FAQ

$75 Hour Sale!! {CLOSED}

need to close this early! LOL! A LOT of you took me up on this!

Most Custom Blog designs, Logos, and MUCH more ON SALE for ONLY $75!! Yep, you read right…$75! Just fill out our contact form to find out if what YOU want is part of the sale…AND…be sure and mention “$75 SALE!” to get in on this offer! HURRY! It will ONLY last 75 HOURS! Limited number of offers…so do not miss out!

Offer expires: 07/22/10 at 11:59pm Note: Images not included in this offer. Client will be responsible for additional fees for custom graphics or istock image fees.

WIN A NEW BLOG and LOGO DESIGN!

Hello All!

I have (after MUCH thought and advice from trusted advisers) decided to change the name of Designed by Lara. I will be doing a complete overhaul in the next few weeks…My ONLY problem is trying to figure out a name! LOL! THAT is where YOU come in….and can WIN!

A few things you should know BEFORE you enter…

1. I want a more general name…NOT with my name any longer. I want room to grow and possibly hire designers. I want it to have more of a company feel than a “one woman show” as a friend put it.

2. I do not want it to be too long of a name.

3. I want something catchy and brandable but NOT too cutsie.

4. I am *thinking* the word studio and/or design being in the name MIGHT be nice. HOWEVER I am TOTALLY open to any and all ideas! PLEASE help! LOL!

What do YOU get out of this?

If I pick YOUR idea, then you win a HUGE prize….BUT even if you do NOT get your name picked…you still WIN!!

What do you win??

The person with the winning idea that is available for me to purchase as a .com domain will receive a whole shebang blog design with a logo design as well. This includes LOTS of goodies…like….Value of Prize: $800 (Note: the ONLY thing you would have to cover is any istock images you want incorporated into the blog design)

But Wait! EVERYONE wins something!

Just for sharing your idea(s) you will get a FREE 125×125 button design! VALUE: $15-$25 The only thing you need to do is provide image if you want an image in the design.

If you SHARE the contest on TWITTER and/or your BLOG you will get the button AND a $10 credit to use whenever you want toward a purchase from our design shop! So, you can get up to $20 in credits if you do both a blog AND twitter post!

How AWESOME is that???

Note: If no ideas work for me, no grand prize will be given. However, I will still honor the button prize for each winner…just give me time to make them depending on how many enter…LOL! I will also still honor the credits.

How To: Set Page Order for Wordpress

Wordpress has so many awesome features. I will be doing a tutorial series on How To’s for Wordpress. Our first one will be how to set your page order.

Setting Page Order for Wordpress Navigation Quick Edit

This is great if you have several pages that are not ordered and you want to set the order up quickly.

Step One: Go to wp-admin–>pages (this is located on right sidebar of your Wordpress admin.)

Step Two: Decide order. Jot it down on piece of paper for easy viewing.

Step Three: Click on “Quick Edit” for each page one at a time, starting with page that will be number 1.

Step Four: After you click “quick edit,” you will notice information the drops down about that particular page. On the right side, you will see “order.” Type the number 1 in the box.

Step Five: Click blue “update page” button.

Repeat for remaining pages.

Setting Page Order for Wordpress As Page is Created

This is for when you create a page from scratch and you want to set the page order. You can also go to a current page and edit it. However, the quick edit option above is easier for that.

Step One: Go to wp-admin–>pages–> ad new (this is located on right sidebar of your Wordpress admin.)

Step Two: Set up page title, content, etc.

Step Three: On the right side of the blank and ready to be created page you will see “attributes.” Under it you will see; parent, template, order, etc. Put the number the page will be in the “order” box.

Step Four: Click blue “publish” button.

Repeat for future page creations.

I hope this how to article for Wordpress is helpful to you! If you have any tutorial requests for Wordpress, please contact me here!

Use a Social Plug In to Increase Blog Traffic

I love Wordpress. One of the many reasons is their huge amount of plug in choices. One of my absolute favorite ones is the Sociable Plug In. You can pick it up here: (yoast.com/wordpress/sociable/)

What does it do?

Well, it allows you to add an array of social bookmark buttons at the bottom of your posts. It is very user friendly as well. With a few clicks of the mouse you can choose out of the many ones they offer what socials you want to appear in the footer of your posts. You may even choose the order in which they appear and whether or not you want them on your pages as well.

I suggest you go with their css styling option, unless of course you want to invest the time to style it yourself! LOL. If you leave it at the default setting, it lays it out vertically instead of horizontally. Their styling also offers a nice roll over affect. You can see it in action at the footer of this post and all the posts on my site.

To get it to look like it does at the end of my posts, once it is installed,go to: settings->Sociable-> then click on box next to “Use the sociable style sheet?”

What’s all the Fuss about Social Bookmarking?

Well, quite simply, it allows for readers to favorite a post made by you and for them to find a popular posts. If you write posts with valuable information, you will get more traffic. The Sociable plug in simply makes it easier for readers to give you the kudos you deserve!

Another positive about Social Bookmarking, and by far the best reason, is the one way back links it gives you. It is also an easy way to gain steady traffic.

Next Step

If you have not dove into the world of social bookmarking yet, start signing now!

• sign up for a few social bookmarking sites like; digg, delicious, reddit, facebook and twitter.
• Get the Sociable plug in
• Visit sites with good content, bookmark them
• Leave comments
• Oh, and fav your own stuff!

Soon you will be a Social media guru!

Copyright © Lara Velez, Designed by Lara, All Rights Reserved

Why Have a Boutique?

