How to calculate the number of Posts Published

The MySQL database is where a count of the number of published Posts needs to take place but we can’t run a SQL query directly from the Website therefore we use some basic PHP like this using the wp_count_posts WordPress function:

<?PHP
$published_posts = wp_count_posts();
echo $published_posts->publish;
?> 

So the script above will run a query on the database and then will return and display the value (the ‘echo’ bit tells the script to display the result). But how do we display the value on a Page, Post or Widget.

How to run PHP in a Widget

In this paragraph I’ll cover how to output/display the PHP in a widget. There really is no point in reinventing the wheel when the functionality required already exists and works well. Go ahead and install the PHP Code Widget which is a free WordPress Plugin and does as it’s title suggests.

Once you’ve installed and activated the PHP Code Widget you’ll need to add the new widget into the widget area where you’d like your Post count to display.

Show and Style your total number of Posts

So now you’ll have a number output in the widget that shows the number of Posts you’ve published on your Blog. A number alone doesn’t mean much to anyone so you’ll probably want to put some text before or after the number as well as add style how the text and number in the widget look. This is easily done by using some HTML and/or CSS. For example the image below shows the HTML and CSS I’ve used to create the desired output in my widget:

So there it is, a really simple way to show the number of Posts you’ve published on your WordPress Website.

Much of my contribution to charitable and community causes is assistance with WordPress and how these organizations can better benefit from the Web. I was therefore delighted when my wife elected me to setup a Website for West Pymble Out of School Care. Fortunately others helped with the content and Sandra did alot of work in getting the content looking great on the new Site (which made my job alot simpler).

Where to Start with the new Website

When developing any Website, it’s important to consider the ability of the stakeholders to manage the Website. Considerations aren’t restricted to technical ability but, especially with not-for-profit or charity organizations, include the availability of time of people to manage the Website (as well as other factors). Money is also an important constraint to consider.

About the new Website

WordPress is therefore an ideal Content Management System (CMS) for managing Websites. WordPress can be setup to be extremely cost effective whilst maintaining the ability to expand the Website functionality should this be needed in the future. WordPress was therefore the best choice for the new Website.

The West Pymble Out of School Care Website is made to be simple to maintain and change content whilst being attractive to viewers. As more people visit Websites from mobile devices (e.g. Android, iPad and iPhone) the Site had to look great on large screen and small screen devices (take a look at the Site on a mobile device and you’ll notice how the layout changes for different size devices). On the topic of mobile devices, small functionality items have been added to the Site such as the coded phone numbers which mean a simple one-click to dial West Pymble Out of School Care. The capabilities are also available to easily enable other functionality such as Event Management (and bookings), membership areas and even an Online Shop (why not sell products Online if parents find this useful?). The most important factor of all is that it’s an incredibly simple Website to maintain.

Search Engine Optimization

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is important for almost all Websites. The new Website in built on a well coded Theme which makes it simple for Search ‘bots to understand the content of the Site. WordPress itself is very Search Engine ‘friendly’ but a few extras have been added to make the Site even better for visitors and Search Engines. Some examples include the very fast load speed of the Pages which is achieved through browser caching, database caching, lossless compression of images and various other clever little techniques. Should the Website start to see large visitor numbers I’ll likely configure a Content Delivery Network (CDN) to deliver static content and enable high-performance DNS (e.g. Amazon AWS Route 53 which I use on my Website).

Oh, and another nifty bit of coding added is the address that is provided in Microformats hcard format which makes it easy for Search Engines to understand exactly where West Pymble Out of School Care is located.

Wait, I have to mention a very very last SEO cool feature; you’ll notice that the sharing buttons shown are those that you use most. Yes, the Site determines the sharing/bookmarking Sites you visit most and then show these buttons in preference over services you likely don’t use.

Domain Name and Hosting

The domain name chosen is wpoosc.com.au and is currently hosted on a generic shared Host. For now, with low visitor numbers, all-purpose shared Linux hosting works well and is very inexpensive. If the Site does start to see significant visitor numbers then dedicated hosting with CDN delivery of static content will be an option.

