Mindspring Design | South Jersey Website Design & Graphic Design Blog » Blogging http://mindspringdesign.com/blog Wesite Design & Graphics Advice for South Jersey Small Businesses Sun, 18 Dec 2011 23:19:40 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 A Hijacked Blog and a Happy Ending http://mindspringdesign.com/blog/305/ http://mindspringdesign.com/blog/305/#comments Thu, 24 Sep 2009 19:41:57 +0000 admin http://mindspringdesign.com/blog/?p=305 Check out this note I received from one of my readers. Someone hijacked this business owner’s blog — someone created his own administrative user identity and took control of the blog. (The IP address and some names have been withheld.) I finally removed the bogus administrator from my blog database.  I kept calling {Web Hosting [...]
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Check out this note I received from one of my readers. Someone hijacked this business owner’s blog — someone created his own administrative user identity and took control of the blog. (The IP address and some names have been withheld.)

I finally removed the bogus administrator from my blog database.  I kept calling {Web Hosting Provider Name Withheld} because I finally realized the techies didn’t really understand what was going on. This has happened to me before. You have to keep calling to get someone who knows what the heck is going on.

First a tech told me that the WordPress application wasn’t supported and to contact WordPress.  Next, one actually had me believe the WordPress database was on the WordPress server.  His voice was calm, authoritative and so believable.  Then I thought to myself a few minutes later “hey, that’s not true”.

Finally after vacation, I got a tech guy who told me the IP address, name and password to my WordPress database. He warned me that I could totally damage my database with this information. I thank him and said it if did too much damage, I would delete the whole thing and start all over.

It’s a good thing I have command line skills:)

I did a:

ssh 000.000.00.00 -l wp_0058p_0

mysql>DELETE wp_user from wp_users WHERE display_name ='Blog_Hijacker';

A happy ending:)

This reader handled the situation very well. No thanks to his web host. And as an avid reader of his blog, I noticed he never skipped a post.

Aside from security issues, there are a few things to take away here… If you are a non-technical person, don’t despair. Some “technical” people have no clue either. So make sure you are with a host that is knowledgeable and helpful. Don’t settle for mediocre service, and be persistent.

Another thing is — it does pay to educate yourself a bit. Just a few lines of code solved this issue.

Also, I believe it’s better to install and set up your own blog, don’t go through software applications offered through your web host. Ask your web designer to download and install WordPress on your server. Then you will have more control, style and functionality with your blog. And if anything goes wrong, your designer will know exactly where your database is located, and who or what to delete!

As a business owner, you are in control. With knowledge, persistence, and good help, your blog will never skip a beat.

]]> http://mindspringdesign.com/blog/305/feed/ 2 15 Secrets of a Pro Blogger http://mindspringdesign.com/blog/15-secrets-of-a-pro-blogger/ http://mindspringdesign.com/blog/15-secrets-of-a-pro-blogger/#comments Wed, 06 May 2009 16:48:48 +0000 admin http://mindspringdesign.com/blog/?p=240 Okay, there’s this one blog I stalk everyday. Actually two to three times a day. Sometimes more ; ) It’s less than a year old, and already the blogger has a large following, tons of commenters, an industry presence, popularity on YouTube, and is even turning a profit! Part of my obsession with this blog [...]
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Okay, there’s this one blog I stalk everyday. Actually two to three times a day. Sometimes more ; ) It’s less than a year old, and already the blogger has a large following, tons of commenters, an industry presence, popularity on YouTube, and is even turning a profit! Part of my obsession with this blog comes from a strong prior interest in the topic (beauty/haircare). But the other part comes from my desire to analyze and share this blogger’s secrets to success!

A pro blogger:

  • Posts a couple of times per day (I know not all will agree with this one, it really depends on the nature of the blog)
  • Posts lots of pictures (where applicable)
  • Writes about a popular, niche market, filling a need for information
  • Invites other voices/writers on the blog
  • Holds contests and giveaways
  • Stays up-to-date on the industry buzz, even attending/participating in professional events
  • Develops series of posts that can be repeated with new information (informational series, story-telling series, tutorial series, etc.)
  • Has personality
  • Invites comments
  • Invites photo submissions and stories
  • Shares personal emotions, experiences, thoughts and mistakes
  • Has many different, appealing categories listed in the sidebar
  • Is a cheerleader for her supporters and views information sharing as a labor of love
  • Coins her own terms, gaining an internet following and building a brand
  • Stays mainly positive in tone

This is what I’ve noticed about this successful blogger. I will remain a loyal reader until she stops posting — who knows what valuable beauty tips I’ll miss if I don’t! Hopefully you can use some of her blogging secrets to breathe life into your blog.

