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Sponsor highlight: Plesk

Plesk simplifies web management activities to align with the way infrastructure is used today for hosting websites and web applications. Its pitch is that it’s the only tool you’ll ever need to build, secure and run sites and apps in the Cloud.

plesk_logo_positive_rgbA widely used web management solution, Plesk provides everything that a web professional needs to set up a website quickly and securely — including a WordPress Toolkit, an easy-to-navigate control panel, server level automation, supportability tools, and complete protection with our server-to-site security core.

Plesk states that it is the only OS agnostic platform and is running on more than 300,000 servers, automating over 10 million websites and 15 million mailboxes. “Available in more than 32 languages across 140 countries, 50 percent of the top 100 service providers worldwide are partnering with Plesk today,” according to its About page.

Learn more about the company at www.plesk.com.

Plesk, is an Author level sponsor of WordCamp Fayetteville. Thank you, Plesk!

10 Reasons Business Owners Belong at WordCamp

Business owners of Northwest Arkansas, are you thinking that you don’t belong at WordCamp? Are you imagining that this is a tech conference that won’t be useful for you?

Think again.

Here are 10 reasons to get your ticket for WordCamp Fayetteville 2016.

  1. You’ll be able to make an informed decision about the best content management system for your business website. We think it’s WordPress, but you may have a different impression. A day with the Wordcampers will help you decide with confidence.
  2. You’ll get some inspiration from entrepreneurs, marketers, and other businesspeople.
  3. If you have a WordPress website, you’ll get a better grasp of what it can do and how you can use it.
  4. If you want more control over your website, you’ll learn how you can have that. Just figuring out where everything is can be half the challenge.
  5. You may also learn that you don’t want more control. That’s okay, too.
  6. You can learn how to make your website more secure. You can share that information with your web team.
  7. You can learn about legal issues you may face when you use influencer marketing. You can also learn what that is.
  8. You can learn some best practices for websites in SEO, design, and content.
  9. You can learn how to track and measure your website’s success.
  10. You might want to make a blog or podcast of your own some day, outside of your business.

WordCamp is a great networking opportunity, and a fun and accepting place to learn. Join us!

Data-Driven SEO at WordCamp Fayetteville

Here are some things we’ve heard about SEO:

  • “It changes all the time, so there’s no point in trying.”
  • “Just use WordPress. It’s automatically SEO optimized.”
  • “As long as you have your top keyword in your domain name, it doesn’t matter what else you do.”

What about a different way?

The Session “Data-Driven SEO” will show you how to use the advantages of WordPress and data from your website’s visitors to create a workable SEO strategy.

You’ll learn

  • How to install analytics
  • Where to find actionable data
  • How to use that information to determine your best SEO moves

Swag from Misty Slavens at Mystic Style

 

Misty Slavens provides web graphics and she can also convert non-digital graphics for the web. In fact, Misty does lots of digital support and design!

We’re delighted to welcome Misty to WordCamp! She’ll be sharing swag, so be sure to come by the table while you enjoy your coffee.

WordCamp-MysticStyleGraphicsAdvertisment-webfile

Connect with Misty at LinkedIn.

Check out Mystic Style’s Facebook page.

WordCamp Fayetteville press release

For Immediate Release • July 3, 2016 • Contact info at bottom

WordCamp Fayetteville Set for Late July

Quick look: WordCamp Fayetteville will be July 22-24 at the University of Arkansas. The July 23 workshop is designed to help people at all levels of knowledge develop websites — at low cost — for themselves, nonprofits and businesses. It focuses on WordPress, the popular Internet platform that is used on nearly 75 million websites or blogs worldwide. Admission to WordCamp Fayetteville is $35 and includes a light breakfast and box lunch, as well as a Friday reception, Saturday after-party and informal tutoring Sunday morning. No tickets will be sold at the door so register in advance at 2016.fayetteville.wordcamp.org/tickets.

FAYETTEVILLE, Arkansas — The seventh annual WordCamp Fayetteville will be July 22-24, with workshops throughout that Saturday at Donald W. Reynolds Center for Enterprise Development on the University of Arkansas campus.

The key day for the conference is Saturday, July 23, at the Reynolds Center, part of the Sam M. Walton College of Business. Tickets are $35, which includes the full day on Saturday, the Jam Session (informal tutoring) on Sunday morning, and social events on Friday and Saturday evenings.

WordCamps are designed for new and experienced users of WordPress, the world’s most popular content management system with usage estimated at 75 million websites. WordCamps are organized by community volunteers all over the world and the events are designed for all levels of users from beginners to developers.

Sessions offer a wide range of topics that center around using WordPress. These topics include basics for novices, tips for nonprofits and businesses, improving content, development and design, and web security. This year’s schedule of sessions will be available on the website soon.

