Listen Now

Tips this week include: • Ranking Factors Part 1 Workshop on Thursday • Video embed speed case study is complete, and I have the fastest way to do • What I found when testing the Yoast Video SEO plugin’s new speed feature • Video schema markup testing is complete • Update on the new boutique hosting for us • Why the order of my site services wait list may flip • The new TOS for site audit client perks I’m drawing up, and why • Why you must get your site checkup every year now • More on the new mastermind groups coming this summer • How WP Fastest Cache and Cloudflare work together • What Google’s calculation change to Cumulative Layout Shift means for your site • What’s in the email Cloudflare sent out about IP changes • Why I’m excited about Cloudflare’s revamped Web Application Firewall • Update on Cloudflare’s new Super Bot Fight Mode and why we won’t be using it • Why I’m looking into blocking some bots manually • The new Rate Limit function I’m looking into at Cloudflare • Why I’m not happy about iThemes acquiring Kadence Themes • Will Full Site Editing be rolling into WP 5.8? • The big split in Gutenberg and Classic we have now and why a bigger split is on the way • What to do if a theme revamp project is on your horizon • Why you need to jump on the Gutenberg train right now

Tips this week include: • Keyword Part 2 Workshop is this week • New Gutenberg tutorials updated with nifty WP 5.7 features you’ll like • New Gutenberg block suite plugins I’m looking into • Update on the Video SEO course embed testing • Why my site services wait list is filling up with folks leaving SiteGround • How and why to move out of your newb mindset and into a money-making one • More on how the cyber security situation is getting worse by the day • hCaptcha vs reCAPTCHA vs CleanTalk vs Akismet for spam filtering • What the new Super Bot Fight Mode at Cloudflare is all about • How to permanently disable Full Screen editing mode in Gutenberg • What will become of Unsplash now that Getty Images has acquired them • How to optimize Ads on your site for CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift) • When, and when not to purge cache on your site

Tips this week include: • Keyword SEO Part 1 Workshop this week • WP Fastest Cache has a new integration method for Cloudflare • 7 new GTMetrix tutorials for Webmasters • Theme testing update • Why not to blame Genesis for poor speed • Why there is a mass exodus from SiteGround going on now • New, better hosting update • Live session to get to the bottom of caching issues like not seeing changes in Preview • How to make it hard for scrapers to grab your content • How to find and remove stolen content • WordPress is dropping support for old Internet Explorer versions • Which is the worst browser to use for working on your site – besides IE • A primer on Full Site Editing from the man known as the spark of Gutenberg • What Chrome 90 using HTTPS as the default means for your site • Why there’s more to HTTPS than just getting that S at the end

Tips this week include: • Image SEO Part 2 Workshop is this week • 10 new WebPage Test Tutorials have been released • New GTMetrix tutorials are underway • An update on the Video SEO course and Google’s new video SEO guidelines • When the new Gutenberg Ninja tutorials for WP 5.7 will hit • Important updates for WP Fastest Cache and why I could just kiss the dev • When you should manually purge your cache • Update on the search for better hosting • A round up of all the goofy stuff we’ve been experiencing online • Are Reusable Blocks more stable for you since the WP 5.7 release • 65 new Block Patterns released by Astra • What’s up with that SharedBufferArray email from Google Search Console • How to see if your HTTPS security header status meets Core Web Vital requirements

Tips this week include: • Part 1 of the Image SEO Workshop is this Thursday • Whether it’s safe or not to update to WP 5.7 • New Gutenberg Ninja tutorials on the way • The themes on our list for deep testing • New super deep WebPage Test and GTMetrix tutorials underway • The snag I hit in the Video SEO tutorial making • All manner of goofy stuff we’re seeing with our sites like: • Seeing the WP admin bar after we log out • Red error banner from Cloudflare • Post links changing in WP • Why I think the Bing URL Submission plugin is a good thing to use • A Google Discover Case Study that explains why we’re not getting seen in it • Proof that Google Featured Snippets dropped to record lows • The search engine me and my DIY SEO folks are paying more attention to now • What’s up with the Cloudflare email about deprecated cookies • What we’re looking into with the Search Console email about SharedArrayBuffer support

