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Tag: WordPress Plugins

  • How to Set Up WP Mail SMTP with Any Host (Ultimate Guide)

    Do you want to set up WP Mail SMTP on your WordPress site?

    WP Mail SMTP is the best WordPress SMTP plugin that allows you to easily send WordPress emails using a secure mail transfer protocol (SMTP). It makes sure your emails go to the inboxes of your users and not to the spam folder.

    In this article, we will show you how to easily set up WP Mail SMTP with any host or third-party SMTP service.

    Setting up WP Mail SMTP with any WordPress host

    This is a lengthy article, so we have added a table of contents. If you know what you are looking for, then you can click the link to jump to that section:

    What Is WP Mail SMTP, and Why Do You Need It to Send WordPress Emails?

    WP Mail SMTP is the best WordPress SMTP plugin on the market. It allows you to send all your WordPress emails using an SMTP server.

    Once you set up your WordPress site, you may notice that you are not getting any emails from WordPress. These include WordPress notification emails and emails from your WordPress contact form plugin.

    The reason you are not getting emails is usually that WordPress uses the PHP mail() function to send them.

    Most WordPress hosting companies do not configure this function properly, and some simply disable it to prevent abuse.

    The easiest fix for this issue is to use SMTP to send WordPress emails.

    SMTP stands for ‘secure mail transfer protocol’, and it is pretty much the standard way to send emails. It requires you to log in to a mail server to send emails. This prevents the abuse of the hosting server and improves email deliverability, which means that you and your users will receive all WordPress emails.

    Hosting SMTP Server vs. Third-Party SMTP Server – Which One Should You Use?

    Most WordPress hosting companies offer free business email addresses that you can use with your own domain name.

    We recommend setting up a separate email address for your WordPress website. It can be anything like support@example.com or info@example.com.

    However, your WordPress hosting provider does not specialize in sending emails. Their SMTP servers are basic and have strict limits on the number of emails you can send.

    If you run a small business website or a blog, then you will probably be fine with your hosting provider’s SMTP servers.

    On the other hand, if you run an online store or a membership website, then emails become mission-critical for your business. You want to make sure that your customers get important email notifications delivered to their inboxes.

    This is where you need a third-party SMTP service provider. These companies specialize in securely sending large numbers of emails without triggering spam filters.

    We recommend using SendLayer, Brevo (formerly Sendinblue), or SMTP.com for most online businesses. They are reasonably priced and can scale as your business grows.

    For more information, you can see our article on the top SMTP service providers.

    Once you have chosen an email delivery method, the next step is to connect your WordPress website to your mail server.

    This is where the WP Mail SMTP plugin comes in. It allows you to send WordPress emails via SMTP by entering your SMTP credentials.

    WP Mail SMTP is the most popular SMTP solution for WordPress, currently used by over 3 million websites. It’s maintained by the same team as WPForms.

    There is also a free WP Mail SMTP lite version that is fully functional and can be used with any WordPress hosting company or third-party SMTP service provider.

    The premium version of the WP Mail SMTP plugin supports all the top SMTP service providers and works with any WordPress hosting company that offers email accounts.

    It also comes with powerful features like email logs, email controls, priority support, and a white glove setup.

    Installing and Setting Up WP Mail SMTP

    The first thing you need to do is install and activate the WP Mail SMTP plugin. For more details, see our step-by-step guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

    Upon activation, you will see the setup wizard. You can skip it as we will show you how to set up WP Mail SMTP manually.

    WP Mail SMTP Launch Wizard

    Just click on ‘Go back to the Dashboard’.

    Next, you need to visit the WP Mail SMTP » Settings page to configure the plugin settings.

    WP Mail SMTP Settings

    You need to enter your SMTP settings to use WP Mail SMTP. The first part of the settings will be similar regardless of your hosting company. It includes the following fields:

    • From Email – This email address will be used to send all WordPress emails.
    • From Name – This name will be used to send emails. We recommend using your website’s title.
    • Return Path – Check this box to receive delivery notifications or bounced messages.
    • Mailer – You need to select ‘Other SMTP’ here as you will be sending emails using your host’s SMTP server

    Note: If you want to use third-party mailers, follow this guide to send WordPress emails via Gmail SMTP. We also have a similar guide for the Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) SMTP setup.

    WP Mail SMTP return path and mailer settings

    If you want to continue using your host, you need to select ‘Other SMTP’ and enter the SMTP server settings provided by the hosting company.

