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Monthly Archives: May 2015

Developing a website using WordPress is not a daunting task. If you are relatively savvy and can follow instructions or use self explanatory guides then you can come up with your own unique website using WordPress. This is further facilitated by tools such as WordPress page template plugins. You may choose to use an existing template or you may want to customize an existing template to come up with a personalized or unique website. In any case, you would need some WordPress page template plugins. Here is a list of some must have WordPress page template plugins.

1. WordPress Landing Pages

WordPress Landing Pages
Any website would need a landing page. Ideally, there should be several landing pages depending on the content and nature of the site. If it is an ecommerce site then ideally every product should have its landing page. Regardless of what the specific nature of your website is, you need an approach to design these landing pages and to manage them. WordPress Landing Pages would do exactly that.

2. Page Template Dashboard

Page Template Dashboard
Typically, you would have to toil through the page editor to figure out which templates you are using in which page and this can often become a little time consuming. The Page Template Dashboard simplifies the process. All you need is one glance at the dashboard and you know which template is being used where.

3. Omit Parent Theme Page Templates

This is one of the simplest WordPress page template plugins. It simply allows you to omit a certain template or to get rid of it when you are editing a page. All you need is WordPress admin access.

You can customize the templates and run split tests so you know which landing page, design or template is better. You can monitor conversion rates to make informed decisions. Such a plugin is quintessential for any lead generation or ecommerce website. The plugin allows you to create landing pages, to view changes as you make them, to track conversion rates, to replicate existing landing pages that have worked well, to save all your customized landing pages for future use or reference, to pre-populate forms which make it easier for visitors and they can easily fill up the remaining fields or provide the necessary information thus facilitating quicker and better conversions and this plugin also helps you to track activity of prospective leads and the functionality of any third party add-on that you may have on your landing page.

There aren’t many WordPress blogroll plugins at your disposal right now, certainly not as many as you get when you have to work with the layout or you are looking for some social media integration and the likes. But there are enough WordPress blogroll plugins to attend to your needs. Here is a list of some of the most popular WordPress blogroll plugins. These plugins have been used and are being used by thousands of webmasters and developers. So their efficacy is proven. All you need to do is identify the one that is most relevant for you.

1. WP Social Blogroll

WP Social Blogroll
WP Social Blogroll will monitor all the sites in your blogroll in real time and would sync the updates ad display them accordingly. The plugin follows Google’s indexed items and uses the AJAX Feed API for this purpose. The application is that if your blog posts are indexed and in sync then your latest posts would automatically find a mention.

2. RS Nofollow Blogroll

RS Nofollow Blogroll
There are two primary purposes of this plugin. You can get your links displayed on the site and you can improve your site’s optimization at the same time. After all the links that you have on your sidebar widgets or wherever are actually back-links or for redirecting purpose. These contribute to the relevance of the website.

3. Blogroll Widget with RSS Feeds

You can have a sidebar widget which is customizable and you can have all your posts mentioned in a blogroll through RSS feeds. The Blogroll Widget with RSS Feeds is pretty lightweight and easy to install. It has a very simple interface and you can customize the plugin based on your needs. The plugin allows you to add a title of your choice to the sidebar widget, choose the number of items or posts you wish to display and you can also define the size of the images. Blogroll Widget with RSS Feeds is available in English, German, Italian, French, Belorussian and Bulgarian.

4. Broken Link Checker

This isn’t one of your typical WordPress blogroll plugins. Instead of facilitating the development of a blogroll, it actually checks for broken links. This is a very helpful plugin as you don’t want your visitors or target audience to bump across broken links. It is bad for reputation and bad for traffic. Broken Link Checker monitors comments, posts, images, custom fields, blogrolls and will notify you if there is any broken link or a malfunctioning back-link.

There are countless WordPress templates that you can use to build your website but you can always have that penchant for a customized template. Why would you opt for a template that thousands can and would use when you can have something completely different? This is where WordPress layout plugins come in. Here is a list of some useful WordPress layout plugins.

