How to Code a Website (Complete Beginner’s Guide)

Do you want to learn how to code a website? Behind the scenes, most website code contains HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.

As a beginner, learning these programming languages (even at a beginner level) requires hours of studying and practice.

The good news for business owners is that there are excellent tools that let you create any type of website (without writing code).

In this comprehensive guide, we’ll cover how to code a website by using drag and drop tools that create all the code for you.

For those who want to code a website from scratch, we will share how to learn the code fundamentals, so you can do just that.

Website Builders vs. Code a Website From Scratch

In the early days of internet, building a website used to be hard. That’s because developers had to code a website from scratch which would take hours if not weeks.

Business owners had no other option but to pay thousands of dollars to have someone build / code a website.

Even as website builders got introduced, many businesses preferred to hire professional developers to build their websites because those tools simply couldn’t offer the same quality.

However in 2020, that has changed.

Many developers are now using WordPress and other CMS platforms (website builder frameworks) to speed up the process of building websites.

Over 62.9% of all websites on the internet are built on a website framework, so in other words majority of developers don’t write website code from scratch anymore.

The truth is that in 95% of cases, you can build just as good of a website with website builders or no-code solutions as you would writing website code from scratch.

Since time is our most valuable asset, we’ll show you the fastest ways to code a website by using tools that do the code writing for you (method 1 and method 2 will cover this).

In method 3, we will share resources on how to code a website from scratch. This is great for students who want to learn programming.

With that said, let’s take a look at how to code a website.

1. Code a Custom Website with WordPress

WordPress is the most popular website builder platform because it powers over 35% of all websites on the internet.

It comes with multiple tools that let you create a custom website from scratch without learning how to code.

Our #1 pick is the Beaver Builder framework.

To get started with WordPress, you’ll need a domain name and web hosting. We recommend using Bluehost. They’re offering our readers a free domain name and 60% off discount on hosting ($2.75/month).

If you want to look at some alternatives, we recommend SiteGround or one of these other best WordPress hosting companies.

After you have a domain and hosting, the next step is to install WordPress (the right way).

Next, you’ll need to get the Beaver Builder plugin. It’s the best WordPress drag and drop page builder for WordPress. You can even use it to create your own custom WordPress theme from scratch.

It comes with a drag and drop interface that’s easy for beginners but powerful enough for developers.

This is why many professional developers use it worldwide. Even developers at large companies like WP Engine (over $100 million in revenue) uses Beaver Builder to build their main website because it allows for rapid deployment and customization.

Alternatives to Beaver Builder

There are several other popular WordPress page builders you can use. The following are our top picks for beginners to code a website from scratch without actually writing the code.

• Divi Builder – Drag and drop theme and page builder
• Elementor – Drag and drop page builder
• Astra – Highly customizable theme that comes with ready-made starter websites that you can install with 1-click.

While we’re biased towards WordPress, the popularity of the platform speaks for itself. A lot of big companies use WordPress like BBC, Microsoft, Facebook, The New York Times, etc.

2. Code a Website with Constant Contact’s Website Builder

If you don’t want the hassle of getting a domain, hosting, and installing various software like WordPress, then you can use Constant Contact website builder.

It is a great platform to build simple business websites and online stores. They even have A.I that assists with the process.

Constant Contact offers a limited free plan. This comes with a Constant Contact branded domain name. They offer a free custom domain name (e.g. wpbeginner.com) as part of their Starter plan.

Constant Contact uses AI (Artificial Intelligence) to help you create your website by answering simple questions. Of course, you can also customize it as much as you like using their drag and drop interface.

You won’t need to worry about updates, security, or backups. Constant Contact takes care of all of that for you. They also offer 24/7 chat, email, and phone support.

Alternatives to Constant Contact

There are plenty of different all in one solutions out there. Apart from Constant Contact, the following are our top picks for easy website builders that are not WordPress.

• Gator by HostGator – Fully hosted website builder with drag and drop tools and templates.
• Domain.com Website Builder – Hosted website builder with dozens of beautiful templates for all types of websites
• BigCommerce – Fully hosted website builder to create eCommerce stores.

For more options, see our comparison of best website builders with pros and cons.

3. Learn to Code a Website from Scratch

If you’re a student and want to learn how to code a website from scratch, then you’ll need to understand the web development fundamentals like HTML5, CSS3, and more.

While there are many free and paid courses out there, the best one that we have found is the one on Code Academy.

It takes roughly 9 hours to complete, but by the end of it, you would have learned to code a custom responsive website from scratch using HTML, CSS, and Bootstrap.

Even after you’re done with the course, you’ll need hours of practice before you can truly become efficient at coding websites from scratch.

We hope this article helped you learn how to code a website. You may also want to see our guide on how to increase website traffic and best tools for freelancers, designers, and developers.

If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

The post How to Code a Website (Complete Beginner’s Guide) appeared first on WPBeginner.

March 09, 2020 at 04:52PM

7 Best Free Autoresponder Tools of 2020 (Pros & Cons Compared)

Are you looking for the best free autoresponder tools to start sending automated emails?

The good news is that there are lots of ways to get started without paying. You don’t need to delay building and growing your email list until your site starts making money.

In this article, we’ll take you through some of the best free autoresponder tools, comparing their pros and cons.

