1.
WiFi Network
startecguest
startechguest 2.4 GHz
startecguest 5 GHz
Password: InnovateTBay
[case sensitive]
Should I DIY or buy a new WordPress website?
WordPress St. Petersburg
Elaine Simmons & Jennifer Novak

2.
Upcoming Meetups & Events
• SEO in WordPress: Tools & Strategies (Sami Vanni)
TEC Garage, Downtown St. Pete, July 5th, 6:30PM
• Ask Us Anything - WordPress Project & Support Crowdsourcing Meetup
TEC Garage, Downtown St. Pete, July 19th, 6:30PM

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WordPress St. Petersburg
Downtown St. Pete @ TEC Garage
1st & 3rd Thursdays / Monthly
Meetup: https://meetup.com/WordPress-St-Petersburg
Web: https://tampabaywp.org
Slack Chat | Facebook Group | Meetups
A Member of Tampa Bay WordPress Network

4.
We are looking for SPEAKERS!
• Do you have a subject on WordPress you’d like to
talk to others about?
• Would you like to try your hand at public speaking
in a safe space?
• Would you like to pad your resume?
• https://tampabaywp.org/speakers/call/

5.
Should I DIY or buy
a new WordPress website?
It depends!
WordPress St. Petersburg
Elaine Simmons & Jennifer Novak

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ABOUT THE PRESENTERS
About Elaine:
I create mobile friendly WordPress websites, landing
pages, maintain websites and refresh existing websites.
My background is in graphic design, working in
corporate environments. I became certified by Pinellas
Technical Education Center in Web Design in 2009.
elainesimmonsdesign.com
twitter.com/elaine_simmons
linkedin.com/in/elainesimmonsdesign/

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ABOUT THE PRESENTERS
About Jennifer Novak:
I started building websites in the early 2000s as a
hobby and personal challenge that was completely
different than my career path. In 2013, I founded
Next Rise Marketing to combine my career
experience and personal interests. I currently do
digital marketing including social media, AdWords,
e-mail marketing and, of course, build and
manage WordPress websites.
nextrise.co
twitter.com/jnovakfl
linkedin.com/in/jennifermnovak

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Overview
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Should I hire a Designer/Developer to build my website versus doing it myself?
It depends!
We will touch on basics you need to know, such as:
-Do you need to outsource building your website?
-Resources for learning WordPress*
-Overview of steps to building a website.
-Determining the goals for your website.
-What to look for in a web designer/developer.
You will learn tips and resources to successfully build a site you can be proud of and/or
what you need to hire someone to build a website for you.
*We will provide you resources. This will be a quick reference and mentions that you can
research later.
Overview
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1. Time Budget vs Dollar Budget:
• Time vs Cost: How soon do you need this site up and running? Do you have time to
spend learning to build a website vs building your business?
• What is the cost of hiring vs diy?
• Content creation: Do you have time to write the content and find photos for content?
Websites don’t build themselves!
Two Key Thoughts
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2. Personal/Passion Project vs Business Goals:
• What’s your objective or purpose for this website?
• Are you making money from this website?
Two Key Thoughts
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1. Time budget vs Dollar Budget -
• Time vs cost: How soon do you need this site up and running? Do you have time to spend learning to
build a website vs building your business?
• What is the cost of hiring vs diy?
• Content creation: Do you have time to write the content? Find photos for content?
2. Personal/Passion Project vs Business Goals:
• What’s your objective or purpose for this website?
• Are you making money from this website?
Two Key Thoughts
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Learning WordPress
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What do I know currently?
How much are you interested in
learning about WordPress?
Questions to ask yourself for Learning WordPress :
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What is my preferred learning style?
Do you prefer video, reading the
documentation or manual, reading
blogs, asking questions?
Questions to ask yourself for Learning WordPress :
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Resources
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No matter the issue - Google is your friend!
Resources for learning WordPress :
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YouTube is second largest search engine.
Resources for learning WordPress :
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Resources for learning WordPress :
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lynda.com
bobwp.com
wpbeginner.com
wp101.com

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WordPress Resources:
wordpress.org
codex.wordpress.org
Literally, the manual for WordPress. Also, a great insomnia
cure.
central.wordcamp.org
Updates on WordCamps. If you can’t attend, look for online
streams or follow the Twitter hashtag.
wordpress.tv
Videos from WordCamps around the world.
Resources for learning WordPress :
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Business & Marketing Strategy:
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Is this a Personal Passion or Business Purpose?
Do you have a clear business plan?
What is your current stage of business? What is your anticipated rate of growth?
Business & Marketing Strategy:
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What is the purpose of your website? Is it a blog? Informational? Selling
digital downloads? Selling products? Selling services?
Marketing Strategy:
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Who is your audience?
Marketing Strategy:
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What are your Business Requirements? What is the Project Scope?
Marketing Strategy:
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What are your Call-To-Actions?
Marketing Strategy:
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What does your website need to do?
Blogging - SEO,
News -Content Updates & Contributors
Local Brick & Mortar - GMB,
Online Sales - E-Commerce/Supply Chain - Buyer/Materials, Order
Fulfillment, Shipping (packaging & costs), Customer Service, Return Policy
Marketing Strategy:
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What do you need now?
What can wait for growth?
Marketing Strategy:
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Domain Registration & Hosting:
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Are you familiar with basic Top Level Domains
and best practice for URLs?
Domain Registration & Hosting:
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Different Types of Hosting
DOMAIN REGISTRAR:

