏ Facebook Comments
๏ Comments Evolved
Hold Live EventsBring people together in real-time
STRATEGY FIVE
UltraStudio Mini RecorderUltra small pocket sized Thunderbolt powered recording from SDI and HDMI.
Add More Audio & Video ContentPeople want passive media
STRATEGY SIX
% Who Have Listened to Online Radio in Last Month
0%
12%
24%
36%
48%
60%
2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
0.5347%45%
39%34%
27%27%21%20%21%
15%16%17%
The Infinite Dial — Edison Research
Online Radio Listening in a Car Via Cell Phone
0%
8%
16%
24%
32%
40%
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
35%
26%
21%17%
11%
6%
The Infinite Dial — Edison Research
% By Age Group Who Have Listened to Online Radio in Last Month
0%
16%
32%
48%
64%
80%
12-24 25-54 55+
25%
61%
77%
The Infinite Dial — Edison Research
Internet Audio Consumption
Smartphone
Computer
Tablet
TV
Audio System
0 0.25 0.5 0.75 1
3%
18%
32%
61%
73%
The Infinite Dial — Edison Research
Own TV Connected to Web
37%
63%
Yes No
Net-connected TV http://tdgresearch.com/tdg-net-connected-tv-penetration-tops-60-of-internet-households-up-19-yoy/
Eliminate Smartphone or TV
2%
40%
58%
Eliminate TV Eliminate Smartphone Don’t Know
The Infinite Dial — Edison Research
Technology Hard to Give Up
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
Internet Cell Phone Television Email Phone Social Media
10%17%
34%35%
44%46%
http://www.pewinternet.org/2014/02/27/the-web-at-25-in-the-u-s/http://www.pewinternet.org/2014/02/27/the-web-at-25-in-the-u-s/
Online Consumption
Comedy/Humor
Educational
Music
News
Animation
0% 15% 30% 45% 60%
19%
37%
22%
22%
31%
33%
43%
32%
38%
50%
38%
45%
50%
50%
58%2013 2009 2007
Pew Internet Life
Online Consumption
Political
Sports
Ads
Adult
0% 7.5% 15% 22.5% 30%
6%
13%
14%
15%
7%
15%
21%
20%
12%
15%
27%
27%2013 2009 2007
Pew Internet Life
Hosting Considerations
๏ Several choices
๏ Bandwidth and total storage biggest factors to impact cost
๏ Weigh all factors
๏ Check download times
Popular Hosts
๏ Vimeo
๏ YouTube
๏ Amazon S3
๏ PodHoster
๏ Libsyn
๏ PodBean
๏ Cachefly
Create a New Channel
Channel Creation
Channel Creation
■ To create a new channel:
■ Click Profile Icon ■ Click All My Channels ■ Click Create a new channel ■ Enter a name ■ Select a category ■ Select an audience
Channel Creation
■ You may have up to 50 channels linked to one Google account, and each channel can be managed by multiple people.
■ To add additional managers click “Managers” and enter their email addresses or Google+ Profile names.
Channel Setup
Terms of Service
sublicenseable
transferable
without limitation
Uploading Video Content
Supported Formats
Supported Formats
■ .MOV ■ .MPEG4 ■ .AVI ■ .WMV ■ .MPEGPS ■ .FLV ■ 3GPP ■ WebM
Supported Formats
■ .MOV ■ .MPEG4 ■ .AVI ■ .WMV ■ .MPEGPS ■ .FLV ■ 3GPP ■ WebM
Uploading Videos
Select Your Video’s Privacy Setting
■ Public ■ Anyone can view it. ■ Can be embedded. ■ Can block embedding. ■ Anyone can search for and view.
Select Your Video’s Privacy Setting
■ Private ■ A private video can only be seen by
you and the users you select. ■ The video won’t appear on your
channel or search results.
Select Your Video’s Privacy Setting
■ Unlisted ■ Making a video unlisted means that
only people who have the link to the video can view it.
■ Share the link with the people who you’d like to have access to to the video.
■ People you share the video with do not need to have a Google account.
Select Your Video’s Privacy Setting
■ Unlisted ■ Unlisted videos do not appear on
your channel page or in search results.
■ Unlisted videos can be added to other people’s playlists.
■ Think of it as an unlisted phone number.
Select Your Video’s Privacy Setting
■ Both Private and Unlisted are useful for team review for example before making a video public.
■ Anything on the Internet is never truly private.
■ Consider more secure transmission methods if an issue.
A Video’s Information
Basic Information
■ While the file is uploading, fill out the Basic Info section.
■ Title: Optimize for SEO. 100 character limit.
■ Description: Include a detailed description of the video. Include your website.
Basic Information
■ Tags: Optimize for SEO, use suggested tags for brand names and other topics.
■ Thumbnails: Choose from 3 randomly selected thumbnails. Verified accounts can upload custom thumbnails.
SEO Tips
■ Use important keywords up front.