1. Genesis Layout Extras

Genesis Layout Extras
Genesis Framework is an amazing tool. The plugin is easy to use, extremely light and it has enough templates as well as the flexibility to craft your own layout. There are default layouts for various types of web pages, each of which can be customized or modified according to your needs. So a post type layout can be prepared for an appropriate page whereas a typical homepage is also easy to design. You can also opt for specific themes as may be the necessity for a particular website.

2. Theme Blvd Layout Builder

Theme Blvd Layout Builder
If customization is your primary objective then this plugin will be very handy. You can customize every individual webpage in a unique manner using the Theme Blvd Layout Builder.

3. Site Layout Customizer

Site Layout Customizer
This plugin is particularly helpful if you wish to emulate certain predominant themes. For instance, you may wish to have a homepage emulating the layout of a news website. You can attain such changes with fascinating ease. The Site Layout Customizer allows you to customize & theme your front-page or any page and post, you can display title, pictures, excerpt, categories, tags, biographic info, author and date for each post, you can filter posts by category, integrate any page or post nicely with several themes, change width & height of thumbnail & image, display posts with short-code if you want, put text over images & thumbnails and more.

4. MiniMax – Page Layout Builder

MiniMax - Page Layout Builder
If you love the idea of a drag and drop responsive page builder then this is it. You don’t have to indulge in any coding. WordPress doesn’t demand it anyway. All you need to do is select what theme, feature, layout or design element you would use and simply drag and drop that to your work in progress. You get numerous modules in this plugin, namely sliders, images, galleries, drop-down menu, timeline, progress bar, testimonials, warning box, message box, notification box and many other features.

5. Query Posts By Category

Here is yet another useful WordPress layout plugin that allows the user to post content in a grid layout without any additional coding experience required to design. Sort by category, tag, or author and display the posts in a grid format in two columns or three. This also works as a responsive grid layout for any WordPress homepage or just to simply incorporate as a widget into the sidebar.

WordPress is arguably the most valuable open source software. Putting Android aside as its implications are limited for companies from diverse industries, WordPress truly empowers businesses of all sizes to have a virtual presence, and that too at nominal or no cost. But as is the case with any open source software and particularly when such software is used by nontechnical professionals, the options or features are limited. So whether you are developing a blog or an ecommerce site with WordPress, you would need some plug-ins to spice things up.

Advertisement is a key component of any virtual presence. Whether you are looking at advertising revenue generated through your website or you are a company looking at advertising or sponsoring to gain more exposure, you would have to use some WordPress advertising plug-ins. Fortunately, there are scores of such WordPress advertising plug-ins, many of which are available for free and some have premium versions which need to be purchased. For your convenience, here is a list of some of the finest WordPress advertising plug-ins.

1. Advanced Advertising System

Advanced Advertising System
If you own a website, operate a blog or an ecommerce store where you wish to have advertisers put up their products, offers, services or promotions for your audience then you need a tool to manage all the advertisers, their accounts, finances, the ads and the placement of the ads among others. Everything and more can be done using the Advance Advertising System.

Advanced Advertising System allows you to manage advertisers, you can have specific accounts for every advertiser and manage their campaign efficiently, you can have different pricing models for the advertisers and also control the placement of the ads with no major hassles.

This is one of the best WordPress advertisement plug-ins when it comes to managing ads or a large network of advertisers.

2. Advertising Manager

Advertising Manager is an ideal plug-in for blogs. It allows you to place and roster the ads on your blog posts, any widgets that you may have on your website and all across the website wherever you have some space allotted for ads. Other than the placement and rotation of ads, Advertising Manager is capable of recognizing advertising networks such as Google Adsense and you can explore such networks with your ads targeting different keywords, categories, pages and tags.

Advertising Manager is one of the best WordPress advertising plug-ins. It is brimming with features that allow you to play with your widgets no matter where they are and place your ads accordingly, there is a simple one click publishing of ads on blog posts, templates can have adds to courtesy the simple PHP function, ads can be categorized or targeted based on their relevance and purpose and all analytics and data pertaining to the ads and their performance are also tracked by the plug-in.

