Pexels / Pixabay

The Webflow vs. WordPress battle has been upon different sites, differentiating these two prominent web builders in the market. And while both have features that make them stand out from one another, it is important to get into the groove of knowing which one will work for you.

This post compares these solutions software and their pros and cons to help you choose which one suits your needs. 

Contents

Main Differences

 

What Is Webflow?

 

What Is WordPress?

 

Better For Seo

 

FAQs

 

More Awesome Tips

Webflow vs. WordPress: Main Differences

Pexels / Andrea Piacquadio

The main difference between Webflow and WordPress is the type of software solution. Unlike WordPress, which is an open-source system, WebFlow is a Software as a Service or SaaS. 

An open-source system like WordPress lets you modify and develop codes to customize their site and fulfill the needs of your business for a reasonable cost. It appeals to users of any skill level because it is easy to use, although users will have to handle hosting, security, and performance.

Webflow, being a SaaS, can be accessed through a browser and does not need to be downloaded. As a visual content management system that appeals to web designers, it can be used to create and customize websites and have hosting, security, and website performance taken care of. This means it does everything for you. 

What Is Webflow?

Pexels / Vlada Karpovich

In 2013, Webflow made it big, being the world’s first visual content management system. This software is famous among graphic designers who want to express their creativity by building responsive websites around content. And you can do all of these without having to make a single line of code. Instead of writing a code, you manipulate your site visually. Webflow University offers tutorials to teach you about designing and building websites through the software.

Webflow Design (Themes & Templates)

Pexels / Tranmautritam

Web flows collection of themes and templates can help you easily design your websites. You can choose from free and premium designs. With Webflow designer, you can easily customize your site’s template without replacing your entire website design and layout. There’s also a chance to test a certain template to see how your site will look before deciding on shelling some extra bucks for it.

Webflow’s Content Management

Pexels / Picjumbocom

One of Webflow’s selling points is that you can create content and play with your designs with zero coding. If you have a team working on projects, they can easily create and update them, making collaborating smoother. Webflow CMS also allows you to create and manage blog posts without creating each blog post page.

ECommerce Functionality of Webflow

Pexels / Nataliya Vaitkevich

Webflow comes with an integrated eCommerce engine that helps online retailers build, design, and launch their stores. It is highly customizable, which is good for business owners that want their sites to stand out. You can easily customize the flow from product grids, pages, and shopping carts, to checkout pages. With Webflow, it is also possible to track your website’s performance and order status, and it even allows you to make changes be it in shipping and payments, 24/7. 

Webflow Pricing

Pexels / Anna Shvets

Webflow comes in various package site plans, each offering more advanced features. There’s the Website plan which can cost you $12 to $36 per month, depending on your needs. But if you don’t want to be limited or are working as a freelance web designer, the Webflow Lite or Pro plan is for you, the latter being more expensive, starting from $35 per month.

Webflow: Pros and Cons

Pexels / George Milton

No matter how popular software is, you still have to delve into its good and bad to see what works for you.

Here are some of the pros and cons of using Webflow.

Pros

• Packed with many features suitable for blogging down to eCommerce
• No need to do any coding
• Comes with a wide range of plans to choose from
• Provides good CMS, eCommerce, and customer support
• Webflow website offers practical tutorials upon signing up
• Creates a super clean code

Cons

• A complex level of code customization is impossible.
• The steep learning curve for some who don’t have a web development background
• A bit more expensive than some of its rivals
• Many SEOs don’t know how to work with Webflow

What Is WordPress?

Splash / Justion Morgan

WordPress is an open-source content management system that started as a free blogging site in 2003 and has been powering about one-third of websites worldwide. This go-to website builder became famous among content creators and even business companies because of the endless possibilities you can do with it. It is so easy to use that a WordPress user can easily do website building with just a few clicks.

WordPress Design (Templates & Themes)

Unsplash / WebFactory Ltd

When it comes to web design, A WordPress theme lets you take control of your site’s overall appearance and presentation. There are multipurpose themes that can be used for any site type. Then there are also the niche-specific themes that can be customized to whatever industry you’re in. You can also choose between a free and a premium theme depending on your budget, the theme’s functionality and design, and reviews. If there are more complicated tasks you want to do with the platform, there are many WordPress experts and website builders who offer services in areas you might not be familiar with. 

WordPress Content Management

Unsplash / Tran Mau Tri Tam

The WordPress platform and CMS system are easy to install, set up, and use. Even without knowledge of HTML, CSS, JavaScript, or PHP, newcomers can start using it. WordPress uses a variety of free or paid niche-specific plugins. There are about 50,000 plugins on their archive. It gives you an option to choose between a free and premium plugin, which can extend the functionality of your site. 

ECommerce Functionality of WordPress

Unsplash / S O C I A L . C U T

 Although it does not come with its integrated eCommerce engine, it still offers top-level functionality for digital marketing. WordPress eCommerce’s multi-user capability enables businesses or an online store to collaborate with a team that includes Admin, Editor, Author, Contributor, and Subscriber by just assigning members to these roles. This lets owners easily control their site depending on the tasks at hand. 