Why You Need an Autoresponder Email Service

Autoresponders allow you to send automated emails to people in your email list. Smart marketers use autoresponders to create a sequence of emails sent automatically to users based on certain rules.

For example, if you are collecting email addresses on a coming soon page, then you can set up an auto-responder to send a sequence of emails when your website goes live.

Many bloggers set up a autoresponder sequence to welcome new subscribers. Ecommerce stores use them to educate users about complimentary products, coupon codes, and more.

Most top email marketing companies offer auto-responders. However, if you are just starting out then paying for email marketing would raise your website building costs.

That being said, let’s take a look at some of the best free autoresponder tools that can help you get started.

1. Constant Contact

Constant Contact is the best email marketing service in the world. It’s our top pick for creating autoresponder sequences.

Pros

• Their free trial lasts a generous 60 days. That gives you two months to build up your email list and start making money from your blog.
• The free trial doesn’t require any credit card details, so you won’t be billed unless you actively choose to continue using Constant Contact.
• It’s fast and easy to set up your account. You just click a few options and Constant Contact shows you some useful resources based on your answers.
• If you already have a website, Constant Contact can set up your email design based on your website branding. It scans your website to find images and colors and creates several layout options to choose from.
• You can also pick from hundreds of other templates.
• The drag and drop interface is really easy to use. This is especially helpful if you’re new to email marketing.
• The Constant Contact support team is easy to reach through live chat, phone, and email.
• They also have a library of resources and online training. If you’re in the United States, you could even take advantage of their in-person live seminars.

Cons

• There’s no free forever plan available. After the 60-day free trial, you’ll need to pay if you want to keep using your email list. WPBeginner users do get 20% off with Constant Contact coupon.
• To use most of the automated features after your free trial, you’ll need to pay for the Email Plus plan.

Pricing

Constant Contact “Email” plan costs from $20/month which comes with basic automation features. For advanced automation features, though, you’ll need the “Email Plus” plan which starts from $45/month.

2. Sendinblue

Sendinblue is a marketing automation platform that combines both email and SMS marketing. They are one of the fastest growing email autoresponder platforms in Europe.

Pros

• You can store as many email contacts as you want on the free plan. You’re just limited by how many emails you can send out each day.
• The majority of Sendinblue’s tools are available on their free plan. These include the automation tools.
• You get access to email support on the free plan, so you can contact the support team if you’re having any problems.
• You can use Sendinblue to send SMS messages as well as emails.
• The marketing automation tool, which is how you create automation sequences, has an easy drag and drop interface.
• There’s a wide range of different templates available, or you can drag and drop elements to create your own template. You can also upload an HTML template if you’ve already created one separately.

Cons

• Emails on the free plan (and on the “lite” plan) have Sendinblue’s branding on them. You can’t remove this.
• The 300 emails per day limit might seem like a lot when you’re just starting out, but this goes away quite fast, so don’t let the forever free plan be the only decision factor.

Pricing

Sendinblue’s free plan is completely free. If you want more features, you can upgrade to a paid plan. The cheapest plan, Lite, is $25/month.

Their plans are priced based on how many emails you send each month, not on the size of your list.

3. MailerLite

MailerLite has become a popular autoresponder tool over the past few years. They have a generous free plan and lots of great features.

Pros

• You can use autoresponders and advanced segmentation on the free plan, without any need to upgrade.
• Lots of other features are available on the free plan, such as landing pages, multi-user accounts, and A/B split testing of emails.
• The free plan doesn’t limit you to a set number of emails per day. Instead, there’s a monthly limit of 12,000 emails.
• Even the cheapest paid plan gives you access to all the “Premium Plans” features. These include A/B testing of landing pages, auto-resend, and delivery by timezone.
• There’s a drag and drop editor that you can use to create your emails. You can add and remove blocks easily, change fonts and styles, and more.

Cons

• There aren’t any email templates available on the free plan. When you use the drag and drop builder, though, it has a simple default template with space for a logo, header, image, etc.
• If your list grows beyond 1,000 people, you’ll need to upgrade to a $15 or more paid plan.
• Your emails will have the MailerLite logo on them. You can’t remove this while on the free plan.

Pricing

MailerLite has a free plan that you can use for as long as you like. The cheapest paid plan is $10/month, but if you want more than 1,000 subscribers on your list, you’ll need to pay $15/month or more.

All the paid plans have the same features available, so you’re simply paying as you increase your number of subscribers.

4. AWeber

AWeber offers a free trial, which gives you full access to all its features. It’s a popular email marketing service, with powerful autoresponder tools.

Pros

• AWeber has been around for a long time. It was founded in 1998 and is now one of the most established autoresponder tools out there.
• The free trial includes all the features you’d get on a paid plan
• AWeber has powerful automation and segmentation tools. You can use it to create some very detailed autoresponder series.
• AWeber can be integrated with a huge number of other services, including OptinMonster, Unbounce, PayPal and more.
• All the support materials, including master class sessions and live webinars, are available even when you’re on the free plan.
• AWeber brings out new features regularly, and all customers get access to these. That includes people on the free plan.

Cons

• The free trial is only 30 days. This doesn’t give you all that long to start making money from your email list.
• AWeber definitely isn’t the cheapest option out there. It has more features than some other email autoresponders, but these do come at a price.

Pricing

AWeber’s cheapest plan is $19/month and that only lets you have up to 500 subscribers.