    • SMTP Host – The SMTP host address provided by your hosting company.
    • Encryption – The encryption method used by your mail server to send emails. Usually, it is TLS.
    • SMTP Port – The port used by the outgoing mail server.
    • Auto TLS – This setting should be set to On.
    • Authentication – Needs to be On.
    • SMTP Username – Usually the email address you are using to send emails.
    • SMTP Password – The password for the email account you are using to send emails. We don’t recommend saving SMTP passwords here. Instead, you need to store your password in the wp-config.php file.
    Other SMTP

    These settings are required to connect with any SMTP server. However, their values may differ from one WordPress hosting company to another.

    Let’s see how to set up the WP Mail SMTP plugin with different hosting companies.

    Setting Up WP Mail SMTP on Bluehost

    Bluehost is one of the biggest hosting companies in the world and an officially recommended WordPress hosting provider.

    We recommend Bluehost to all users who are starting a WordPress blog or making a small business website.

    Here are the SMTP settings you will be using to connect WP Mail SMTP to the Bluehost SMTP server:

    • SMTP Host – mail.example.com
    • Encryption – TLS
    • SMTP Port – 587
    • SMTP Username – Your email address (e.g. wordpress@example.com)
    • SMTP Password – Your email account password

    Don’t forget to replace example.com with your own domain name.

    Bluehost SMTP

    Setting Up WP Mail SMTP on SiteGround

    SiteGround is another popular WordPress hosting company. They offer excellent shared, managed, and WooCommerce hosting services.

    Here are the SMTP settings you will be using to connect WP Mail SMTP with SiteGround servers:

    • SMTP Host – mail.example.com
    • Encryption – TLS
    • SMTP Port – 587
    • SMTP Username – Your email address (e.g. wordpress@example.com)
    • SMTP Password – Your email account password
    SiteGround SMTP

    Setting Up WP Mail SMTP on HostGator

    HostGator is another popular WordPress hosting company. WPBeginner is hosted with HostGator, and we have been using them for over a decade.

    Here are the SMTP settings you will be using to connect WP Mail SMTP with HostGator servers:

    • SMTP Host – full.servername.com
    • Encryption – SSL
    • SMTP Port – 465
    • SMTP Username – Your email address (e.g. wordpress@example.com)
    • SMTP Password – Your email account password
    HostGator SMTP settings for WordPress

    You will notice that instead of using your domain as the SMTP Host, it uses the server name. You can find the server name in your cPanel hosting dashboard.

    Simply log in to your cPanel, and you will see the full server name in the right column towards the bottom.

    HostGator server hostname

    Setting Up WP Mail SMTP on DreamHost

    DreamHost is a popular WordPress hosting company. They have been around since 1997 (way before WordPress, Google, or Facebook) and offer shared WordPress hosting, managed, and VPS hosting plans.

    Here are the SMTP settings you will be using to connect WP Mail SMTP with DreamHost servers:

    • SMTP Host – full.servername.com
    • Encryption – SSL
    • SMTP Port – 465
    • SMTP Username – Your email address (e.g. wordpress@example.com)
    • SMTP Password – Your email account password
    DreamHost SMTP

    You will notice that Dreamhost doesn’t use your domain name as the mail server. Instead, they use different servers to manage emails, and you will need to find out which one is used by your hosting account.

    You can do this by logging in to your DreamHost hosting panel and then going to the Support » Data Centers page. From here, you need to scroll down to the Mail service section.

    DreamHost Mail Service

    You will find the name of the email cluster under the Details column next to your domain name.

    Next, you need to visit DreamHost’s email configuration page and scroll down to the ‘Where to find your mail hostname (cluster) name’ section.

    Here, you can match your email cluster with the names in the table and copy the outgoing server address next to it.

    SMTP server DreamHost

    Setting Up WP Mail SMTP on InMotion Hosting

    Here are the SMTP settings you will be using to connect WP Mail SMTP with InMotion Hosting servers:

    • SMTP Host – server##.inmotionhosting.com
    • Encryption – SSL
    • SMTP Port – 465
    • SMTP Username – Your email address (e.g. wordpress@example.com)
    • SMTP Password – Your email account password
    InMotion Hosting SMTP settings for WordPress

    In the SMTP host field, you need to replace ## with your server number.

