Luckily enough there are all kinds of WordPress import tools and plugins online, many of which are freely available in the repository. We always search the WordPress repository first when looking for any solution since “there’s almost always somebody that had that problem before you”.

Here’s some plugins that might help you import content from other types of websites for migration WordPress:

Need to move your Tumblog from Tumblr to WordPress? Try the Tumblr Export for WordPress.

You might also like to try Tumblr Importer, written by Ott42 (core submitter to WordPress).

If you were using Posterous for your blog or website, you could use the

If you’re been using the Mambo CMS for your website, you could import the content to WordPress using the Mambo Importer plugin.

You could also try the Joomla / Mambo to WordPress Migrator:

Joomla Mambo WordPress migration import

If you’re using the older Joomla 1.5 version there’s always the Joomla 1.5 Importer.

Another (smaller) CMS that used for website management is “e107″, and there’s even a e107 to WordPress Importer.

Maybe you just have static website content, and no idea how to get that imported into WordPress. That’s fairly simple work with the HTML Import 2 Plugin:

If you’re using the Typo3 CMS system, you could use the Typo3 to WordPress importer.

For users that have a Movable Type webiste, you can use the Movable Type Backup Importer to get your content inside WordPress.

Maybe it’s images you need to import inside WordPress, and in that case you could use the Gallery2 Importer

There are other types of importers available too, such as the Delicious XML importer – which could be used to import all of your delicious bookmarks.

Also, if all you want to do is move a WordPress website from one location, server, domain, or sub-domain to another – consider using the XCloner backup and restoer plugin.

If you need help moving, migrating, backing up, or importing content into your WordPress website, please consider our Web Development Services.

A website is more than the sum of it’s digital parts. It’s more than a business card on the web. A website is a point of “connection” with people. That connection used to be (for most businesses) “the phone book”. When is the last time you used the phone book?

Google is the new phone book, and that’s the first place someone goes on their phone, ipad, or computer when looking for ANYTHING.

The reason a business would spend $5,000-$10,000/yr (or more) advertising in the phone book or newspaper (or radio / television) is leads and sales. You don’t spend that much money on something like that if it doesn’t directly make your business money.

Now that people are searching for everything online, if you you don’t have a website you are losing out on leads and sales. WordPress now runs 50 million+ websites, and what most website owners forget is – WordPress is software that needs to be maintained.

If your website generates leads and sales how much would it cost you if it were down for a day? A week? A month? What if it was infected with malware and it cost you all your Google rankings for 6 weeks?

The worth of your website is determined by how much money it makes your business in sales, leads, and marketing – and if it were down how much it would cost you if it were down for a period of time.

Just like it’s almost impossible to be without a car or medical insurance, most business cannot be without a working website (for any period of time). You should have a qualified expert performing routine maintenance on your WordPress powered website, making sure all the themes and plugins (and WordPress itself) and completely up to date. At the same time your database can be optimized, old files removed, and recommendations can be made for improvements (such as SEO, caching, errors in code, etc.).

For more details on how we can help you, please fill out the inquiry form on our web development page.

I want you to think of your search engine rankings like a tent. Your “tent” is your online authority. Each tent pole is an anchor that helps hold your tent down. Think of the number of searches that are done each day as your tent – which is about to be blown over by the wind.

The image above is a HUGE tent pole, like the big one you’d see at the center of a circus tent. If your web site were a tent, the huge tent pole would probably be your home page and it’s authority. If your homepage has ENOUGH authority (like the big tent pole) it probably won’t get lost in search rankings (it won’t blow away).

Look at the tent in the image above. It has one main huge tent pole in the center, and then about 10 smaller anchoring tent poles around the outside. If that circus tent were your web site, the supporting perimeter poles would include your online social signals – and other things that supported your online authority.

Look at this image – which directly illustrates what “social signals” are like in Google and what they mean to search rankings. Using social media can only help augment your brand online. You may be able to survive with “one tent pole”, but if you firmly want to “anchor” yourself deeply in search results, using social media to help do that will give you more online authority.

You want to “build up” your Twitter and Facebook accounts just like you were raising those supporting tent poles. Grow a following, interact with people, expand your base and online authority.

Direct Evidence that Social Signals Count

So far, this article has been little more than analogy and hype to convince you (yet again) that you should be using social media in your online marketing strategy. We HATE posts of that nature that don’t provide specifics (which are usually not much more than regurgitated info-rhetoric).

Google using social media in search ranking is a fairly new topic to 2011. But the conversation started back in December 2010 when Search Engine Land actually interviewed the Google team responsible for the google search ranking algorithm. Note – NOT the web spam team (headed by Matt Cutts), but the team actually responsible for ranking. They indicated months ago in that interview that social results would be part of the ranking algorithm, but (as always) couldn’t provide specifics, only general concepts.