WordPress Pricing

Unsplash / Angele Kamp

WordPress has gained popularity also by being free, open-source software. And although you can use it for free, WordPress hosting does cost some extra bucks, around $3-$35 per month. When it comes to a theme or a page builder, it can cost you from $30-$200 per year. WordPress’ site plan 

WordPress: Pros and Cons

Unsplash / Susan Q Yin

The WordPress site is a popular choice for bloggers of any level. But before jumping into it, read on the WordPress pros and cons to help you decide if it’s the right one for you.

Pros

• This page builder is easy to use.
• There’s a wide range of free and paid plugins depending on your needs
• SEO plugin makes optimization easier.
• With responsive themes across all devices.
• Excellent for social media integration

Cons

• It would be best if you spent time managing and updating plugins.
• Being an open-source software, site security can be a problem. It is prone to getting hacked. 
• Unnecessary codes can slow down the site speed and load time.
• If you want to customize your site, you need some coding knowledge.

Webflow vs. WordPress: Which Is Better For Seo?

Unsplash / Myriam Jessier

Search engine optimization, better known as SEO, increases a site’s organic visibility in the search engine result pages. Therefore it is essential for your site’s success. While both sites offer good features, both also have their ways of working on SEO promotions. 

These two platforms are SEO-friendly. With Webflow, you don’t need to install anything as it is already built-in. On the other hand, WordPress allows for SEO as long as you install the right plugins. Both have fully customizable SEO settings.

For WordPress, only Business and eCommerce plans have access to SEO tools. If you are not availing of these two plans, you have to install SEO plugins if you want to optimize your site. Depending on what SEO plugin works for you will cost you a few extra dollars. The good thing about this is that you can choose from many different plugins that offer many advanced features for your site. 

Overall, you don’t need to battle over the Webflow vs. WordPress SEO. Both are great for SEO and have their unique takes on it. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Unsplash / Kobu Agency

Since Webflow is relatively new in the market, people are still bugged with any questions regarding how it works or how it can go hand in hand with WordPress. Some of these common questions are answered below. 

Can I trial Webflow before paying?

Yes! You can test Webflow using a free plan where you can create a maximum of two projects without worrying about payment or a trial period. Each project is allowed two pages, and almost all of the site’s features are free to use. Still, this plan does not permit you to export your code to another Webflow account.

Can Webflow be used with WordPress?

The most common way of making these two site builders work together is by using Webflow’s WordPress plugin. This makes it possible to use pages designed in Webflow and publish them on WordPress. Aside from this, the web offers other ways, such as using Udesly, iFrame, or a Subdomain. 

Is Webflow better than coding?

Webflow makes building websites generally faster than coding from scratch. Instead of writing the codes, Webflow allows you to build your website by clicking on buttons on its interface. This creates the code for you. Although this web builder may seem easier to use, it could still be difficult for non-developers who don’t have a background in HTML and CSS.

How do I move my WordPress site to Webflow?

The first step is to download the plugin on your site by clicking on the plugin tab and clicking “Add New.” Search for Export any WordPress data to XML/CSV. After this, activate the plugin on your site, then go to the All Export settings to search for contents to exclude from the Export. After configuring your export settings, you can click on the Migrate Posts button. This readies you for the export process. After this, click on the Confirm and Run Export to download your CSV. You are now ready to import your CSV to Webflow. On Webflow, click on the Collections panel and create a new collection where you will import the CSV from WordPress to Webflow. 

Is Webflow bad for SEO?

 Webflow is great for SEO. It has all the controls you need for optimizing your sites, such as adding titles, meta descriptions, image alt texts, and permalinks. IT has a built-in audit tool that checks your content and supplies feedback on the different areas that might affect your site’s SEO. It helps you save time on improving the SEO of your page. It also provides a clean code output that web crawlers can easily read your page contents and help you get a higher rank in search engine results. 

More Awesome Tips

Whether it’s for personal use to express creativity or make money, website building has been popular over the last couple of years. Here are some tips on growing your website:

• Read this article on impression vs. click if you want to learn more about the online advertisement process. 
• Want to grow your visitor engagement for your site? Try looking at best practices for website copywriting to boost your pages.
• Fancy making extra bucks from your web page? Read on how to get sponsors and be ready to get paid. 

In Conclusion

The Webflow vs. WordPress battle’s been going on to compare these two platforms’ functionality. It is better to know the full potential of whatever software solution you decide to go with. Before choosing which web builder to go for, also assess the type of website you will make. Also, it is better to know the full potential of whatever software solution you decide to go with. If you want to work with both platforms, a Webflow pages plugin is available in WordPress.

The post WordPress vs Webflow: The Ultimate Guide To Know Which One Fits You Best appeared first on WP Experiments.

Pexels / Anna Svets

Everything you need to know about virtual events is here.