■ Consider adding a trigger keywords (do a Google search for words that get lots of hits or refine).
■ Description is critical. Up to 5000 characters. Repeat keywords and accurately describe content, participants and involved parties.
SEO Tips
■ Tags can use a higher character count (120 characters). Make sure they are relevant. Put in order of importance.
■ Do a YouTube search for tags and keywords and check results.
Podcast Consumption2013
65%
35%
2014
47%53%
The Infinite Dial — Edison Research
2015
43%
57%
PortableComputer
% Who Have Listened to a Podcast in the Last Month
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
17%15%
12%14%
12%12%11%
9%
The Infinite Dial — Edison Research
Podcast Consumption
11%10%
16%
20%
22%
21% OneTwoThreeFour or FiveSix to TenEleven or More
The Infinite Dial — Edison Research
Improve LinkingBuild a more connected website
STRATEGY SEVEN
Links in Your Blog
๏ Don’t over-link in your posts
๏ When you do link, link to authoritative sites
๏ Use keywords to link instead of “click here”
๏ Link all images with alt-text
Identify content in a series
Link to related content
Tell you readers what to read next
Encourage authors to crosslink
Make curated reading lists
Create a newsletter
Improve Readability with FormattingTake the time to format your text
STRATEGY EIGHT
How to Write for Blogs
๏ People scan blogs; don’t read word-for-word
๏ Put the important info first
๏ Use headlines and subheads
๏ Use bullets and boldface (no underline)
๏ Boldface important terms “keywords”
๏ Use links & images
Be Literal! Important Headline Tips
๏ Use keywords: think in terms of search engine results
๏ No cutesy or clever headlines – say what the post is about, succinctly
๏ Don’t use quotation marks or punctuation
Don’t•
Do•
Categories for Your Blog
๏ Categories help readers navigate your blog
๏ Think of categories as a table of contents (not as an index)
๏ Categorize each post; a post can have more than one
๏ Pick your core topics for categories
๏ If you have too many categories, may be a sign that you need more than one blog
๏ Include a calendar/monthly archive
Use a RSS FeedMake it easier to subscribe to your content
STRATEGY NINE
RSS
๏ RSS – real simple syndication
๏ A document written in XML
๏ Usually called a “feed”
๏ Is used to publish frequently updated content
๏ Works for blog entries, news headlines and podcasts
๏ Feeds can be subscribed to using an aggregator or just viewed
XML
๏ XML – Extensible Markup Language
๏ The programming language that creates RSS feeds through use of enclosure tags
๏ ID3 tags are also present in RSS, thus wrapping the media with metadata
Web Browser Bookmarks
Custom Home Pages
RSS Readers
Power a Blog
Feed Social Media
Feed Social Media
Feed Social Media
Feed Social Media
Feed Social Media
Feed Social Media
Feed Validator
■ Use Feed Validator to test RSS Feeds
■ www.feedvalidator.org/
■ Identifies errors and recommends solution
Feed Burner
■ Ideal for streamlining and republishing content
■ www.feedburner.com
■ Provides detailed user and item usage statistics
Enable Email Subscriptions
๏ #1 mistake made by bloggers: no email subscription box
๏ Get one free from Feedburner
๏ People don’t use RSS Feed readers
๏ Allow for email subscriptions for each post
๏ Can be additional source of revenue
Get Mobile-FriendlyConsumption on the Go Matters
Mobile strategy
๏ Mobile-friendly theme
๏ Summary pages to minimize scrolling
๏ Optimize images for mobile
๏ Use formatting to ensure text scales properly
Mobile Overtakes Desktop
Mobile Overtakes Desktop
Tablet Ownership
2012 2013 2014 2015
22%16%
12%6%
8%6%3%
1%
19%17%14%11%
iPad only Both Non-iPadArbitron
Tablet Ownership
Pew Internet Life
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
50%48%
36%32%
13%
5%
E-Reader Ownership
Pew Internet Life
0%
6%
12%
18%
24%
30%
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
18%
28%
24%27%
8%5%
Smartphone Growth
0%
16%
32%
48%
64%
80%
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
71%
61%53%
44%
31%
14%10%
192 Million
The Infinite Dial — Edison Research
Smartphones by Age
0%
0%
1%
1%
1%
12–24 25–54 55+
36%
68%78%
25%
64%68%
19%
53%61%
201220132014
The Infinite Dial — Edison Research
Passion for a Platform % Who “Love” Platform/Device
iPhone
iPad
Android Phone
iPod
Blackberry
Cell Phone
0 25 50 75 100
32%
36%
46%
49%
53%
66%
The Infinite Dial — Edison Research
Getting In Touch
twitter.com/rhedpixel
facebook.com/RichHarringtonStuff
plus.google.com/+RichardHarrington/
linkedin.com/in/richardharrington
RichardHarrington.com
vimeo.com/rhedpixel
www.pinterest.com/rhedpixel/