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Do I have basic knowledge of web hosting?
Domain Registration & Hosting:
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Familiarize yourself with Control Panels and FTP.
Domain Registration & Hosting:
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Design

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Design Inspiration:
wordpress.org/showcase
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Design

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Content:
Basic Suggested Content: Home, About, Contact, Product/Service, Blog
Decision - should you write,
write and hire an editor, or hire a copywriter?
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Design

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Graphics:
Do you know the basics of image editing and have a tool you are comfortable using?
Photoshop, Canva, paint.net, GIMP
Headshot/Portraits, Office, Products, Logo, Branding
Stock Images vs Custom
Free:
Pixabay, Unsplash, Pexels
Get Permission:
Instagram, Flickr
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Design
Buy:
Shutterstock
Adobe Stock
iStock

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VIDEO:
• Are you comfortable editing and uploading video to YouTube?
(Adobe Premiere Pro, iMovie, Final Cut, Adobe Spark)
• Use YouTube & embed. Don’t Host it yourself!
• Include Closed Caption, SEO description
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Design

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Color Scheme:
Are you familiar with current color trends and basic color theory?
Psychology of Color Color Contrast & Color Blindness
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Design
canva.com/learn/color-theory/

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Theme:
Get a basic theme that is well-written.
Bells and Whistles can be added.
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Design
wordpress.org/themes/
tampabaywp.org/video-archive/

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BUILDERS
• Beaver Builder
• Divi
• Visual Composer
(research limitations, learn about shortcodes )
• Look for Gutenberg.
Design
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tampabaywp.org/video-archive/
• Choosing WordPress Themes & Website Review:

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Plugins
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How comfortable are you
assessing the best
plugin for your purpose?
Look for:
• Most recent update
• Version compatible
• # of downloads
• Support issues
• Freemium/Lite version
Plugins
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SEO
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Yoast vs SEO All-In-One
• Google Analytics
• Search Console
• Google Tags
• Set Up AdWords and use KeyWord Planner
• Google My Business
• On-Page SEO
• Link Building
SEO
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Research & Return
July 5 @ 6:30 PM
SEO in WordPress: Tools & Strategies presentation
by Sami Vanni
Details on Meetup:
meetup.com/WordPress-St-Petersburg
SEO
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System Administration
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Staging Sites
“Coming Soon” is better
than “Under Construction”
Production-to-Live Site
System Administration
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Maintenance
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How will you keep up-to-date on WordPress updates & security, plugin
updates, best practices, design trends?
How often does your hosting company does backups?
ManageWP, BackUp Buddy, VaultPress
Maintenance
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Thoughts about hiring a designer or developer
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• Hourly rate is the WORST way to hire.
• Know your budget
• Trust - Can you trust this person? Track record, personality,
• Know which speciality you need - Marketer, Designer, Developer, Agency/
Team
• Look for a partner - not an employee.
Thoughts about hiring a designer or developer
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Where to look:
• WordPress Meetups
• Google search
• twitter search
• LinkedIn
• Dribble
• Behance
Thoughts about hiring a designer or developer
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Payment in project stages - Usually 2-3 payments depending on the size of
the site. At least one upfront. Some will do weekly payments.
Thoughts about hiring a designer or developer
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Other Thoughts
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• Website is never “done.”
• The design will evolve.
• Content updates needed.
• Maintenance needed.
• Learn from Google Analytics what’s
working and make adjustments.
Other Thoughts
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• Plan on redesign in 2-3 years, probably.
• Research recent design trends. Some will
fade away - flat design, parallax, sliders
Other Thoughts
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Recap
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What do I know? How do I learn?
Two Key Thoughts
1. Time budget vs Dollar Budget
2. Personal/Passion Project vs Business Goals
Questions to ask yourself - Recap
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You now have information & resources to:
• Outsource building your website.
• Learning to build a WordPress site.
• Plan your steps to build a website.
• Determine the goals for your website.
• Determine whether you need a marketer, designer or
developer
Recap
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So do I DIY or buy?
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It depends!
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Questions?
Elaine Simmons
@elaine_simmons
linkedin.com/in/elainesimmonsdesign/
elainesimmonsdesign.com/
Jennifer Novak
@jnovakfl
linkedin.com/in/jennifermnovak/
nextrise.co