Whether it’s a hybrid event or a virtual conference, they’re both becoming more common and popular. It’s right that we look deep into them and understand more about these online events. With my expertise in everything virtual, I’m here to expound on this topic for you.

Let’s start.

Contents

What are Virtual Events?

Pexels / Mart Production

These kinds of events are completely held online. With online events, speakers, panelists, and the audience can all participate from anywhere in the world. It can be held from social media or a virtual event platform. An online event usually has collaborative sessions that are all streamed online.

There are many events held virtually and even more platforms and virtual event software to hold them in. It’s a completely new and virtual experience for both guests and organizers.

Types Of Events Done Virtually

Pexels / Anthoni Shkraba Production

A virtual event or session can cover anything under the sun, much like an in-person, live event. However, there are four main types of virtual events held on different platforms.

Here are the 4 types of online events: 

Webinars

Pexels / Tima Miroshnichenko

Webinars are usually done for marketing purposes, especially when it’s done for free. It lasts anywhere around 45 to 80 minutes. There can either be one or many speakers. Free webinars are a way for businesses to get engagement from potential customers. Webinars used for marketing purposes usually revolve around the product or service that the presenter wants to promote. The main goal is to offer new knowledge to virtual attendees and global audiences. This is also why Q&A sessions are common with this type of virtual event.

Virtual conference

Unsplash / LinkedIn Sales Solutions

Virtual conferences are a lot like in-person conferences. It’s a live event with keynotes, breakout sessions, and more interactive sessions. The main goal of a virtual conference is for attendee engagement and networking opportunities. A virtual conference platform should allow more rooms within one big room to let smaller groups discuss and network.

Internal hybrid events

Unsplash / Jason Goodman

Internal hybrid events are used to announce a message to an entire company or group when not all attendees or guests are in the same place. Internal hybrid affairs should have interactive features that allow anyone attending to interact with others, even if they’re in different locations.

External hybrid events

Unsplash / Headway

External hybrid events are much like internal hybrid events, but they’re made of a global audience outside of an organization. There’s a higher video production requirement for these kinds of events. There can be virtual booths, legitimate event tech, all helping in engaging attendees from around the world. It’s not just a simple live broadcast because the exhibitor or organizer should aim to engage both in-person and virtual attendees.

8 Things to Include and Do at A Virtual Event

Unsplash / Andrew Neel

You should properly organize virtual events if you want to engage your guests effectively. Your event content should be clear and in order before launching the event. It’s important to know what you should include.

Here are the 8 things to include in a virtual event: 

1. Event website

Unsplash / LinkedIn Sales Solutions

If you want to give your event more hype, it’s best to have an event website where they can find all the details. It will be easier for people to understand more about your event with a website. All your event marketing efforts will also lead to one place, which is your website.

2. Event registration

Unsplash / Christina

Of course, you can’t have an event without having registration. It’s how you secure and track attendees. Having a registration will also give more engagement early on.

3. Live presentation content

Unsplash / Christina

Events are more fun if your presentation is live. Whether you have a webinar or a networking event, having a live presentation adds charm to your event.

4. Live, one-way audio/video

Unsplash / LinkedIn Sales Solutions

Event technology is important, so take the time and effort to improve your audio and video to give both attendees and sponsors a great time.

5. Question and answer

Unsplash / Mapbox

People always want to learn more, so allow them to ask their burning questions with a Q&A. Many successful online webinars and events have a Q&A or open forum to provide space for attendees to ask and widen their knowledge.

6. Recorded content

Unsplash / LinkedIn Sales Solutions

Some people prefer having recorded content because then, they can go back to the content at a different time when they need something. It’s also easier on the part of the organizers.

7. Interactive video conferencing

Unsplash / Amy Hirschi

Interaction is key. An interactive conference will create more buzz and engagement if you want a more successful event.

8. Feedback surveys

Pexels / Karolina Grabowska

You want to know if what you did was a success, so giving feedback surveys to the guests, speakers, and even staff will help you understand what you did right and what you did wrong. It’s how you can improve for your next event.

5 Examples of Online Events

Pexels / Matilda Wormwood

There are many examples of events held online. People also keep coming up with more ideas as time goes by. The more exciting your thoughts are, the better for everyone.

Here are 5 examples of online events: 

Example #1: Live Games or Competitions

Pexels / Mikhail Nilov

You can host games and competitions online. Whether in-person competitions or e-games, they make for great online activities. The virtual platform matters a lot in this kind of online event because you have to make sure that everyone can watch the game properly.

Example #2: Virtual Concert

Pexels / RODNAE

Concerts aren’t only done in person. You should give the audio and video a lot of focus and effort for this kind of event because that’s how you can provide the best experience for the guests.

Example #3: Virtual Trivia Night

Pexels / Cup of Couple

Virtual trivia night is a fun use of virtual activities. They’re best used for small and medium organizations as a team-building activity. If you’re looking to improve bonding and engagement in a team, this is the way to go.

If you’re looking for the right questions that will engage your team, we have them on our site here. Remember that it’s all about asking the right questions, such as those on Mantelligence here.

