Author: soptemplates

  • Content Creation

    • Create a Hassle-Free Electronic Signature for a PDF

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    Hollie

    An electronic signature should not be confused with a ‘digital signature’, which is an encoded fingerprint used for legal documents. Digital signatures or certificates prevent people from tampering with the document after it has been created, which makes it a much safer option for business or other important documents. There are services online, such as Signix.com, that can provide you with this feature if you need it.

    Nora

    Prior to the discovery of electronic signatures, it seemed like the only way you could add a signature to a document if you weren’t physically available to do so, was to go through the rigmarole of printing off the document, signing your name and then finally scanning the document and sending it back to the recipient. Although this method might be the first choice for a lot of people, as it seems to be more ‘real’ than signing a document with your finger, using an electronic signature to sign documents and PDFs is becoming more common, especially since most documents are sent via email.

    Hollie

    Living abroad from my home country, means most of my dealings are undertaken online. Although I don’t have to sign documents on a weekly basis, knowing how to add an electronic signature to documents has certainly saved me a lot of time and hassle. For example, when I was planning my wedding last year, I needed to sign contracts and agreements with the venue, caterer and dress-maker to name a few. When agreeing to new student loan repayments (Boo 🙁 ), I fill out my information and sign electronically, when in the past, I would have printed out the documents, filled it out by hand and mailed it back, which took forever!

    Nora

    Although there are plenty of apps and programs you can download to add your signature to a document or PDF, it’s easy enough to do with the software you probably already have on your computer. The great thing is, once you’ve signed your name, several of these programs will save your signature to be added to future documents. Alternatively, you can save your signature as an image and add it to documents and PDFs.

    Hollie

    We don’t provide instructions on how to add a signature to a PDF document on your iOS device within the SOP document, but this process is super easy from the Apple Mail app. Just click on the PDF in your email and tap on the suitcase icon in the right-corner and the Markup tool will open and allow you to edit various parts of the document, including adding a signature. Simply draw your signature on the screen and then resize to fit your document. You can use Adobe Fill and Sign to create an electronic signature on your Android device.

    To find out how to add your electronic signature to a document or PDF, download our SOP Template above.

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  • Content Creation

    • Convert Your Blog Posts into Effective PDF Leads

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    WHAT IS A LEAD MAGNET?

    Hollie

    First of all, what’s a lead? In marketing, a lead is a way of generating customer interest in your product by offering free products or downloads and is often called ‘lead generation’. The lead is served by ways of a lead magnet which is usually an eye catching ‘bribe’ offering something in exchange for the customer’s email address. One of the most common leads is to offer a free downloadable PDF or eBook on your blog, landing page or social media platform.

    Nora

    Generally, the purpose of a lead magnet is to collect an email address in order to build a membership database. You might have noticed if you’ve entered your email address to get some free goodies like an ebook, that you receive additional marketing emails afterwards. This is because the company has identified you as a potential customer for a paid product, so they are slowly enticing you with other excellent content to make you trust them and eventually buy their products or services.

    Hollie

    You can completely automate these services with some cool tools available in mail server clients like MailChimp, but the first piece of the puzzle is the lead magnet. You can create a lead magnet out of content you already have on your website. Anything can become a lead magnet.

    Nora

    Although this SOP instructs on how to convert your blog post into a PDF, you can offer a whole host of things such as a video, free software trial, product discount, quiz or questionnaire.  

    The PDF or eBook doesn’t need to be long, or time consuming for the customer to read. Ideally the product should be quickly actionable and solve a problem your customers might have. Stay away from long video courses and a novel-sized eBook, as these things can be sold further down the funnel.

    Hollie

    If you keep the content of your lead general and simple, the more downloads or signups you’re likely to get, which will in turn increase the amount of potential customers on your newsletter list. Also bear in mind that you should be clear about what you’re offering your users so that they know what ‘problem’ your PDF or eBook will solve.

    Nora

    Before you create your lead magnet you should probably do some research about your potential customers. These users are known as an avatar and you should define who these people are before you begin to market your products to them. Avatars should be very specific, down to where they live, whether they are married and what their pastimes are. You may have several avatars, and once you have narrowed them down, marketing to each will become much easier. Failing to carry out research on your avatar may result in wasted time and resources on a product that no one really wants.