    You can find this by logging in to your cPanel dashboard and then clicking on the ‘Account Technical Details’ icon.

    Finding your InMotion Hosting server number

    Setting Up WP Mail SMTP on GoDaddy

    GoDaddy is the world’s most popular domain name registrar, managing more than 76 million domain names for over 17.5 million customers. They also offer different hosting plans (For details, see our article on the difference between a domain name and web hosting).

    Here are the SMTP settings you will be using to connect WP Mail SMTP with GoDaddy shared hosting plans:

    • SMTP Host – mail.example.com
    • Encryption – TLS
    • SMTP Port – 587
    • SMTP Username – Your email address (e.g. wordpress@example.com)
    • SMTP Password – Your email account password
    GoDaddy SMTP settings for WP Mail SMTP

    Setting Up WP Mail SMTP on iPage

    Here are the SMTP settings you will be using to connect WP Mail SMTP with iPage hosting servers:

    • SMTP Host – smtp.ipage.com
    • Encryption – TLS
    • SMTP Port – 587
    • SMTP Username – Your email address (e.g. wordpress@example.com)
    • SMTP Password – Your email account password
    iPage SMTP settings for WP Mail SMTP

    Setting Up WP Mail SMTP on GreenGeeks

    Here are the SMTP settings you will be using to connect WP Mail SMTP with GreenGeeks:

    • SMTP Host – mail.example.com
    • Encryption – SSL
    • SMTP Port – 465
    • SMTP Username – Your email address (e.g. wordpress@example.com)
    • SMTP Password – Your email account password
    GreenGeeks SMTP settings for WP Mail SMTP

    Setting Up WP Mail SMTP on JustHost

    Here are the SMTP settings you will be using to connect WP Mail SMTP with JustHost:

    • SMTP Host – mail.example.com
    • Encryption – SSL
    • SMTP Port – 465
    • SMTP Username – Your email address (e.g. wordpress@example.com)
    • SMTP Password – Your email account password
    JustHost SMTP settings for WP Mail SMTP

    Setting Up WP Mail SMTP With Third-Party Email Services

    Some managed WordPress hosting companies do not offer email services as part of their hosting plans. So, you will need to use a third-party SMTP service provider to send emails.

    WP Mail SMTP supports multiple popular mailing services, including SendLayer, Gmail/Google Apps for Work, Microsoft Outlook and Office 360, Brevo (formerly Sendinblue), SMTP.com, and more.

    Simply click on the mailer service, and the plugin will show you the information required to use that mailer.

    Mailers in WP Mail SMTP

    For details, you can see our tutorial on how to use a free SMTP server to send WordPress emails.

    We hope this article helped you learn how to set up WP Mail SMTP with any host. You may also want to see our guide on why you should never use WordPress to send your newsletter emails and our expert picks for the best newsletter plugins.

    If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

    The post How to Set Up WP Mail SMTP with Any Host (Ultimate Guide) first appeared on WPBeginner.

  • 9 Best Ajax Category Filter WordPress Plugins 📁 2023 (Free & Paid)

    Find the perfect Ajax category filter WordPress plugin for your website with our list of the 9 best options in 2023 – both free and paid! Improve user experience and increase engagement today.

    The post 9 Best Ajax Category Filter WordPress Plugins 📁 2023 (Free & Paid) appeared first on BetterStudio.

  • 5 of the Best WordPress Content Protection Plugins

    Do you want to protect your content from unauthorized copying or distribution? Then you need to use a WordPress content protection plugin. In this article, we’ll review some of the best ones on the market that you can install today to keep your content safe.

    The post 5 of the Best WordPress Content Protection Plugins appeared first on Themeisle Blog.

  • 7 Best WordPress White Label Plugins 🥇 2023 (Free & Pro)

    Looking for the best WordPress White Label plugins? Look no further! Find out which plugins made our list and start customizing your site today.

    The post 7 Best WordPress White Label Plugins 🥇 2023 (Free & Pro) appeared first on BetterStudio.

  • How to Add SEO-Friendly Recipe Schema in WordPress (Easy Way)

    Are you looking for a way to add recipe schema to your WordPress website?

    If you have a food blog, then you can display your recipes as snippets in search engine results using schema markup. This can help you get more clicks and traffic to your site.

    In this article, we will show you how to add SEO-friendly recipe schema in WordPress.