Example #4: Virtual Fundraising Events

Pexels / Tima

You can raise funds virtually, yes! Virtual fundraising events are a great way to get people together for a common goal.

Example #5: Virtual Networking Events

Pexels / Andrea Piacquadio

Everyone wants to up their networking game, so a virtual networking event is a great way to help people improve in their career and personal development. Although it can be a little more challenging, virtual networking is a great opportunity for everyone.

6 Best Platforms To Use When Hosting A Virtual Event

Pexels / Cottonbro

Your virtual events platform matters greatly to your event, so choosing the right platform for your virtual event is important. There are many virtual event platforms around, but not all of them will work for you.

Here are the 6 best platforms to use for your virtual activities:

1. Eventcube

Pexels / Mikhail Nilov

Eventcube is a fully customizable online events platform. They have a lot of features and allow many different kinds of live events to be held on their platform.

2. Airmeet

Pexels / Tima

Airmeet focuses on the summit, meetings, and conferences. Every Airmeet event takes place in a virtual ‘ballroom,’ which may be customized in terms of look, depending on the organization’s needs.

3. Filo

Pexels / Kampus Production

Filo is directly integrated with Zoom, so it’s easier to scale your event. You can also expect great quality audio and video from them. And they’re also customizable depending on your needs.

4. InEvent

Pexels / Mikhail Nilov

InEvent focuses on B2B virtual events, but they offer more than online events. They’re also helping organizations with hybrid events.

5. Accelevents

Pexels / Arina Krasnikova

Accelevents is an all-in-one event management platform that allows you to broaden your reach, engage your audience, and build a sustainable community.

6. Orbits

Pexels / Anna Nekrashevich

Immersive is what Orbits is aiming for. Attendees can fully immerse their virtual selves in events hosted in Orbits. It will be a unique experience for everyone to use this platform.

In-person versus Virtual: Pros & Cons

Pexels / Mart Production

Both in-person and online events are fun to do and join in. However, not all events will work in an in-person setting. The same goes for virtual ones. Look at how they compare to each other to know which to opt for.

In-person

Pexels / Christina Morillo

Pros:

• More Interaction. In an in-person event, interaction is easier. There’s a more loose vibe to the whole event because you’re free to talk to the people. There are no limitations as to how you can interact and how much.
• Personal. Since interaction is easier, the event becomes more personal. You’re more immersed and feel like you’re part of a bigger thing.
• More Opportunities. In-person events have free stuff and more opportunities; let’s not deny that.

Cons:

• More Expensive. Organizing and attending an in-person conference or seminar is more expensive because of all the logistics involved.
• If you miss it, you lose it. If you can’t attend the event, you lose your chance at new knowledge and opportunities.

Virtual

Pexels / Rodnae Production

Pros:

• Ease of Access. It’s easier to access a virtual event. You don’t have to drive for hours to get to a venue. It’s accessible from anywhere.
• Long-term Availability. Even after the event, you can access the content and opportunities.
• Simpler. Everything is simpler because you don’t have to do a lot. Click here and there, and you’re part of it!

Cons:

• Lack of Attention. There are more distractions, so it can be harder for guests to give their full attention.
• Less Immersion. Since it’s virtual, it’s harder to be immersed in the environment. The “feel” may not completely feel like a conference or seminar.

How To Successfully Host A Virtual Event

Pexels / Cottonbro

No one wants a virtual event that’s wrong everywhere. If you’re going to host your virtual event, whether it’s through a Facebook live or a more professional platform, make sure to plan thoroughly to set it up for success.

Here are 7 steps to successfully host your event:

Step #1. Think about your audience, your participants, and your content format

Pexels / Andrea Piacquadio

Your number one consideration should always be your audience. All the decisions you make should keep your audience in mind. After all, you want to make sure that they enjoy the virtual experience. If you can figure out what your audience and participants wish to from the content format you plan to give, everything else will follow suit.

Step #2. Plan sessions and dig into the content you want to have for your event.

Pexels / Olia Danilevich

Once the bigger things are decided, dive into details. Write everything down and categorize them. Be sure to focus on the more important things for your event.

Step #3. Set up the logistic plans for the event.

Pexels / olia danilevich

If you’re not knowledgeable about logistics, get the help of someone who’s an expert at it. Logistics can make or break this for you, so plan them thoroughly.

Step #4. Start inviting attendees and collecting RSVPs.

Pexels / Cottonbro

There are many ways to give attention to your event, so use those you’re comfortable using. You have to collect RSVPs to know how many people to expect. It will help you prepare better for the day itself.

Step #5. Promote your event.

Pexels / Michael Burrows

Marketing and promotion are important. If you don’t promote it, not many people will hear about it. It might be a flop if you don’t give importance to your marketing and promotion.

Step #6. Test everything you need before the event.

Pexels / Vlada Karpovich

Before the day comes, have a dry run to ensure that everything goes smoothly. You can’t expect to have a smooth day, so it’s also important to plan for possible difficulties and problems.