Tips this week include: • What’s new in WordPress 5.7 video tour and post • Where to get update instructions for WP 5.7 • Links SEO workshop is this week • All the new messaging on BlogAid • Why to be careful who you hire for theme design • An update on theme testing and which ones are back on the table • A peek into the timeline for what’s coming to you this spring from BlogAid • Why I’m putting W3 Total Cache back on my case study test list • What causes 90% of Cumulative Layout Shift issues • What will happen when Google stops selling ads based on 3rd party cookie tracking • Why you need to do your own cookie tracking • The new mastermind groups coming by summer • Why you need to write like you talk on your blog posts • The online tester tool I used to check the spam score on the email I use for newsletters • How to avoid getting caught in the scam going around for domain renewals

Tips this week include: • Site and page SEO Workshop this week • Odd stuff still happening on sites and hosting • Video SEO course update • Theme testing update and the one we dropped from our list • The perfect course for designers who need to know more about speed • What I’m testing in the WP 5.7 Release Candidate this week • Gutenberg changes coming to WP 5.7 • Why SiteGround turned on Super Cacher for every account, and how to turn it off • Ready to move to better hosting? Get your request in now • Divi theme has ModSecurity issues and why my head blew up with their support replies • Why not to let any host, theme, or plugin compromise your site security • How to monetize your expertise and why you should

Hello Happy Site Owners and Webmasters! Tips this week include: Core Web Vitals workshop this week in the DIY SEO courseWhat’s in WordPress 5.6.2 that rolled out MondayWhy I’m concerned about lazy load of iframes coming in WP 5.7Why I think WP has no business including any type of lazy loadingHow the statistics of WordPress’ market share are misleadingUpdate on progress with the Video SEO courseUpdate on meeting with designers for theme speed tweaksWhy I’m looking at theme frameworks beyond Astra and Genesis Listen to the Podcast Join me Live to Discuss Tips Tuesday I hope you’ll join for tonight’s livestream at 8pm ET / 5pm PT on the BlogAid Facebook Page. It’s a great way to get the deeper story on what’s reported in Tips Tuesday. And, I almost always have breaking news for the day too. So come join us live for the party. Who I Help All tips, advice, and suggestions in this, and all BlogAid posts and tutorials, are intended to empower business-minded, hands-on bloggers who are serious about making money with their sites and who are on hosts I can work on. BlogAid Happenings It’s going to be a super short Tips Tuesday today as there isn’t a lot of site news to share with you. And some weeks that’s a good thing as we can use the break, right? But I will give you another peek into my crystal ball of what’s coming around the bend for us. Video SEO course update I’m still plugging away on the upcoming Video SEO course. I’m in the slow part of it with gathering screenshots and such for all of the examples. And if you’re in one of my courses, you know how real-world I make all of the examples. There are 4 major sections to the course and I’m more than halfway finished with the 2nd section, which is by far the biggest one. I’ve been doing livestreams to keep my site audit clients, who are our private testers group, updated and their feedback has been so helpful. I’ll be featuring some of their videos and such as examples in the course too. Theme Speed Tweaks for Core Web Vitals This past week I was delighted to meet with my top 2 webmaster designers to go over tests I had taken to help us identify theme issues that are contributing to less than stellar Core Web Vitals metrics. One of the biggest culprits is the mobile navigation. It will often be loaded as a bullet list of linked text prior to the CSS styling that collapses it down to the little hamburger icon you see when viewing on mobile. We chatted about ways to mitigate that issue. One is to fix the load order with a good optimization plugin, like WP Fastest Cache premium, which has a combo of caching and optimization. The other is to fix the load order of the theme, and that’s not as easy as it sounds, especially on older Genesis 3rd party themes that are bloated messes anyway. So, if you’re in the market this year for a theme revamp, you need a designer who is also a webmaster and understands all about Core Web Vitals and elements in the theme that affect those metrics. You also need to let that designer choose your new theme base if you want to stick with Genesis. Just forget all about StudioPress themes or getting one from a 3rd party child theme designer. Looking Beyond Astra and Genesis From the discussion with my webmaster designers, it is clear that we need to broaden our theme base beyond just Astra and Genesis.  I’m not going to tell you just yet which ones we are looking into, as the case study will be about a month away. But I would like to ask if there are other theme frameworks you’ve heard of that are not page or theme builders that you think I should test. And FYI, I still consider GeneratePress as a builder even though it has been adapted for Gutenberg. They lock you into using their own GeneratePress Blocks. That’s just their way of trying to survive. But being locked in like that is just as bad as having a builder of any kind now.

