This week’s #sbbuzz chat was hosted by the very talented Mikey Hougland, @lamikey. Topics included WordPress hosting, plugins, SEO, WordCamp and more.
- We’re on every Tuesday from 8-9 pm EST. The next chat will be held on March 30, 2010.
- You can read the instructions on how to participate here: http://sbbuzz.biz/instructions
- Invite others to join in, help them get started. We started this chat to facilitate conversation between small biz owners.
| sbbuzz: | Welcome to #sbbuzz, a Tweetchat for the next hour of small biz talking technology on Twitter. Join us! http://sbbuzz.biz/instructions |
| sbbuzz: | Rules: 1)NO pitching till end 2)Be nice 3)Stay ON TOPIC! 4)Send ?s for group to me w/o hashtag 5)Use #sbbuzz in all messages 6)Have fun! |
| sbbuzz: | Start off w/an INTRO: 1 message about you and your business and whatever else we need to know. #sbbuzz |
| RisingStarIdeas: | Participating in #sbbuzz, a Tweetchat for the next hour of small biz talking technology on Twitter. Join us! http://sbbuzz.biz/instructions |
| lamikey: | Hi, I’m Mikey Hougland, designer at @batchblue and ready to dig into WordPress! #sbbuzz |
| TAPmktg: | #sbbuzz – Hello All! Tap Online is a(n) #smb focused web design, development, and hosting firm with a special love for WordPress. |
| lindadessau: | I help coaches & other small biz owners write quality online content for newsletters, blogs, etc. http://snipr.com/t1pw5 (Intro for #sbbuzz |
| ginabee: | Good evening, buzzers! Gina here w/ WriteyTidy writing & content creation. Excited to hear Mikey’s pearls of WordPress wisdom! #sbbuzz |
| RisingStarIdeas: | @lindadessau thanks its always a pleasure meeting people here and learning about some cool tech stuff. #sbbuzz |
| TraceyHolinka: | Hi. I?m a web designr/developr @chaostoclarity. I use WordPress extensively but interested in what others do. #sbbuzz |
| RisingStarIdeas: | hello tech gang! I Find cool free online tools to help small business owners save time and money. #sbbuzz |
| batchblue: | Tonight’s #sbbuzz now starting – covering all things WordPress with a couple of hip designers! Come join us: http://bit.ly/9jZ1FP |
| SeeboldMarCom: | hello all – I am a social media and marketing consultant to large and small biz, gov and npo’s. #sbbuzz |
| TAPmktg: | @TraceyHolinka #sbbuzz: Gotta love WordPress! Such an accessible way to get clients communicating effectively online! |
| mriggen: | @sbbuzz I’m Michelle Riggen-Ransom from @batchblue. I’m also president of the @lamikey fan club. And treasurer. #sbbuzz |
| sbbuzz: | Tonight we have brilliant web designer @lamikey sharing WordPress tips & tricks. Send me any ?s you have for her or the group. #sbbuzz |
| scoblitz: | @sbbuzz Intro: Scott Blitstein, blogger, thinker, go-to guy, and customer experience @batchblue. #sbbuzz |
| mhelfrich98: | #sbbuzz @mhelfrich98 I’m Maureen Helfrich. Planning start-up small business with my husband @studentlifeguru my background is ID and ELEM |
| sbbuzz: | @lamikey Great to have you here for the blogging bonanza. Everyone – feel free to jump in w/follow up questions, but stay on topic #sbbuzz |
| TraceyHolinka: | @TAPmktg Agreed. I use Thesis as a framework. Great combo. #sbbuzz |
| selahsynergy: | Greetings All. Susan here from Selah Synergy. Looking forward to learning tonight as I am going through a WP redesign  #sbbuzz |
| mriggen: | @mhelfrich98 Hi Maureen – sounds exciting! you’ll have to tell us at pitch time what the new biz is #sbbuzz |
| sbbuzz: | Q1 How do you set up a WordPress site? How can you get your own look and feel #sbbuzz? |
| shipwire: | #sbbuzz I just set one up for my personal domain and found the hosted WordPress Very easy. No google analytics though… |