Step #7. Get feedback from the attendees.

Pexels / Ivan Samkov

Figure out what your attendees have to say. If you can hear their thoughts, you know how well you did, and you’ll know what to improve for your next virtual event.

Frequently Asked Questions

Pexels / Oleg Magni

Whether you’re an attendee or an organizer, there’s a lot to learn about virtual events. Luckily, we have the answers to all your questions.

How long should a virtual event be?

It depends on what kind of virtual event you have, but it’s a good rule of thumb not to exceed 4 hours.

Should you keep online events as part of your overall event strategy?

If it works for you and your audience, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t!

How much time do you need to plan your virtual event?

Again, it depends on your event and everything you need, but 6-12 months is already a good time frame.

How can you provide value to your sponsors before, during, and after your virtual event?

Allow their voices to be heard throughout, and consider them. This is theirs as much as it is yours. Create content that they will value, too, and allow them the opportunity to create their community.

More Interesting Articles To Explore

If you’re looking to learn more about the virtual world, we have all the stuff for you:

1. Improve your blogging with the simplest guide to writing better post titles. Get those clicks in.
2. Copy anxiety is a thing! Learn more about it here.
3. This look into marketing and drug trials will give you a different perspective.

In Conclusion

Now you know all you need to know about online events. Whether you’re hosting or attending events help virtually, the information you learned will help give you the best virtual experience, even for a hybrid event.

The post One Ultimate Guide To Learn & Succeed: What Are Virtual Events? appeared first on WP Experiments.

After my very successful postings about my favorite plugins I finally made it to list my favorite themes for you. As you will see, 99% of my recommendations are Premium Themes. Yes, they cost a few bucks, but bring a lot of additional functionalities with them. When you have a special requirement or functionality in mind – don’t start with free themes… most free themes are just reduced versions of a premium theme but only basic features without special templates are supported.

By the way, most themes are now technically “Gutenberg ready”, but some developers have done special efforts to integrate on a deeper level with the new editor. If this is the case, you can find this information in the description of the respective theme

But now, without any longer digressions: This is my list of the absolute WordPress themes! This is a translation of: The Top 13 Premium WordPress Themes 2019:

1. Divi Theme

The Divi Theme is a very stylish and flexible WordPress theme, with which you can realize almost any website. It has its own Visual Page Builder integrated. The so-called Divi Builder is of course compatible with Gutenberg, the new WordPress editor since version 5.0.

I also think, that the pricing of Elegant Themes, the makers of the Divi-Themes, is very fair. For a 89 $ fee, you can use all themes and plugins including widgets and even for unlimited customer projects. The support is really good and Divi offers templates for every page type and content type. In my opinion, Divi is especially suitable for users who don’t want to program themselves, but still want to completely customize the look of your WordPress sites. And — the other themes at Elegant are worth a look.

=> Check out Divi now!

2. Avada | Responsive Multi-Purpose Theme

Avada is by far, the best-selling WordPress theme of all time on Themeforest for reason! An unbelievable 500,000 copies of the theme have already been sold. Nevertheless, the developer doesn’t rest on his laurels, but constantly develops the theme further.

With 19 variants for the start page alone and 5 different free sliders, it is probably the most flexible and comprehensive theme you can buy today. I think the structure, the code, the typography and the options are very good and I really enjoy working with Avada.

=> Check out Avada now!

3. The7 — Responsive Multi-Purpose WordPress Theme

The7 Theme was recommended to me by some readers and I have now used it several times for building websites. It has a very simple installation process and offers almost infinite possibilities for custom layouts and customizations. Of course everything is responsive and includes Page Builder.

What’s really cool: The The7 Theme already comes with several premium plugins like Visual Composer page builder, Ultimate Addons, Slider Revolution, Layer Slider, Go Pricing Tables and ConvertPlug. Of course it is also compatible with WooCommerce, WPML, Yoast SEO, All in One WP Migration, W3 Total Cache, etc.

=> Check out The7 Theme now!

4. Jupiter X — Multi-Purpose Responsive Theme

Jupiter X is the latest addition to the top 13 best themes of 2019 and the latest version of Jupiter, an all-in-one platform for creating pixel accurate websites. With Elementor Page Builder, the world’s leading WordPress page builder, you can quickly and easily create any layout you want. Of course, Jupiter X can be fully customized with the WordPress Customizer. The integrated shop customizer helps to customize every aspect of an online shop on a WooCommerce basis, including checkout process and shopping cart. In addition, visual editors allow you to easily create your own headers and footers. Of course, Jupiter X also offers extensive options for customizing your blog and portfolio pages.

If you like it easy, simply choose from a huge selection of more than 150 ready-made website templates. The whole thing comes with a very competent technical support, a live chat and hundreds of detailed tutorials and videos. So really no wish remains unfulfilled.

=> Check out Jupiter X Theme now!

5. Flatsome | Multi-Purpose Responsive WooCommerce Theme

The Flatsome theme was also suggested in the comments on my german blog. It is the bestselling WooCommerce & Business theme and already exceeding 100,000 sales on Themeforest!