After that, you’ll be paying $29/month. If you want more than 2,500 subscribers, you’ll be on the $49/month plan.

5. Mailchimp

Mailchimp is a very popular email marketing service with tons of features to automate your emails and a free plan.

Pros

• The free plan lets you use segmentation and simple autoresponders. It could be a great fit if you just want to use a bit of automation.
• Mailchimp integrates with over 300 apps, including Canva, SeedProd’s Maintenance Mode Pro, Help Scout, and many more.
• The drag and drop templates are easy to set up and modify.
• Mailchimp is becoming an all-in-one solution with a built-in CRM tool. If this is what you’re looking for, Mailchimp could be a good option for you.

Cons

• The free plan only includes email support for the first 30 days. After that, you’ll only have the knowledge base documents to help you.
• There’ll be MailChimp branding on your emails if you’re on the free plan.
• You can’t create multi-step autoresponder sequences on the “Free” or “Essentials” plans.
• MailChimp’s customer support, pricing structure, and features are definitely not the best out there. We no longer recommend them to our readers and suggest these MailChimp alternatives instead.
• MailChimp’s automation tools aren’t as powerful as those of their competitors. This is a particular problem if you’re mainly interested in using them as an autoresponder.

Pricing

MailChimp has several different pricing systems, which can be a bit confusing. You can either opt for a monthly plan (from $9.99/month for the “Essentials” plan) or you can use “pay as you go” pricing (from $150 for 5,000 emails).

Note: MailChimp’s pricing tires are based on your “contacts”. These include people who’ve unsubscribed and those who haven’t confirmed their email address, as well as your actual subscribers.

6. ConvertKit

ConvertKit has recently launched a free plan, which allows you to build unlimited landing pages and opt-in forms. It’s a good way to start building your email list.

You can also take a 14 day free trial of ConvertKit.

Pros

• If you’re using an optin incentive, ConvertKit has a great delivery mechanism for these. It’s particularly well geared up for professional bloggers.
• ConvertKit has lots of different ways you can segment your customers. You can also assign tags to customers.
• There’s a landing page builder that you can use to create attractive landing pages. There are 30 templates to pick from and you can customize the design.
• Setting up your free account is really quick. It takes just seconds and you can get started on building your landing page straight away.

Cons

• You’ll need to invite a friend if you want to unlock most of the features of the free plan, including the ability to actually send emails!
• You can’t use the automation functionality on the free plan. You’ll need to upgrade to a paid plan if you want to use this. You can try it out on the 14-day free trial, though.

Pricing

ConvertKit has a limited free plan. After this, the cheapest plan is $29/month, which covers you for up to 1,000 subscribers. The next tier is $49/month for up to 3,000 subscribers.

7. GetResponse

GetResponse is a popular and easy to use email marketing service aimed at small businesses. It doesn’t have a free plan, but there’s a 30 day free trial available.

Pros

• You can try any of their paid plans free for 30 days, including the Professional plan that lets you run free webinars. You don’t need to enter any credit card details.
• GetResponse can be integrated with OptinMonster, PayPal, Shopify, ClickBank, and many other tools.
• Support is available through phone, live chat, and email. There’s also a comprehensive help section.
• Once your free plan is over, you can still use autoresponders on the lowest-priced plan.

Cons

• There’s no free plan, just the 30-day free trial. This doesn’t give you very long to get your email list up and running.
• For some of the more advanced automation features, you’ll need to move up to the Plus plan. This also gives you things like webinars, but if you don’t want those, you may feel it’s quite expensive.

Pricing

The different plans offer different features. For instance, from the Plus plan up, you get webinars and an automation builder. The cheapest plan, Basic, is $15/month for up to 1,000 subscribers.

Choosing the Free Autoresponder That Suits You Best

So now you might be wondering which free autoresponder tool should you choose?

Small Businesses

When you’re building a business, you need to make sure you have access to top notch support and a powerful platform.

For small business owners, Constant Contact is our top pick. Their free plan lasts 60 days which gives you plenty of time to try it out. It’s quick and easy to get started, with lots of support available if you need it.

You’ll have access to all of Constant Contact’s features as soon as you sign up, and you don’t even need to enter credit card information.

The best part is they offer support via phone agents, live chat, and email.

If you’re an established business or eCommerce store where budget isn’t a concern, then we highly recommend looking at Drip. They offer advanced segmentation and powerful automation, but we didn’t include it in our list above because they don’t have a free option, and their pricing is on the higher end. This is the tool that many of our eCommerce businesses use for personalized email automation.

Non-Profits and Community Organizations

If your email list is for a non-profit or community organization, you’ll probably want a completely free tool.

Sendinblue is a good option if you’ll have a small email list (300 people or fewer) that you want to email more than once a week.

MailerLite would probably be better if you have a larger list that you want to email weekly or less.

However if you value phone support, then nothing will beat Constant Contact, and that’s why many non-profits use their platform because it’s reasonably priced and offer the support they need.

We hope this article helped you learn about the best free autoresponder tools. You may also like our article on the easy ways to grow your email list faster.

If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

The post 7 Best Free Autoresponder Tools of 2020 (Pros & Cons Compared) appeared first on WPBeginner.

March 06, 2020 at 07:01PM

How to Properly Add Google AdSense to Your WordPress Site

Google AdSense is one of the most popular ways to monetize your website.