Email and Extras

wpoosc.com.au is a newly acquired domain name therefore an email address/email addresses need to be setup. For this it’s likely that the excellent Gmail will be used via the extras provided with Google Apps. Google Apps has a few free products for schools, charities and not-for-profit organizations so this should be free for West Pymble Out of School Care.

A Page is also being setup on Google Places as, for local searches, Google Places has really replaced the traditional business directories such as Yellow Pages.

O.k. That’s enough about the Website. Why not head over to the Website now and share it via the Facebook, Twitter or other social media buttons on the Site.

Where to change Suffusion settings

In this tutorial all data will be filled at the following location once you are logged in to your WordPress dashboard (you must have the free Suffusion Theme installed and active to see these options); Appearance -> Suffusion options -> Back-end -> Custom Includes . Alternately go to http://example.com/wp-admin/themes.php?page=suffusion-options-manager&tab=theme-options-blog-features.php and change example.com to your domain name and then click Custom Includes in the left Suffusion sidebar.

Step 1: Add JavaScript

1. Go to the text area called Custom Footer JavaScript and insert the following
   $j = jQuery.noConflict();
$j(document).ready(function() {
$j('#horizontal-outer-widgets-2').insertAfter('#wrapper');});
2. Click Save to save the change.

Step 2: Add & amend CSS

1. Go to the text area called Custom Styles (this is the first text area on the Custom Includes Page) and insert the following
   #page-footer {width:100%;display:inline-block;}
   #horizontal-outer-widgets-2 .suf-horizontal-widget {width:20%;}
   #horizontal-outer-widgets-2 {background-color:##668B8B;border:none;}
2. Adjust the CSS as required. As a brief explanation here is what each line of CSS is doing:
   #page-footer {width:100%;display:inline-block;} This is setting the widget area to be 100% Page width.
   #horizontal-outer-widgets-2 .suf-horizontal-widget {width:20%;} Here the width of each widget is set. Change the percentage until the widgets are the required width.
   #horizontal-outer-widgets-2 {background-color:#668B8B;border:none;} Change the hex color value as required and add other border CSS as required.
3. Click Save to save the change

Check that the footer widget area now if full horizontal width. Adjust the CSS as required. Your Suffusion Theme footer widget area on your WordPress Site should now look great.

Credit for this solution must go to the official forum for the Suffusion Theme. I originally saw a version of the solution as described above on that forum.

1. Less is more

Don’t have line upon line of text. Landing Pages used to have hundreds of words but that just doesn’t work anymore.

2. Above the fold is where it’s at

A small percentage of people will scroll down a Webpage. Have all necessary information above the fold.

3. Call to action

Have a very clear call to action. Don’t make visitors have to search for the ‘buy now’ or ‘subscribe’ button.

4. Fast loading Page

People will abandon your Site if it doesn’t load very fast. Amazon.com, Google and others have proven that faster loading Pages result in higher conversion rates.

5. Address a need

What need or problem does your product or service address or resolve. In a few words, in a prominent place near the top of the Page describe what needs you are addressing or solving.

6. Clear and concise description

Describe your product or service in a short sentence. Your sentence illustrating the need that is being addessed (see the item above) may also encapsulate the description.

7. Pictures (and video) say a thousand words

You must include images and/or video. These not only provide a simple means for visitors to understand what your landing Page is about, but also help to convey the image that you want your visitors to have of you or your company.

8. Show trust signals

If people don’t quickly feel that they trust you or your company you won’t get a conversion. Some good trust signals include; show photos of people, show testimonials, have logos of your customers showing and clearly show contact details.

9. Narrow/short funnel

A funnel refers to the steps that the visitor needs to take to buy or sign-up for the product or service. The fewer steps the visitor needs to complete the more likely it is that they’ll complete the sign-up or sale. The key here is to only ask for the minimum necessary information from the visitor and continously try to make the buying or sign-up process as simple and quick as possible

10. Placement of Page Content

When a visitor first views a Webpage they usually look at the top left of the Page and then they look at the right-middle of the Page. Have you noticed how many of the successful landing Pages have their call-to-action on the right about half way down the Page (e.g. Mailchimp.com and Amazon.com products)? You should be doing the same.

If you need help with creating or designing your successful landing Page then hire my services. I’ll get you better results.