Flatsome is very stylish and has a lot of features. The design of the theme was especially emphasized on the user experience, so it is very fast, easy to use and looks very modern and contemporary. It is also very suitable for shops. I will soon be setting up a project with it for testing, because I really like the look and the theme is continuously being further developed. All future updates are included by the way.

=> Check out Flatsome Theme now!

6. GeneratePress — Lightweight Theme

GeneratePress is a fast, lightweight (< 1 MB size, packed), mobile adapted, responsive WordPress theme, designed for speed, SEO and usability. It is ideal for beginners and can be tried out for free with the Freemium model.

In the premium version, it offers more functions and customization options. The best thing is, that GeneratePress works with every Page-Builder! I would recommend WP Beaver Builder or Elementor, the WordPress Page Builder #1. In terms of SEO, all schema.org microdata are already integrated and available in over 20 languages. Especially great: GeneratePress has already been integrated on a deeper level with the new Gutenberg editor. So don’t worry about using Gutenberg!

=> Check out GeneratePress now

7. Extra Drag & Drop Magazine WordPress Theme

Extra is a very stylish magazine WordPress Theme, which is run by the Divi Builder of Elegant Themes. For the Extra Theme it has been extended by categories with a new set of post-based modules. Storytelling is made much easier with the Divi Builder’s drag & drop interface. Naturally responsive, WooCommerce compatible and with built-in rating and review system.

=> Check out Extra Theme now

8. Schema

Schema is a chic, extremely PageSpeed-optimized and very SEO-friendly WordPress theme from MyThemeShop. Of course, it comes with the usual functions such as a responsive layout, a comprehensive configuration panel, shortcodes and widgets. On the basis of schema, various page concepts can be realized, so of course there is also WooCommerce support and the built-in possibility for the labelling of structured data and rich snippets at Google.

=> Check out Schema Theme now

9. Revolution Pro Theme

Revolution Pro is a StudioPress theme with a very minimal design that provides a perfect stage for photos and text. The white space allows the entire content to shine and the stylish use of Playfair fonts draws attention to headlines and block quotations. The theme is based on the very successful and SEO-friendly Genesis framework. On this basis many different types of websites can be built upon, with almost no limits to creativity.

There are five stylish homepage examples on the Theme page: Agency, Lifestyle, Personal Branding, Photographer and Small Business. Each of which represents a unique use case for the theme and shows well how flexible the theme is. As with Elegant Themes, you can recommend any StudioPress theme, so it’s worth taking a look at the other themes.

=> Check out Revolution Theme now

10. The Genesis Framework

This recommendation is not a single theme, but a huge collection of great themes based on the Genesis framework of StudioPress. The Genesis Framework allows you to quickly and easily create great websites with WordPress. No matter if you are a beginner or an advanced user, Genesis offers a really professional and search engine optimized basis for successful websites.

All themes have also been extensively tested with the Gutenberg editor and are 100% compatible with the new Gutenberg editor. The new editor uses block-based elements to make it even easier and more flexible to create really great pages and posts.

=> Check the Genesis Framework out now

11. Enfold — Responsive Multi-Purpose Theme

Enfold is a very good theme from Kriesi, a very successful WordPress developer from Austria. With it you can create almost any kind of website and it offers a lot of additional functions and layout variants.

The settings of the theme in the admin area are really well thought through, which makes it a lot easier to use for beginners. The online documentation is very extensive and offers additional downloads, videos, tutorials, etc.. The theme is regularly updated and offers German support for customers.

=> Check Enfold Theme out now

12. X | The Theme — Version 4

I used to use the X-Theme on search-one.de. With the 4 stacks, you basically have 4 themes for the price of one. Since the first version there have been a lot of updates and improvements. The theme has been sold already almost 200.000 times! Especially for agency sites or other sales sites I find the theme with its many shortcodes and conversion elements quite successful.

If you don’t want to work with widgets or shortcodes, you can also use a drag’n’drop editor, because the Cornerstone PageBuilder is also included. All in all a very round package.

=> Check out X Theme now

13. The Retailer — Responsive WordPress Theme for Online Shops and E Commerce Sites

The theme is really ingenious for WooCommerce shops, affiliate sites, agency sites, portfolio, blog or private websites. I like the design, the structure, the typography and the functions very much. In the demo you will also find many variants for the homepage and other page elements. I am currently building a new project based on this theme. There are frequent updates and the theme is constantly being further developed.

=> Check out Retailers Theme now

Bonus: Themes from JetPack

In addition to more than 100 free starter themes, JetPack also offers more than 200 premium themes with Jetpack Professional from the creators of WordPress.com. These are fully optimized for WordPress and mobile use. Of course, all themes are fully compatible with all Jetpack features!