It allows you to automatically sell your website’s ad space to advertisers and get paid. AdSense is one of the easiest way to start making money online with your website.

In this article, we will show you how to add Google AdSense in WordPress along with some best practices and tips to increase your earnings.

What is Google AdSense?

Google AdSense is an advertising network run by Google that allows bloggers and website owners an opportunity to earn money by showing text, image, video, and other interactive advertisement on their websites. These ads are targeted by site content and audience, so they’re highly relevant.

Google AdSense is hassle-free because you don’t have to deal with advertisers or worry about collecting money. Google administers and maintains relationships with advertisers. They collect the payment, take their management fee, and send the rest of the money to you.

AdSense offers cost-per-click ads (CPC) which means that you earn money every time a user clicks on the ad on your website. The amount received per click varies based on a variety of factors.

Video Tutorial

If you don’t like the video or need more instructions, then continue reading.

Getting Started with AdSense

First thing you need to do is sign up for a Google AdSense account. If you have a Gmail account, then you can use your existing account to sign up.

Once you’ve submitted your application, you will need to wait for the Google AdSense team to review it. This may take a few hours to a few weeks for some publishers.

Once it is approved, then you can log in to your AdSense account and get your ad code. This is the code that you need to place on your website to display ads.

Recently, Google AdSense announced auto ads, which means you paste just one piece of code and Google automatically decides when, where, and how many ads to show on each page.

However, most publishers are still using the manual method to individually place ads on their website.

We’ll show you both methods. We recommend starting with the manual ad placement first. Once you have started earning, then you can experiment with auto-ads to compare them yourself.

1. Manually Place Google AdSense Ad Code in WordPress

You’ll start by clicking on the Ads menu in the left column and then switching to the ‘By ad unit’ tab. From here you need to click on ‘Create New Ad’.

You will be asked to choose an ad type. You can select from ‘Display ads’, ‘In-feed ads’, and ‘In-article ads’.

If you are unsure, then start with the display ads.

Next, you need to provide a name for this ad unit and select the ad size and type.

The name of the Ad is only used for internal purposes, so you can name it anything like “SiteName Sidebar”.

The next option is choosing the Ad Size. While Google offers a wide variety of ad sizes, there are certain sizes that are listed under recommended because those are the most popular among advertisers.

You can also choose whether you want your ad to be responsive or fixed. We recommend choosing responsive ads as they work well on all devices and screen sizes.

Next, click on the Create button to continue.

AdSense will now generate the ad code for you. It contains the unique ad unit ID and your publisher ID.

If your website has a Google AMP version, then you can also copy the code for your AMP pages.

Simply copy your ad code and paste it in a plain text editor like Notepad or TextEdit. You will need it in the next step.

Adding Google AdSense in WordPress

You need to determine where you want to show the ad on your website. Ads are most commonly displayed in the sidebar. You can add Google Adsense in your sidebar by using WordPress widgets.

Simply go to Appearance » Widgets page in your WordPress admin area. Next, drag & drop the ‘Custom HTML’ widget to the appropriate widget area and paste your Google AdSense code in there.

For better placement control and tracking, we recommend that you check out AdSanity WordPress plugin. (See: Best Ad Management WordPress solutions)

2. Add Auto-Ads AdSense Code in WordPress

Adding individual ads to different areas of your website takes a lot of time. Most beginners struggle to find the best locations to display ads on their sites.

To solve this, Google has introduced auto-ads. This allows you to simply add one code snippet to your site and let Google AdSense figure out the highest paying location, ad-size, and type.

The disadvantage of this method is that you have less control over ad placement on your website.

If you want to add use auto-ads feature, then this is how you’ll add Google AdSense to your website.

First login to your Google AdSense account and click on the Ads tab. Next, you need to click on the Get Code button to generate the auto-ads code.

AdSense will now generate a code snippet with your publisher ID and show it on the screen. You can now copy and paste this code in a text editor.

Adding AdSense Auto-Ads Code in WordPress

The auto-ads code uses the single code snippet to generate ads everywhere on your WordPress website. This means you need to add the code to all the pages where you want to display the ad.

One way to do this is by adding the code in your WordPress theme’s header.php file. However, the disadvantage of this method is that your ad code will disappear if you update or change your theme.

The best way to add any site-wide code to your website is by using a plugin like Insert Headers and Footers.

First, you need to install and activate the Insert Headers and Footers plugin. For more details, see our step by step guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

Upon activation, go to the Settings » Insert Headers and Footers page. From here, you need to paste your Google AdSense code in the header section.

Don’t forget to click on the ‘Save’ button to store your changes.

The plugin will now add the ad code on all pages of your website. It may take Google AdSense sometime to start showing ads.

AdSense Best Practices and Frequently Asked Questions

Over the years, we’ve answered several AdSense related questions. Having used AdSense on several of our sites in the past, we’ve learned a whole lot about optimizing. Below are some AdSense best practices and frequently asked questions.

What’s the best AdSense Ad Size?

Although ad placement is key, we’ve found that the best sizes are 336×280 and 300×250. These ads tend to fit on most screen sizes and have the best pay rate as well.

What’s the Best AdSense Placement?

This entirely depends on your layout. The goal is to get more clicks, so you want to place your ads in a more prominent spot. We have found that ads within post content towards the top of the screen tends to get the most clicks.