| shipwire: | I’m Nate Gilmore with Shipwire order fulfillment and I help man two WordPress blogs @sbbuzz #sbbuzz |
| lamikey: | @sbbuzz Q1 set up: I recommend a self-hosted solution. There are a number of hosts that make WordPress installation a breeze. #sbbuzz |
| lamikey: | @sbbuzz Q1: WordPress offers additional information on hosts and hosting requirements here: http://wordpress.org/hosting/ #sbbuzz |
| RisingStarIdeas: | A1 true! With the right hosting company you can install wordpress with the click of a button #sbbuzz |
| michellegust: | Q1: many hosts provide fantastico for easy setup of a self-hosted wordpress. #sbbuzz |
| lamikey: | @sbbuzz Q1 look and feel can be customized by changing your theme. there are a number of free and premium themes available or… #sbbuzz |
| lamikey: | @sbbuzz Q1 … you can work with a designer or developer to get a custom theme for your business. #sbbuzz |
| TraceyHolinka: | A1: Bluehost is a great host for WordPress blogs/websites. Use them for most of my clients. http://www.bluehost.com/ #sbbuzz |
| TAPmktg: | #sbbuzz – Make sure your designer knows the ins and outs of WP. No point in having a pretty WP site designed if it can’t be implemented! |
| sbbuzz: | Q2 from @scoblitz How do you choose among the hundreds of different plugins available? What are your go-tos? #sbbuzz |
| RisingStarIdeas: | A2: to me plugins are what makes WordPress the best tool around! #sbbuzz |
| lamikey: | @sbbuzz Q2: Good question and also what I love about WordPress. There are new and better extensions coming out all the time! #sbbuzz |
| TAPmktg: | #sbbuzz: Very carefully? Seriously, I’ve had many clients insist on overloading with plugins. Must prioritize plugins based on goals! |
| shipwire: | Question options: 1. Best SEO extensions for WP? 2.extension for product tutorial like flow? (perhaps just screenshot mgmt) #sbbuzz |
| TAPmktg: | #sbbuzz: Advanced Excerpt, Smart Youtube, various SEO plugins: Ultimate, Platinum, etc. |
| RisingStarIdeas: | @TAPmktg good point. I can not find documented anywhere how many plugins are to many. Do you know? #sbbuzz |
| TAPmktg: | @risingstarideas #sbbuzz: Just pay attention to page load times, that will give you an idea of “too many!” |
| JoeCascio: | I’m an independent developer. And I have had sushi with @lamikey and @mriggen. So there. #sbbuzz |
| lamikey: | @sbbuzz Q2 my essentials: Akismet (preinstalled)-spam, All-in-One SEO, WordPress Database Backup. I opt to code some essentials … #sbbuzz |
| lindadessau: | @TAPmktg I’ve noticed that some WP blogs and websites seem a bit slower to load. I didn’t realize it was the plug-ins! #sbbuzz |
| mriggen: | @JoeCascio Good evening, Joe! #sbbuzz |
| JoeCascio: | Most useful WP plugin? Search-Regex. Awesome!! #sbbuzz |
| lamikey: | @sbbuzz Q2 over plugins such as Google Analytics. There definitely is such thing as too many plugins. #sbbuzz |
| michellegust: | @lindadessau Not only can wp-plugins affect load time but also the host itself. #sbbuzz |
| stellel: | #sbbuzz just read this article about “essential” plug-ins: http://bit.ly/9qbYqR Pretty interesting. |
| lindadessau: | @michellegust Can you say more about that? #sbbuzz |
| sbbuzz: | Q3 from @lindadessau Any comments about Typepad versus WordPress and why? #sbbuzz |
| TAPmktg: | @lindadessau #sbbuzz: Too many javascript queries, etc (due to plugins) can slow it down. @michellegust: Very true! Get a good host! |
| lindadessau: | Q3 Please don’t throw tomatoes at the Typepad girl – I’m trying to be open-minded! #sbbuzz |
| RisingStarIdeas: | A2: WP plugins I love incldue: Google analytics, All-in-One SEO, TweetMeme Retweet Button #sbbuzz |