=> Check out JetPacks Themes now

Finding the right WordPress theme

Well, I’ll go with that: Either you have desire, time and the possibility with a very flexible theme to create the sides after your conceptions, thus with a Sitebuilder to build or from existing Shortcodes together to tinker, then you should use a very powerful theme, as for example Divi -> https://kai.im/divi 
Alternatively, you can search ThemeForest for the theme of your future website, for example ‘health blog’, if you want to create a blog-style health page like I did here for you: https://1.envato.market/ej4jz and then select a theme there that is already very close to your ideas. Of course, I would also pay attention to the ratings and number of sales and watch the live demos closely.

IN ANY CASE: DON’T GET DISCOURAGED! SOMETIMES I HAVE TO BUY TWO, THREE, SOMETIMES EVEN FIVE THEMES UNTIL I HAVE FOUND THE RIGHT ONE FOR MY PROJECT!

If you are still looking for the right hosting for your WordPress website, have a look at my article The best WordPress Hosting — WP-Hoster in comparison.

The post The 13 Ultimate Best WordPress Themes appeared first on WP Experiments.

Clinical trials are experiments that are done during clinical research; such as pharmaceutical drug research. When a company has developed a new drug that they think can cure a disease, prevent an illness, or have some other benefit; one step in the process is to actually test the drug on people and see how it works. Models, simulation, and guesses only go so far. At some point, someone has to actually try the new drug. This is called a clinical trial.

But these trials can raise some ethical questions. Is the purpose of a clinical trial to help patients or to advance research? Hopefully both. But when these two purposes start to be at odds with each other, what do you do?

Imagine you are a cardiologist (a heart doctor) and you have an experimental drug to try. You have 100 patients that you divide into two groups. One group will receive the standard treatment, and one group will take the new drug.

You know that the standard treatment works about 50% of the time. As you bring on patients into the new drug group, it starts to look like the success rate is much lower than 50%. About half way through the test you are pretty convinced that the new treatment is not helping your patients. Now what do you do?

If you stop the trial and switch the patients back to the standard treatment, they have a better chance at getting better. But by stopping the experiment early, you are removing any statistical certainty from the experiment. There are pretty strict mathematical rules when it comes to statistical significance in experimentation.

So what do you do? Do you be a good researcher or do you be a good doctor? Do you help your patients or do you advance scientific research?

It is a hard question.

Let’s take it out of life and death and move it to an easier arena… Marketing. Similar trials can also done in marketing. We can divide our audience in half, send one group a tried and true campaign, and send the other a new campaign. If both campaigns are trying to sell the same product, we can measure how many we sell from each and know which campaign is better.

But what if half way through the experiment it starts to look like the new campaign isn’t selling as much as the original campaign? Do you stop the new campaign and send everyone back to the original? You’ll probably make more money that way but you’ll sacrifice any statistical significance in the experiment.

What do you do? Do you be a good researcher or do you be a good marketer?

It’s the same question and it’s just as hard here – even though the stakes aren’t as high.

The paper offers has a few solutions to this problem in the clinical trial world that we can apply to our marketing world:

1. Create a Data Monitoring Committee who is separate from the researchers the are performing the tests. This puts some separation between the patients and the decisions which makes the hard decisions a little easier. For most marketing situations, this is overkill.

2. Create a set of auxiliary endpoints. Most experiments have one main goal that they are trying to maximize but there are often side effects that can be measured too. For example, you may choose product sales as the goal of your experiment but you also care about the bounce rate as well. You can set up some additional endpoints for the experiment that trigger the experiment to stop prematurely if one of these side effects starts to go out of a specified range.

3. Use a Bayesian Statistics model for the experiment instead of a standard experiment. The details are complicated but the difference can be easily explained.
In a standard experiment, you divide your sample into two groups and run each group through the experiment. After all the groups have been tested, you see which one had more successes and that is considered the winner. This model leads to the moral problems that I mentioned above.
On the other hand, instead of waiting until the end, a Bayesian model will continually measure the probability that one group is better than the other. At the beginning, the groups are 50/50 – they both have an equal chance. As you start to run tests, those probabilities start to change. After a while, they may be 70/30. This doesn’t mean that it’s 70% better but that there is a 70% chance that it is better. There is a 30% chance that it’s the same or worse. If one of the groups is actually better, after a while the probabilities will continue to drift towards that one. This method lets you stop the experiment at any time and know the probability that one of the groups is better than the other.

As you can see, the connection between clinical drug trials and your website is not that big of a stretch. I knew this when I wrote Title Experiments and that is why I decided to use Bayesian Statistics at the heart of the plugin. Not only is it used to save lives but it helps you write better titles for your website as well. I call that a win win scenario!

The post What do marketing and drug trials have in common? appeared first on WP Experiments.

There are a lot of copywriting strategies out there that can be more or less effective in reducing the time and stress involved with writing. In this guide I will lay out the one fool-proof strategy that I reccomend that can help you quickly craft the perfect titles.

Note: This strategy applies mostly to articles that are about a topic or an idea; applying it to newsy type articles may be a challenge. You can probably find one that will work for you here.

The strategy has three simple steps.