    Hollie

    Once you’ve narrowed down your avatar, it will be easier to learn what ‘problems’ your users have. You might find out what they need help with by asking them to complete questionnaires, from comments and feedback on your blog, searches on your site and by using Google to find a specific keyword or a gap in the market that you’re able to fill. For example, if your customers are searching for an ‘avatar template’ then this may be the free PDF that you can offer them.  

    Nora

    You should make sure that your lead magnet clearly tells your customers that ‘this product will solve this issue’ such as ‘Find out who your ideal customers are with this free avatar template’. If your lead magnets are on your blog posts, then you should consider keeping the ‘bribe’ as general as possible, so that more visitors will signup. Even if these people are not your ideal customer, you may be able to serve them with alternative products in the future. One of the great benefits of mail server clients such as MailChimp, is that you can place your customers into narrow ‘segments’ based on the leads that they download, how they behave on your site, or the links they click in your newsletters. You can use these segments to your advantage for targeting specific customers with products and services further down the line.

    Hollie

    You want to create a digital product that is different from the content your users can get online. Most of this is just about packaging the content in a tidy little format. Often, an eBook is just made up of blog posts put together in a neat and orderly way with a table of contents and a flow that makes it easier to read. Checklists and cheat sheets make it more convenient for the user to complete tasks if they’re in a downloadable PDF.

    Nora

    People love eBooks and PDFs, because they can take them offline and read them on their eReaders. Reading content offline is a different experience to reading a blog post online, which are often just skimmed for the main ideas. People often read eBooks away from their laptop in a more leisurely manner giving them time to soak in the information you are providing them with, making it more valuable. 

    Hollie

    You want to make sure that when you’re making your lead magnet you use high quality graphics for your image as these will convey value and content. Hiring a freelancer designer on a site like Fiverr will greatly enhance the quality of your lead magnet and will be more likely to entice people to input their email addresses. 

    Nora

    Talking of value, even though your PDF or eBook is free, you don’t need to make it seem ‘free’. You can easily emphasise its value, by adding a ‘worth $xx’, so that your customers feel they are getting a great deal.

    The SOP that you can download above, will instruct you on how to make a PDF from one of your blog posts and then turn it into a lead for your blog.

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  • Content Creation

    • KEEP TRACK OF YOUR BLOG POSTS WITH THIS CONTENT CALENDAR TEMPLATE

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    WHAT IS A CONTENT CALENDAR?

    Hollie

    Whether you’re working with a group of freelancers or you’re going solo to produce content for your site, it’s easy to get bogged down with content. You can easily keep track of who is writing an article for you, on what subject and at what stage they are at in the writing process with a content calendar.

    Nora

    A content calendar is also known as an editorial calendar. Not only will it keep you and your content more organised, but it also creates accountability for yourself and other team members. Everyone knows their deadlines and responsibilities which in turn helps streamline your business. If you set dates for when you will publish your blog posts, you’re more likely to write and post on those days if they’re scheduled in your calendar.

    HOW DO YOU USE A CONTENT CALENDAR?

    Hollie

    My editorial calendar is often where I start my day. I know what content I need to work on or at what stage another article might be at. Although I use Google Docs and often use a filename to quick search a document, having all the links and information for every single piece of content allows me to quickly access documents for all our blog posts, podcast notes or video scripts all from one place.  

    Nora

    In the beginning, it may be easy to remember what content that you have written about in your blog but consider that you may be running this blog for several years or even decades if you’re successful, so you may not remember all the topics that you’ve covered months or years down the line. A content calendar is a quick way to sift through all the content that you’ve already posted to make sure that you avoid duplicate posts on the same topic. You can do a quick search by using the ‘find’ tool in Google Docs.

    Hollie

    Of course, you can always add other content as well as blog content, however, I like to keep my various different mediums in separate tabs of the same spreadsheet. You can easily add a new tab to the template by clicking the + button on the left-hand side. Some of my additional tabs include video, podcast and pages for the site. However, I keep my social media separated because it’s quite extensive and this is something I outsource to a freelancer using a Social Media Schedule.

    Check out our Social Media Schedule Template.