And this is a synopsis of what they said…

Let’s say somebody is searching for something, and they FOLLOW you in social media. As a result (of them following you) YOUR CONTENT is more likely to come up in THEIR SEARCH RESULTS!

DO YOU GET IT NOW??

When it comes down to it, (now) using social media isn’t about being the cool kid on the block, using the latest buzzwords, or staying trendy and relevant – it means that you’re getting in front of a customer’s face MORE OFTEN.

What “More Often” Really Means in Results

We were at a loss of what to call this new found social relevance in results, until we read this free SEOMoz post about Tweets Effect Rankings: Unexpected Case Study.

In that post they use the term “Author Authority“. If you tweet things and people “like” your brand – your “author authority” will increase. This more “likes” and “retweets” you get on a regular basis – the more “author authority” you will have.

This means that in order to do business online you must realize the following:

• Just because you have a successful online brand, doesn’t automatically mean your social media will be successful (without work)
• Social media are separate, yet complementary anchors to online authority overall
• You must build social “author authority” to complement your online authority

Conclusion

All in all, if you’re going to do business online – you need a broad online marketing strategy, that includes social signals as well as other elements. Set your anchors deep for good search rankings. Do you want your tent to blow away?

Contact Us for Your Online Marketing Needs

WordPress Ann Arbor

I thought it was a great presentation – and not because I gave it, but because I was able to give about 30 people a decent understanding of what SEO is, and best practices for using SEO inside a WordPress web site. I’m also happy that now I can supply that presentation slide deck to others, and thanks to Lindsay Babl (Ann Arbor Graphic Design) – who was kind enough to run my Flip video, I have 99% of the presentation on video for you to watch. The slide deck has great info, but trust me – if you watch the video (all 1 hr and 10 minutes of it) you’ll get MUCH more out of the presentation. I would also like to thank Ross (3.7 Designs), and Declan (Logic by Design).

I want to thank all of the attendees of the WordPress Ann Arbor meetup, because I think that all the questions the audience asked were valid and timely. It helps me to get input and questions like that, so I can add to the material here – and over time we can educate even more people on WordPress and SEO. I’m going to get this page well ranked for Best Practices for WordPress SEO over time – and hopefully we can help thousands of people across the world.

What’s in the Best Practices WordPress SEO Presentation

Well, that’s a good question. As I mention in the video – I put this presentation together to help people understand SEO as a whole, and how it applies to WordPress. I don’t think there’s much sense just showing how WordPress SEO plugins work, if you don’t know the basics of how SEO works, and how search engines rank pages. If you go through the complete slide deck and watch the entire hour long+ video, you will learn:

• What is SEO?
• What is Keyword Research?
• What is Competitive Analysis?
• WordPress Web Site Configuration for SEO
• WordPress SEO Plugins
• WordPress Sitemap Plugins
• Search Engine Registration
• WordPressSitemap Submission
• WordPress Commenting Plugins
• WordPress internal linking strategy
• On-Site Content Optimization
• Link Building and Online Promotion

This is information that people pay thousands of dollars to get from agencies and professional SEO’s (and some keep it to themselves). I firmly believe that everyone who owns a WordPress powered web site should have this information.

Download Best Practices WordPress SEO Presentation Here

You can download the slide deck for the presentation at the link below. When I add embed the video to this page once it’s done processing, I’ll also embed the presentation here once I throw it up on slideshare.

Best Practices for WordPress and SEO

Best Practices for WordPress and SEO Video

There’s an hour and ten minutes of video from this presentation processing right now. It’s going to take me about a day to get it edited and up to YouTube. I’m going to put it there (and embed it on this page once done) in hopes that others will embed and use the videos on their sites as well – and we can reach even more people. Please revisit this page within the next 24 hours to watch the video (I have to break it up into 5 videos due to YouTube’s 15 minute upload limit).

There’s a signup form at the bottom of this page, if you give me your email (don’t worry, your privacy is safe with me) – I’ll notify you each time this page is updated or we have more information or resources about WordPress and SEO.

Best Practices for WordPress SEO Resources

Well, this is what every wants – the resources that go along with the WordPress SEO presentation. I couldn’t exactly throw out a bunch of links in the presentation – everybody wouldn’t be able to write them all down, so here are the resource web sites that go along with the content of the video and slide deck presentation (more links to be added soon):

SEOMoz Search Engine Ranking factors

Google Takes Action against Content Farms

All in One SEO Pack

Platinum SEO Pack

Google XML Sitemaps

Search Engine Webmaster Control Panels:
google.com/webmasters
bing.com/webmaster
siteexplorer.search.yahoo.com

Google Adwords Keyword Tool

Why Am I Providing this Information for Free

Because I’m a firm believer in Karma and the “Pay it Forward” mentality. Just because I’m giving away this information, it doesn’t mean I’m giving away my services or secrets for free. Many people read all this information about SEO – and once they see how much work it is – they just want somebody else to do it all for them (me!). Others are freelancers, entrepreneurs, small business owners, or simple people out of work trying to gain new skills. Kudos to you – I hope this information helps you in some small way become more successful!

