How to Find Your Saved Drafts in WordPress (Beginner’s Guide)

Are you trying to find your saved drafts in WordPress?

Most of the time it’s easy to find your drafted posts and pages, but sometimes they can go missing.

In this article, we will share several ways to find your saved drafts in WordPress.

Why Can’t You Find Your Saved Drafts in WordPress?

When you’re getting started with your WordPress site, it takes time to learn the admin area. 

You might save a draft, and then move on to another task. Then when you want to continue working on that draft, you may struggle to find your post. 

It may be in a place you don’t expect, or it may have been accidentally deleted, especially if you have a multi-author blog with other users who have access to your drafts.

If you can’t find your draft, don’t panic. Even if it was deleted, there are still ways to get it back.

In this guide, we will cover five different ways to find your saved drafts in WordPress. If you prefer to jump straight to a particular method, then you can use the links below.

• Check the Quick Draft Box for Missing Drafts
• Find Missing Drafts in the WordPress Pages and Posts Menus
• Use the Direct Link to View all Your WordPress Post Drafts
• Check Your WordPress Trash for Missing Drafts
• Check Your WordPress Database to Recover Lost Drafts

Check the Quick Draft Box for Missing Drafts

If you used the Quick Draft tool in the dashboard, then your drafts may seem to vanish when you click on the ‘Save Draft’ button.

If you recently created the draft, then you should still be able to find it in your WordPress Dashboard. 

Simply click on ‘Dashboard’ in the left-hand menu and find the Quick Draft box. You’ll see all of your most recent drafts in this box.

To carry on working on any of these drafts, simply click on its blue title.

If the Quick Draft section is missing, then you can bring it back by clicking on the Screen Options tab on the top right of the page.

Just make sure the ‘Quick Draft’ checkbox is checked, and it should reappear.

Find Missing Drafts in the WordPress Pages and Posts Menus

Another easy way to find your saved drafts in your WordPress blog is to head over to Posts » All Posts for your posts, or Pages » All Pages for pages.

Once you’ve done that, you should see a ‘Drafts’ tab.

After clicking on the Drafts tab, you’ll see all of your saved draft posts.

You can now see options to edit, trash, or preview any of these posts by hovering your mouse over the draft.

Use the Direct Link to View all Your WordPress Post Drafts

Another option is to jump straight to the ‘Drafts’ screen using a direct link.

To start, make sure you’re logged into your WordPress dashboard. For more information, please see our guide on how to find your WordPress login URL.

Once you’ve done that, you’ll need to add some text to the end of your website’s URL. This text will be different depending on whether you want to see your drafted posts or pages. 

To find all of your drafted posts, add the following to the end of your website’s URL:

/wp-admin/edit.php?post_status=draft&post_type=post

For example, if your website’s URL was ‘www.example.com’ then you would need to paste the following into your browser’s address bar:

https://ift.tt/OjCEva2

Then just press the Enter key on your keyboard. You will now be redirected to a screen showing all your drafted WordPress posts.

To see all of your drafted pages instead, add the following to the end of your website’s URL and press Enter:

/wp-admin/edit.php?post_status=draft&post_type=page

Once you’ve done that, WordPress will show a screen containing all of your drafted pages.

Check Your WordPress Trash for Missing Drafts

Have you checked the ‘Drafts’ tab, but still can’t find your drafted page or post?

If a draft is missing, there’s a chance it may have been deleted by accident. If you’ve added other WordPress users or authors to your site, then it’s possible someone else may have deleted your draft.

Luckily, WordPress makes it easy to restore deleted posts and pages.

Just like your computer, WordPress moves deleted items into a ‘Trash’ folder. These pages and posts will no longer show up in your ‘Drafts’ tab, but they’re not deleted permanently right away.

By default, WordPress will keep items in the trash folder for 30 days. If you want to change how often your trash is emptied, then please see our guide on how to limit or disable the trash being automatically emptied in WordPress.

To look inside your trash folder, either go to Pages » All Pages, or Posts » All Posts.

Once you’ve done that, simply click on the ‘Trash’ tab.

Here you’ll find all your deleted posts or pages. If you see your missing draft, then hover your mouse over it.

After that, just click on the ‘Restore’ link. 

Now, you can find this drafted page or post in your ‘Drafts’ tab following the same process described above.

Check Your WordPress Database to Recover Lost Drafts

Can’t find the missing draft in your WordPress ‘Trash’ folder?

Another option is to check your WordPress database. You can’t recover the deleted draft using this method, but you can get its content.

Once you do, then you can copy and paste it into a new draft in your WordPress admin area.

This method is more advanced, so it isn’t recommended for absolute beginners.

If you decide to go ahead with this method, then it’s a good idea to create a backup. Backups allow you to quickly restore your WordPress site in case something bad was to happen. You can see our expert pick of the best WordPress backup plugins to get started.