3. RRD Advertisment Sponsers

Don’t go by the clever or rather uncanny nomenclature of this plug-in. RRD Advertisment Sponsers caters to a very unique requirement. The plug-in is aimed at advertisement marketing. Once you have this plug-in and you are registered, you would get to add your items or products and sponsors who are interested in advertising their company, brand or a concept will advertise so on the item or product you have posted. The plug-in is available in English and French. The unique premise of this plug-in and its application is what makes RRD Advertisment Sponsers a very utilitarian tool.

4. Author Advertising Pro

Author Advertising Pro is another unique plug-in. It is a Google Ads Manager and it is all that you would need. The developers of this plug-in market it as the tool you would need to turn your blog into a paid to write phenomenon. The plug-in is not your typical advertisement tool that helps you to publish and manage ads. The ads posted using this plug-in would be tracked for each registered user and everyone who checks out the ad or refers the same. All impressions are recorded and traced.

Highly Rated WordPress Advertising Plug-ins

There is no dearth of WordPress advertising plug-ins at your discretion. You need to choose one or a few that are relevant, reliable and would provide you an accurate assessment of the scheme of things. Other than the ones mentioned above, you may consider some highly rated WordPress advertising plug-ins, the likes of Text Advertisements, Simple Ads Manager, errnio Gesture Monetization, Easy Text Links, AdRotate, Google AdSense Click-Fraud Monitoring Plugin, Float Right Advertisment, Ad King Pro, PinnedURL, Floating Banner Ad Rotator with Tracking, Infolinks Official Plugin, Website Monetization by MageNet and NK Google Analytics among others.

No matter which plug-in you choose, you can always review its performance or how helpful it is and switch to another plug-in in the near or distant future.

When it comes to designing an award program for your business, certificates are a great way to communicate training received and provide awards for excellent accomplishments. This inadvertently increases employee morale and inspiration. Initiatives that help to generate sales competitions, set team goals, and track progress with milestones will help to encourage future growth and motivation among your staff. With thousands of layouts and templates available on the web, the following InDesign certificate templates will make your search easier in getting started with printing and designing your own certificate.

1. Free Indesign Templates

freeindesigntemplates
This certificate template is available in two styles, with one being like the image above. The second one is similar in design but includes different ornaments. Once downloaded, this file is fully editable and designed for a standard letter size page. Package includes INDD files for InDesign CS5+ and higher versions or IDML for CS4 users. Additional font files are not included since a standard font is incorporated within this template. The fonts used in this template are palatino linotype, arial rounded MT old, and edwardian script ITC.

2. Template Trove

templatetrove
The following certificate templates for InDesign offer a perfect way to highlight the recipient of the award while signifying the special occasion of celebration. This template is compatible with Corel, InDesign, Word, and is available in .PDF formats. Easily printable on a standard US letter size sheet, this certificate can be downloaded in a variety of colors such as tan, gray, blue, red, green, and blue to match your special event. Choose from more than four border designs or opt for just a blank border.

3. Desktop Pub

desktoppub
Visit Desktop Pub for several options for traditional style certificate templates available in red, green and blue. This site is also accompanied by several simple steps you can follow to easily download, create, and print your certificate. Simply personalize the image by adding the name and description before printing on plain paper.

4. UAF Marketing and Communications

uaf certificate template
At UAF, a variety of certificates designed for a standard US letter size are made available on their site. These are focused on congratulations, a job well done, and certificate of recognition. Download as a .pdf or open in Adobe InDesign to customize and edit to your desired look.

5. Graphic River

graphicriver
For those looking for a non standard size such as a square certificate template, Graphic River has many options available, including the above template. Many of the available files contain elegant designs and variations made to suit your individual event or cause. Multiple files are included for ease in accessibility. This template is measured at 29x29cm and allows for color to be changed along with the necessary text.

When it comes to designing a personalized invitation, it is best to begin the process with an already designed template. This will not only save you time from creating an invitation from scratch, but allow you to divert your attention more towards planning the overall event. Using templates can also be beneficial for those that have difficulty finding the right words to use. Here is a selection of some free Indesign invitiation templates available to you on the web.

1. TutsPlus

tutsplus
At TutsPlus you can easily create this beautiful invitation in just ten easy steps as outlined at their website. For those that use Adobe’s Creative Cloud services, you can enhance the design of your invitation with their available Typekit. Visit their website for detailed instructions.