Tips this week include: • Tips for writing blog drafts in Google Docs • Whether having a blogging schedule helps or hurts your productivity • Why I’m glad to hear WP is scaling back on planned releases for this year • What I’m testing with lazy load for iframes coming in WP 5.7 • Finally, enhancements and stability improvements are coming for Reusable Blocks • When Full Site Editing will become a minimal viable product • The future of all WordPress themes • ADA and UX live workshop in the DIY SEO course this week • Update on progress with the Video SEO course • Update on my deep speed test case study • How I’m letting my own clients write the messaging on BlogAid • Status of my site service wait list and who’s on it and who’s not

Tips this week include: • Schema Markup live DIY SEO workshop this week • HTTPS changes coming in WordPress 5.7 • Why you need to get a real and full HTTPS conversion • Why I’m revamping the Webmaster tutorial section for Performance and postponing the HTTPS tutorial revamp • What’s up with the letter you may have received from Amazon S3 • Why you may need to reclaim your site on Pinterest and a better place to put that code • Why you need to check your HTTP3/QUIC setting at Cloudflare • Changes to the Squoosh online image optimizer and why it is my fave tool • A list of the best niche YouTube channels to follow • What was in the email I sent to all of my site audit clients • Details on the new speed tests I’m doing with plugin devs and designers

Tips this week include: • DIY SEO Workshop for Tracking SEO Performance is this week • The Video SEO course creation is underway • BlogAid’s phoenix journey and the big changes I’m making and why • What hosts have to do to protect against sophisticated hack attacks and how it impacts speed • ModSecurity is blocking certain words • More Full Site Editing features are coming in WP 5.7 • The plan for Full Site Editing to be a reality by the WP 5.8 release • Why WP had to draw a line in the sand with plugins controlling their own updates • Mediavine’s take on Web Stories • How Gutenberg’s faster performance is eroding page builder dominance • Where to get real-world, up-to-date tutorials for Gutenberg

Tips this week include: • Internet errors for “too many redirects” happening widely • An update on the random 403 forbidden errors some are seeing • New features in the WP Recipe Maker 7.0 update • Google improves the Index Coverage report for more accurate crawl data and errors • How to get amazing blog post ideas • My Sage Age book site has been totally revamped on Astra • BlogAid is now even faster and why I’m still making improvements • Why I’m running an informal caching optimization plugin case study • Improvements I submitted to the devs of the Grow Social plugin • DIY SEO live workshops begin this Thursday • An SEO spelling experiment I’ll be running

Tips this week include: • New rewrite rule in WordPress 5.6 • Why some folks are getting random 403 Forbidden error messages • Why you need to get super duper serious about your passwords • What’s so funny about Google finally crawling our sites using HTTP/2 • My advice about updating to Astra 3.0 • YouTube launches product tags and what this means for affiliate marketers • Why you need to check and change your Follow settings for the BlogAid Facebook page • Big changes to my site audit and migration request forms turning into applications • DIY SEO Quick Start Challenge has begun just ahead of our live workshops