| michellegust: | @lindadessau I’m still learning more about how host can affect site now that Google algo includes load time as well. #sbbuzz |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | Q2 Go to Plugins, poular est r listed. Askimet (anti spam, AlInOneSEO, Google Analytics, wpdatabasebckup, tweetmeme, add2any #sbbuzz |
| RisingStarIdeas: | @lindadessau funny! no tomatoes I never used Typepad why do you like it? #sbbuzz |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | Q3 – I am bias as a WordPress girl, but it seems to be winning the war of keeping up w chages, strong pro themes, grt plugins #sbbuzz |
| RisingStarIdeas: | @TAPmktg yes but I need a number range I dont’ want to wait until I break it to find out I have too many plugins #sbbuzz |
| lamikey: | @sbbuzz Q3 Can I get a phone a friend? I haven’t looked at Typepad in probably 5 years. I’m sure a lot has changed. #sbbuzz |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | Sorry to be late – I’m a PR Pro of 20+ years, who has let her geek girl out of the closet to make tech easy 4 others #sbbuzz |
| scoblitz: | @RisingStarIdeas hard to give that sort of number, some plugins use more resources than others – depends on “which” plugins you use. #sbbuzz |
| TAPmktg: | #sbbuzz – I’ve never done dev for TypePad, but the WP platform & dev community has serious support in terms of extensibility. A good basis. |
| mhelfrich98: | @sbbuzz Q2 over plugins such as Google Analytics. There definitely is such thing as too many plugins. #sbbuzz |
| lindadessau: | @RisingStarIdeas It feels safer to be hosted; there is tech support; I don’t have to worry about upgrades, etc. it’s all handled. #sbbuzz |
| mhelfrich98: | @sbbuzz Q2 my essentials: Akismet (preinstalled)-spam, All-in-One SEO, WordPress Database Backup. I opt to code some essentials … #sbbuzz |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | try ww.tweetchat.com plugn #sbbuzz – it adds it to your tweets automatically |
| RisingStarIdeas: | @TAPmktg @scoblitz guess there no hard rule that says X amount is to many plugins #sbbuzz |
| lindadessau: | @lamikey LOL, phone away. Fair enough – WP is what you know, so I understand it’s hard to answer. #sbbuzz |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | @SeeboldMarCom hey check out #SBBuzz – it’s on wordpress how to – NOW til 9pm ET tweetgrid link http://is.gd/brDho |
| RisingStarIdeas: | @lindadessau does typepad point to your own domain name? WP has made it much easier to upgrade to the latest version. #sbbuzz |
| TraceyHolinka: | @RisingStarIdeas You wan to be minimalist with plugins. Number to “break” also depends on theme–how good the code is. #sbbuzz |
| lamikey: | @JoeCascio I would like to nominate Search-Regex for an “arse-saver of the year award”. #sbbuzz |
| RisingStarIdeas: | @lindadessau but upgrading can be a chore if you have a ton of sites or hacked your template. #sbbuzz |
| sbbuzz: | Q4 from @mhelfrich9 Can you use WP on own domain and have good SEO? What are good SEO techniques? #sbbuzz |
| TAPmktg: | @RisingStarIdeas #sbbuzz: Very true! Less is more w/ plugins, though. Let your content be the key element! |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | yup @jerseymomma there are 2 WP google analytics plugins,1by that name & google analyticator. Thesis theme has a analytic s built-in #sbbuzz |
| lindadessau: | @RisingStarIdeas You can map your Typepad site to your own domain pretty easily. And yes, the auto-upgrade plugins WP are very cool. #sbbuzz |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | Q4 yes, @mhelfrich9, WP has good SEO -just use a plugin like AllinOneSEO pack & be sure to change yr “permalinks” #sbbuzz |