2. The Paper Mill Store

thepapermillstore
The Paper Mill Store offers a variety of invitation templates in many sizes for those looking to customize their invitation. Download direction for us with InDesign, Microsoft Word, or Adobe Acrobat. Every template available for download is print ready.

3. Download and Print

downloadandprint
Visit Download and Print for a custom invitation that is ready for minor font and color changes, ready to print from your home. Just trim along the dotted lines for your finished size, help to save money and time with this ready to use template.

4. Stock Layouts

stocklayouts
A dozen invitation templates are available to use at Stock Layouts with a variety of themes ranging from a local office party to holiday event. Get coordinating designs for flyers, posters, notecards and more once you decide on what template fits your needs to best.

5. MassArt

massart
To access the invitation template available on this site, simply download directly to your computer, open a new document, and open your file. A print template guide to available to download as well for additional assistance. Find event invitations, programs, flyers, and posts at MassArt available to users.

6. Printed

Printed
These blank templates will help you have a starting framework to use for creating your design. Simple upload your images, add font, and print when completed. Many size variations and formats are available to users, helping to ease the process of creating a customized invitation.

7. A Handcrafted Wedding

ahandcraftedwedding
Almost a dozen wedding invitation templates can be found on this website. All designes listed are for personal use only with extra freebies made available on their website such as font downloads and more.

Using a permalink plug-in allows for SEO advantages. Once the permalink is placed on the page the designer is able to have confidence that if the address changes so will the link. The plug-ins below are meant to work in conjunction with the built-in permalink system contained within the WordPress software and not as standalone options.

1. Custom Post Type Permalinks

Custom Post Type Permalinks
By installing this plug-in you are allowed to change permalink architecture for custom post type.

2. Enhanced Custom Permalinks

Enhanced Custom Permalinks
This plug-in, as the title suggests, is an enhancement to custom permalinks. It allows for more specific labeling of permalinks and allows for the creation of intermediate folders. This plug-in works with individual categories, posts, and tags and is not meant to change the permanent structure.

3. WooCommerce Breadcrumb Permalinks

WooCommerce Breadcrumb Permalinks
WooCommerce is a commonly used plug-in for sales traffic. The use of this plug-in allows for you to change the permalink to something that is just as appealing as the product that you are trying to sell.

4. Category Permalinks

Category Permalinks
The use of category permalinks is a clean version of code that makes for easier recognition by SEO and organization of permalinks. Organization does not stop with categories but also allows for the use of subcategories.

5. Permalink Finder

Permalink Finder
Prior to sending out a 404 error code the plug-in will search for other similar posts in an attempt to locate the sought after page. This is especially handy after the use of the SEO Permalinks Modifier which removes words from the bloggers post slug and may create some confusion. This process creates a redirect and reports that redirect tot the search engine by creating a 301 redirect.

6. SEO Permalinks Modifier

SEO Permalinks Modifier
The SEO Permalinks Modifier is a plug-in that removes commonly used words so that SEO is able to match relevance without having to search through prepositions and filler words. For example in the title “How We Used WordPress to Increase our Business it would change the post slug to /wordpress_increase_business and eliminate the filler words.

7. Underscores in Permalinks

Words in permalinks are normally separated by dashes in WordPress. This plug-in allows you to make the separation using underscores instead.

8. Display Name Author Permalink

This plug-in will change the authors name to the display name in the permalink. Increments a counter on the end of duplicate display names to make them unique.

9. Month Name Permalink

By using this plug-in you will be able to add %monthcode% and %monthname% to enable the generation of a structure that suits your specific needs if the date is valuable enough to mention.

10. Custom Permalinks

Custom Permalinks allows you the power to make decisions over your website architecture. It enables you to assign a URL to items on the page. Bloggers can choose to attach links to photos that we give the page more depth.

WordPress is one of the most popular website builders today. Fantastic WordPress sites have Flash plugins. These are flash programs that you can download to your WordPress site so that people using the site can view flash games and videos, like the ones on You Tube. There are tons to choose from and they are free and easily installed.

