Essential Plug-Ins for Wordpress – Joe Spake

Joe Spake’s TribeCamp presentation on essential WordPress plug-ins was more like a roundtable discussion and a swap-meet of best tips and practices. Joe demonstrated a few of his favorite plug-ins and then opened up the floor for suggestions from the group. Here’s what came out of that session:

Apture

This plug-in facilitates the addition of media to your posts by heading out and finding links, videos and photos for you. You type in search terms, it finds the items and will even plug in the appropriate Creative Commons attribution if necessary.

What Would Seth Godin Do

The consensus among the group on why it’s called what it’s called was “who the heck knows?”, but this plug-in allows you to create customizable text that will automatically appear for a user based on how many times they’ve been to your site. For example, the first time a user visits the site the message might be an initial welcome, whereas the second visit might offer a prompt to leave a comment or simply welcome them back and suggest a new feature on the site they might check out. The text is entirely customizable, so the possibilities are limitless.

Facebook Like

Though this might be old news now, the Facebook “Like” button is a simple plug-in, easy to install and allows users to like your posts, thus plugging links to your site into the user’s Facebook newsfeed. All a user has to do is click “like” as Facebook has so conditioned us to do, and your blog is linked in their Facebook profile. If another user clicks to find out more, it will take them to the content on the external site. The plug-in will automatically load this feature on all old posts.

WordPress Database Back-Up

This plug-in automatically backs up your entire WordPress blog to e-mail. The plug-in will e-mail the back-up to you in a .zip file each night. If you create a filter within your e-mail management system, you never even have to see the messages come through. They’ll automatically be dropped into a folder, but they’ll be there when you need them.

Special Text Boxes

Provides an easy way to do pull-quote boxes within a blog post without using any code.

LifeStream

Consolidates your social media all into one place.
One word of caution voiced by several participants in the discussion was to exercise care when installing plug-ins, because you can risk slowing down your load time. They will slow the load speed of your home page, even if you are not actively using all of them. Be sure to go through your site periodically and delete the ones you are not actually using to keep load speed as high as possible – search engines look for a fast load time so you want to keep things as streamlined as possible.

Writing for the Web – Elizabeth Cawein

DON’T DO THIS!!!!

Really, folks. Typing in all caps is just unnecessary and annoying, and makes people want to abandon your blog as fast as their mice can hit the Back button. But, short of that preference, Elizabeth Cawein’s “Writing for the Web” session was not dictatorial on grammar. After all, the less formal nature of blogs and some websites may lend themselves to run-on sentences, incomplete clauses, and maybe even the SELECTIVE use of all caps for emphasis.

The key, Elizabeth says, is to “establish a style and stick to it.” That might include choosing a particular style manual (like MLA or Chicago), but mainly it’s about your tone and topics. If you write a funny blog about your dog and sudden throw in a cooking post, people are gonna be scratching their heads.

Your style will also determine the proper length of your posts. Shorter is better in general, but depending on your content and how engaging it is, people might be willing to commit to a longer post. Even so, Elizabeth says she tries to keep her posts under 500 or so words.

Elizabeth also emphasized the importance of reading and then re-reading your post to check for misspellings and (unintentional) grammatical errors. Even if you’re writing in a lighter, fun style, there’s still no excuse for errors that make your post difficult to read.
Then, tag tag tag!

Free as a Business Model - Blake Palmer

Is there such thing as a free lunch?

In most industries, no. Sure, a business will tell you that such-and-such is free, but only if you jump through these hurdles, pay for this other thing, or face a hidden fee later. “What’s the catch?” we, the cautious consumers, have learned to ask. We have been burned before.

It’s just the laws of supply and demand at work. Most products are inherently limited in supply and simply cannot be given away for free, lest the manufacturer lose their profit. But what about Internet content, which has no limit? With ever increasing supplies of bandwidth, storing and processing, we can produce all the online music, blogs, social networks and cat videos that the public could want.

So, can we have at least a cyber-free-lunch in this environment of unlimited supply? Blake Palmer argues that it’s not only possible, but inevitable. Just look at services like Flickr. They offer a great service for no charge at all. If, however, you want unlimited storage, you can pay a small fee to become a premium member, and Flickr can make enough money from the small percentage of users that opt for premium that they can keep the rest of the site up and running. And a premium option is only one model for using “free” as your business model.