Step 1: Identify the problem

What is the problem, pain point, or circumstance that you are discussing in your article? Identify what it is and then state is as simply and clearly as you can. (If you are struggling to identify what the exact problem is, perhaps the article is too broad or vague.) Don’t try to be overly complicated or clever. The idea is to simply have your reader say ‘Yep, that’s a problem.’

Another quick way to discover the problem presented in your article is to ask: ‘Who specifically should read this article?’.  If you can answer in the form “Anyone who struggles to ____________” then you have identified the problem.

For example, here are a few problems that I might write about in the future:

1. Your click-through rate is very low.
2. People come to your site but leave right away.
3. You know that you should be writing more articles, but you can’t find the motivation.

Step 2: Aggravate the problem

Once you have identified the problem, the next step is to aggravate it.

If your reader identified with the problem, now you need to make them see the effects that the problem is causing. You can do this in one of two ways:

1. By describing the terrible world where the problem isn’t solved
2. Or by describing the wonderful world where the problem is solved

Both of these ways are effective ways to show the effects of the problem. The key to this section is balance the 4 Cs: Colorful, Creative, Concise, and Clear. You must be clear but also let your creativity shine!

Here are my examples above using the terrible world method:

1. Your click-through rate is very low. Why even bother writing articles if no one ever reads them?
2. People come to your site but leave right away. Your sponsors aren’t going to stick around much longer.
3. You know that you should be writing more articles but you can’t find the motivation. If you’d rather mow the lawn then write, something must be wrong.

And the same examples using the wonderful world method:

1. Your click-through rate is very low. Imagine if every title you wrote was clicked.
2. People come to your site but leave right away. They should be losing their jobs for spending so much time on your site.
3. You know that you should be writing more articles but you can’t find the motivation. What if you had so much to write about, you forgot to take your lunch break.

If you aggravate the problem in the right way, you’ll leave the readers anxious to solve the problem…

Step 3: Solve the problem

You’ve identified the problem. You’ve aggravated it by painting a terrible picture or a wonderful picture. The final step is to offer the solution.

Since we are just writing titles, we usually can’t write out the entire solution. Instead, we just need to tease the solution. Show the reader that we have the solution and that they should come get it. Sometimes a promise is enough. Sometimes you can give away a little bit of the solution and draw them in for the rest.

Let’s finish up my examples.

1. Your click-through rate is very low. Imagine if every title you wrote was clicked. The answer is three simple letters: PAS.
2. People come to your site but leave right away. They should be losing their jobs for spending so much time on your site. Here are 3 ways to reduce your bounce rate.
3. You know that you should be writing more articles but you can’t find the motivation. What if you had so much to write about, you forgot to take your lunch break. See the plan that is used by authors all over the world to increase their productivity.

As you can see, we identify a problem, avagrate it, and then offer a solution. We now have titles that are compelling and drive more traffic.

And by the way… this strategy also works well for writing the content of the articles as well!

If you properly use this strategy, not only will you increase your audience’s response but the time required should be greatly reduced also. And what should you do with this extra free time? One option is to use Title Experiments to experiment on your audience by writing multiple titles per article. By actively and intentionally experimenting, you can hone your title writing skills and become a master.

The post The Simplest Guide to Writing Better Post Titles appeared first on WP Experiments.

Do you have copy anxiety? Copy Anxiety is the feeling the comes when you are about to publish a version of your new sales website or when you are about to send out a new email to your newsletter list and you pause… ‘What if this isn’t good enough?’, you say to yourself. ‘What if it’s boring and my audience doesn’t care?’ You steady yourself and with a trembling finger, you click the publish button. Then go have a glass of scotch and hope for the best.

Does this describe you? I think that there is a very good reason for this type of anxiety. It isn’t anything unique. It is really just a form of the fear of commitment. Much like when a man finally gets up the courage to ask his girlfriend to marry him — when you finally click that publish button, you are choosing one version of your copy and rejecting all others. For better or worse. Till death do us part.

Fortunately, this isn’t marriage. It’s just marketing.

If you’ve been in business for any amount of time, you’ve certainly heard the cry that you should be running AB Tests. The main reason that’s given is that they will optimize your content for more conversions and make more sales. And this is all true.

But one aspect that isn’t mentioned is the psychological benefit. You don’t have to be married to your copy. Instead of publishing one version of your site, publish two (or three, or heck — even more). I guarantee that this will reduce, if not eliminate, your copy anxiety. How?

It’s simple. As I mentioned, copy anxiety is the fear that you committed to the wrong piece of content; that somewhere, out there, is a better version of that call to action button that will convert 10% better. But you could only pick one and so you picked this one… and now you are worried it was a bad choice.

However, when you are writing with AB tests, you don’t have to pick just one. You pick as many versions as you want and let the system figure out which one is best. No more choosing. No more worrying.

So if you have copy anxiety, come out of the shadows. It’s okay to admit that you might not know the best title to write for that new blog post. There is a solution: implement a testing system. It really will help.

The post Copy Anxiety: the hesitancy you feel before you click publish appeared first on WP Experiments.