1. Video Chat Plugin

Video Chat Plugin
In today’s word video chat is just expected. Do not sell yourself or your site short. This Video Chat Plugin is top of the line and easy to install and use.

2. NextCellent

NextCellent
NextCellent Gallery – NextGEN Legacy is a photo gallery for WordPress. It is compatible with even older versions of WordPress. It has a watermark feature and it allows your photos to be seen in the correct order of the album. The pictures are arranged the way you want them, not by the date you placed them. It is so advanced; you will find it hard to believe it is so user friendly.

3. MyArcade Plugin Lite

MyArcade Plugin Lite
Turn your site into a free arcade with more than 70,000 free games! What better way to have people return again and again.

4. Brid Video Easy Publish

Brid Video Easy Publish
Everybody loves a video. With this easy to use plugin you are up and running in seconds. Video is the best way to pull traffic to your site. This is a for sure five star feature.

5. Flash Show

Flash Show
Flash Show and Hide is one of the most popular flash plugins and for good reason. It is really cool. It is a video view box, embedded. Guest click once to see it and when he is finished click again and it hides. It is a fun and easy to use feature that your guest will use again and again.

6. Spider Flash Calendar

Spider Flash Calendar is another very popular Flash Plug-in it is like a calendar on steroids. You can run unlimited events and even use videos and pictures. It is extremely adaptable. You can change the size of the calendar. You can also make events invisible. It is super cool and supper popular and WordPress compatible. Oh, and did I mention? It is free.

7. Dooodl

Guest will love the Dooodl flash plugin. It is a five star rated little feature that allows your guest to draw doodles and leave little notes. It is like an interactive guest book. It is an easy download and it is one of those little extras that make your website

8. Kimili flash

One of the most popular is Kimili Flash. Kimili Flash Embedded lets you to position flash movies on your site. It is search engine friendly and easy to use. It is WordPress compatible.

No matter how vast you are with WordPress’ modalities and workflow, you will still be amazed by its unprecedented features and functionalities. One of the most spectacular features of WordPress is how the installation of a few plugins could amazingly transform a WordPress site.

One of these outstanding feats is the way and manner an auction site can be created on WordPress so easily through very simple means. This features the ability to itemize products for sale, so visitors can place bids whereby the highest bidder purchases the item. However, there are more awesome features that this plugin can offer.

If you are ready to begin sales on your WordPress site through the auctioning system, it is imperatively expedient that you use the right plugin that possess all the required features you need to start up the process. Some of these excellent auction plugins on WordPress are listed below.

1. Ultimate Auction Plugin

Ultimate Auction Plugin
This is one of the most popular auction plugins available on WordPress. It is believed to be the best-supported auction plugin on WordPress. This plugin has the ability to transform an ordinary website into a professional auction site like eBay.

Installing the Ultimate Auction Plugin will allow you to step up a professional action website more quickly and conveniently which has the same constructive features as ebay. As part of its simplicity and flexibility, this plugin (the Ultimate Auction plugin) has great support to work with any WordPress theme both old and new versions, and it is easily configurable with a simple setup process.

2. WP Auction Nudge Plugin

WP Auction Nudge Plugin
With WordPress Auction Nudge Plugin live eBay details can be embedded on your WP site. In fact as soon as it is installed there will an instant automatic update of all tools which will then display the most recent activities on your eBay profile. In order to enhance the successful integration of eBay into your WordPress site, the plugin comes in handy with essential tools like, Your eBay Listings, Your eBay, Ads, Your eBay Profile and Your Feedback.

With these features mentioned above, you can get to display your current items, your listings, your eBay profile info and your most recent comments.

3. My Auction Creator

My Auction Creator
This plugin functions almost in the same way as the Auction Nudge plugin. My Auction Creator plugin enhances the integration of eBay platform into your website on WordPress. By installing My Auction Creator Plugin on your WordPress site, you get to integrate your eBay account onto your site.

With this plugin, you can get a chance to display your recent feed of your listings on eBay, display your items previously showcased on eBay in an interactive way through banners on your WordPress site, display your eBay details on your site and display your updated feedback on your WordPress site.