To reach your WordPress database, you’ll first need to log into your web hosting account. This is usually supplied by your WordPress hosting provider.

For example, if you’re a Bluehost customer then you just need to log into your cPanel dashboard.

Once you’ve logged into your control panel, look for any ‘phpMyAdmin’ settings. For Bluehost customers, you need to click on Advanced » phpMyAdmin in the left-hand menu.

You can then click on the ‘Databases’ tab.

In the left-hand menu, find the name of your WordPress database.

NOTE: If you’re not sure what your database name is, then you can find this information in your wp-config.php file.

In the left-hand menu find an option that has ‘posts’ in its name. Then, click to select this option. You will now see all of your WordPress posts and pages.

Next, find the draft that you want to restore.

You can then go ahead and click on its ‘Edit’ button.

Once you’ve done that, phpMyAdmin will show this draft in HTML format.

To restore this draft, simply copy everything in the ‘post_content’ section.

Now it’s time to switch back to your WordPress admin screen. Here, you can create a new WordPress page or post.

In the upper-right corner, click on the icon that shows a line of dots.

After that, click on ‘Code editor.’

This will open this page or post in the WordPress code editor. 

Now simply paste the HTML code you copied in the previous step. Once you’ve done that, click on ‘Exit code editor.’ 

You’ll now see all of the content you copied from your WordPress database. To check how this draft will look to the people who visit your website, click on the ‘Preview’ button.

You can now work on this draft in the WordPress editor. For example, you’ll want to give your new draft an SEO-friendly title and add a focus keyphrase. 

We hope this article helped you learn how to find your saved drafts in WordPress. You may also want to see our guide on how to add keywords and meta descriptions in WordPress, and see our expert pick of the best WordPress SEO plugins and tools that you should use.

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 Find Your Saved Drafts in WordPress (Beginner’s Guide) first appeared on WPBeginner.

May 05, 2022 at 04:00PM

How to Easily Add a Download Link in WordPress (3 Ways)

Do you want to learn how to add a download link in WordPress for your PDFs and other files?

Adding a download link to WordPress makes it easy for your readers to download guides, videos, images, and even paid products.

In this article, we’ll show you how to add a download link to your WordPress site, step by step.

Why Add a Download Link for Files in WordPress?

By adding a download link for your WordPress files, you make it easy for your visitors to download eBooks, videos, images, plugins, and other media and documents you upload to your site.

This makes it easy to create exclusive content for your visitors to help build your email list.

You can also offer some of these downloads as a bonus for your most valued readers to help improve your relationship and strengthen your brand.

Plus, you can even create a simple membership site, where you can put your members-only guides and other content behind a paywall.

That being said, let’s show you how to easily add a download link in WordPress. Simply use the quick links below to jump straight to the method you want to use.

• Add a simple download link with built-in WordPress settings
• Add a popup download link in WordPress using OptinMonster
• Add premium members-only download links in WordPress

Method 1. Add a Simple Download Link With Built-in WordPress Settings

The easiest way to add a download link in WordPress is by using the block editor. Simply open up a page or post where you want to add a download link and then click the ‘Plus’ add block button.

After that, search for ‘File’ and then click the block.

Then, you can upload a file by clicking the ‘Upload’ button or choose one you’ve already uploaded to your media library.

Once you add the file, it will automatically display with the download link. When your users click this, it will download the file.

To change the name of the link, simply click on the text and edit it. 

There are different display options that you can customize in the right hand panel depending on the type of file you added.

For example, if you upload a PDF file, then you can choose for the link to go directly to the media file, or open it on a separate attachment page.

You can also make the download open in a new tab by clicking the toggle.

Below that, you can also add a download button next to your link by clicking the ‘Show download button’ toggle.

Once you’re finished making changes, click the ‘Save’ or ‘Publish’ button to make your download link live.

Now, you can visit your WordPress website to see your download link in action.

Add a Simple Download Link by Uploading Files to Media Library

Another way to add a download link to a file is to first upload it to your media library by navigating to Media » Add New and then upload your file.

Next, you need to click on the file to open it.

Then, copy the URL in the ‘File URL’ box.

Now, you can navigate to the post or page where you want to add the download link.

Then, add some text, click the ‘Link’ icon and paste the URL you just copied into the box.

You can also make the link open in the new tab by clicking the ‘Open in new tab’ toggle.

The right-hand side of the screen lets you change the link color, size, typography, and more.

When you’re finished making changes, click the ‘Update’ or ‘Publish’ button to make your download link live.

Now, you can go to your WordPress blog to see your new download link.

Method 2. Add a Popup Download Link in WordPress Using OptinMonster

Another way you can add download links to your site is by using the OptinMonster plugin. It’s one of the best popup plugins and best lead generation plugins for WordPress used by over 1.2 million websites.

