Watch and share this replay from my webinar on how to use WordPress for digital marketing. I focused on strategies for professional speaker websites, although the same basic techniques apply to any business or nonprofit website.
Additional notes are included below.
This presentation was originally given to an audience of Toastmasters leaders.
To recap key points (including some I may not have said out loud):
- I recommend WordPress because it is an Internet standard used by many businesses large and small for their online marketing. When I reviewed a list of top 10 list, I found 8 of 10 great pro speaker websites run on WordPress.
- WordPress is open source software, meaning it is created by a community of software developers and made freely available to install on any website.
- The software itself is free, as are many plugins, themes (designs), and services. For a pro speaker or small business website, you will typically find you need to pay some software and services. They include registering a domain, paying for hosting, and potentially purchasing commercial add-ons.
- You can get a free website at WordPress.com, but you will need to pay for upgrades if you want it to show up at your own domain or give you access to additional business features. I generally recommend setting up an independent website that uses the software.
- If you hire me to do your website, I prefer to make website hosting part of the package deal I offer so I can get you set up on the hosting from the same company I use for my own projects.
- You can want to hire a consultant like me to assist you with the design and setup. Or you can take the do-it-yourself approach and learn as you go. It depends partly on whether you’re in a hurry to get something online and how comfortable you are learning new software.
- Even when someone hires me, I always recommend they learn enough WordPress skills that they could fix a typo or an outdated price on their website without relying on me to do it for them. Certainly, if you want to take advantage of the blogging feature, you’ll want to learn your way around the editor.
Resources from Others
Top 10 Professional Speaker Websites to Inspire You
Creating a speaker website that’s so good, that meeting planners instantly hire you
WordPress Blocks: The Ultimate Guide to Gutenberg Blocks
Some of My Other Websites
My portfolio website davidfcarr.com
RSVPMaker plugin for event scheduling and registration
WordPress for Toastmasters open source software for use by Toastmasters clubs
Toastmost website hosting for Toastmasters