Website/Blog Admin Using WordPress

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1 Website/Blog Admin Using WordPress Table of Contents How to login... 2 How to get support... 2 About the WordPress dashboard... 3 WordPress pages vs posts... 3 How to add a new blog post... 5 How to edit a blog post... 6 How to add a new page... 6 How to edit an existing page... 7 How to format text on a page or post... 8 How to insert an image into a page or post... 9 How to insert a YouTube video into a page or post Visitor comments Frequently asked questions Notes These directions were created using WordPress version This document explains how to use the native WordPress data entry screens. If your site uses a Page Builder plugin, then you may need additional directions for updating the content. Copyright CYber SYtes, Inc. Page 1 of 14 Updated 12/8/ :01:13 AM

2 How to login Follow these steps to login to the admin section of your WordPress website. 1. Go to: Replace yourdomain.com with the address for your website 2. Your login information is: Username: Password: Log out when your work session is complete by pointing to your username at the top right of any Admin screen and clicking Log Out. Please protect your password! Anyone who has or guesses your password can change, delete, or hack your website. Please do not update the website from an unsecure computer or save your login information in your browser. If you believe your password has been compromised please change it immediately with the following steps. Login and click Howdy or your username at the top right of any Admin screen. Scroll down the profile window and click the Generate Password button. Record your new password and store it somewhere safe. Scroll to the bottom of the profile window and click Update Profile. How to get support Please contact CYber SYtes if you have a question or would like us to complete an update for you. Office: support@cysy.com When you send an to support@cysy.com, our system automatically creates a support ticket for you. This helps us to schedule and track your request. Copyright CYber SYtes, Inc. Page 2 of 14 Updated 12/8/ :01:13 AM

About the WordPress dashboard After you login, WordPress displays the dashboard. To return to the live website click your business or website name at the top left of the dashboard.

3 About the WordPress dashboard After you login, WordPress displays the dashboard. To return to the live website click your business or website name at the top left of the dashboard. The main commands to edit your website or blog are on the left sidebar. Other information about the website displays on the right. The exact choices you see will vary based on your version of WordPress, design theme, and site customization. WordPress pages vs posts In WordPress, there are two main ways to create content for your website: pages and posts. Copyright CYber SYtes, Inc. Page 3 of 14 Updated 12/8/ :01:13 AM

4 WordPress pages Pages are generally reserved for static content or information that doesn t change often. Examples of pages include an About Us or Contact Us page. Use the Pages command on the left sidebar to access the page data entry screens. Pages can have a hierarchy by making one page the Parent of another. Pages are not listed by date on the site and can t be categorized or tagged like WordPress posts. Due to their static nature, pages aren t included in RSS feeds. WordPress posts Posts are generally used to add news or informational updates about a specific topic. Posts are usually listed in reverse chronological order on the homepage or on a Blog page. Note that a posts page doesn t have to be called a Blog; it may also be called News, Resources, Updates, etc. Use the Posts command on the left sidebar to access the post data entry screens. Posts can be categorized, tagged with target keywords, and even archived on your site. Posts also display on your website s RSS feed. When someone subscribes to your RSS feed, your posts will be the content that s delivered to them. Your RSS feed can also be picked up by blog search engines and directories such as Technorati, blogsearchengine.com, and blogdigger. You can view the RSS feed on your website by going to: (Replace yourdomain.com with the address for your website.) Custom post types Some websites also use Custom Post Types to manage specialized content such as real estate listings, product listings, event calendars, staff pages, testimonials, portfolios, etc. Custom Post Types are managed by selecting the Custom Post Type Name on the left sidebar menu of the WordPress dashboard. Copyright CYber SYtes, Inc. Page 4 of 14 Updated 12/8/ :01:13 AM

5 How to add a new blog post For posts to display on your website, you must have a posts page. This will usually be called the Blog page, but it can have another name like News, Resources, Updates, etc. If your WordPress site does not have a posts/blog page, we can create one for you. Contact your sales rep for more info. 1. Click the Posts button on the left sidebar. 2. Click the Add New button located under the Posts Button 3. Add a title in the title box and the content of your post (text and images) in the larger edit window. 4. Select one or more categories. Categories are a broad classification used to describe what type of post it is. Popular category names might include: News, Photos, New Products, Videos, Reviews, Events, etc. 5. Enter one or more tag. Tags are more specific keywords that describe the post. Tags are a good way to include target keywords on the post without having to cleverly work them into the text. For example, Tags on a post for a flower store blog post might include Same day flower delivery Panama City or flower stores Panama City. Including keyword phrases in this manner can really help your search engine rankings for those keywords. We recommend that you use no more than three or four tags per post. 6. Depending on your design theme, you may also want to select a featured image or other features on the data entry screen. 7. To preview your post click the Preview button at the top right of the screen in the Publish Box. The preview will open in a new browser tab. Close the tab to return to the edit window. 8. Once you are happy with the post click the blue Publish button on the right side of the screen. 9. Click View post to make sure the post displays as expected. The post will open in the same browser tab. Click the Back button on the browser to return to the edit screen or click a command on the black WordPress toolbar at the top of the screen. Copyright CYber SYtes, Inc. Page 5 of 14 Updated 12/8/ :01:13 AM