    BRAINSTORMING CONTENT

    Nora

    I often use our editorial calendar to brainstorm ideas for future blog posts, podcasts etc. I may have a random idea and just add them to the calendar without including a publishing date or even started writing any content. It’s great to to go back through the the ideas that I’ve had as sometimes they can help prompt me in the future to write content for these ideas and titles.

    Hollie

    Since this content calendar is a spreadsheet, it’s easy to move content around. So, even though I often use the editorial calendar to brainstorm ideas I can move my content easily so that all the content that I’m working on at present is altogether and easiest for me to view and work on.

    Nora

    There may be times when you have an idea for content that would be better published at a later date, especially if it is a keyword that might get a higher search during a certain holiday. For example, an idea about goal setting might be more relevant at New Year than during the summer. Some topics may have lost popularity by the time you come to write it, but there may be a chance to write something in the future, so keep these ideas for a later date.

    ADDING NOTES FOR UPDATING BLOG POSTS

    Hollie

    A content calendar is also good place to add notes about the posts that you’ve already published. For example, you may need to update images and content at a later date and you can this information to remind you in the future. You can also keep track on when your content was published, updated or may need updating again, especially if you have seasonal posts.

    You might also want to use the editorial calendar as a way to highlight which posts are more popular. This will be extremely helpful for creating content that will more likely to engage your audience.

    OUTSOURCING CONTENT CREATION

    Nora

    If you working with a team of people who are writing content for your blog, the editorial calendar is the perfect place to make sure everyone stays organised and knows when they are expected to post content. If you have freelancers who are researching or writing blog posts they can also add information so you can keep track of that progress.

    Hollie

    You should make sure that your freelancers keep track of their work by filling in the content calendar where necessary. Forgetting to update the status of an article they are working on, this will slow down efficiency and create more work in the long run.

    Nora

    Even if you’re currently working as a ‘one-man band’, consider that as your blog expands you may want to add more content writers to your blog. Getting in the practice of using an editorial calendar is good exercise in staying organised and will greatly benefit any future writers who work on your blog. It is a small and easy way to look professional and make an easier transition from working on the blog by yourself to employing team members to help you. Retrospectively filling in this content is way harder than filling it in as you go. That’s why this template is extremely valuable even if you are working alone.

    CUSTOMIZING YOUR CONTENT CALENDAR TEMPLATE

    Hollie

    Although there are many paid content calendars available now, using a content calendar spreadsheet is not only free but is also easily customizable to fit your own personal (or team’s) needs. In my own editorial calendar, I use colour coded tabs so that I can easily scan through my sheets and see which posts are in the research, writing or published phase. This also means that well researched and written content never gets forgotten!

    Nora

    If you’re using Google Drive you can easily add the links of all your content, so that you can easily access any blog posts that are currently being written, as well as view images, audio or video files that will be part of your content.  

    Hollie

    Although I have a main sheet that I use to schedule blog posts that I’ll publish or update during the week, I also have individual sheets for each type of content. For example, this spreadsheet includes sheets for blog post, reposts, videos, podcasts and any important social media campaigns we currently have running.

    Nora

    You can download our Content Calendar Template by entering your email in the box above and having it send to your inbox. You can start using the content calendar immediately to organise and streamline your content creation.

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  • SEO

    • HOW TO GET YOUR SITE FOUND BY SEARCH ENGINES

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    HOW CAN WEBMASTER TOOLS HELP GET YOUR SITE ON SEARCH ENGINES?

    Hollie

    Put simply, Google Webmaster Tools is a set of extremely useful tools (obviously) that help you to see what is happening on your website. Sounds like yet another way that Google can spy on you? Well, that’s kind of the point. One of the key features of Google Webmaster Tools is to get your website to show in Google search results, also known as indexing. This means that when people begin searching for a keyword that you are trying to rank for, it will show in their results. Basically, Webmaster Tools is essential for SEO and there’s a good chance you’ll get more traffic through Google if you’re using it. Although Google Webmaster Tools can’t guarantee you a top 10 ranking keyword, it will help your customers find you.

    Nora

    Connecting Webmaster Tools to your site is one of the first things you should do when setting up a site, especially since you want Google to begin indexing you as soon as possible. If you’re still in the design stages of your site, you can hold off on the indexing part, but once you have connected Webmaster Tools to your site, all you have to do is click a button to complete the process!