4. WordPress Dutch Auction Masters plugin

WordPress Dutch Auction Masters plugin
With the WP Dutch Auction Masters plugin you can professionally build an online auctioning website with just a few clicks. If you are interested in creating auctioning websites that are interactively exciting, then try installing the WP Dutch Auction Masters plugin.

As part of its dynamic features, the plugin is independently usable. Its auction bidding processes are coordinated in real-time. WP Dutch Auction Masters supports all kinds of widgets on WordPress. It supports the use of short cords which can be employed to make readjustments and modifications that suit your taste. It has an easy and simple integration mode with all versions of WordPress.

5. WordPress Auction Plugin

WordPress Auction Plugin
When WordPress Auction plugin is installed on your WP site auctions can be easily hosted at no cost at all. This revolutionary plugin is built in such a way that your auctions can be displayed in an attractive popup manner powered by AJAX so you can have the best experience.

With WordPress Auction Plugin, payment for making auctions on other websites which includes, gallery fees, listing fees, final value fees, seller fees etc. can be avoided. You can now do your own auctions and make sales to visitors on your site. The process of installing and activating the plug-in on your WordPress site can occur in less than no time. In fact auctioning can start in less than 2 minutes of installation.

6. WatchCount.com WP Plug-in

WatchCount.com WP Plug-in
This comes as a free WordPress plugin that allows for the display of most popular eBay items on the sidebar of a blog or a post on your WordPress site. This items are always displayed in real-time as a widget on your WordPress. Daily deals or specific seller’s items can also be displayed.
This plugin has the ability to display items in localized language when selected by the web owner. You do not need to understand any form of programming or short codes to use this plugin. It is free and very easy to use.

7. WP eBay Ads

This plugin functions like the Auction Nudge and My Auction Creator plug-in. The installation of WP eBay Ads will help organize and integrate your eBay listings into your posts on WordPress, from which commissions can be earned when sales are made. This is achievable through the use of a short code for eBay_search which is a custom field.

By inserting this short code [wpebayads] into your posts you have activated the WP eBay Ads on the post when it is published which can generate revenue from commissions earned especially when an eBay Network campaign ID is included.

Dictionary is among the best invention that man has ever achieved. Up to this date, the dictionary is most dependent piece of work when you need a clear definition of any word. As the internet is becoming more popular by day, demand for words definition keeps growing. As your readers go through your blogs, informative websites, or even company news they will often come a cross words that they do not understand the meaning. Because of such challenges your site can lose meaning, as they would not get to understand the massage you are trying to put a cross.

If you are using WordPress to create your site either for blogging purposes, you are in luck as you can incorporate WordPress Dictionary Plug-ins to help with word definition. To get to the main agenda we have taken the liberty to research and present to you top five best WordPress Dictionary Plug-ins you can use.

1. Encyclopedia Pro

Encyclopedia Pro
It is among the fantastic WordPress Dictionary plug-ins you can ever use on your site. This plug-in comes in two versions. The Encyclopedia Lite, which is the free version and the Encyclopedia Pro version that you pay for, you can always start with the Lite version to have a feel of how it works then buy the Pro version.

2. WP Glossary

WP Glossary
This is a unique plug-in for dictionary and or glossary. The advantage of using this plug-in is that you can add a number of glossaries then link to the same words in the content via a small piece of code.

3. Dictionary Box

In the WordPress world this is considered as a must use plug-in. this is the best plug-in if you are serious about providing the best dictionary to your readers. Never lose readers because you used complex words. It is one of the easiest plug-ins to install and it only takes three minutes roughly.

4. Click2Refer Virtual Dictionary

An exceptional plug-in to use in your blog or website, just a double click and you have an exact meaning of any word. It is the best way to engage your readers. It is very easy to install after you download it from WordPress plug-ins inventory.

5. SIL Dictionary

For those who already have their own dictionary, this is will be a great plug-in for you. In just a few easy steps you are able to present your readers with own dictionary. Right after you have finished installing this plug-in, all you have to do is import your dictionary that is saved in XHTML format along with its CSS file if necessary.

The above are just but a few of the best WordPress Dictionary plug-ins available for the WordPress users. It is high time you engage your users with such plug-ins and you will notice the difference.