How to Contact Me

If you are interested in hiring me and would like to become a client, by all means please use the Contact JTPratt Media form online.

If you would like to read some of the 300+ articles I’ve written in the past about dozens of WordPress subjects, there’s a wealth of information on my WordPress Help Blog.

If you do the social media thing, I can be found posting from time to time on twitter.com/jtpratt

To make sure you know when and where I might speak and give other presentations, you might want to friend me at Facebook.com/JTPrattMedia

Get WordPress SEO Updates!

To be notified of any Best Practices for WordPress SEO changes (to this page) – or any new WordPress SEO info I’m sending out, subscribe to my free newsletter:

Wordpress is a great open source environment with plenty of free themes and plugins, but if you are going to rely on WordPress for business – you not only need to know that your plugins are going to work, you need to know if you have a problem you have a dedicated support source for them. We look for long term relationships with our clients, and we can create your custom WordPress plugin now, AND maintain it as long as you would like into the future.

WordPress Plugin Development

Wordpress Plugin Development

We can and have created WordPress plugins that do all kinds of things:

• Affiliate Plugins: Plugins that work with eBay, Amazon, Clickbank, ShareASale, LinkShare, Shopping.com, Shopzilla, and more!
• Content Plugins: Custom plugins for YouTube, Yahoo News, Yahoo Answers, Article Directories, Google News, Craigslist
• Social Media Plugins: Custom WordPress plugins for Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, FourSquare, Groupon, Social Bookmarking sites
• Aggregation Plugins: RSS Aggregation, Autoblogging, republishing, rewriting, distribution
• Membership Plugins: Complete public and private membership web sites with custom plugins, or integration of popular plugins such as WishList Member or AMember. Customization of existing WordPress plugins
• GeoMashup plugins: WordPress plugin development of GeoMashup sites. For example, google maps site plotting nationwide or international events, local deals by store on a google map, etc.
• WordPress Specific Plugins: WordPress plugins for custom post types, wordpress 3.0 navigation menus, category or tag organization, scheduled posts, content augmentation, content monetization, ad display and rotation systems
• Custom Widgets: Drag and drop widgets for content, external data, internal data, images, social media, and more
• Custom Theme Admin: WordPress development inside a theme, we can embed plugin functions into any new or existing WP theme, color pickers, color scheme managers, image upload for header, footer, posts, and/or sidebars, multiple columns, custom theme pages, theme builders, enhanced visual editors, and more!
• e-Commerce: Shopping carts, paypal carts, shopping cart integration, Clickbank integration, digital downloads and ebook sales, iTunes integration
• SEO Plugins: Plugins for keyword density, better rankings, linkbuilding, content exchange, internal linking, keyword counting and SEO scoring, image smart SEO, and more
• Sitemap Plugins: XML Sitemaps, video sitemaps, mobile sitemaps, visitor sitemaps, and image sitemaps
• Mobile Plugins: WordPress plugins developed to display alternate themes for mobile visitors, to ensure your site is usable on Smartphones like Android mobiles and iPhones.
• Small Business Specific Plugins: WordPress plugin development for specific markets – such as real estate, mortgage lending and loans, auto dealerships (new and used), etc.
• Directory Plugins: WP plugins for creating open directories like Yahoo or DMOZ – only used for specific purposes. Such as wedding vendor directory, insurance agent directory, realtor directory, country, county, or city specific directory, etc.

WordPress Plugin Licensing

Wordpress Plugin Licensing

We also specialize in WordPress plugin licensing. Many plugins we create are designed to be sold as “Premium WordPress Plugins”. Most WordPress plugin development has very basic licensing, such as “email registration”, and the only ability they have is to license one or unlimited sites.

We have licensing packages available in any combination you can imagine. You can license plugins out for 1, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100, unlimited (or any number) of domains. You can tie the registration to specific modules (they get only what they pay for). We can tie it into your payment gateway with auto-renewal, and auto-expiration each month. There’s nothing we can’t do with plugin licensing. We can even encrypt and fully obfuscate all the code so it can’t be copied, and create windows based installers and installation wizards for you! Custom training manuals, video training, and support can be provided as well.

You might also be interested in our other WordPress Services

To Request more WordPress Plugin Development information, please fill out the form below, and we’ll respond within 24 hours.

WordPress Plugin Development Inquiry

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You can be on top of Google, start by visiting our SEO Services page

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