The band Radiohead posted a whole album for download to their website, and asked listeners to pay whatever they wanted to for it, with zero as an option. They made more money than they would have with a record label, plus they earned good will and great publicity.
Can we one day have a free lunch outside of the internet? Some businesses are already working on it. Blake cited a gym in Europe that offers completely free memberships, but if you don’t go at least once a week, you have to pay for that whole month. Ryan Air now offers travel for as low as one euro, and hope to soon offer completely free flights, while they make all their profit off of the extras, like checked luggage and-in flight food and drink.

It’s about thinking outside the box. Turning the traditional business model on it’s head and creating an innovative relationship between the consumer and the business. And isn’t that what Web 2.0 is all about?

Capturing Light

Presented at TribeCamp by Justin McGregor
When the shot matters, you don’t want to miss it because you’re fiddling with your camera’s exposure settings. It’s just got to come naturally, says Justin McGregor, and step one is learning about aperture, ISO, and shutter speed. Then, go play with your camera until adjusting these elements is like second nature.
“Capturing Light” was an exposure 101 course for photography beginners. Justin went over the definitions and basic principles of aperture, ISO, and shutter speed, and then tossed out a few great photography websites and blogs to check out!

• Digital Photography School
• Photofocus
• Strobist
• Within a Click
• Nerboo’s Flickr Photostream

First, you’re not actually locked in. And you’re surrounded by bright, ambitious, idea-driven people. Oh, and there’s beer.

So maybe nothing like a lock-in at all, then, eh?

If you want to know what 48 Hour Launch is really all about, get yourself registered and be at the Launch Pad tomorrow afternoon ready to dive into a start-up project. In the course of a weekend, teams will work to develop a business from idea to reality. Here’s a little more info from Launch Memphis:

48 Hour Launch is one of the most powerful and unique entrepreneurship programs in the country. It promotes the development of local economies and the implementation of innovative ideas with new launched startups. Simply put, creative individuals from all industries unite their talent in one location to launch new enterprises in a 48 hour period.

All your food, drink, wifi, and other needs are met by organizers. All you need to do is bring your brain (and a coffee mug and/or laptop). We take care of the rest while you take care of the startups.

The festivities kick off on Friday at 6 p.m. at the Launch Pad at Emerge Memphis.

We hosted the event alongside our friends at LaunchMemphis, and we’re already brainstorming on future opportunities. BarCamp was a jam-packed day of sessions on everything from programming to social media as well as a chance to network, build connections and trouble-shoot among peers. It’s events like this one that bring good ideas to Memphis and bring great minds together — we couldn’t be more proud of the results.

You can learn more about BarCamp (or if you were there, look for pictures of yourself!) by watching the video below, and of course check out BarCampMemphis.com, the ultimate source for any and all BarCamp media, from photos to videos to blog posts.

LaunchMemphis, with Mercury Technology Labs, is hosting the Business Plan Boot Camp, where new entrepreneurs will be given a push towards business success. Experts from several fields will be on hand with hard-earned advice, while attendees can get tailored feedback on their business plans in several break-out sessions.

Covered topics will include:

• Business plan development
• Legal issues for entrepreneurs
• Marketing
• Financial considerations for entrepreneurs
• Gaining funding
• Finding investors

LaunchMemphis’ goal is to foster entrepreneurial growth within the Memphis community. The group is non-profit and the cost for the Boot Camp is $60 for two days filled with insight (lunches included).

The two sessions will take place on August 15th and 22nd from 9:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. at the Mercury Launchpad located at:

EmergeMemphis, Suite 133
516 Tennessee Street
Memphis, TN 38103

For more information email Chris@LaunchMemphis.com or call (901) 628-4657.