Tips this week include: • Why you need to re-register your .eu domain so it won’t break • What’s so important about the release of the fully block-based version of TwentyTwentyOne theme releasing soon • Why you need to read my op-ed on the Trellis theme before jumping onboard • What’s up with Liquid Web acquiring the Events Calendar Plugin • Why you need to check that you’re Following the BlogAid Facebook page, not just Liking it • What came from my live chat with my site audit clients and webmasters last week • The fix I found for not being able to see edits in preview • Today we begin the Quick Start Challenge in the DIY SEO course • Why I’m adding a new schema markup workshop • Why I’m planning to add a new content silo micro course and who will get the first invites to it

Tips this week include: • Google’s priorities for SEO in 2021 as relayed by John Mueller directly • Issues with the WP SMTP plugin • Why to properly validate your email address for better delivery • Last day to get your holiday discounts on BlogAid courses • Gutenberg Ninja tutorials are updated for WP 5.6 changes • DIY SEO standing tutorials are updated • The survey coming to DIY SEO course members tomorrow • Live chat for site success in 2021 on Thursday

Tips this week include: • Pinterest Preview Images not Displaying • Google Submit URL for indexing tool is back • Grow.me makes Save Recipe button available for WP Recipe Maker • Genesis Shapers Dec Meeting • State of the Word Address • Last days on the BlogAid Holiday Sales savings • Updates in the BB Hub member area • My checks into why some of us can’t see edits in Preview • How to update to WP 5.6 instructions are coming out tomorrow, and who will receive them • My 2020 Year in Review post is out with sneak peeks into what’s coming for 2021

Take a look back at this crazy year of site changes, plus you’ll discover what worked and what didn’t as I continue to pivot my online businesses. And, get a peek into what’s coming for 2021.

Tips this week include: • Why we’re still waiting to update to WP 5.6, and where to find instructions for doing it • All about Cloudflare’s APO email you may have gotten, and why we won’t be using it yet • 38 states file suit against Google’s search monopoly and what it means for your SEO • Why Astra has become too much of a moving target • My revised holiday hours for BlogAid • A few host migration tips and help • What folks who are just now getting back to blogging should do • An update on my Video SEO research and how Team Yoast helped • When the Quick Checks for the DIY SEO course will come out ahead of our live workshops starting

Tips this week include: • No checkbox to turn off auto updates in WP 5.6 • State of the Word address this week on Dec 17 • Why you need to check your Grow Social Pro license • Why I’m so happy with the new GTMetrix tester • Why Google PageSpeed Insights is not an accurate tester • Where Google gets its speed data about your site • Update on Genesis Full Site Editing • BlogAid holiday schedule • Update on meeting with my video SEO clients for more testing • What to do if you can’t see edits in preview • A final word on getting errors when saving UpdraftPlus settings • Why not to run end around your host security settings • Why hosts are removing the WordPress Toolkit app in cPanel and what you need to check for

Tips this week include: • See what’s new in WordPress 5.6 that rolls out tomorrow • A potential issue with the new WordPress Toolkit settings in cPanel • The important State of the Word Keynote address will be live streamed on Dec 17 • How to promote your content with audiograms • Why some folks can’t update UpdraftPlus and the action we are taking with support • How to get ready for Core Web Vitals becoming a ranking factor soon • A reminder that HTTPS security headers are a Core Web Vitals metric • My take on the new Crawl Stats Report in Google Search Console • Why we’re not happy about GA4 being the new analytics default when new sites are added • Genesis calling for Full Site Editor beta testers, and what this means for the framework • Reminder there is still time to get in on the BlogAid Holiday sale discounts • An update on the big SEO issue at BlogAid that has been fixed • The new schema markup tutorials coming to the DIY SEO course over this • The YouTube milestone reached for my woodworking site • A great opportunity for you to get more eyeballs on your post with my Share the Joy post on Facebook • Why I want to hear your thoughts about the MeWe social media platform