Writing
Here is how you do it: Never go to the blog page and start writing. Posts are automatically sent to the blog page after you publish them. Instead, go to “Add New Post”. There will be an area for a title and and area for the writing. The editor should be very familial to anyone who uses Microsoft Word. You can add bold, italic, create links, and add images. Don’t forget to create “categories” for your post. These will create an index for readers to select in subjects they are interested. in.  For this post, I will be selecting, “blogging” or “blogs”.

Add an Image
To an image, make sure that it is optimized, that is, not too large. Images should probably be no larger than 600 pixels wide and less than 200k in size. Find the “Add Featured Image” link in the bottom right of your post page and upload or drag the image from your desktop when prompted. Once you add the image, save or update the post. If your blog is featured o your home page, the latest post will show up automatically there, as well as on your blog page. The image size will adjust itself. Also, keep in mind, the image will be placed in your media library, available for future use. No need to upload it more than once.

Add a Link
I’m sure I’ve written about this before, but it’s always a good idea t refresh your blog with content that new client’s will find easily. To link a word or words, first select them with your cursor. Then, go up to the tool bar in your editor and select the chain link icon. A box will pop up and you paste the link into the area and click the arrow that says “apply”. Save. Now, to keep your link from driving visitors away form your site you must edit the link. Select the words again and click the gear icon in the box. This will edit your link. A box will pop up and you should check the box that says “open link in a new tab”. Then save again. Always test your link. (I just discovered that instead of the arrow, you can open the gear and do both jobs at once, the link and the open in new tab…)

Publishing
After you are satisfied with your text, you can save it as a draft to publish later or publish it right away. People who are subscribed to your blog will receive email notification that you have a new post. An email opt-in, or sign up form can be placed on your website, to attract new subscribers.

Why is this a good idea? Not only does it introduce you to their customers who may visit their website, but the Search Engine benefits are real. That post goes out on the internet with your name in bright lights. And here I am posting about it and their name and link will be available at the bottom of this article. It’s a WIN WIN, as they say. For their page go to: http://cpaadvisors.biz/wordpress/perugi-design/. By the way, Tony is an affable guy who happens to be a really great accountant. Check out CPA Advisors!

This week on Local Business Spotlight, we are joined by local web designer Deb Perugi from Perugi Design.

Perugi Design helps many local businesses create and maintain beautiful and elegant websites that are unique to each company and easy to navigate (for both front-end visitors and her back-end clients).  All the sites are mobile and tablet friendly – which is a necessity nowadays if you want your business to succeed. We love Deb’s work, so today we asked her how she got her start.

What do you like best about designing?
I like combining my graphic design and photography skills and figuring out the layout and editing content in a way that will suit my client’s goals. I think it involves both sides of the brain as I have to think creatively but also logically. It fully engages me, especially when there is problem-solving to do!

How did you get started in website design?
I was working at the Boston Globe at the time. Early on, the Globe brought in desk Apple desktop computers and we were producing information graphics for the daily and Sunday papers on deadline. I went to a one-day workshop in Cambridge to find out about the internet. We wrote a sample web page in HTML. It blew my mind that what you saw on the screen was what others would see. It eliminated the inevitable printing errors that would occur.
Of course, that was before I learned that different browsers had an effect on web pages.

Why did you pick the Framingham area to serve?
We were living in Newton where we moved in 1992 when our twins were a year old. It was always the plan that when they went off to college we would sell the condo and find less expensive property further from Boston. We looked at many towns and settled on the Natick/Framingham area. Not only is it less expensive to live here, we really like the area.

What are 3 local businesses in Framingham would you like to see spotlighted and why?
I have a lot of clients in this area so I’ll pick a few of them.
Crossfit Synergistics in Ashland. Talk to Elizabeth. This is a recent client. Elizabeth is a good manager and great to work with. She is energetic and enthusiastic about CrossFit.
Red Rover Clothing in Framingham. Talk to Cindy. Cindy works really hard to create unique polar fleece outer wear. She not only designs and makes the clothes, she sells at many major craft shows in the US.
PSW Youth Employment in Marlborough. Talk to Kelley or Jan. This group does so much for disadvantaged youth in the Southeastern Metro region. They help kids connect with corporations in the area via internships, mentorships, and other ways.

When you’re not working, what do you do for fun?
I was trained as a visual artist, so I like to take painting classes and I have a small studio at home. I also love the outdoor activities and organic farming practices. So I visit farms and buy eggs locally. We also like to travel to Europe, so when we can afford a trip, we go.
If you are looking for a great web designer for your business or start-up, you can contact Deb at:

Office: 508-879-7347
Cell: 617-365-3418
Website’s Contact Form: https://perugi.com/contact
Facebook: Perugi Design
LinkedIn: Deb Perugi

Article at: http://cpaadvisors.biz/

The first one is the “Paste as text button”. Use this when you copied text from another source. The reason you want this: Text that is sourced elsewhere will have style coding in it. This button allows you to paste clean type that you can style to your liking after. Otherwise, you end up with messy styles you can’t fix unless you know how to edit html.

Distraction Free Writing Mode is exactly that. Use this when you want a clean looking editing area without all the wordpress columns and options surrounding it.

You can take advantage of writing it on a Sunday and scheduling it for Monday morning if that is when you want your post to hit the internet. Just Save Draft on the right side of your editor and then Edit the Publish Immediately button right below. In fact I’m doing that now. The Publish button then turns into a blue Schedule button. Put in your date and time, save and you are all set.

Check your Google Analytics* a few days later to see how well the post did. You can learn from your own analytics if you review them regularly. Try a Monday at 7 am, then perhaps, at 11 am, etc.

A reminder to all. Use the Categories at the right column to add the article to your database. You may choose more than one category. Add a new category if you need to. Also helpful to SEO is the Tags area just below the Categories.

• To access your Google Analytics reports, go to the url for Google Analytics. (It has its own web site.) Log in with your Gmail address and password.

Pages are the main pages on your site that rarely change such as Contact Us or About Us. (Example: The About Us Page has a typo)
Posts are smaller publications that you create on a weekly basis and are generally newsy. These can be categorized. (Example: I don’t know what to write for my next post. Can you help me?)
Menu defines the navigation buttons that are typically present near the top of a site’s pages. (Example: I want to remove one of the pages off the top menu.)
Headers are the images and text areas displayed at the top of a site’s various pages. (Example: Can we change the header’s background color to blue?)
Footer is the area in a box at the bottom of the site and found on every page. These are usually made with widgets. (Example: I forget how to access the footer area from the dashboard)
Sidebar is a side column usually found on the blog page but can be used elsewhere. It also contains widgets. (Example: I want a sidebar to appear on another page.)
Widgets provide an easy way to add little programs, such as the current weather, to a sidebar or footer. (Example: Is there a widget of a contact form?)
Background is the background image and color of a site or module. (Example: I want a background image to be on the home page)
Plugins are custom functions created and imported to extend the core functionality of WordPress. (Example: Is there a plugin for an Event List?)
Parent Page is a main page with top hierarchy (Example: The parnet of the child page is “About Us”)
Child Page is a secondary page under the Parent Page. (Example: The first child page of “About Us” will be a biography of the owner.)
HTML is Hypertext Markup Language, some very simple coding that is handy for creating widgets. (Example: It is necessary to use HTML in the widget areas to create links.)