It has a unique technology that lets you create on-click popups that open when a user clicks a link. These can be used to deliver content upgrades, digital downloads, email required downloads, and more. 

This style of popup relies on the powerful Zeigarnik effect. This psychological principle states that users who start an action are more likely to finish it.

Since your users are already showing interest, they’re more likely to use your download or enter their email addresses. 

To learn more, see our guide on how to open a WordPress popup form on click of link or image.

You can also manage and track your file downloads to see what your users click on and download the most. To learn more, see our guide on how to manage, track, and control file downloads in WordPress.

Method 3. Add Premium Members Only Downloads Link in WordPress

If you’re looking to sell downloadable files on your WordPress site or looking to create a members only area, then you have few different options.

For creating a membership site or selling courses online, you can use the MemberPress plugin. It’s the best WordPress membership plugin that lets you setup membership levels, add members-only protected downloads, create courses, add lessons, and more.

Alternatively, you can use the popular Easy Digital Downloads plugin. This plugin is focused on selling premium downloads like eBooks, music, software, and more. It comes with recurring subscriptions, licensing support, protected downloads, and more. This is what we use to sell our plugins.

To get started, use the SiteGround EDD hosting plan which makes set up easy, or download the plugin from Easy Digital Downloads website.

After that, you can set up downloads as individual products that people can purchase, or download for free in exchange for an email address.

We hope this article helped you learn how to add a download link in WordPress. You may also want to see our guide on how to register a domain name and our expert picks of the best virtual business phone number apps with free options.

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 Easily Add a Download Link in WordPress (3 Ways) first appeared on WPBeginner.

May 04, 2022 at 04:00PM

Beginner’s Guide: How to Use WordPress Block Patterns

Do you want to learn how to use WordPress block patterns on your website?

Block patterns allow you to quickly add commonly used design elements to your post or page layouts.

In this article, we’ll show you how to use WordPress block patterns and find more patterns to use on your website.

Here are the topics we’ll cover in this guide.

• What are WordPress Block Patterns
• How to Use Block Patterns in WordPress
• Finding More Block Patterns to Use on Your Website
• How to Create and Share Your Own Block Patterns
• Creating WordPress Block Patterns Manually
• Remove a Block Pattern in WordPress
• What’s The Difference Between Reusable Blocks and Block Patterns

What are WordPress Block Patterns?

WordPress block patterns are a collection of pre-made design elements that you can use for creating custom content layouts faster.

WordPress comes with an intuitive editor commonly known as the block editor. It allows users to create beautiful layouts for their posts and pages using blocks for common content elements.

However, not all WordPress users are designers or want to spend time creating layouts each time they need to create a post or page.

Block patterns provide an easy solution to that problem. WordPress now comes with a bunch of useful block patterns by default.

Popular WordPress themes also provide their own patterns that you can use when writing content.

These patterns include items like pre-built multi-column layouts, media and text patterns, call-to-action patterns, headers, buttons, and more.

You can find even more patterns on the WordPress.org website, and you can even create and share your own patterns as well.

That being said, let’s take a look at how to easily use block patterns in WordPress to create beautiful content for your website.

How to Use Block Patterns in WordPress

By default, WordPress comes with a bunch of useful block patterns that you can use on your website. Your WordPress theme and some plugins may also add their own patterns.

To use block patterns, you need to edit the WordPress post or page where you want to use the block pattern.

On the post edit screen, click on the Add Block button to open the block inserter. From here, switch to the Patterns tab to view available block patterns.

You can scroll down to see available block patterns.

You can also view block patterns in different categories like featured, buttons, columns, header, and more.

Alternatively, you can also click on the Explore button to view block patterns.

Here you can see larger previews in a popup.

Once you find a pattern you want to try, you can simply click to insert it to the content area of your post or page.

After that, you can simply point and click on any block inside the pattern to edit and change its contents to your own requirements.

You’ll still have all the options you normally have for each block. For instance, if it is a cover block, then you can change the cover color or background image.

You can add as many patterns as you need for your blog post or page. You can also simply delete a pattern to remove it from a post or page like you would delete any WordPress block.

By using block patterns, you can quickly make beautiful layouts for your articles and WordPress site.

Ultimately, block patterns help save you time that you would otherwise spend on manually arranging blocks each time you need to add a header, gallery, buttons, and more.

Finding More Block Patterns to Use on Your Website

By default, WordPress comes with a few commonly used block patterns. WordPress themes may also add their own patterns to your website.

However, you can find a lot more block patterns than the ones available under the block inserter on your website.

Simply go to the WordPress Patterns Directory website to view many more block patterns.

Here you’ll find many more block patterns submitted by the WordPress community.

To use one of these block patterns, simply take your mouse over to the block pattern and click on the Copy button.

Next, you need to go back to your WordPress blog and edit the post or page where you want to insert this block pattern.