| JoeCascio: | @lamikey Exactly!! I found out about it at WordCampBoston. Makes moving a site from a dev domain to production so easy. #sbbuzz |
| TAPmktg: | #sbbuzz: Yes! Careful mgmt of meta tags via a good SEO plugin, elimination of duplicate content. A good dev will go a long way! |
| RisingStarIdeas: | @scoblitz @TAPmktg @TraceyHolinka what are your “gotta have” plugins? #sbbuzz |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | Q4 @mhelfrich9 chg permalinks to include at least the%postname%, and use key-word rich headlines, not cutsie ones #sbbuzz |
| lamikey: | @sbbuzz Absolutely! I’m a fan of All-in-One SEO, it automates things and simplifies the process for the SEO beginner. #sbbuzz |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | Q4 @mhelfrich9 – if not already discussed youse WordPress.ORG not .com on your own domain name/URL #sbbuzz |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | RT @lamikey: @sbbuzz Absolutely! I’m a fan of All-in-One SEO, it automates things & simplifies process for SEO beginners. [yes!] #sbbuzz |
| TAPmktg: | @lamikey #sbbuzz: Agreed on “All-in-One” – Good for getting things rolling on your WP site! |
| ImAfterdotcom: | On Twitter: sbbuzz: Q3 from @lindadessau Any comments about Typepad versus WordPress and why? #sbbuzz http://bit.ly/92QmJM |
| ImAfterdotcom: | On Twitter: sbbuzz: Q1 How do you set up a WordPress site? How can you get your own look and feel #sbbuzz? http://bit.ly/cWuOPy |
| lamikey: | @sbbuzz Q4 always remember that good content writing optimized for keywords is a must. meta tags alone won’t do it. #sbbuzz |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | premium themes like headway and thesis both include good SEO options built-in and clean code – helps Goog “like” sites #sbbuzz |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | @SeeboldMarCom glad you could make it! #sbbuzz |
| JoeCascio: | #sbbuzz When it comes right down to it, SEO is pretty simple. All-in-one give you everything you need. Not rocket science, just diligence. |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | Q4 @lamikey agreed! content that blance targteed writing 4 yr audience, with good keywords goes a long way. keyword headlines 2 #sbbuzz |
| sbbuzz: | Q5 from @TAPmktg What issues have folks had w/ WP, esp self-hosted, in terms of small business? #sbbuzz |
| lamikey: | @TAPmktg I love it mostly because I’ve never had a problem training anyone to use it! #sbbuzz |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | Q4 what SEO means – is balancing writi good content 4 people w stuf behind the scenes that search engines like (headlines etc) #sbbuzz |
| scoblitz: | @RisingStarIdeas some more obscure favorites of mine are WPaudio, CDN tools, and Mollom for anti-spam. #sbbuzz |
| TraceyHolinka: | @RisingStarIdeas Broken Link Checker, Google XML Sitemaps, Subscribe To Comments, WP-CMS Post Control, Permalinks Moved Permanently #sbbuzz |
| mriggen: | @sbbuzz Who’s been to WordCamp? Is it useful for newbies, or more for folks who use it a lot? #sbbuzz |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | Q5 @TAPmktg -what thype of issues? you can set up a blog so it doesn’t look like one #sbbuzz |
| RisingStarIdeas: | @scoblitz @TraceyHolinka Nice WP plugin list thanks! #sbbuzz |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | @mriggen I am sure moste wordcamps, podcamps, blog camps are great inexpensive unconferences – I started in @podcampphily ’07 #sbbuzz |
