We have all heard it before: “The money is in the list.” Building a thriving list of email subscribers is one of the cornerstones of a successful website. Despite being a slightly older form of digital communication, it remains one of the most important ways of staying in touch with your audience. Forking over your email address is a huge sign of trust from the side of your visitor. It gives you direct access to their inbox, a coveted sanctuary for most, making it likely they will actually read what you send them and come back to your site. It’s no […]
Plugged in: A Review of qTranslate X
“Plugged in” is a reoccurring feature on Torque that aims to take a closer look at different plugins each week. If you have any suggestions for plugins you’d like to see reviewed, write us at [email protected] Let’s take a little trip down memory lane, shall we? My first ever article written for Torque was this one: 4 ways to turn WordPress into a multilingual website. As the name suggests, it describes how to display any WordPress site in more than one language. In the article I also mentioned a plugin which had been among my absolute favorites for a long time: qTranslate. […]
15 WordPress hacks busy bloggers will love
“I don’t have time.” “I’m too busy.” “I would love to but. . .” If you recognize yourself in the above sentences—Congratulations!—you are running a blog or website and have discovered that, as rewarding as it is, it also requires a lot of work. Who knew that creating something that you are proud of, or pouring your heart and expertise into a project, or sharing amazing content takes more than half an hour out of your day? It’s mind blowing, isn’t it? The bad news is: That’s just how it is. To create something worthwhile, you will have to put in […]
22 ways to keep visitors on your website longer
It’s very frustrating to spend hours refining a writing piece only to check your analytics after it’s been published and see that visitors are merely giving it a quick glance before leaving. “I poured my heart into this! There is a piece of me on that page and you should pay more attention to it!” is what your inner monologue might sound like at these moments. (Or is that just me?) While taking things personally is always a very productive strategy (I don’t care what my therapist says), as a website owner or online marketer there might be better ways to […]
How to declutter WordPress in 12 steps
Be honest: Is your WordPress backend a clean and appealing working environment? Does it make you feel relaxed and focused, and taking care of your website a pleasant activity? Or is it a mess of update messages, unanswered comments, and other distractions? Where you have to scroll over dozens of unused plugins until you get to the one your are looking for? You know, kind of like this browser window: If so, it’s time to set aside time for a “declutter WordPress weekend,” and do some serious housecleaning. With spring around the corner, what better time to make a fresh […]
21 productivity tips and hacks for WordPress bloggers
Running a website, or blog, or online business is not always a cakewalk. There is always something to do: Content creation, marketing, maintenance, not to mention updates and website changes. You could easily work 24/7 — in fact, many of us attempt to do so. Even though WordPress makes maintaining an online presence quite comfortable, there are only so many hours in the day you can actually be productive (without seriously impairing your health and social life that is). Therefore, it is important to find ways of making the most of the time you have. Luckily, there are steps you can […]
10 simple content hacks for more engagement, shares, and traffic
Is it just me or does talking about content marketing sometimes feel like discussing royal families? With so many people throwing around phrases like “Content is King!” and “Distribution is Queen!” I can’t always tell whether I am reading up on marketing or stumbled onto a Game of Thrones forum. However, apart from being an overused phrase, nobody will argue the importance of high-quality content in today’s online world. Unless you have been living under a rock for the past ten years, you are probably aware that producing great content on a regular basis is key to being successful on […]
How to build a portfolio website in WordPress
When we think of people who should build a portfolio website for themselves, we will often automatically think of creatives. Photographers, designers, web designers, and such folk are obvious choices to display their work online. However, the benefit of having an online portfolio is not merely limited to this group. In fact, maybe everyone should have one. Why? Well, think of portfolios like a resume, only better. They let you showcase the entirety of your professional life and work. Why are online portfolios better than resumes? Well, can your resume play videos, dynamically display photos, and be mobile optimized? No? […]
Mastering WordPress: 48 resources to go from newbie to pro
Mastery is a fascinating topic. Anyone taking pride in what they do are constantly striving to improve. To improve their skill set just a little more — to get a little better, faster, or more precise. Yet, mastery of any discipline comes down to one thing: practice. Whether you play the violin or are just trying to get really good at FlappyBird, you will need to put in the time it takes to get there. Mastering WordPress is no different. Increasing your skill set to an exceptional level is hard work. However, there are good reasons to do so: WordPress has […]
All About That Database: How To Use phpMyAdmin For WordPress
If you’ve ever installed WordPress, you know that every WordPress website consists of two parts: The core files and a MySQL database. Of the two, the database is the much more important component. Should your core files go kaput or be corrupted, you can easily replace them and wouldn’t lose too much. However, if your database vanishes and you don’t have a backup — best find a good therapist now. Therefore, it is important to know how to properly take care of this crucial part of your website. One of the most common tools used for doing so is phpMyAdmin […]
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