Several users have asked us about adding AdSense in a floating widget because it will be very prominent. We strongly recommend against that because it is not allowed by Google Terms of Service. If you violate their TOS, then you can get banned from the program.

Can I click on my own Google AdSense Ads?

Often beginners are tempted to click on their own ads or ask their family members to click on their ads. Please don’t do that. Google’s algorithm is very smart and knows when you’re clicking on your own ad. This can get you banned from the program.

What is Page RPM in Google AdSense?

RPM stands for Revenue per Mille meaning revenue per 1000 impressions. This is determined by multiplying the total number of clicks and cost per click and then dividing that by the total number of pageviews.

Can I use my Blogger or YouTube AdSense account with WordPress?

Yes, you can. If you started using AdSense on one of Google’s hosted platforms like Blogger or YouTube, then you can change your AdSense account type and use it with WordPress. You’ll need to provide Google AdSense with the URL of the site you want to monetize by filling out an application form.

Simply login to your AdSense account and then under ‘My Ads’ click on ‘Other Products’ option. Next, you need to click ‘Upgrade now’ and complete the application form.

What is CTR in Google AdSense?

CTR or click-through-rates differ vastly for different kind of websites. Your ad clicks depend on a lot of factors like your website’s topics, your audience type, ad placement on your site, and more. The ideal CTR for Google AdSense is really hard to define because you don’t have access to the click rates of other websites like your own.

However, Google AdSense has built-in tools that will start showing you messages if your site is not getting a good CTR. You can follow the optimization guides shown inside Google AdSense dashboard to improve your ad revenue.

When and how does Google AdSense pay publishers?

Each month, Google AdSense calculates your previous month’s earnings and shows them on your ‘Transactions’ page. If your earnings match the required threshold, then your payment is processed and released by the 21st of that month.

There are multiple payment methods available including direct electronic transfer, wire transfer, check, Western Union, and more.

Why Google AdSense rejected my application?

Google Adsense may reject your application if your website doesn’t meet the AdSense program policies or their terms and conditions.

What are the requirements to get Google AdSense application approved?

Here are the minimum requirements to get your Google AdSense account application approved.

• Your website and all its content must comply with AdSense program policies and terms and conditions.
• Your website should be at least 6 months old.
• You, the applicant, must be over 18 years old.

Note: Even if your application meets all the requirements, Google AdSense still reserves the right to decline your application.

Can I add Google AdSense in my WordPress.com blog?

WordPress.com does not allow you to add Google AdSense to your website unless you upgrade to the Business plan. For more on this topic, please see our guide on the difference between WordPress.com vs WordPress.org.

What is the difference between Google AdSense vs Google AdWords?

Google AdWords allows you to advertise on other websites including those participating in the Google AdSense program.

Google AdSense allows you to make money from your website by showing ads on your website.

We hope this article helped you add Google AdSense in your WordPress site. You may also want to check out our guide on how to increase your blog traffic, and the best email marketing services to grow your subscribers.

If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

The post How to Properly Add Google AdSense to Your WordPress Site appeared first on WPBeginner.

March 05, 2020 at 07:00PM

6 Reasons Why WPBeginner Switched to SiteGround Hosting

Earlier this year, we switched WPBeginner website to SiteGround web hosting. Several readers noticed the change in our footer area which now says “WordPress hosting by SiteGround” and asked us to write about why did we make the switch.

When it comes to running an online business, choosing the right web hosting platform for your needs is crucial for your success.

In this article, I will share 6 reasons why we switched to SiteGround, and how they helped us boost WordPress speed, improve reliability, and implement a better workflow.

Background

Since I launched WPBeginner in 2009 (almost eleven years ago), our blog has grown to become the largest free WordPress resource site for beginners.

When I first started WPBeginner, I used shared hosting by HostGator. As the site grew, we upgraded to a VPS, then a dedicated server, and even a custom built cloud infrastructure six months ago.

During these years of running WPBeginner and growing my portfolio of companies, I have tested and used just about every major website hosting platform.

Even today, I have both active and test websites on many different hosting platforms, so we can stay updated with new features each company releases. This helps us make the right recommendations to our users based on their needs / budget.

However, over the last 3 years, we have been switching many of our big websites to SiteGround’s Enterprise hosting infrastructure.

WPBeginner was one of the few big sites of ours that hadn’t made the switch to SiteGround, and it just kept becoming harder and harder to resist the temptation.

SiteGround team simply kept innovating, delivering VIP customer service, and building unique tools to make the hosting experience better for both our users and our team.

And in January 2020, after 10.5 years of existence, WPBeginner website has finally switched to a new host, SiteGround.

6 Reasons Why We Switched to SiteGround

When it comes to WordPress hosting, the most important factors for me are: speed, reliability, support, and tools that improves dev workflow.

Below are the top 6 reasons why we switched to SiteGround hosting.

Note: we’re on SiteGround’s Enterprise Hosting which is built and optimized specifically for our needs. Although a lot of the similar things are also offered on their various hosting plans.

1. SiteGround is now on Google Cloud Platform (Fully Managed)

As a hosting enthusiast, when SiteGround CEO, Tenko Nikolov, first told me about this news I was excited beyond words. It was really hard for me to keep this a secret for this long.