| stellel: | #sbbuzz @mriggen I went to WordCamp Boston. There was something for everyone. Really affordable & fun, too! |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | Q5 @TAPmktg – What a blog dows, with a strong strategy behind it, is allow a smallbiz to showcase their knowledge in a helpful way #sbbuzz |
| lamikey: | @sbbuzz Q5 One problem I’ve had when working w/ clients and small, independent hosts is clarifying who is responsible for updates. #sbbuzz |
| TraceyHolinka: | @RisingStarIdeas Make sure plugins fit your needs. Don’t leave them installed if they don’t. Will slow your blog/website down. #sbbuzz |
| JoeCascio: | WordCamp TOTALLY worth it for newbies. In fact, especially for newbies, just for the people you meet who can help you. #sbbuzz |
| TAPmktg: | #sbbuzz: Many clients are reluctant to “relegate” to WP, when it is a seriously good basis for a site or blog. Anyone in that boat? |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | @TAPmktg Got it- my clients have seen their WP blog posts get indexed by Google the next day. w/in 1 month front page 4 keywrd #sbbuzz |
| lamikey: | @sbbuzz Q5 fortunately WordPress has become even easier to update to an earlier version. #sbbuzz |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | @TAPmktg have had one client’s blog have a pagerank of 4 within 6 months (although she is blogging 2/wk & active in Social media) #sbbuzz |
| FloridaSunSales: | @JoeCascio Hoping we get some great bloggers coming to #REBCORL to share with some hungry newbies. #sbbuzz |
| bradfordshimp: | Q5 – Once you get used to the interface, updating WP is easy. Can even do it from Microsoft Word. #sbbuzz |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | #ChatTIp: mark with star or favorite the tweets of those you found useful & follow them or add 2 a list #sbbuzz |
| shipwire: | #sbbuzz @sbbuzz on the WordPress e-commerce front. There are new plugins. @shopplugin looks well supported. I’ve also seen WP Commerce |
| sbbuzz: | @lamikey Q6 Introduce the cute pooch! #sbbuzz |
| TraceyHolinka: | @TAPmktg Putting many of my clients website into WP/Thesis. Most are okay once I explain the benefits. #sbbuzz |
| mriggen: | @sbbuzz Thanks all from WordCamp feedback! Here’s link FYI for folks: http://central.wordcamp.org/ #sbbuzz |
| RisingStarIdeas: | @lamikey awww what a QT! #sbbuzz |
| bradfordshimp: | @TraceyHolinka There has to be a plug in for that!! #sbbuzz |
| shipwire: | @sbbuzz Thx all #sbbuzz http://www.shipwire.com: ecommerce product fulfillment in the U.S., Canada and UK. WordPress integrations too:) |
| sbbuzz: | THanks so much to @lamikey @scoutsprout and everyone for so many great tips tonight! Great discussion. #sbbuzz |
| lindadessau: | @scoutsprout Nice to meet you, and happy birthday! My @chyna_greyound used to tweet. Sadly, she passed away last month. #sbbuzz |
| TAPmktg: | #sbbuzz: My first week here! Looking forward to next week! Thanks for the idea @shipwire. I’ll look into it. |
| bradfordshimp: | Oh, btw, anyone know a good place to find WP plug in designers? Have a few ideas I would like to discuss. #sbbuzz |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | Small biz need 2 put strategy behind blogging; ID yr audience, write content 2 meet their “pain points”/needs #sbbuzz |
| Steve_McIntyre: | What are the WP lover’s opinion of Joomla? #sbbuzz |
| sbbuzz: | Thanks to everyone for all the great discussion! We’ll get the #sbbuzz summary posted on the site soon at http://sbbuzz.biz |
| RisingStarIdeas: | Visit 101FreeTools.com Your Small Business Toolbox FREE articles, tips, tools & more Follow one of the best best small biz resources #sbbuzz |
| sbbuzz: | If you’d like a once-a-week e-mail reminder of #sbbuzz (including the topic) sign up at http://sbbuzz.net #sbbuzz |
