September 19, 2015 — We’ll be talking specifically on how to utilize WordPress to further your nonprofit’s mission. This includes theme selection, donation collection/management, event registration/management, email marketing, e-commerce, Customer Relations Management, and finding a champion.

Presentation Slides »

September 18, 2015 — WordPress now powers nearly 25% of the web, but the vast majority of those websites use WordPress as a CMS. In our transition from a plugin to a hosted platform with OptinMonster, we decided to use WordPress as our application platform. This talk gives a practical overview of how we use WordPress as the application backend and the obstacles we had to overcome to make it scale to serve 10s of millions of API requests every day.

Presentation Slides »

September 18, 2015 — This talk walks through a fictional case study that illustrates how one might go from “adding code to the functions file” to creating an original plugin. It begins with a specific solution that applies to a single site, and ends up with a generalized piece of functionality (i.e. a WordPress plugin) that can easily be ported from site to site regardless of the theme being used.

Presentation Slides »

September 17, 2015 — The art of debugging code requires a good understanding of the codebase and logical deduction skills. A good debugging tool is like a code mentor that can walk you through the code and help you better understand what is going on, but the deductive reasoning is still up to you. In this session, you will learn how to use Xdebug, a PHP debugging tool to.

Presentation Slides »

September 17, 2015 — What does the current WordPress design landscape look like? What are popular and upcoming design trends to look out for? We’ll take a look at the current WordPress design ecosystem and explore how it’s projected to change in the next year.

Prerequisites:
An interest in design! The talk is open to people of all levels of experience, but it’s going to be less of a lecture and more of a show-and-tell. It won’t teach you how to design, but it will give you a lot of examples of modern design built on and for WordPress and some of the really cool things WordPress can do.

Presentation Slides »

September 17, 2015 — Let’s talk fonts! We’ll take a brief look at the history of fonts on the web and best practices for typography. You’ll learn about some of the top font services available as well as methods and tools for implementing the right font for your WordPress site. Whether you prefer to work with plugins, theme options, or manual edits to the theme, you’ll walk away with some options for adding shiny new fonts to your site.

Prerequisites:
This talk is for anyone who wants to learn some basics about typography and get an overview of the various methods available for adding custom fonts to their WordPress site. From advanced coders to beginning bloggers, a wide audience can benefit from learning typography principles and best practices. Folks curious on how to modify fonts on their WP site will learn the options available for customizing at any comfort level.

Presentation Slides »

September 16, 2015 — Think only coders can make a living using WordPress? Think again! There are a surprising number of ways to make a career using WordPress without knowing a single line of code. This presentation will tackle some of the barriers that discourage beginners from using WordPress professionally, like a lack of technical skill and feeling like an impostor. Shed the fear and discover different career options and simple WordPress tips while learning to leverage your unique skill set for the tech industry.

Prerequisites:
For beginners, come as you are!

Presentation Slides »

September 16, 2015 — Want to draw people to your website? Simple changes can make a big difference in your site’s popularity. Discover ways to attract readers by tweaking your content structure, fine-tuning visuals, and maximize WordPress sharing tools. Use Search Engine Optimization (SEO) that isn’t subject to the whims of algorithm changes by employing the best plugins and learning how to keep your writing strong. You’ve got great content, now it’s time to share it with others effectively.
Prerequisites:
This presentation is perfect for beginner bloggers, and it can also benefit those who have had a site for years.

Presentation Slides »

September 16, 2015 — WordPress has built-in support for storing location information on posts, but no real way to make use of it. The Geo Mashup plugin enables deep, powerful geolocation in WordPress, letting you easily add geolocations (coordinates) to almost any content type. It also displays locations on maps you can embed in your theme, posts or widgets, with a dizzying array of options for what to show and how to display it.

This talk starts with the default geolocation system in WordPress and how Geo Mashup integrates with it. We’ll then cover the basics of setup and adding locations on posts, then the different map types and situations where you’d use them. We’ll finish with some dev considerations for displaying maps as elegantly as possible.

Prerequisites:
This talk is aimed at anyone planning a site and considering geo integration. There will be developer speak (PHP/HTML/CSS) at times, but there will be lots to consider for anyone building custom WordPress sites.

Presentation Slides »

September 16, 2015 — By the end of the The Business of Blogging, you’ll be able to answer the question: Does my business need a blog? I’ll cover what it takes to build a blog, how much time it takes to sustain a blog, and common blog mistakes businesses make. Session attendees will also learn about content marketing and how to curate great content without having a blog. I’ll include resources and WordPress plug ins that make blogging easier. And, we’ll learn how to hire a Virtual Assistant if you don’t think you can do this alone!

Takeaways

Common blog mistakes businesses make and how to avoid them
Resources to find content if your business doesn’t have a blog.
Tips on finding and hiring a great Virtual Assistant to help you with your company’s social media, blog, or content marketing