Previously all SiteGround customer websites were hosted on one of their data centers either in USA or Europe. The private data center providers did a great job with keeping up with new hardware technologies, but the switch to Google’s Cloud Platform is a game-changer.

It simply unlocks a lot of performance and reliability improvement since Google has a state-of-the-art network.

The best part is that SiteGround made this platform improvement available for all their customers (not just Enterprise users). Yes, this means that even if you signup for their starter WordPress hosting plan ($3.95 per month), you’re going to be hosted on Google’s Cloud Platform.

This is a huge deal because you get all the benefits of scaling and resource management without worrying about behind the scenes stuff (since the entire setup is managed by SiteGround).

It’s a fact that Google and Amazon offer top-notch cloud platforms. The challenge is that they’re not easy to use for small business owners which is a huge disadvantage.

SiteGround is now leveling the playing field for small businesses by helping them compete with the big guys. This aligns with our core values at WPBeginner and Awesome Motive.

2. Maximum Uptime with Multi-regional Failover Setup

Reliability and site uptime is a huge priority for us because it impacts user experience.

Imagine going to a store in the middle of the day only to see a temporary closed sign. It’s an extremely frustrating experience, and you simply move on to a different store.

This is exactly how users feel when they visit a website that’s experiencing downtime.

SiteGround’s Enterprise team used Google Cloud Platform to design a reliable multi-regional failover setup for us.

This means that in rare situations when a specific Google datacenter region experiences downtime, our website traffic will be routed to a different region, so our readers always have the best experience.

3. The Best-in-Class Enterprise Support Team

Quality support is a very important factor when choosing a web hosting company. This is why many businesses pay extra for managed WordPress hosting, so they can get their problems resolved faster.

My various companies collectively spend several hundred thousand dollars every year on hosting related expense (yes that’s multiple six figures per year). Our costs are high because we serve billions of impressions monthly across our websites.

Depending on the size of the site, I have websites on shared hosting companies, VPS platforms, dedicated servers, and even many managed hosting platforms.

No one comes close to offering the level of support that SiteGround does. Just read these 3900+ SiteGround user reviews from WPBeginner readers, and that’s for their regular hosting plans (not the enterprise plan).

On the Enterprise plan, we have a personal account manager along with a 24/7 dedicated Enterprise engineer team.

When I say 24/7, I really mean it. Their enterprise support is offered through a Private Slack Channel where we can use the @here tag which pages the engineer on duty to respond. Their response times are nearly instant, and the engineers are true experts.

We also have direct personal phone access to the enterprise team as well in case of emergencies during holidays.

Other enterprise hosting companies that we work with also offer Slack support, but their paging system and availability isn’t up to par with SiteGround.

4. Development Workflow that Scales

Our team has various testing and deployment workflows that require custom setup, permission control, etc.

Over the last 3 years, SiteGround enterprise team has worked alongside our developers to not only build new workflows but improve existing ones to ensure the smoothest process.

Not to mention, they have built custom tools to improve speed and reliability of our various websites based on the specific platform needs.

5. Faster Go to Market with Native Google Services

One of the biggest advantages of using a cloud platform like Amazon or Google is their native services.

Instead of wasting time developing and managing custom solutions, SiteGround uses Google’s native services to solve the problems faster and more reliably.

For example, Google’s Cloud SQL has simply replaced the custom MySQL cluster management software which has made things way more efficient.

Instead of using an internal alert and monitoring system, SiteGround is using a smart Google Stackdriver integration to monitor each virtual machine instance from various regions, so we can ensure maximum uptime with automated failover.

We also swapped out WPBeginner blog search with Google’s Custom Search API, so you can now see WPBeginner site search results without any of the Google Ads that were shown previously.

There are also plans to use other Google Cloud services as we expand to unlock performance and reliability improvements.

6. Reduced Costs and Complexity with Maximum Performance

Just six months ago, I wrote a blog post highlighting a custom infrastructure that we built with our previous hosting provider. While the setup was powerful, it introduced a lot of costs and complexities when it came to management.

Since SiteGround enterprise team has worked with us over the last three years on our eCommerce websites, and they regularly work with other enterprise clients as well, they have streamlined a lot of the processes.

Their team knows how to unlock maximum performance improvements without introducing complicated services.

Our front-end website (that readers see), stayed blazing fast as always. But we unlocked massive performance improvements on the back-end and uncached pages.

On average, we’re seeing between 72% to 100% improvements on uncached pages.

Here’s a screenshot of the admin load time:

Final Thoughts – SiteGround Review

I first started testing and recommending SiteGround in 2013. Since then, I have seen them make significant improvements to their platform while maintaining top notch customer service.

In 2015, I switched one of my other popular blogs to SiteGround. At the time that blog received few hundred million pageviews annually (I sold that website in 2018).

After I saw how efficiently SiteGround managed that website, we slowly started moving our other sites on SiteGround.

In 2017, we signed up for their Enterprise Hosting plan to start moving our eCommerce websites. Over the last three years, our CTO and lead developers have worked closely with SiteGround.

Their team including Hristo, Daniel, Ivan S, and Ivan Y have earned our trust time and time again. You know it’s true when a paying customer (me) sends you a Christmas gift basket.

That’s why when we re-evaluated our technology stack after last Black Friday sales, it was an easy decision for me to finally move WPBeginner and few other sites over to SiteGround, so they can be managed by the same expert team.