| bradfordshimp: | @sbbuzz You send the summary in the email, right? Trying to make sure I remember to check this one out. #sbbuzz |
| lamikey: | @TAPmktg I haven’t had a problem convincing a client to use WP in a long time. So many great, robust examples and so easy to learn. #sbbuzz |
| TraceyHolinka: | @Steve_McIntyre Joomla is okay for big sites but WP is great for small site & is easier to use. #sbbuzz |
| sbbuzz: | #sbbuzz is a small business Twitter chat hosted each Tuesday night by the folks from @batchblue Come again soon! |
| lindadessau: | @sbbuzz Thanks @lamikey, the bee and everyone! Now take a break from being brilliant: http://www.aweber.com/b/26hSn (pitch time on # #sbbuzz |
| RisingStarIdeas: | @Steve_McIntyre I switch from Joomla to WP. I find WP much easier and way more plugin and theme options #sbbuzz |
| selahsynergy: | Great show tonight. Learned a lot! Pitch: Strategic innovation partner to small business. Find me at http://www.selahsynergy.com. #sbbuzz |
| mriggen: | @sbbuzz Thanks all! I’m with @batchblue, makers of BatchBook Social CRM & other stuff for small biz. Happy birthday @scoutsprout! #sbbuzz |
| bradfordshimp: | The only reason to use Joomla is because you already do. #sbbuzz |
| pmohara: | Hi all – Pamela the #sbbuzz moderator here. Having Tweetdeck probs tonight, so just joined in as the bee. AWESOME discussion. |
| TraceyHolinka: | Great chat. @chaostoclarity helps small biz & freelancers use social networking/media & the Web to grow their biz #chaostoclarity #sbbuzz |
| scoblitz: | @sbbuzz Great chat tonight – thanks @lamikey for the tips! And Happy Birthday @scoutsprout! Can dogs eat donut cake? #sbbuzz |
| bradfordshimp: | Pitch: I host a podcast for small business at AllBizAnswers.com. If you have something to say about small biz, let me know. #sbbuzz |
| scoblitz: | @bradfordshimp even then I would have trouble recommending it… #sbbuzz |
| lindadessau: | @bradfordshimp I wonder if that’s partially true for me and Typepad – I’m SO afraid of the migration nightmare. #sbbuzz |
| lamikey: | @sbbuzz Thanks for letting me chat with you all. Excited to see the great things you all are doing with WordPress! #sbbuzz |
| stellel: | #sbbuzz Happy birthday @scoutsprout! Gonna need a donut cake! Bone shaped? |
| bradfordshimp: | @scoblitz It always seemed too complicated. #sbbuzz |
| michellegust: | Pitch: My company is Mid Columbia Webs which specializes in implementing WordPress for small businesses. Local Search focused. #sbbuzz |
| Steve_McIntyre: | @bradfordshimp the more CMS I know inside and out, the better. #sbbuzz |
| bradfordshimp: | @lindadessau That is a tough one, migration. Glad I got it right in the first place  #sbbuzz |
| mriggen: | @sbbuzz Oh also, come vote on what should be our new contact icon! The robots are taking over… http://bit.ly/9dE9Ga #sbbuzz |
| bradfordshimp: | @lindadessau But really, if it is meeting your needs for your site, I wouldn’t change. #sbbuzz |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | @scoutsprout Happy Birthday to You, Happy Birthday to You, Happy Birthday to You, Happy Birthday to You {les than140 chars!] #sbbuzz |
| TraceyHolinka: | @lindadessau Agree with @bradfordshimp . If it meets your needs then you don’t need to change. #sbbuzz |
| lindadessau: | @bradfordshimp The jury is still out on that! Thanks for your thoughts. #sbbuzz |
| scoblitz: | @lindadessau Typepad is a fine platform, don’t be in a rush to change if what you have works. WP is good but it’s also well hyped. #sbbuzz |
| CathyWebSavvyPR: | Great chat @lamikey. I’m a PR pro who helps people promote their biz: setting up wordpress sites & blog/SM strategy 2 full PRplans #sbbuzz |