    Hollie

    Many of Google Webmaster Tools features allow you to track your sites performance in order to make improvements. For example, there are several additional resources such as speed testing your site. Once your site has been tested, you will be provided with a score out of 100 and ways in which you can improve the site’s speed across all your devices. This kind of test may seem simple, but can be the differences between disgruntled users fed with up with your slow loading site, and customers who enjoy browsing your user friendly site.

    HOW IS WEBMASTER TOOLS DIFFERENT FROM ANALYTICS?

    Nora

    You may have heard about or used Google Analytics before, but Google Webmaster Tools can be in used in addition to Google Analytics. In fact, some of the information provided in Webmaster Tools is not available within Google Analytics and we strongly recommend using both on your site.

    Hollie

    Google Webmaster Tools helps you to discover errors and spam that may be affecting your SEO (Search Engine Optimization) as well as their user experience.  Like Google Analytics, it provides you with information about keywords that people can use to organically find your site. This information can be used to strengthen your position in Google search results.

    Nora

    One of the most useful features of Google Webmaster Tools is its sitemaps function, which shows Google what pages you have on your website in order to index them. if you don’t submit this index you’re unlikely to get as much traffic as if you do. In order to create a sitemap for your website you can use XML Sitemaps and upload it to Google Webmaster Tools.

    Hollie

    As well as showing Google what pages you do have on your website you can also use Google Webmaster Tools to prevent access to certain pages. So, for example if you have a private login area you might not want search engines to access these pages. You can use the Crawler Access feature to block Google from crawling or taking data from these pages.

    WHEN SHOULD I SETUP GOOGLE WEBMASTER TOOLS?

    Nora

    Even if you have no idea how to use Google Webmaster Tools and don’t have time to learn right now, it’s a good strategy to set it up as soon as possible in order to start collecting data. Data that you have collected will be available to you in the future, but if you decide to wait to implement Webmaster Tools you can’t go back and collect data from the past.

    Hollie

    Not only is Google Webmaster Tools free, but it’s also pretty simple to set up, made even simpler with our SOP template that you can download above. The SOP gives you step by step instructions on how to connect your website to Google Webmaster Tools in order to start measuring your website immediately.

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  • SOP Library

    • Set Up a Personalised Email Address for Your Niche Site

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    Hollie

    If you’ve decided to create your own niche website and have purchased your domain, you’ll almost certainly want to create a personalised email address that includes the name of your website.

    Nora

    There are some domain name registrars such as godaddy.com who offer email as part of their web hosting packages, but Google Apps offers lots of great additional tools that you will find extremely useful for your business.

    Hollie

    When we were setting up SOP Templates, we looked at quite a few different services, even some free ones (and who doesn’t like a freebie?!). But, we both agreed that Google Apps was the best option, because frankly we can’t live without all the apps, integrations and features that have become essential to us in our business.

    Nora

    Although Google offers a free email service, Gmail, a personalised email address such as  ‘email@yourdomain.com’ is far more professional and helps build trust between you and your customers.

    Hollie

    Even though I used it myself many moons ago, I would stay away from the other well known free email service providers like hotmail and yahoo (sorry!) if you’re going to use your email address to communicate with your customers. I also recommend keeping the first half of the email simple by using a first name or a noun.

    Nora

    Google allows for a lot of versatility and functionality in its business tools. Whether you are using Google Analytics to track website data, or are using Google Draw to create graphs and diagrams for your business, the Google suite is definitely made to integrate well across its Apps.

     

    While creating a business account with Google does have a small fee, it is incredibly affordable considering all the benefits you get that is useful for any business, including storage and access to Google sites where you can create and share company information.

    Hollie

    Some of the great functions of Google Apps include being able to sync across all your devices. Not only can you access your Gmail account and Google Apps on your desktop computer but also on your mobile devices. With Google Apps, you get 30GB of storage to store your emails plus Google Drive documents, spreadsheets and slides that you need for your business.

    Nora

    Since I started to use Gmail and Google Drive, I save all my files as a Google document or a spreadsheet. That way, if I ever need to pass on an SOP to a freelancer, or just check a file on my phone, they’re always accessible.