    How to Add SEO-Friendly Recipe Schema in WordPress (Easy Way)

    What Is Recipe Schema and Why Use It?

    Recipe schema markup (structured data) is a special type of HTML code that’s added to your WordPress website. It offers more information about your content to search engines.

    This information isn’t displayed on your website. Instead, it’s added to source code for search engine bots to read.

    Google, Bing, and other search engines use the schema markup to display additional information as featured snippets. These are highlighted results with extra info that are shown at the top of the search results pages.

    For example, Google may show ingredients, ratings, cooking time, nutritional value, and other information from your recipes in the featured snippets.

    Recipe snippet in Google

    Google gets this extra info from the recipe schema markup on the page.

    That’s why adding recipes with schema can help you capture these snippets and boost your WordPress search engine optimization (SEO).

    Featured snippets are a great way to get more clicks to your website from organic search results and increase your traffic.

    That being said, let’s look at how you can easily add recipe schema in WordPress.

    Adding SEO-Friendly Recipes With Schema in WordPress

    The easiest way to add recipe schema markup in WordPress is by using the All in One SEO (AIOSEO) plugin for WordPress.

    It’s the best WordPress SEO plugin on the market that helps you optimize your website for search engines without needing to hire an SEO expert.

    Note: You will need the AIOSEO Pro version as it includes the Schema Generator feature, which allows you to add any type of schema markup to your content. Plus, there are other powerful features like sitemaps, redirection manager, and more. There is also a free version of AIOSEO that you can try.

    First, you will need to install and activate the AIOSEO plugin on your site. If you need help, then just follow our tutorial on how to install a WordPress plugin.

    Upon activation, the plugin will automatically launch its setup wizard. You can go ahead and click the ‘Let’s Get Started’ button to set up the plugin on your website.

    Click let's get started AIOSEO setup wizard

    For more details, you can read our guide on how to set up All in One SEO for WordPress.

    After setting up AIOSEO on your site, you must now go to AIOSEO » Search Appearance from your WordPress admin area and then click on the ‘Content Types’ tab.

    Schema markup in AIOSEO settings

    Under the Content Types section, you can edit the schema markup for posts, pages, products, groups, memberships, and all other types of content on your WordPress blog.

    Go ahead and select the ‘Schema Markup’ tab for Posts. You can now click on the Schema Type dropdown menu and choose the ‘Recipe’ option.

    Choose recipe schema type

    You can do the same for pages, products, custom post types, and all other content types.

    After selecting ‘Recipe’ as the schema type, don’t forget to save your changes. You can do this by clicking the blue ‘Save Changes’ button at the top right of the page.

    Adding Schema Recipe Information to Posts & Pages

    The next step is to add your recipe information to each WordPress post or page that you want to display in the featured snippets.

    To start, go ahead and edit an existing post or add a new one. Once you are in the WordPress editor, simply scroll down to the ‘AIOSEO Settings’ meta box and select the ‘Schema’ tab. Then, click the ‘Generate Schema’ button.

    Click the Generate Schema button in AIOSEO

    The Schema Catalog will open. This is a popup where you can choose the type of schema you want to add.

    Go ahead and click the ‘Add Schema’ button next to the ‘Recipe’ option.

    Add Recipe Schema in AIOSEO

    Now, a modal will open up where you can enter details about your recipe and tell Google what it’s about.

    You can start by adding the name of the dish, a description, and the author that you want to display in the search results.

    Enter schema details of your recipe

    You can also scroll down to add relevant keywords.

    For example, you might include a season or specific holiday and the image that will display in search results.

    Add keywords and image in AIOSEO Schema Generator

    Besides that, AIOSEO offers additional fields to add more details about your recipe. Filling out these extra fields is really useful because Google will show different information for different search terms.

    You can enter details about the dish type, cuisine type, time required, number of servings, ingredients, calories, instructions, ratings, and much more.

    Additional fields to enter recipe schema information

    Once you have filled out your recipe information, go ahead and click the ‘Add Schema’ button.

    Then, you can publish your blog post. AIOSEO will add the recipe schema with the data you just provided.

    You and your visitors won’t be able to see a difference on the front end of your website, but now search engine bots will have all the extra data they need for featured snippets.

    Optimizing Your Recipes in WordPress

    To optimize your recipes for even more traffic from search engines, you can use our blog post SEO checklist.

    We also recommend using a plugin like WP Tasty Recipes alongside AIOSEO.

