Lots of Updates to Share
May 28 2013 Filed in: Video Release
It’s been a while since I posted here to the public RapidWeaver Classroom Blog, but there has been a lot going on and almost too much to share in a single blog post, so I will briefly summarize the updates here and if you want more details you can view the Members Blog that is available to subscribers.
Website Upgrade
RapidWeaver Classroom moved to a new hosting server earlier this month. I am very happy to be with Javabean Hosting and RapidWeaver Classroom has never been faster!Along with the server move, I have updated the members area to improve navigation throughout all of the tutorials, and there is now the option to view and search the full listing of tutorials on a single page.
New Tutorials
A number of new tutorials have been posted to the Classroom curriculum in the past 6 weeks…- SEO Tutorials: I highly recommend that everyone view these latest tutorials -- Google Places for Business and Geographic Targeting
- Elixir Stacks Tutorials: Four new tutorials on great Stack Elements from Elixir.
- StackManiac Stacks Tutorial: A new tutorial on the Viewr Stack.
- Yabdab Stacks Tutorials: Two new tutorials on stacks from Yabdab.
Upcoming Tutorials
I am producing more stacks tutorials for release on Friday of this week. I am also developing more new content for the Strategies section, as well as full coverage of the weaverPix plugin, a very impressive photo gallery option for RapidWeaver. Tutorial releases will be coming very regularly now that the server move is complete, and I will continue to post about updates here, so check back often!Thanks for your support!
-Ryan
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Comments
SEO Tutorials Updated with Google Authorship
Jan 18 2013 Filed in: Video Release
I highly recommend that everyone implement this as shown in this new video tutorial. The click-through rate (CTR) -- the number of clicks your website receives in Google search results -- is likely to increase if you correctly set up Authorship, by creating a Google+ profile and linking it to the content of your website. When this is done correctly, Google will (in most cases) place your Google+ profile picture alongside your website's listing in search results. This provides instant credibility to your website and makes people more willing to click on your link, opposed to others that do not have a photo listed.
Note that Google Authorship doesn't automatically improve your website's placement in search results. It's still important that you follow the other SEO guidelines in order to improve your website's rankings, and your success with SEO will always depend on a number of factors, many of which are out of your control. Even so, implementing Authorship is certainly worth the effort and I highly recommend doing so.
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New Tutorial on using 301 Redirects
Jun 22 2012 Filed in: Video Release
I’ve added the tutorial “Using 301 Redirects” to the SEO lesson under Strategies. 301 Redirects are useful in several situations:
- You are changing the filename of an existing web page.
- You are updating your website and consolidating multiple pages into a single one.
- You are eliminating a page but still want inbound links to direct to an existing page.
This information is not crucial for brand new websites that are being built, but it can be helpful to understand the concept when it comes to future changes that might take place with your website.
There is much more to come in July! Subscribers can find out more about upcoming content in the Members Blog.
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SEO Tutorials are Free for Everyone!
May 15 2009 Filed in: Video Release
SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is a topic of such frequent discussion that I felt the new SEO tutorials here at RapidWeaver Classroom should be available for free for everyone to view. The SEO tutorials are now available for viewing in both the subscribers' area and for free on the Curriculum page (scroll to the bottom of the page). Note that the free videos are hosted by Vimeo in HD, but enrolled students should watch them in the subscribers' area to view them in a bit better quality.
Feel free to leave comments here on these videos, and let me know what kinds of questions I did not address. SEO is such a huge topic that it could certainly warrant more video instruction in the future.
Feel free to leave comments here on these videos, and let me know what kinds of questions I did not address. SEO is such a huge topic that it could certainly warrant more video instruction in the future.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Tutorials
May 14 2009 Filed in: Video Release
I have added a new set of tutorials covering Search Engine Optimization (SEO) with RapidWeaver. There are a total of 7 tutorials covering many different aspects of SEO, and this is an important topic for anyone building a website. It's also a controversial topic, with many conflicting thoughts and opinions on how to best optimize your website for search engines. Part of this is because SEO is a constantly changing science, with search engines becoming smarter and modifying their algorithms in order to produce more accurate and valid results.
I have attempted to cover all of the major, valid SEO strategies and make a point to explain the strategies that are most valuable, in addition to including ones that may or may not have great impact. It's certainly an interesting aspect of website design, but it's also very important and so I encourage everyone to go through these new tutorials and execute some of the strategies yourself!
I have attempted to cover all of the major, valid SEO strategies and make a point to explain the strategies that are most valuable, in addition to including ones that may or may not have great impact. It's certainly an interesting aspect of website design, but it's also very important and so I encourage everyone to go through these new tutorials and execute some of the strategies yourself!