6 How to edit a blog post 1. Click the Posts button on the left sidebar. 2. Click the title of the post you want to edit. (You can also click the Edit button under the title. Quick Edit lets you change information about the post, but not the body/content of the post.) 3. Make desired changes on the data entry screen. 4. To view your changes/edits, click on the Preview Changes button at the top right of the screen in the Publish Box. 5. Once you are happy with your edits, click the blue Update button on the right side of the screen. How to add a new page 1. Click the Pages button on the left sidebar. If you do not have the capability to add or edit pages then this menu choice may not be listed. Also, your website must have dynamic navigation in order for WordPress to automatically create a link to the new page. If your site does not have dynamic navigation, you can manually add a link or contact us to add a link for you. 2. Click the Add New link that appears under the Pages button. 3. Enter a short title for the page. This will also be the title used on any dynamic navigation menus. 4. Select a "Parent" for this page under Page Attributes. The parent is the page your new page will fall under in the menu system. If you don't select a parent, WordPress will make this a new main page or section. 5. Select Visual mode for access to helpful formatting buttons or Text mode if you need to enter straight HTML code or short codes. Text mode may also be preferable if you are pasting in text from another program such as Word. (Note: If you paste text in visual mode, any formatting from where the text was copied will also be pasted. This may give you unexpected formatting when you view the final, live page.) 6. Enter text or images within the large edit box. Copyright CYber SYtes, Inc. Page 6 of 14 Updated 12/8/ :01:13 AM

7 7. To view your page, click on the Preview button at the top right of the screen in the Publish Box. The preview page will open in a new browser tab. Close the tab to return to the edit screen. 8. Once you are happy with your edits, click the blue Publish button on the right side of the screen. 9. Click the View page link that appears in the bar at the top of the screen to check your changes. This time, the page will open in the same browser tab. You can return to the WordPress dashboard by clicking the Back button on your browser or by selecting a command on the black WordPress toolbar at the top of the screen. How to edit an existing page 1. Click the Pages button on the left sidebar on the dashboard. If you do not have the capability to edit pages then this menu choice may not be listed. 2. Click on the page you want to edit. 3. Make the text or image changes within the edit window. 4. To view your changes/edits click on the Preview Changes button at the top right of the screen in the Publish Box. 5. Once you are happy with the edits, click the blue Update button on the right side of the screen. 6. Click the View page link that appears in the bar at the top of the screen to verify the changes appear as expected. Copyright CYber SYtes, Inc. Page 7 of 14 Updated 12/8/ :01:13 AM

8 How to format text on a page or post Most of the formatting buttons on the data entry screens should be self-explanatory. You may find it easiest to update and format text while in Visual mode. The formatting toolbar in Visual mode: The formatting toolbar in Text mode: Note: Your formatting toolbars may vary depending on your version of WordPress or the plugins you have installed. If you need help with individual commands click the button on the Visual mode toolbar. If you do not see this command, you may need to click the Toolbar Toggle button-- usually located on the far right of the Visual toolbar. This displays additional formatting commands. You can also click Shift+Alt+Z to toggle the Visual toolbar. Copyright CYber SYtes, Inc. Page 8 of 14 Updated 12/8/ :01:13 AM

9 How to insert an image into a page or post 1. Select the page or post to edit. We recommend you add images while in visual mode. In text mode, you may find that the image is placed at the top of the data entry box instead of where the cursor is located. 2. Place the cursor in the page or post where you want the image to go. 3. Click the Add Media button above the formatting toolbar. 4. Click the Upload Files tab to choose a file from your computer. Or, choose Media Library to select an image that has already been uploaded. 5. For each image, you may add a Title - may display on a mouseover of the image Caption - may display under the photo Alternate Text - may be read to the visually impaired and indexed by search engines Description - may display when a Post URL or click through page is selected Under Link To choose None if you don't want the image to click through to a larger version; click Media File if you want the image to click through to a larger version; or, select Attachment Page to have the image click through to an attachment page template. Select the desired alignment and photo size. Note: Keywords you enter in the Alt Text and Caption fields will most likely help search engine rankings for those keywords. But make sure the text reads naturally and makes sense to humans. 6. Click Insert into page/post. 7. Later, you can use the Media button on the left WordPress sidebar to edit the image settings if needed. Select the Media button on the left panel to change the name of the photo or to edit the alternate text, caption, or description. You can also upload and link to other types of media such as audio files or Adobe PDFs using the media button. Copyright CYber SYtes, Inc. Page 9 of 14 Updated 12/8/ :01:13 AM

10 How to insert a YouTube video into a page or post 1. Select the page or post to edit. 2. Select Text mode. 3. Paste or type the URL (page address) of the video into the large edit box. No special coding is required! 4. When you view the live page or post (or switch back to Visual mode) you should see the embedded video instead of the page address. (If you are editing an existing page/post make sure to Re-publish your changes!) Copyright CYber SYtes, Inc. Page 10 of 14 Updated 12/8/ :01:13 AM