    WP Tasty Recipes

    WP Tasty Recipes is one of the best recipe plugins for food bloggers. It lets you easily create customizable recipe cards to make your recipe posts look amazing.

    It comes with six different recipe card themes, step-by-step video integrations, ingredient checkboxes, custom share and save buttons, ‘jump to recipe’ shortcuts, and more.

    Preview of recipe card with nutrition facts labels

    Additionally, with Nutrifox, you can create nutrition facts labels for your recipes. These will display the nutritional content of your dishes beneath your recipes so that readers can make more informed decisions.

    For more information, you can see our guide on how to make nutrition facts labels in WordPress.

    We hope that this article helped you learn how to add SEO-friendly recipes with schema in WordPress. You may also want to see our guide on how to get a free SSL certificate for your WordPress website and our expert picks for the best WordPress themes for recipe and food blogs.

    If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

    The post How to Add SEO-Friendly Recipe Schema in WordPress (Easy Way) first appeared on WPBeginner.

  • 5 Best WordPress Password Manager Plugins 🔑 2023 (Free & Pro)

    With so many password manager plugins available, which one is right for your WordPress website? Find out by reading our top 5 list for Free & Pro versions!

    The post 5 Best WordPress Password Manager Plugins 🔑 2023 (Free & Pro) appeared first on BetterStudio.

  • How to Display Most Commented Posts in WordPress (2 Ways)

    Do you want to display your most commented posts in WordPress?

    Highlighting your most commented posts helps your visitors find your best content, increase pageviews, and boost website engagement.

    In this article, we’ll show you how to display the most commented posts in WordPress, step by step.

    How to display most commented posts in your WordPress

    Why Display the Most Commented Posts in WordPress?

    Your most commented posts have very high levels of user engagement. By displaying your popular posts, you encourage new readers to join the discussion and spend more time on your WordPress website.

    All of this together is a big boost of social proof for your site.

    When your visitors stay on your site longer, you can convince them to read another post, join your email list, or make a purchase.

    Plus, when new visitors leave a comment, they become part of the community. This can help you build trust with your readers over the long term.

    That being said, let’s take a look at how to simply display your most commented posts in WordPress using 2 methods. You can click the links below to move to any section:

    Method 1: Display Most Commented Posts With a Plugin in WordPress (Recommended)

    There are many different WordPress popular posts plugins that you can use to display your popular articles, but the simplest to use is MonsterInsights.

    It’s the best analytics solution for WordPress, used by over 3 million websites. With this plugin, you can easily display your most commented posts anywhere on your website.

    The first thing you need to do is install, activate, and set up MonsterInsights. For more details, see our beginner’s guide on how to install Google Analytics in WordPress.

    Note: there is a free version of MonsterInsights, but we’re using the pro version for this tutorial since it includes the popular posts feature.

    Upon activation, navigate to Insights » Popular Posts and then click the ‘Popular Posts Widget’ tab in the menu.

    Popular post widget

    On this screen, you will control the appearance of your most commented posts.

    Simply select the ‘Theme’ you want to use for your most commented posts. The theme operates similarly to your WordPress theme and will control the overall design of the most commented posts widget.

    There are a ton of other customization options on this screen as well.

    For example, in the ‘Theme Preview’ meta box, you can display your most commented posts in a ‘Wide’ format below your content or a ‘Narrow’ format to the right of your content.

    View theme preview

    After that, you have more options for customizing the design.

    For example, you can change the size and color of the title, icon, and background.

    Customize widget design

    MonsterInsights will automatically save any changes you make to your most commented posts display settings.

    Once you’re finished customizing the appearance of your commented posts, it’s time to display your popular posts by comments.

    In the ‘Sort By’ meta box, simply select the ‘Comments’ button.

    Sort by comments

    Next, you can scroll down and view more options to include and exclude posts.

    There is also an option to include posts from specific categories in the popular post widget.

    Include and exclude posts

    MonsterInsights will automatically display your most commented posts.

    You have a few different options for adding your popular posts to WordPress. You can choose manual or automatic placement.

    If you choose ‘Automatic’ placement, then the plugin will add your most commented WordPress posts directly after the last paragraph of your blog posts.

    Enable automatic placement

    The other option is to display your most commented posts manually. If you select the ‘Manual’ option, then you can add the popular posts widget with a Gutenberg block or a shortcode.