On the post edit screen, simply right-click and select Paste in the browser menu or press CTRL+V (Command + V on Mac).

How to Create and Share Your Own Block Patterns

Want to create and share your own WordPress block patterns and share them with the world?

WordPress makes it super easy to create block patterns and use them on your own websites or share them with all WordPress users across the globe.

Simply visit the WordPress Pattern Directory website and click on the ‘Create New Pattern’ link.

Note: You’ll need to sign in or create a free WordPress.org account to save your patterns.

Once signed in, you’ll reach the block pattern editor page. It is identical to the default WordPress block editor, and you can use it to create your pattern.

Simply add blocks to create your pattern layout.

You can use layout blocks like group, cover, gallery, and more to organize your layout.

There are also royalty-free images available to use in your media blocks. The WordPress media library will allow you to easily find and use these images in your patterns.

Once you are satisfied with your block pattern, you can save it as a draft or submit it to the pattern directory.

Before you can submit your block pattern for the pattern directory, make sure that you have read block pattern directory guidelines.

You can manage all your block patterns by clicking on the My Patterns link. It will show all block patterns you have shared, draft patterns, and patterns you have favorited.

If you only want to create block patterns for your own use, then you can save them as drafts. After that, you can simply copy and paste them from My Patterns page to your WordPress website.

Creating WordPress Block Patterns Manually

You can also create block patterns manually and add them to your WordPress theme or custom snippets plugin.

Simply create a new post or page in WordPress. In the content area, use blocks to create a custom layout or block collection that you want to save as a pattern.

After that, switch to the Code Editor mode and copy all content you see in the code editor.

Next, open a plain text editor like Notepad and paste that code in there. You’ll need it in the next step.

Now you are ready to register your blocks as a pattern.

To do that, simply copy and paste the following code into your theme’s functions.php file or a site-specific plugin.

function wpb_my_block_patterns() {
    register_block_pattern(
        'my-plugin/my-awesome-pattern',
        array(
            'title'       => __( 'Two column magazine layout', 'my-theme'),
            'description' => _x( 'A simple magazine style two-column layout with large image and stylized text', 'my-theme' ),
            'categories'  => array( 'columns' ),
            'content'     => ' Your block content code goes here'
            )
    );
}
add_action( 'init', 'wpb_my_block_patterns' );

Now copy and paste the raw blocks data you copied earlier as the value for the content parameter. In other words, you’ll need to replace the text that says ‘Your block content code goes here’ with your block code. Be sure to leave the single quotes surrounding the text in place.

Lastly, don’t forget to change the title and description to your own and save your changes.

You can now visit your website and edit and post or page. You’ll now be able to see your newly registered block pattern in the block inserter.

Remove a Block Pattern in WordPress

You can easily remove or unregister any block pattern in WordPress. Let’s say you want to remove the block pattern you created in the above example.

All you need to do is copy paste the following code to your theme’s functions.php file or a site-specific plugin.

function wpb_unregister_my_patterns() {
  unregister_block_pattern( 'my-plugin/my-awesome-pattern' );
}
add_action( 'init', 'wpb_unregister_my_patterns' );

In this example, 'my-plugin/my-awesome-pattern' is the name of the pattern we used when registering it.

You can use this code to unregister any block pattern created by your theme or a plugin. All you need to know is the name used to register the pattern.

Remove Core WordPress Patterns

The core WordPress patterns are available to all WordPress users. This means they may be over used and might not even match rest of your WordPress theme.

If you don’t want to use a pattern, then you can simply avoid adding it to your content. However, if you run a multi author WordPress site, then you may want to prevent all users from using these core patterns.

To remove all core WordPress patterns, you need to add the following code to your theme’s functions file or a site-specific plugin.

remove_theme_support( 'core-block-patterns' );

What’s The Difference Between Reusable Blocks and Block Patterns?

Block patterns and reusable blocks both intend to solve a similar problem: provide users with options to easily add commonly used blocks.

However, they are quite different from each other.

For instance, reusable blocks can be edited and saved right inside the post editor, but they are not as flexible as block patterns.

One big difference is that if you make a change to a reusable block, it changes the block on every post or page you’ve used it on.

For more details, see our tutorial on how to use reusable blocks in WordPress.

On the other hand, if you insert a pattern and edit it, then those changes only apply to the post or page where you have added that pattern.

Block patterns can also be registered by your WordPress theme or plugins such as block plugins. This allows those developers to offer you a lot more design options to create your post and page layouts.

We hope this guide helped you learn how to use WordPress block patterns on your website. You may also want to see our guide on how to choose the best web design software, or our expert pick of the best email marketing services for small business.

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 Beginner’s Guide: How to Use WordPress Block Patterns first appeared on WPBeginner.

May 03, 2022 at 04:00PM