    Hollie

    If you’re going to be working with other team members, you’ll almost certainly be taking advantage of Google Drive. The permission settings in Google Apps are highly flexible and allows you to set very specific sharing settings between you and your co-workers or freelancers. You can give people full access to your documents and folders and allow them to edit files. Alternatively, if you only want to share a single folder, you can give ‘read only’ access to certain people in your team. Another setting allows your team members to leave comments on your work, without changing the actual document.

    Nora

    Luckily, Google keeps a record of every change you make on a document, so if you accidentally makes changes to a file (I’m talking from experience here), you can revert back to a previous version (phew!).

    Hollie

    If you’re using Google Apps for Work on your site you’ll probably want to create email addresses such as ‘support@yourdomain.com’ or ‘info@yourdomain.com’ that you can add in the initial setup of Google Apps, or go back and create them later.

    Nora

    Setting up Google Apps for Work can easily be outsourced by passing this SOP on to your freelancer.

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  • Content Creation

    • 6 SIMPLE STEPS TO SETUP YOUR PRE-LAUNCH PAGE

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    WHAT IS A PRE-LAUNCH LANDING PAGE?

    A pre-launch site is a single web page that can easily be set up on your purchased domain  before your website is complete. Although this may seem like additional work, there are several good reasons why you might want to create a pre-launch landing page.

    Hollie

    If you’re creating a niche site, presumably you have already done some keyword research to find your specific keyword. In which case there’s a good chance that your keyword has high-level of traffic. This means that many people are already searching for the specific content you will deliver once your site is live.

    Nora

    If, like many of us, you’re creating a niche site in your spare time as an additional form of revenue to your day job, then it might take you some time to set up your site in the way that you would like it to be, not to mention creating your valuable content. Having a pre-launch landing page will allow your customers to see that your site will be up and running soon.

    WHY SET UP A PRE-LAUNCH PAGE?

    Hollie

    Once you have chosen your domain name, you might already start talking to your friends and colleagues about your project. Having the pre-launch page available shows that you are actively working on your site, and this allows you to start spreading the word about your site, instead of sending people to a blank page.

    Nora

    You may also have used keyword research to select your domain name, in which case, the sooner you get your domain indexed in Google the better. Google tends to put a lot of emphasis on the age of a site in order to create trust, so you don’t want to waste this time, while you’re working on the final version of your website.

    Hollie

    If you begin to get traffic at your site during this time, you can create an email capture in order to start forming your email list for the future. This is a good indicator that your site, and the content on it, is what people are looking for and are interested in your niche subject. If you really want to entice your customers, you can always offer them a PDF, or short eBook to provide them a glimpse into your future products and content.

    Nora

    Don’t panic if you don’t receive a lot of traffic during this time, without content and time, it will take time for your website to rank in Google, highly or otherwise.

    Hollie

    You might be surprised that people stumble across your site organically. You can start checking Google Analytics and see which keywords people are using to find you in Google. To see keywords in Google Analytics, you first need to connect your site with Google Webmaster Tools. Viewing your search keywords can help you create your final site and content, by giving you insights into what your audience is looking for that they are unable to find elsewhere.

    Nora

    While it’s not the end of the world if you don’t create a pre-launch landing page while you work on your final content and the structure and design of your site, you may be wasting a good opportunity, especially when setting up a landing page will only take a few minutes.
    By following our SOP to setup your pre-launch page on your WordPress site, you can create a clean and simple pre-launch page to get your customers excited about your products and your site.

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  • Content Creation

    • THE SIMPLE GUIDE TO SETTING UP A THEME ON WORDPRESS

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    WHAT IS A WORDPRESS THEME?

    Hollie

    A WordPress theme is a group of files that work together to create the structure, design and features of your website. WordPress makes it easy to customize many elements of a theme, which makes it a great platform for beginners creating a niche site, portfolio or store.


    Setting up a theme on your new WordPress site is one of the first things that you need to do once you have signed up for WordPress. There are a number of things you need to take into consideration when choosing your theme and it is better to know what your requirements are before hand.