    To do this, open up a page or post where you want to display your most commented posts.

    Once inside the content editor, just click the ‘+’ icon and select the ‘Popular Posts’ block.

    Add popular post block

    This will automatically add your most commented posts to your page.

    Make sure you click ‘Update’ or ‘Publish’ to make your changes live.

    Update and publish your changes

    Now when your users visit the page, they will see your most commented posts displayed.

    You can visit the website to see the most popular posts with comments in action.

    View most popular posts preview

    Method 2: Display Most Commented Posts Using Code

    The second method involves adding code to your WordPress files.

    However, there are some downsides to using this method. First, it involves adding code to WordPress, so it’s not beginner-friendly. It can cause serious problems with even a small error, so we recommend editing WordPress core files for advanced users.

    Second, the code isn’t as optimized for performance as the MonterInsights plugin. That means it will increase the server load, and it can slow down your website.

    That being said, let’s take a look at how you can display the most commented posts in WordPress without a plugin.

    Adding Code Snippet to functions.php File

    You’ll want to add the code provided below to your functions.php file. We recommend doing this by using the WPCode plugin. It’s the safest and best way to add custom code to your WordPress website.

    First, you will need to install and activate the WPCode plugin. For more details, please see our guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

    Note: You can also use the free WPCode plugin as it has all the features you need to add this code.

    Once activated, you can head to Code Snippets » Add Snippet from your WordPress dashboard and select the ‘Add Your Custom Code (New Snippet)’ option.

    How to show post excerpts using code

    Next, you can add a name for your code snippet at the top of the page. Now, just copy and paste this code into the ‘Code Preview’ box: 

    function wpb_most_commented_posts() { 
// start output buffering
ob_start();
?>
<ul class="most-commented">
<?php 
// Run WP_Query
// change posts_per_page value to limit the number of posts
$query = new WP_Query('orderby=comment_count&posts_per_page=10'); 
  
//begin loop
while ($query->have_posts()) : $query->the_post(); ?>
  
<li><a href="<?php the_permalink(); ?>" title="<?php the_title(); ?>"><?php the_title(); ?></a> <span class="wpb-comment-count"><?php comments_popup_link('No Comments;', '1 Comment', '% Comments'); ?></span></li>
<?php endwhile; 
// end loop
?>
</ul>
<?php
  
// Turn off output buffering
 $output = ob_get_clean(); 
  
//Return output 
return $output; 
}
// Create shortcode
add_shortcode('wpb_most_commented', 'wpb_most_commented_posts'); 
  
//Enable shortcode execution in text widgets
add_filter('widget_text', 'do_shortcode');
    Hosted with ❤️ by WPCode

    1-click Use in WordPress

    After that, make sure to click the Code Type dropdown menu and select the ‘PHP Snippet’ option.

    Copy and paste code snippet

    Once that’s done, simply click the toggle to make the code ‘Active’ and then press the ‘Save Snippet’ button at the top.

    For more details, please check out our beginner’s guide to pasting snippets from the web into WordPress.

    The code will run a database query and fetch 10 posts ordered by the highest comment count. Then, it uses output buffering to create a shortcode you can use to display the posts.

    The last line of the code creates a shortcode that you can use in your posts, pages, and widget areas.

    To display your popular posts, all you need to do is add the following shortcode to your WordPress site.

    [wpb_most_commented]

    For more details, see our beginner’s guide on how to add a shortcode in WordPress.

    If you want to add thumbnails next to your post titles, then add the following line of code right after <li> tag in the code above.

    <?php the_post_thumbnail(array(40,40)); ?>
    Hosted with ❤️ by WPCode

    1-click Use in WordPress

    This code will define the custom size for the post thumbnail images. You can adjust the size to meet your needs.

    Style Your Most Commented Posts using CSS

    Once you’ve done that, you can style how your most commented posts will display.

    To do this, you can modify the .most-commented and .wpb-comment-count CSS classes in your WordPress theme’s stylesheet.

    You can use the following CSS to get started:

    .most-commented li { 
border-bottom:1px solid #eee; 
padding-bottom:3px; 
} 
.most-commented li :after { 
clear:both;
} 
.most-commented img { 
padding:3px;
margin:3px;
float:left;
}
.wpb_comment_count a, .wpb_comment_count a:active, .wpb_comment_count a:visited, .wpb_comment_count a:hover { 
color:#FFF;
}
    Hosted with ❤️ by WPCode

    1-click Use in WordPress

    To add CSS to your website theme’s stylesheet, you can use WPCode. Simply go to Code Snippets » Add Snippet from your WordPress dashboard and select the ‘Add Your Custom Code (New Snippet)’ option.