Don’t forget other important dates coming up:

BarCamp Chattanooga
July 25
Chattanooga, TN

Social South (SoSo)
August 21 and 22
Birmingham, AL

SocialCamp Memphis (Organized by LunaWeb through LaunchMemphis)
September 19
Memphis, TN

WordCamp Birmingham
September 27 and 28
Birmingham, AL

BarCamp Nashville
October 17
Nashville, TN

BarCamp Memphis (Organized by LunaWeb through LaunchMemphis)
November 14
Memphis, TN

"Memphis Startup Weekend" by LunaWeb on Flickr

By the end of the event Sunday, Gamewav Media, MisterMenus, CheezyWeezy, Rezzie, and Roll Play all had their business plans in place, some with websites already up – one even had a great promo video.

Each startup is quite different from the next, which meant that each attendee was able to work on the project which most excited them.

A little bit more on each startup:

• Gamewav Media is a portal for online games, centered around a zombie theme.
• MisterMenus allows users to post reviews of local restaurants – at the individual dish level.
• CheezyWeezy allows parents to post cute photos of their kids, while they and other parents rate the photos based on how much it makes them smile.
• Rezzie is a real estate engine which aims to simplify the processes of home buying, home selling – even just finding a realtor to help you find a home.
• Roll Play is a resource for online role playing and collaborative story telling.

Some of the teams may be closer to a full realization of their ideas, but it’s important to remember that Startup Weekend is not a competition. No one team struggled to beat another in any way, unless it was in a race for the beer, pizza, barbecue, Red Bull, or Kooky Canuck burgers.

The real point of Startup Weekend is seeing what happens when a group of creative people get excited about completing a project, and are given free rein (with a little bit of time) to make it come to fruition.

It was fantastic to see so many people feeding off of each other’s ideas and the immensely positive atmosphere at Emerge Memphis. Though the teams spread out through the building, it was clear that the members still came together and interacted, over food, beer, coffee or energy drinks.

That collaborative energy bubbled into the very startups being worked on. It’s clear that the projects would be difficult to complete without a dedicated team of people figuring out how best to get it off the ground – and how to have it start making some money.

It’ll be great to see these startups develop over the next few months – somewhere about three or four months down the line, there will be a reunion, gathering these teams back together to see what it is they’ve done, and how their new businesses have developed.

It’s not just the energy of Startup Weekend that’s positive – there’s the impact that these new businesses will have on the Memphis – and worldwide – communities we belong to. The sheer positivity that drives these projects has to be a sign of some unbelievably good things to come.

"LaunchMemphis Startup Weekend" by LunaWeb on Flickr.

One of our favorite things about last year’s Startup Weekend was that many of the ideas pitched include major online social components – ways to let the audience participate. This, of course, suits our disposition towards social media (we founded Social Media Expedition out of love for the technology) – but it speaks more broadly to the importance of participation in today’s tech and economic environments.

It’s becoming obvious that no single one of us can achieve greatness on his or her own. We live in a world that requires us to work together – and in a world that makes that easier than ever.

It’s no surprise that such a large proportion of ideas presented at last year’s Startup Weekend shared that social element, but it is very reassuring to know that people understand the importance of each other. We hope that the trend continues this year.

Startup Weekend’s challenge – and fun – centers around the deadline. The participants will have 72 hours to volunteer their energies to ideas chosen by other participants to work on. By Sunday night, at least one new business will be up and running.

For more information about (and to register for) Startup Weekend, visit LaunchMemphis and the Startup Weekend blog. We’ll be there to cover the event. To see some nice shots from this year’s pre-event mixer, check out our Flickr set from that evening.

“TechFuel: New Modes” by LunaWeb on Flickr.

C.C. Chapman and Adrian Ho, two of the top thought leaders in the online community, joined us to share their passion about Social Media and the new climate of “online marketing”.  Both men gave insightful presentations that went far beyond the tools and how-to of Social Media.  They also allowed for exhaustive Q&A in which great questions were met with equally strong answers. The real value, as always, was in the conversation.

A great turnout to the event translated into a valuable forum for networking, brainstorming, sharing ideas and meeting the movers and shakers of the Memphis community.  C.C. and Adrian stuck around through the late evening hours, and tirelessly conversed with Memphis’ entrepeneurs.

Check out the Commercial Appeal coverage of the event.

Next for LaunchMemphis is the 2nd Startup Weekend in Memphis.  A wide range of thinkers and creators will be needed to band together in an ambitious attempt to launch a new startup in just one weekend.

The post “TechFuel: New Modes” by lunaweb is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.