Eric Huber, chief creative officer and co-founder of Blue Zoo Creative of Fayetteville, continues to be the lead organizer for WordCamp Fayetteville for a second year. Huber said the WordCamp Fayetteville 2016 committee made a change to the schedule format this year after seeing the new format prove successful at other WordCamps, including the recent WordCamp Kansas City.

The change is that sessions will not be divided into tracks. Instead, each session hour will include a more user-focused course and a more developer-focused course. The more relaxed format will make it easier for participants to decide which session to attend instead of feeling like they must stick with a specific track. For example, one session such as the planned “Anatomy of a Website” or the session on legal guidelines for influencer marketing could easily have fit into several of the previous tracks.

Brian Hillliard
Brian Hillliard

All session speakers are local or regional WordPress users who have expertise in their given area. However, the keynote speaker for WordCamp Fayetteville will be Atlanta-based Brian Hilliard, co-author of the best-selling book “Networking Like a Pro.” The Duke University graduate’s focus is on marketing for entrepreneurs.

Included in the $35 ticket are pastries with coffee or tea during sign-in Saturday morning, snacks during the day, with box lunches and soft drinks at the noon break. Friday’s reception will be at Teatro Scarpino with Saturday’s after-party at Powerhouse Seafood & Grill, with complimentary hors d’oeuvres at each. The location for Sunday’s Jam Session is still being finalized and the information will be available on the event website soon.

Registration is limited; sign up at 2016.fayetteville.wordcamp.org. The event has sold out every year, so tickets will not be available at the door. Each person who registers by July 11 will be guaranteed a WordCamp Fayetteville T-shirt, and meal preferences must be made by July 18.

The website 2016.fayetteville.wordcamp.org has details.

For more information:
Eric Huber
Organizer, WordCamp Fayetteville 2016
Eric@bluezoocreative.com
479.790.7388
2016.fayetteville.wordcamp.org

A First-Time WordCamper’s Pre-conference Thoughts

The 7th annual WordCamp Fayetteville conference will take place on Saturday, July 23. This blog was written last year by someone who was planning to attend their first WordCamp. We thought the information was still great for first-timers this year so we are resharing it below1

A First-Time WordCamper’s Pre-conference Thoughts

Many WordPress designers, developers and users get together to share their knowledge and experience. I will have the opportunity to meet WordPress users and developers who, at different skill levels, are also trying to figure things out. It will be reassuring to know that I am doing certain things well while also challenging myself to learn more complex tasks.

In 2009, I started a blog using the WordPress.com platform and learned about choosing themes and how to do basic customization. I began to watch video tutorials covering WordPress topics and practiced my newly-learned skills. In 2013, I decided to learn more about self-hosting and the WordPress.org platform. Since then, I have created a few self-hosted web sites while still maintaining my original WordPress.com web site.

While viewing WordCamp TV videos, I have often wished to be a member of the audience instead of being an online viewer in my home office. Earlier this year, I looked on the WordCamp Central web site to search for a conference in my state and was pleased to discover WordCamp Fayetteville. I look forward to attending my first WordCamp in beautiful Northwest Arkansas!

Giving Back by Speaking at WordCamp Fayetteville

WordPress has asked all of us who make their livings with WordPress to give back to the community. They suggest 5% of your time — a couple of hours a week. There are plenty of ways to give back: help in the support forums at WordPress.org, organize and participate in meetups, help with WordPress sites at Give Camps…

Here’s something else you can do: present at WordCamp.

Chances are there’s something that you know but which other people don’t know. Maybe there’s a great plugin you know how to use. Or perhaps you have a special way of organizing your blogging calendar. Maybe you have a trick for integrating social media with your WordPress site that other people don’t know.

Think about sharing that knowledge with the rest of the community.

What will you get out of it?

  • You might get extra visibility, a job, a lead, or some other measurable return on your investment. We’re not here to promote our companies, but you know what they say about casting bread on the waters.
  • You’ll learn things, too. The comments and questions and discussions after your talk will almost certainly teach you something, and then there are other people’s sessions.
  • It’s fun. WordCamp is a great place to meet people and to get to know folks you’ve only talked to on Twitter.

And you’ll be doing your part to give back to WordPress, that free tool that makes you money.

Not a speaker? That’s understandable; some say that fear of public speaking is the #1 phobia in the nation. In that case, think about sponsoring, volunteering, or just helping to spread the word!

You can apply to be a speaker here.

An introvert’s guide to attending WordCamp

WordCamp Fayetteville is an excellent opportunity to meet new people. At the conference, everyone you will meet shares a common interest with you: WordPress. Knowing this may help you to feel less apprehensive if you tend to be introverted.

It also helps to know that the WordPress community is a friendly and welcoming group of people. Still, it can be intimidating to enter a large room full of people whom you may not know.

Here are five tips to help you feel comfortable at WordCamp: Continue reading “An introvert’s guide to attending WordCamp”

WordCamp Fayetteville is over. Check out the next edition!