While WPBeginner is on SiteGround’s enterprise hosting plan, I also have few websites on their shared hosting and two sites on their dedicated servers.

I highly recommend SiteGround for websites of all sizes. Whether you need WordPress hosting, specialized WooCommerce hosting, or even custom enterprise hosting solution like the one we have, you’ll get the best service.

All their plans are now running on Google Cloud Platform, they offer dynamic caching + speed optimization, a guided setup wizard, along with staging and other smart workflow tools.

The best part is their pricing is extremely competitive in all areas. Startup plans are $3.95 per month, and their GoGeek plan is $11.95 per month which is 70% lower than other managed hosting platforms.

If I were to rate SiteGround, I would give them a perfect 5 out of 5.

I hope you found this article helpful. If you’re thinking about switching web hosting and want a hosting provider that will make your website fast while offering top notch support, then definitely check out SiteGround.

Full Disclosure: No we did not get paid to write this SiteGround review. We’re happy paying customers of SiteGround. They have a referral program available for all their customers, so if you decide to use SiteGround by clicking on our referral link in this article, then we will get a small commission. However we only recommend services that we personally use and believe will add value to our readers.

If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

The post 6 Reasons Why WPBeginner Switched to SiteGround Hosting appeared first on WPBeginner.

March 04, 2020 at 07:59PM

How to Create a Separate Page for Blog Posts in WordPress

Do you want to create a separate page for blog posts in WordPress? By default, WordPress displays your blog posts on the homepage.

However, if you are making a business website or simply want to customize your homepage, then you may want a separate page for your blog section.

In this article, we will show you how to easily create a separate page for blog posts in WordPress.

Setup WordPress to Create a Separate Blog Page

WordPress allows you to easily configure your website to have a custom home page. This feature also allows you to choose any other page on your website to be used as your blog page.

First, you need to create two pages in WordPress that you would like to use as your homepage and blog page.

You don’t need to add any content to those pages, and you can even name them anything else if you want. For instance, some business websites use News for their blog page.

Once you have created those pages, you can head over to the Settings » Reading page in the WordPress admin area.

Under the ‘Your homepage displays’ section, you need to click on the ‘ A static page’ option. After that, you can select the home and blog pages you created earlier.

You can now go to Pages » All Pages section in admin area. You’ll notice your blog and homepage with new labels. Go ahead, and click on the View link under those pages to preview them.

The appearance of these pages depends on your WordPress theme, and you may need to configure your theme settings.

Since each WordPress theme has different options, you’ll have to check out your theme’s documentation or check the options under Appearance » Customize page.

We’ll also show you other methods later in this article.

Put The Blog Page Link to Your Website’s Navigation Menu

Now that you have created a separate blog page let’s help your website visitors find that.

Simply visit the Appearance » Menus page and add the Blog page you created earlier to your website’s navigation menu.

For more detailed instructions, see our beginner’s guide to navigation menus in WordPress.

Customizing Your Homepage

By default, many WordPress themes come with a built-in template to display a static page as your website’s front page. However, you’ll still need to set it up under Appearance » Customize.

Some WordPress themes also allow you to choose a homepage template for your page. If your theme comes with such a template, then you can select it by editing the Home page.

Finally, you can use a WordPress page builder plugin to use simple drag and tools to create your homepage from scratch.

We recommend using Beaver Builder as it is the best WordPress WordPress page builder plugin on the market. It is super-easy to use, includes ready-made templates, and super-flexible to create any layout you want.

For more details, see our tutorial on how to create a how to create a custom home page in WordPress.

Customize Your Blog Page Design

By default, WordPress automatically looks for a template in your WordPress theme to display posts on a separate blog page.

If your theme does not have one, then it automatically falls back to the archive template. For more details, see our guide on the WordPress template hierarchy.

Now, if you don’t like how your theme handles your blog page, then you can change that using some extra tools and without writing any code.

First, you will need to install and activate the Beaver Builder and Beaver Themer plugins. For more details, see our step by step guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

Beaver Themer is an add-on plugin for Beaver Builder and enables you to not just create pages but entire new WordPress themes from scratch.

First, you need to visit Beaver Builder » Themer Layouts page and click on the Add New button.

From here you can provide a name for your layout, select ‘Themer Layout’ as your type, and then select Archive as your layout.

This will create a themer layout for the archive templates. On the next screen, you need to select ‘Post Archive’ for location option and then click on the ‘Launch Beaver Builder’ button.

This will open the Beaver Builder with your selected layout. You can simply point and click at any item on the screen and start editing it. You can also add new rows, columns, and web elements to the page.

For more details, see our guide on how to create a custom WordPress theme (without coding).

Once you are finished editing, you can simply publish your layout. After that, visit your blog page to see it in action.

We hope this article helped you create a separate page for blog posts in WordPress. You may also want to see our guide on how to increase blog traffic and our list of must have WordPress plugins.

If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

The post How to Create a Separate Page for Blog Posts in WordPress appeared first on WPBeginner.

March 03, 2020 at 06:00PM

How to Use Cookie Retargeting in WordPress to Show Custom On-Site Messages

Do you want to use cookie retargeting in WordPress? Cookie retargeting is the secret tool already used by many of the most popular websites.

It allows you to show custom on-site messages to your users based on their past behavior which helps you boost sales.