    How to show post excerpts using code

    Next, enter the CSS code under the Code Preview area and add a title for your snippet.

    Just ensure that you click the Code Type dropdown menu and select the ‘CSS Snippet’ option.

    Add CSS code snippet

    When you’re done, don’t forget to switch the toggle to ‘Active’ and then click the ‘Save Snippet’ button at the top.

    For more details, see our guide on how to easily add custom CSS to your WordPress site.

    We hope this article helped you display the most commented posts in WordPress. You may also want to see our ultimate WordPress SEO guide to get more traffic, and our expert pick of the best WordPress plugins for businesses.

    If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

    The post How to Display Most Commented Posts in WordPress (2 Ways) first appeared on WPBeginner.

  • 5 Best WordPress Tumblr Plugins 🥇 2023 (Free & Pro)

    Ready to take your WordPress website to the next level? Check out our picks for the best Tumblr plugins and see how they can improve your site!

    The post 5 Best WordPress Tumblr Plugins 🥇 2023 (Free & Pro) appeared first on BetterStudio.

  • How to Track Customer Journey Using MemberPress (Step by Step)

    Would you like to know what visitors do on your membership site before they sign up?

    When you track your customers’ journeys in MemberPress, you can discover the steps they take before deciding to purchase a membership. This information can help you optimize your site for better user engagement and increased conversions.

    In this article, we will show you how to track customer journeys using MemberPress.

    How to Track Customer Journey Using MemberPress

    Why Track Customer Journey Using MemberPress?

    When you are running a WordPress membership site, your customers will need to purchase a user account to access certain benefits, such as exclusive content, premium newsletters, online courses, or digital downloads.

    MemberPress is a popular membership plugin that comes with advanced features.

    For example, it allows you to accept payments, add membership levels, create gated content, restrict access based on different membership levels, make members-only forums, and more.

    Wouldn’t it be great if you could see the path your MemberPress customers take before making a purchase? You could see which pages they land on, follow their journey as they navigate to other parts of your site, and even see how long they spend on each page.

    This information can give you insights into your customer’s behavior that you can use to offer a better user experience on your WordPress website, as well as boost your sign-ups.

    That being said, let’s take a look at how to easily track MemberPress customer journeys. Here are quick links that you can use to jump ahead to any section:

    1. Tracking MemberPress Customer Journeys Using MonsterInsights
    2. Installing the eCommerce Addon in MonsterInsights
    3. Enabling Enhanced eCommerce Reporting in Google Analytics
    4. Installing the User Journey Addon in MonsterInsights
    5. Viewing MemberPress Customer Journeys
    6. Using Customer Journey Tracking in MemberPress

    Tracking MemberPress Customer Journeys Using MonsterInsights

    The fastest and simplest way to set up MemberPress customer tracking is with the MonsterInsights plugin. It lets you view your Google Analytics traffic and visitor statistics right from the WordPress dashboard.

    The plugin offers an eCommerce addon. This feature automatically detects MemberPress and other eCommerce plugins. Then, it starts tracking customer behavior in Google Analytics.

    It also comes with a Customer Journey addon that allows you to see users’ behavior before they sign up.

    First, you will need to install and activate the MonsterInsights plugin. For more details, see our step-by-step guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

    Note: You will need the Pro plan to access the eCommerce and User Journey addons that we will use for this tutorial. However, there is also a MonsterInsights Lite version you can use for free.

    Upon activation, you will see the welcome screen and the setup wizard. Simply click the ‘Launch the Wizard’ button and follow the on-screen instructions.

    Launch setup wizard

    For detailed instructions, see our article on how to install Google Analytics in WordPress.

    Bonus: Switch to Google Analytics 4 Using MonsterInsights

    MonsterInsights also helps you set up a Google Analytics 4 (GA4) property through its Dual Tracking feature. GA4 is the latest version of Google Analytics.

    MonsterInsights Dual Tracking GA v4

    If you haven’t created a Google Analytics 4 property yet, then we encourage you to do it right away.

    For more details, please see our guide on how to switch to Google Analytics 4 in WordPress.