11 Visitor comments If your website has comments enabled, visitors can leave comments on individual pages and/or posts. Comments can help create loyal customers and build trust because your visitors can provide valuable feedback on specific topics and you can respond to that feedback. There are several different settings for comments: 1. The entire comment system can be enabled or disabled by default. If you do not have the resources/time to moderate online comments, then we recommend the comment system be disabled by default. 2. If comments are disabled, you can still enable comments on individual pages or posts using the Allow comments checkbox under the Discussion section of the data entry screens. (If you don t see a Discussion section on the page or post data entry screen, select Screen Options at the top right of the screen and check Discussion and Comments.) 3. If you choose to use comments, we can set the comments to be moderated. This means you must approve a comment before it becomes visible on the website. This prevents inappropriate comments from being displayed. You moderate comments by clicking the Comment button on the left WordPress menu. Moderation choices allow you to approve, trash, or mark comments as spam. 4. The Askimet plugin (which we can install for a small fee) can also help reduce the amount of spam the site receives. We HIGHLY RECOMMEND this plugin if you will be using online comments. Dealing with comment spam Some of the comments visitors leave will probably be comment spam. This is when they leave a comment just to get a link from your site to their site. They do this because the link may help their search engine rankings. The links can be in the comment text or linked off the person s name. Here are some clues that a comment is spam. These examples are actual comments left on the CYber SYtes website and that we marked as spam: 1. The comment includes links to non-related websites like pay day loans, porn, online gambling, Amazon storefronts, or any business that has nothing to do with your page or post. "Get yourself some Twitter Followers and Facebook fans. Visit Here" 2. The commenter doesn't use a real name but instead uses keywords related to THEIR website. Copyright CYber SYtes, Inc. Page 11 of 14 Updated 12/8/ :01:13 AM

12 From Best Videos Online: "I really like the colors here on your blog. did you design this yourself or did you outsource it to a professional?" 3. The commenter enters a link to their website and leaves a message such as "nice post" but doesn't contribute anything meaningful to the conversation. "I just cant stop reading this. Its so cool, so full of information that I just didnt know. 4. The commenter tells you your "RSS feed is broken" or that there is something else wrong with your site or post. This is a tricky way for them to leave a comment that appears related to your post even though they haven't taken the time to read it. Your site is probably OK; they are just looking for a quick way to get a link to their own site. "Hey there, I just noticed your RSS feed is not working correctly and your site is slow, Thought I should inform you." 5. The comment simply makes no sense. "you got more or less significant ideas at a distance. i did a examination upon the print then learnt much peoples determination coincide withy your blog. if you are one skillful traveler, you may recognize the ins following this outs of travel into every one of parts of the world." If you have the Askimet plugin installed, then many of these types of comments will be automatically marked as spam. But some spam will slip through the filters. So before you approve any comment you should: 1. Make sure the commenter left a "real" name, not just keywords related to their website. 2. The comment adds something of interest to your post. Did they actually read the post or is the comment so generic it could be about any post? 3. Make sure the website link on their name or any embedded links do not point to bad websites. If someone leaves a real comment about your post then there is no reason you can't give them a link to their website. You'll want other sites to link to your site as well! But if the comment is spam and has nothing to do with your actual post then you should mark it as "spam" and move on. Copyright CYber SYtes, Inc. Page 12 of 14 Updated 12/8/ :01:13 AM

13 Frequently asked questions Why is my page/post formatted funny? It doesn't look right! If the fonts or spacing on a published page or post don't match the rest of the site, then the content may have been pasted in with formatting from another program such as Word. To prevent this from happening select the Text tab at the top-right of the edit box before pasting text from another program. If the damage is already done, you can fix it with these steps: Go to the page or post and choose Visual mode, highlight the offending text, and click the Clear formatting button on the toolbar. (You may need to expand the visual toolbar to see this command.) Re-format the plain text as needed. What are the "All in one SEO Pack" fields on the post and page data entry screens? By default, WordPress uses the page title and the page text as the SEO title and description submitted to the search engines. This is the text the search engines will use when they list the page or post. To override these defaults enter a search engine title and description using the All in one SEO fields. SEO Optimization Hints: Title: Max display of characters. Make the title exciting so people will want to click through to your website. Include important keywords at the beginning of each title to help the page rank better for those keywords. Description: If a description is too short Google may not use it; 80 to 160 characters is ideal. Each description should read like an advertisement for that page. What type of description would make you want to click on a search listing? Note that keywords in the description may encourage searchers to click, but they won't affect the search engine rankings. More people will click on your search engine listings if the titles and descriptions are compelling! Note: Sometimes Google won t use the SEO title and description supplied and will instead choose its own title and description based on other information on the page or post. How do I make changes to the page headers, footers, the sidebar, or the design? Depending on your design theme, these types of changes may fall outside the scope of content management. To update these areas please submit an update request to support@cysy.com. Copyright CYber SYtes, Inc. Page 13 of 14 Updated 12/8/ :01:13 AM

14 Notes Copyright CYber SYtes, Inc. Page 14 of 14 Updated 12/8/ :01:13 AM

Wordpress Training Manual

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