In this article, we’ll show you how to use cookie retargeting in WordPress to show custom on-site messages and boos conversions.

What is Cookie Retargeting?

Cookie retargeting is a marketing technique where websites use cookies to track user behavior and offer a personalized experience.

There are two types of cookie retargeting techniques.

First, there is the off-site cookie retargeting. This method is used to track user activities across the web.

Facebook pixel and Google remarketing are two of the most popular advertising programs that allow you to use their massive reach and show targetted ads to people who visit your website.

Secondly, you have on-site cookie retargeting which allows you to show targeted messages to users based on how they interact with your website.

What are cookies?

Cookies are small text files containing pieces of data. Websites set cookies in users’ browsers to store temporary information such as login status, user preferences, session details, and more.

How to Use On-Site Cookie Retargeting to Boost Conversions?

There are a number of ways website owners use on-site retargeting messages to boost conversions and increase sales.

For instance, eCommerce stores can show custom offers to users based on how they interacted with other offers. This allows you to create a dynamic sales funnel that leads users to make a purchase.

Another use-case scenario would be lead generation. With on-site retargeting, if a user closes one sign up form, then you can show them a different message with another offer.

On-site retargeting messages are highly effective because:

• It shows personalized messages to users at the time when they are already engaged with your website.
• Allows you to create customized campaigns that get better with each user interaction until they convert
• You save money on paid advertising campaigns by utilizing your existing website traffic to the max

That being said, let’s take a look a how to use cookie retargeting in WordPress.

Creating On-Site Retargeting Campaign in WordPress

The best way to create on-site retargeting messages is by using OptinMonster. It is the best conversion optimization and lead generation software in the world.

You can use it to easily create attention-grabbing signup forms, popups, welcome mats, in-line offers, custom offers, and more.

First, you need to signup for an OptinMonster account. You’ll need at least their Pro plan for cookie retargeting and Growth plan for followup campaigns.

Next, you’ll need to install and activate the OptinMonster plugin. For more details, see our step by step guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

This plugin acts as a connector between your WordPress site and the OptinMonster app.

Upon activation, you need to click on the OptinMonster menu in your WordPress admin sidebar to connect WordPress with your OptinMonster account.

Follow the on-screen instructions to authorize your website with OptinMonster.

For this tutorial, we’ll first create a campaign to set up the cookie and offer users a discount. After that, we’ll create on-site retargeting and follow-up campaigns.

Let’s start with our first campaign. Simply click on the ‘Create New Campaign’ button to launch the OptinMonster builder.

This will take you to the OptinMonster website where you’ll be asked to choose a campaign type and a template.

You can choose any campaign type or template but for this tutorial, we’ll be creating a lightbox popup.

Next, you’ll be asked to provide a name for your campaign and select your website. After that, you’ll enter the campaign builder interface.

It is a powerful design tool where you can simply point and click on any item to edit it. You can also add new items like blocks, buttons, images, columns, and more.

Once you are satisfied, simply switch to the publish tab and make your campaign live by changing its status.

Now by default, OptinMonster will show this campaign to all users who visit your website. Users will be able to close the popup or perform your desired action.

Creating a Retargeting Campaign to Show Custom Messages

Now that you have launched your first campaign, let’s add another campaign using the followup retargeting feature.

Click on the create new campaign button in the OptinMonster dashboard and select your campaign type and template. Since we have used lightbox popup, we’ll be using a ‘Floating bar’ as our retargeting campaign.

Next, you’ll enter your campaign name and select the website. After that, you’ll enter the OptinMonster builder where you can design your campaign using simple drag and drop tools.

You can edit the optin text, add a countdown timer to generate FOMO, add a coupon, and so much more.

Once you are satisfied with the design, it is time to select which users you want to show this custom message.

Simply switch to the Display Rules tab in the builder.

OptinMonster offers a ton of display rules that you can choose from. You can also add multiple rulesets.

Under the if menu, select ‘Visitor has closed’ → ‘Campaign’ → and then select your previous campaign.

Next, you need to switch to the Publish tab and change your campaign status to live.

You can now visit your website in the incognito browser tab to see your campaign and the follow up retargeting message.

Adding Cookie Retargeting with Custom Messages

Cookie retargeting allows you to show custom messages to users based on their previous actions, cart status, shopping history, and more.

This allows you to create promotions and upsells designed for customers at different stages of your sales funnel.

Simply create a new OptinMonster campaign and design it with your custom message.

Once you are done, you need to switch to the Display Rules tab.

Under the if menu, you need to select ‘a cookie’ and then select the key and cookie value.

The key is the cookie name and the value parameter are the contents of the cookie. OptinMonster provides you a bunch of options to match the cookie or its value.

For instance, if you are using WooCommerce then you can use WooCommerce cookies to target users who have added products in their cart.

After adding cookie retargeting rules, go ahead and publish your campaign.

OptinMonster will now display your custom message based on cookie targetting rules you have set.

We hope this article helped you learn how to use cookie retargeting in WordPress to show custom on-site messages. You may also want to see our guide on how to recover abandoned cart sales in WooCommerce as well as our comparison of the best live chat software for websites.

If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

The post How to Use Cookie Retargeting in WordPress to Show Custom On-Site Messages appeared first on WPBeginner.

March 02, 2020 at 05:37PM