    CHOOSING THE RIGHT WORDPRESS THEME

    Nora

    It’s really easy to get lost spending hours searching for the ‘perfect’ theme. Before you begin to look for your WordPress theme, make a list of features or functions you want you site to have. Do you want to sell products? Do you want people to create an account? Will it just be a blog, or a library of content? All of these things need to be considered before diving headlong into the ocean of WordPress themes that are available.

    Hollie

    We made this mistake when starting SOP Templates, and it took us a long time to settle on a theme that we were happy with. Eventually, we ended up working with a freelancer to make specific changes to our theme that fit our needs and those of our customers (that’s you btw!).

    In order to get what you want, create a list of your site requirements, considering the following:

     

    • What will you site be used for? Blogging, eCommerce, branding?
    • How well do you know WordPress? Does the theme offer support?
    • How much customization will you want to do?
    • Do you want a responsive site? How important is it that your site works well on mobile (hint: it’s pretty important since 51.26% of people use mobile devices over their desktop computers.
    • Is the theme ‘SEO’ ready? How important is it that you rank well in Google?
    Nora

    Since there are many free themes available on WordPress, and other external sites, it’s tempting to choose one of these options to save money, but they might not fit with your needs and specifications.

    If you find themes that don’t fit your requirements, then move on. Many sites, including within the WordPress dashboard, allow you to narrow down your requirements instead of spending hours having to scroll through thousands of themes.

    Hollie

    If you have really specific ideas about what you want your site to look like, you can work with a designer and a PHP developer who can create the site of your dreams. However, a beautiful site does not bring customers to your site, and you really need to prioritise and strike a balance between design and the user experience.

    Nora

    As we mentioned before, make sure that when you choose your theme, that it is responsive. A responsive theme adapts your website to be viewed correctly on any device, regardless of size. Since more and more people are accessing information via their mobile phones and tablets, this is really essential to ensure that all functions work correctly and look great too!

    Before buying and downloading a theme, you can test drive it with a site demo. You should also be able to see how the theme will look on your mobile as well as your desktop computer.

    Hollie

    When you’re considering purchasing a theme, you should definitely make sure that the plugins and features that you need for your site are already included. For example, if you plan to sell products on your site, you will need e-commerce plugins and designs within the theme. If they don’t come with the theme, you will need to see which options are available and also compatible with your theme to undertake a specific role on your site.

    Some themes may also provide you with ‘demo’ or basic versions of a plugin that you will need a full version of in order to update in the future. For example, full versions of site ‘builder’ plugins will often be an additional, and unexpected cost that you should think about before purchasing the theme. To make sure you understand the limitations of the theme, read the details and reviews of the theme where possible.

    Nora

    Envisioning what you might want your site to look like in the future is also important when choosing a WordPress theme. You don’t need to have figured out every detail before making your site live, but thinking about how you want your project to develop in the future will help you consider the features necessary for your site.

    One of the mistakes I made in the past was concentrating too much on what the site looked like instead of focusing on the business model which delayed the project and created additional expenses.

    Hollie

    You can begin with a simple theme, and once your business expands and grows you can consider making changes to your site and your theme. So, bear in mind how customizable your theme is if you go down this route. Alternatively, you could purchase a new theme or work with a designer to create a new site. After all, lots of companies redesign their sites, whether it is to rebrand, cater for new levels of traffic or purely give it a new burst of life.

    Nora

    The most important thing to remember when choosing a theme is it to consider what will be the ultimate goal of the website and how the theme will get your users to achieve that goal. Don’t get romanced by some fancy animations or bells and whistles that you see on the theme,  at the end of the day the purpose of your website is to achieve your business goal. The team should just be a vehicle to get your users from point A to point B.

    There are plenty of resources online for free and paid themes, which are perfect if you’re just starting out.

    Hollie

    Since it’s easy to get swept up on spending lots of time on the design details of your website, we recommend that you set a time limit for how long you’re willing to spend choosing your theme.

    For example, giving yourself 2 or 3 hours will probably more than ample time for you to choose a theme that fits your specification. Spending more time on this will overwhelm you with ideas, and you will waste a lot of time searching for a theme that probably doesn’t exist!

    Nora

    Once you’ve chosen your theme, you need to set up the theme in WordPress. Although the process is not overly complex, you may want to outsource this task, as you may have more specific customizations that someone with a more advanced skill-set can complete easily and quickly.

