October 5, 2015 — WordPress offers a lot of power as a CMS, but all too often we can lose sight of the most essential of those three letters—the Content. Whether you’re a web designer, web developer, or end user of WordPress, potential pitfalls abound when planning for the structure and delivery of content is left until the eleventh hour. Using examples from real projects, I will demonstrate how taking a content-first approach to our WordPress work allows us to better harness the awesome power underneath its hood, and save ourselves and our clients from massive (and expensive!) content headaches down the road.

Presentation Slides »

October 5, 2015 — How to identify the most lucrative prospects.
How to pitch large projects (value proposition, differentiation, overcoming objections.
How to execute (IA, Project Management, Resources, post-launch support.)

Presentation Slides »

October 4, 2015 — WordPress has plenty of options, both built-in and third-party, to be used as a content framework to create delightful administrative experiences that will improve your workflow and impress your clients; both those who use the site and manage content. Using WordPress’ built in Custom Post Types, Custom Taxonomies, and the Advanced Custom Fields plugin; learn how to use these to your advantage to create a great WordPress Dashboard UI and to better organize content for the admin-user and the end-user, and to streamline the entire editorial workflow with little development work necessary to make it happen.

If the structure of WordPress leaves you wanting more, coming into WordPress from another platform, or new to theme development in general; this will help demystify WordPress and help you make WordPress work for you rather than working around WordPress.

October 3, 2015 — Jetpack is a powerful, but sometimes daunting plugin for new users, so I’d like to unpack some of its most popular and useful features and give attendees some concrete things they can then go and try themselves on their own sites. I’d like to cover the basic areas that Jetpack’s modules can be grouped into, and then go in depth with some of the most powerful ones.

Presentation Slides »

October 3, 2015 — Writing for the web is not like writing for any other media. An art and a science, it involves placing keywords correctly and in the proper density; it involves writing engaging copy that can be easily scanned; and it involves promoting the writing for maximum visibility. Learn how to attract an audience for either personal or professional content from a professional writer, using WordPress and selected plugins.

Takeaways

Learn how to correctly use keywords so they work
Learn the tricks of writing online content
Learn how to promote your writing online, for free

Presentation Slides »

October 3, 2015 — WordPress upgrades, they bring us new features, faster sites, and better security. But pushing that upgrade button can be a scary moment, unless you’ve ensured your site is ready and compatible. I’ll show you the best practices for ensuring your site is ready including a simple strategy that works whether you manage one site or hundreds.

October 3, 2015 — Web designers and developers are each specialists with their own priorities, needs, and focus. Sometimes there can be a communication gap between the two, leading to misunderstandings and frustration. How can you learn to speak each other’s language and ensure your projects run smoothly and without hassles?

Presentation Slides »

October 3, 2015 — It is critical to design your website to meet buyers’ evolving needs. Your website must engage them and be a valuable component of the process throughout their entire purchase journey.
This presentation will discuss specific methods for putting your omni-channel customer at the forefront of your site design in order to increase leads, sales and revenue.

October 3, 2015 — Tony Mazzarella likes to learn things the hard way. In this session, Tony will share entertaining anecdotes and real-life lessons from his 14 years of managing digital projects and the clients who accompany them. It’s all about balance—Yin & Yang. We’ll explore the balance between marketing yourself and under-promising so you can over-deliver. Tony will also cover the art of effectively pushing back while still being professional. Tony will illustrate the importance of finding good clients and getting your people in the right place.

October 3, 2015 — Today, are you a WordPress designer, developer, marketer, user?

What about tomorrow?

Available technology and visitor demands are raising expectations for sites. Collaboration can help us tap into specialized knowledge to get our projects done more quickly, with better results. Understanding your role and the roles of others can make you a great collaborator, can help you find resources, and can show you a path to grow in the WordPress community.

Come learn about the World of WordPress and meet your neighbors from many lands each with specialized languages, cultures and funny customs. Find a role, find a collaborator, find your place in The World of WordPress.