Do you really need a boutique or store? Yes! Sure, you can go with mass market “hosts” like esty. However, if you really want to brand yourself and are serious about your business, your own store is the best option for you. People will see that you are serious and not just another part time wannabe business person.

Having your own store does not cost as much as you think and can be very easy to run!

All you need is…

• a professional looking logo and store design
• a place to host your store
• products to sell

I can help with all three.

Professional Logo. This is your mark. When visitors come to your boutique, your logo is what they will see first. It will help them associate you with what you offer. A good logo is a must!

Host.DBL offers a great Ecomm Cart. From what I can see they are affordable and priced competitively. However, there are many options out there. Drop me a line and I can send you a few links.

Products to sell. This is where you come in. You will need products. Adding them is simple, and I can show you how to do that!

Well, there you go.  A boutique can really make a difference and I can help get you going. Just ask for Snap!

Ta for now,
Snap

Tutorial: How to Upgrade Wordpress

Upgrading your Wordpress blog may seem like a daunting task. However, if you follow these simple steps, you should have no problems at all.

IMPORTANT! Always back up files before messing with technical stuff! NO exceptions. I cannot be held responsible for errors. YOU must back up files.

There are two ways to upgrade your Wordpress blog. One is through the admin section and one through ftp. It really all depends on what version is being used and what method you are most comfortable using.

Before you begin, make sure  you back up everything. THEN read ALL directions carefully.

Upgrading Wordpress Through Admin

IMPORTANT! Always back up files before messing with technical stuff! NO exceptions. I cannot be held responsible for errors. YOU must back up files.

If an upgrade is needed, you should see a little notice at the top of your admin dashboard saying something like; WordPress 2.8.1 is available! Please update now. If you do, then do the following:

Step One: click on the link, “Please update now.”

Step Two: click on “upgrade automatically” button (if not there, you are using older Wordpress version and cannot use this method to upgrade, move onto ftp method).

Step Three: Enter information in the provided spaces.

• Host Name: this is your url. Example: www.designedbylara.com would be mine.
• Username: this is the username for your website’s cPanel, ftp or website back office. NOT your Wordpress log in.
• Password: this is the password for your website’s cPanel, ftp or website back office. NOT your Wordpress log in.
• Make sure ftp is checked
• Click “proceed”

Step Four: wait for upgrade to take place. It may take a few minute. Once complete, it will tel you it was successful…or…

Step Five: If you encountered a problem, do the ftp method instead.

Upgrading Wordpress through FTP

IMPORTANT! Always back up files before messing with technical stuff! NO exceptions. I cannot be held responsible for errors. YOU must back up files.

Step One: download latest version of wordpress through your admin or from main site wordpress.org to your computer.

Step Two: Unzip

Step Three: log into website through favorite ftp software (I use filezilla)

Step Four: on your website side of the ftp, go to where Wordpress files are located (example: yoururl.com/blog), delete the admin and includes folders ON THE BLOG SIDE OF FTP.  Do NOT delete the content files.

Step Five: Now, on COMPUTER side of ftp NOT blog side, delete content folder. You are deleting the content folder from the NEW version of Wordpress. NOT what is already on your site. DO NOT touch that at all when doing upgrade. Period.

Step Six: transfer admin and includes folders AND all other files FROM computer side of ftp TO blog side.  DO NOT transfer content folder. That should have already been deleted in step 5.

Step Seven: when transfer is complete, log into your wordpress admin.

Step Eight: if it tells you to upgrade database, click “upgrade now.” If it does not, you are good to go.

If you still do not feel comfortable upgrading Wordpress on your own, contact me, and I can do it for a nominal fee.

Two New Premades for Sale!

We just put up two new premade Wordpress themes up for sale. As always, they are only sold ONCE. Click on each image to see more about that theme and how to purchase.

Electric Beauty – 2 Columns Premade Wordpress Theme

Razzle Dazzle 1 – 3 Columns Premade Wordpress Theme

New Affiliate Program!

We now offer an affiliate program. It is a great way for clients to make some extra cash promoting our services and spread the love. It is also a great way for blog owners and affiliate marketers to make some extra cash. We offer a two tier program at 20% with awesome bonus opportunities and higher commissions during the holiday season.

For more information on how YOU can make some money helping promote quality web design, click here! OR, just sign up!

Simply Organic Recipes – FOR SALE!!

This will be your site to do what you want with. You can delete all content and start from scratch or keep the “starter” content there. The only thing you cannot do is claim you wrote the content or remove the designer and hosting credit links.

For more information on Simply Organic Recipes website and what comes with it, CLICK HERE!

Blog Hop ‘09 – My First Blog Party Participation!

Yep, Blog Hop ‘09 is the first one I have ever been a part of. LOL! There was NO way I could make BlogHer. I live in Florida and Chicago is way to far for this Momma!

OK, so a little about me…

• I am a sold out Jesus Lover
• I am married to my best buddy
• I am a homeschooling Mother of two beautiful daughters
• I LOVE chocolate…and Dr. Pepper too!
• I am a Web Designer
• I am the founder of Moms of Faith
• I love cats and have two of them
• I love to blog and have met a lot of great people
• I am new to the Twitter world, but have been learning quickly. LOL
• And, I am thrilled to NOT be at Blog Her! ROFL! Meeting ya’ll is WAY better!!

I am giving away $25 worth of web design services to one lucky person who leaves a comment on this post!

OK…so get on board with the blog hop ‘09 and you could win … Details are at Robin’s Place.

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