    Hollie

    If you have specific requirements, you can pass them onto a freelancer who is WordPress savvy, by first filling in the details in our SOP.

    You can get our SOP by returning to the top of this page and filling in your email address. You’ll receive an email containing instructions on how to fill out the document and the SOP.

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  • SEO

    • FIND BROKEN LINKS ON YOUR WEBSITE (AND FIX’ EM GOOD!)

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    Hollie

    Broken links can sometimes happen accidentally if a page or post on your website has been deleted, moved and not redirected or if an outbound link on another site no longer exists. They can be difficult to find and fix if you don’t regularly check your site so to save time, you can use a plugin, which checks your site and fixes the broken links automatically. Alternatively, you can outsource the task and systematise fixing the broken links on your site.

    Nora

    A broken link checker will search your entire site for issues and invalid web pages. This SOP will show you how to use both a plugin for your WordPress site, or to use a link checking site. Both options will help you find broken links and achieve the same positive results for your site.

    Hollie

    Another method that we have added to the most recent version of the SOP is to use Google Webmaster Tools to find broken links. This is probably the most reliable and thorough method to use, although you do need to connect your site to Webmaster Tools, which you can do simply by following the SOP. The crawl will specifically show errors of bad searches or links that have clicked on your site that you can then correct. The console also provides a date for when the error was first seen and allows you to fix in bulk if you have a major issue on your site.

    WHY ARE BROKEN LINKS SO BAD?

    Nora

    If you have affiliate or outbound links that are embedded into your blog posts or resource pages on your website, they may break without your knowledge, and could provide your customers with a bad user experience (ouch!). 

    This kind of thing has probably happened to you personally, even on well-developed websites. A blank screen or PAGE NOT FOUND message can be frustrating and distracting and may cause some of your customers to leave and not return. Apart from upsetting your audience, it will also affect your ranking within search engines such as Google and Bing.

    Hollie

    You should always be aware of potential problems that harm your website’s SEO, as this is often one of the best ways to build your site through organic traffic, so that in the future you don’t have to rely on expensive advertising or marketing tactics.

    Sometimes, a dead link can bring up a 404 page. If you see a 404 page it means that the URL you are looking for cannot be found. To prepare for potential 404s, (and sometimes they happen, even on the best kept site) some sites will create an attractive looking 404 page that might redirect a customer to another page, or offer them a free download.

    Nora

    You can also track how many times your 404 page has been clicked which may be a cause for concern. You can easily see 404s if you have the Redirection plugin installed on your WordPress website. From the Redirection dashboard, you can easily setup a redirect for defunct links.

    HOW CAN I FIND BROKEN LINKS?

    Hollie

    There are many different ways to find broken links on your site, and sometimes you may want to use more than one in order to thoroughly check your site. Having used all of these, I’ve noticed that some links are found by some services, but not in others.

    Here’s a rundown of the different options detailed in this SOP for fixing broken links:

    WordPress and Chrome Plugins to Fix Broken Links

    Nora

    Using a plugin will allow you to find broken links and instantly fix them within the WordPress dashboard and is therefore one of the most convenient ways to fix broken links.

    For all those Google Chrome extension fans out there (like me!), there are now several extensions out there that can scan individual pages, find broken links and provide you with a short summary of problems. The one included in this SOP even highlights the page with traffic light colours (red for warning for example) and allows you to export the results as a .csv file.

    This method is great if you want to check a few pages of a website, but not really feasible for checking a whole site with hundreds of pages and links.

    External Broken Link Checking Sites

    Hollie

    Using an external link checking site will provide you with URLs that you then have to fix manually. There is a space within the SOP where you or your freelancer can fill out the broken links and add the correct URLs to replace them with. If you’re using Google Webmaster Tools, you can also download the problem links in a .csv file.

    Once you’ve checked your site to find broken links, there are several different options you can take to fix them, regardless of whether you use a WordPress plugin or use a link checking website. If the page no longer exists, you may want to remove the link completely, or link to another page.

    Nora

    Once you’ve downloaded this SOP from the top of the page, and decided on the method of fixing links, you can begin checking your site regularly. Set a reminder for yourself or your freelancer to check the site routinely. I personally check all of my sites at least once a week using one or more of the options above.

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