    Installing the eCommerce Addon in MonsterInsights

    Once you have configured Google Analytics on your website, the next step is to install the eCommerce addon.

    To do that, you need to visit the Insights » Addons page and navigate to the ‘eCommerce’ addon. Simply click the ‘Install’ button, and the addon will automatically activate.

    Install the eCommerce addon

    As soon as it is activated, the addon will begin to gather data. You will find this data in the MonsterInsights eCommerce Report.

    You can access the report by navigating to Insights » Reports and then clicking on the ‘eCommerce’ tab. You may need to wait up to 24 hours to see any metrics.

    Viewing the MonsterInsights eCommerce Report

    Enabling Enhanced eCommerce Reporting in Google Analytics

    The next step is to enable eCommerce tracking in Google Analytics. eCommerce tracking is not enabled by default in Google Analytics, so you must manually turn it on.

    First, you will need to head over to your Google Analytics account dashboard and click the ‘Admin’ option.

    Click the admin settings button

    Next, you need to click on the ‘Ecommerce Settings’ option.

    It is located in the View column.

    Ecommerce settings

    On the settings page, just click the sliders under ‘Enable Ecommerce’ and ‘Enable Enhanced Ecommerce Reporting’ to turn them on.

    Don’t forget to click the ‘Save’ button when you are done.

    Enable eCommerce and enhanced eCommerce reporting

    Now that you have enabled the enhanced eCommerce settings in Google Analytics, you can head back to your WordPress website dashboard.

    Simply navigate to Insights » Settings and then click the ‘eCommerce’ tab.

    Next, you will need to make sure that the ‘Use Enhanced eCommerce’ option is enabled under the eCommerce Tracking section.

    Use enhanced ecommerce option

    MonsterInsights will now automatically detect that you are using MemberPress and start recording analytics.

    Installing the User Journey Addon in MonsterInsights

    Now that Google Analytics is tracking your MemberPress site, the next step is to enable the MonsterInsights Customer Journey addon.

    This addon will allow you to see the steps each customer takes before making a purchase in MemberPress, such as the pages they visit, the time spent on each page, and more.

    First, you will need to go to Insights » Addons from your WordPress admin panel. Next, navigate to the User Journey addon and click the ‘Install’ button.

    Install the user journey addon

    The addon will automatically activate and start tracking your customers’ journeys.

    Viewing MemberPress Customer Journeys

    The User Journey addon is now active. Once a visitor purchases a membership on your site, their customer journey will be automatically recorded and saved.

    You might be wondering where to find that information.

    Simply navigate to MemberPress » Transactions to see a list of your MemberPress orders.

    Viewing the MemberPress Transactions List

    You can see the details of a transaction by clicking its transaction number in the first column.

    Now, you can simply scroll to the bottom of the transaction details to find the ‘User Journey by MonsterInsights’ section.

    Viewing the Customer Journey of a Single Transaction

    You will be able to see each step the user took along the way to purchasing a membership.

    This includes the time they viewed each page, the titles of the pages they visited with a link, and the time they spent on each page. You will also see the total number of steps and time a user took before becoming a paying customer.

    That’s a lot of information about the journeys your visitors take to become paying members. How can you use all of that data?

    Using Customer Journey Tracking in MemberPress

    Now that you are tracking MemberPress customer journeys, here are a few suggestions for using that data to improve your website and increase conversions.

    Is there a post or page on your website that many visitors read before purchasing a membership? You can increase your sales and conversion rates by sending more traffic there.

    For example, you can add more internal links to that post or page from other posts on your website.

    You can also look for users who purchased a membership taking fewer steps or less time. Do they have anything in common so that you can start to target similar users?

    For instance, are they from a similar location or age group? Or did they come from the same referral source?

    You can also look at all of the pages your visitors are reading. What do most users want to know before they make a purchase? Can you simplify their journey by offering that information on a single landing page that tells them everything they need to know?

    As you take time to study customer journeys in MemberPress, you will learn more about your online sign-up process and sales funnel. You can use that knowledge to improve the user experience and increase sales.

    We hope this tutorial helped you learn how to track customer journeys using MemberPress. You may also want to see our guide on how to start your own podcast or our expert picks for the best AI chatbots for your website.

    If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

    The post How to Track Customer Journey Using MemberPress (Step by Step) first appeared on WPBeginner.

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