But for those who do reap online rewards there are certain characteristics they all have in common when it comes to having a successful WordPress Web site.

1. Prioritization of Certain Tasks: Understanding what is at the core of your program and what you must do on a regular basis is critical. For example, having a backup system in place and keeping your theme and plugins updated is at the top of that list. (I work on sites every day that do not have a backup process in place!) Excuses of it being too difficult is not something that comes to mind. You realize the importance of protecting your hard work and your online presence.
2. Professional Communication Skills: You respond to comments (and site inquiries) promptly (if not sooner) in a courteous, professional and educated manner. This goes for your social media interaction too.
3. Scheduling and Follow Through: You post regularly with content your site visitors will value in a tone that talks to them — not at them. You leave out all the narcissistic hyperbole you see on so many other sites that is of no value to site visitors. You freely and willingly share your knowledge and expertise knowing doing so lends to your credibility and authority without you having to be braggadocios.
4. Expert Listeners: You learned a long time ago that everything you ever need to know to be successful can be found if you take the wax out of your ears. You relish the tremendous insights into what direction you should go, what content you should add and what you need to plan for by being keenly aware of what your market is discussing. If customers or site visitors ask you the same questions more than once you take note and add the topic to your FAQ and/or posting schedule.
5. Embracing Knowledge Acquisition: That’s fancy-schmancy for being open to learning and the frustration that goes with that. You understand that technology isn’t going to wait or slow just for you so you hop on the train and hang on for the ride. You read, review, test, tune and try new concepts, programs, software, plugins, themes — whatever it takes — so that you remain on the edge. Yeah, that can be as frustrating as hell, but you know this is how you can keep ahead of your perceived competitors while contributing to your inevitable success.

If you cannot minimally acquire the above characteristics, you really should not expect any realistic level of success. Online is not a forgiving environment — as a matter of fact it is now one of the most brutally competitive business arenas that exists.

If you approach your program by keeping these five characteristics front and center and do your very best to do your best — you will enjoy results. Don’t claim you are “trying” — become a doer and do! That is the ultimate characteristic of a successful WordPress site owner!

At your service,

Your WordPress Consultant

5 Characteristics of Successful WordPress Site Owners is a post from: WordPress Consultant: Judith Kallos, At Your Service...

As always, when updating WordPress, themes or plugins, it doesn’t hurt to get in the habit of following the simple steps below…

Step-by-step instructions to help you safely and easily update to the most recent version of WordPress.

[ It is a good idea to Review my article: WordPress How To: Do the Mother of All Backups ]

Once you get the above tasks accomplished, follow the links in the nag bar (it’s called a nag because that yellow bar will be up there nagging you until you take care of the important issue noted) and update your site to the latest version of WordPress.

Then, don’t forget to reactivate and update your plugins. You’ll see with each WordPress update that plugin developers also update their plugins which you can also do with one click. You’ll see the now familiar yellow nag bar under the plugin name in the plugins area with a link to “upgrade automatically.”

If you find after an update that something is not working as it was, go through the systematic process of deactivating your plugins one at a time until you find the culprit. If the developer has not updated his/her plugin to work with the lasted update, find another plugin whose developer is on top of these things.

Updating should not be ignored or put off. When you keep up with WordPress, have a Premium Theme and Plugin updates, you are not only keeping up with technology, but you ensure your site is secure and functioning error free.

At your service,

Your WordPress Consultant

How to Update to WordPress 3.3.1 is a post from: WordPress Consultant: Judith Kallos, At Your Service...

For your convenience and consideration, I update this post each year so you can get a reminder of the things you need to think about moving forward!

WordPress site owners are safe to assume that there is no standing still or resting on your laurels when it comes to doing business online (That’s when your perceived competitors fly right by you!).

Here are the important issues, in my experience, most WordPress site owners can improve upon. I’ll also pepper each with links to other articles here on my site that cover each item in more detail for your convenience:

9. I will review my e-mail and customer service practices to make sure all communications with customers are grammatically correct, professional in appearance and tone and include the information the customer desires. I will respond to site comments and e-mails as quickly as possible realizing the rabidly competitive environment online will settle for no less — only Extreme Customer Service will do! This includes using my site’s domain name for all business e-mail communications which lends to my credibility and my first responses to inquiries being recognized instead of being misidentified as spam.

8. I will check my site at the beginning of the year, then minimally quarterly, to make sure information is current and updated. This includes updating my “About” page to show the now — not yesterday. I realize by not updating, my site is stale, offers no real value to my site visitors and hinders gaining any relevant rankings with search engines.

7. I will finally embrace the concept that to acquire any relevant organic (free) search engines rankings that I have to change how I view my site. Not as brochureware, but as a living, breathing interactive tool used to acquire, support and keep customers and cater to their needs. If I don’t have a Blog to carry out this task, I will set one up Q1 and commit to posting at least 3 times each week with new useful and relevant information my site visitors will appreciate.

6. Inline with #7 above, I will learn about SEO (Search Engine Optimization) basics and principles, so that I have a solid understanding about how search engines actually work, how they rank sites, and what I need to consider when adding content to my site. Without a solid grasp of this information I am literally handicapped and working at a deficit.

5. While content is King; promotion is Queen. After writing a new article I’ll then submit it to article repository Web sites so that it is available for publishing on other sites and newsletters. I will keep a notebook with me so that when I get an idea to Blog about, create a video or for an article or informative white paper, I’ll write it down and not forget to follow through. Unique helpful information is what makes WordPress Web sites popular and valuable which assists to increase ranking popularity.

4. I will check my WordPress site navigation, tag and category structure to make sure it is intuitive and not duplicative. If my theme doesn’t allow the navigation I need — I’ll get a new premium WordPress theme. I will make a serious concentrated effort to only categorize my information in the most relevant category. Not “categories”, or 5 or 10 or all! Sticking with only one or two categories allows my site information to be tightly organized and focused. Tags are given the same consideration and contributes to a  “user-friendly” experience.

3. I will investigate all the Social Media networking opportunities and set up my site’s feeds wherever possible. Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook are just a few of the sites I need to set up profiles on and use to brand and market my business.

2. I will update WordPress and my plugins as needed and not put this important and necessary task off! I will also make sure my site’s visuals and functionality stay current so that my business appears viable.

And the number one resolution that every WordPress site owner needs to embrace to succeed in the year ahead….

Raise your hand and repeat after me…

1. I will pledge to use interactive technology as it is now and whatever it evolves to be in the year ahead to its full potential for my business. From Blogging to Videos, Social Media to creative marketing tactics and everything in between. By not investigating how to best use these applications for my business is simply lost opportunity.I understand this will take some time and a bit of a learning curve to fully use these resources effectively on a daily basis, but I am a smartie and I know if it needs to be done for the health of my enterprise — I’m there!

Those site owners that embrace the interactivity options available to them will be found, will gain new customers and will support more business than those site owners who do not openly welcome these opportunities. If you do not embrace these 10 items in 2012, you can bet your competitors who do will reap the rewards.

With all the doom and gloom being fed to us in anticipation of the year ahead, I’m choosing to take a different stance and that’s why I’ve written this article for you. As one commentator I recently heard said, “Time to man up and make 2012 what you want it to be. Don’t be a passive observer but an active aggressive participant. Man up!”

And that’s exactly what I plan on doing here @ TheIStudio.com! Won’t you join me? Wishing you all the best of success in the year ahead!

At your service,

Your WordPress Consultant

Top 10 WordPress Site New Year’s Resolutions is a post from: WordPress Consultant: Judith Kallos, At Your Service...