Let me know what works for you…

]]> http://mindspringdesign.com/blog/15-secrets-of-a-pro-blogger/feed/ 1 Analytics Expert: 7 Small Website Changes that Make for Big Returns http://mindspringdesign.com/blog/analytics-expert-7-small-website-changes-that-make-for-big-returns/ http://mindspringdesign.com/blog/analytics-expert-7-small-website-changes-that-make-for-big-returns/#comments Fri, 20 Mar 2009 21:51:33 +0000 admin http://mindspringdesign.com/blog/?p=202 Avinash Kaushik lists 7 actionable “small and medium sized ideas” that will add up to big changes and hopefully big ROI for your website. These aren’t necessarily new projects, just tweaks and changes to the way things are already being done. Kaushik calls them “immediately fixable things”. Try out a few and let us know [...]
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Avinash Kaushik lists 7 actionable “small and medium sized ideas” that will add up to big changes and hopefully big ROI for your website. These aren’t necessarily new projects, just tweaks and changes to the way things are already being done. Kaushik calls them “immediately fixable things”. Try out a few and let us know how it works out for you!

“Aggregation of Marginal Gains: Recession Busting Analytics!” by Avinash Kaushik

]]> http://mindspringdesign.com/blog/analytics-expert-7-small-website-changes-that-make-for-big-returns/feed/ 3 Does My Small Business Need a Blog? http://mindspringdesign.com/blog/does-my-small-business-need-a-blog/ http://mindspringdesign.com/blog/does-my-small-business-need-a-blog/#comments Tue, 20 Jan 2009 21:36:53 +0000 admin http://mindspringdesign.com/blog/?p=112 These days it seems everybody and their mom has a blog. Rock stars, politicians, and 13 year old millionaires have blogs. Does your company need one? We’ll discuss what blogs can do, the benefits, and the risks. What on earth is a blog anyway? For those who don’t know, “blog” is a term that combines [...]
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These days it seems everybody and their mom has a blog. Rock stars, politicians, and 13 year old millionaires have blogs. Does your company need one? We’ll discuss what blogs can do, the benefits, and the risks.

What on earth is a blog anyway?

For those who don’t know, “blog” is a term that combines the words “Web” and “log.” So it logs (or lists) entries (often called “posts”) containing text, graphics, or video content created by somebody. Learn about blog types and history here.

You are reading Mindspring Design’s Blog right now. Take a minute and look around! Many blogs follow this format. You are reading a post. You can read other posts by searching the categories and other links in the sidebar. At the end of each post, or entry, you can view or add your own comments.

Why would somebody blog?

  • It helps you get found by search engines.
  • Posting regularly adds valuable, searchable information to your website.
  • A blog helps you to reach a wider audience.
  • It’s beneficial as a marketing tool for brand awareness and education.
  • You can use a blog to open up a dialogue with your readers/consumers and get valuable feedback.
  • Using a blog to design your whole website gives you an easy content management system.
  • Think of some more benefits? Let me know!

How do I get a blog?

There are many free online tools you can use to start your own blog. Blogger and WordPress are both free and popular. Blogger can be hosted on their website, WordPress is hosted on your own server. I am using WordPress for this website, for example. I downloaded their free blogging software and easily installed it onto my own server. (You will need access to a database to do this yourself.  The WordPress website offers lots of help though. And several hosting providers, like Superb.net, offer a blog for free with set-up already done for you.)

Are there risks involved in a company blog?

  • Offensive content
  • Legal issues — giving out sensitive company information
  • Copyright infringement
  • Angry, dissatisfied posts by customers (you do have control over this through an admin panel; you could potentially turn this into a positive by addressing the issue and improving your product or service)
  • Any I missed? Let me know.

My personal experience with blogging has been positive. I appreciate any and all comments. I find that I must keep up with what small-businesses are interested in, and the graphics industry. And the added website content helps to attract more people to my site.

Some of the latest WordPress Templates:



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