


<p>[00:11:31] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> If you have an e-commerce website, obviously there&#8217;s a real motivation there. You know, possibly break into your website and figure out what kind of orders have been replaced and cause mayhem there. And maybe try some sort of social engineering attack to steal people&#8217;s credit card details.</p>



<p>But interestingly there you also just said just the resources itself, that&#8217;s enough. The fact that you have paid for a piece of a computer somewhere, a portion of a computer, the CPU and what have you. That&#8217;s enough for people because presumably they want to put their own software on the computer that you&#8217;ve paid for, and use it to do nefarious things.</p>



<p>Now, that button means spraying out emails to people who don&#8217;t wish to receive them. But what other things are they up to? So if they&#8217;re not defacing things, but they are wishing to take your machine over. What kind of things can they do from there, once they&#8217;ve got that bridge established?</p>



<p>[00:12:23] <strong>Robert Abela:</strong> They can do quite a lot. For example, there was this, going back to the Lazarus group, one of the smart hacks they&#8217;ve done. They targeted some bankers, some people who work in banks basically with a phishing attack.</p>



<p>Quite frankly, it was the good old trick, like hi, you have won an award. Click here to win via email. Uh, someone from all those thousands of employees in a bank, someone clicked. And malware was injected there. And that led to allowing them to control some ATMs and stuff like that.</p>



<p>But to get to there, when they managed to inject the malware in ATMs and of course control that, they wouldn&#8217;t control that malware, or launch the attack from their own servers. Because otherwise it&#8217;s very easy to track them back. They need some sort of proxies or stuff like that. So basically they&#8217;re going to use your website, which is hosted on a server. The resources of your website, of the server where your website is hosted to launch this attack.</p>



<p>And it&#8217;s not the first time actually, they have multiple proxies. So from their machine, they send commands to your hacked website, which sends commands to another hacked website, as in hacked server, and then it sends the comment to the actual victim. The resources you&#8217;re paying for, the server you&#8217;re paying for, is being used purely for them to hide themselves basically as a proxy.</p>



<p>[00:13:29] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> I guess one of the things that I hear sometimes is that people believe that because their website is of a small size, or may not be interesting, in inverted commas, that they therefore assume that the hackers won&#8217;t find it interesting. In other words, it goes a little bit like this, but my website&#8217;s small. You know, it&#8217;s about something really niche. Why would the hackers want to come after me?</p>



<p>And I think what you&#8217;ve just said speaks to that. It&#8217;s irrelevant. It&#8217;s not really a hacker. There isn&#8217;t an individual doing this. It&#8217;s an individual at some point who wrote a script, which then got downloaded and redistributed a thousand times over the internet and deployed by a thousand different people.</p>



<p>So you don&#8217;t need to look for an incentive. The incentive is there all the time. It&#8217;s not a person deliberately coming after you for a personal vendetta, usually. This is just people trying to gain some sort of bridgehead in the internet, on the internet, on servers somewhere so that they can because mayhem in ways that you cannot even imagine.</p>



<p>[00:14:31] <strong>Robert Abela:</strong> Yeah. In fact, even when you say, okay, I don&#8217;t know, I have a website about a hobby, some old museum somewhere, whatever. We don&#8217;t accept payments. Who would be interested in our website? From the outside it doesn&#8217;t apply, because when actually hackers are trying to find, or malicious users are trying to find vulnerable websites. They&#8217;re not just browsing one by one.</p>



<p>They have automated tools. They scan whole subnets, whole networks, you know. And they don&#8217;t even know or care whose website it is, or how it looks most of the time. Okay, this website has a vulnerability, we can exploit it. So of course we can run commands, you know, on the operating system or depending of course, what they want to do.</p>



<p>But yeah, as long as they get access. So yeah, they don&#8217;t just target your website, just scan whole subnets. So, your website happens to be one of them. So yeah, if you have a vulnerability, if you have, I don&#8217;t know, an outdated plugin for example that has an issue, and you&#8217;ve never updated it and the vulnerability is there and they can exploit it, then yeah. They don&#8217;t care whose website it is or how it looks, whatever. It just, it flags okay, this website, they get a flag, this website is vulnerable. Exploit the attack, take over, and that&#8217;s it.</p>



<p>[00:15:29] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> And I guess the other important part in that, is that this is not a personal thing. It&#8217;s very, very, very unlikely, unless you are some kind of nation state actor, that there&#8217;s going to be people sitting at computers designing software deliberately to get into your machine. This is just people spraying out bots all over the place, looking for vulnerabilities and then stumbling across them randomly, and then deploying the things that they&#8217;ve got to exploit, those vulnerabilities. So it&#8217;s not personal, and it&#8217;s very unlikely at the other end of that is a real human being. It&#8217;s just scripts written, who knows where and who knows when.</p>



<p>[00:16:05] <strong>Robert Abela:</strong> Exactly. No, in fact, I&#8217;m sure like the bigger companies, you know, like Facebook. I&#8217;m sure they have a good share of targeted attacks because when you&#8217;re so big, I mean they definitely have some haters. But no, let&#8217;s say the normal websites, the normal hobbyist websites, whatever, which is quite funny because usually the hobbyist websites are the ones that people think, oh, who will attack my website? But yeah, it&#8217;s just like another number.</p>



<p>So, it&#8217;s not personal, it&#8217;s nothing personal. And as you said, most probably not, most probably, like most of the things are automated. So yeah, there&#8217;s not one person doing something to you, it&#8217;s just the whole process and it&#8217;s all automated. So yeah, nothing personal indeed, yeah.</p>



<p>[00:16:38] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Yeah, which doesn&#8217;t make it any better unfortunately, even though it&#8217;s not personal. So let&#8217;s talk about the tech stack which our WordPress websites are sitting upon. Because again caveat emptor. I know that a lot of the people who are listening to this who are technical, this will be very obvious what we&#8217;re going to cover.</p>



<p>But there&#8217;s a proportion of the people who are listening to this who may very well not know that there is layers and layers of things making their website possible, and those themselves are vulnerable. Even though you may never interact with them. You may only go to your WordPress, log in over there. Type whatever it is that you need to type, save, publish, and then log out again.</p>



<p>That might be your only interaction with WordPress. But WordPress doesn&#8217;t sit in isolation. So what typically is the stack that it&#8217;s sitting on, and do we need to be concerned about all of the stack, or are there any pieces which are more concerning than others?</p>



<p>[00:17:30] <strong>Robert Abela:</strong> It really depends. First of all, your own computer. So if you&#8217;re accessing your WordPress website, even just to update. Your own computer needs to be up to date. So that&#8217;s part of the tech stack. In regards to the website, it depends like if you have managed hosting where you have access just to this website, the bulk of the work, you still have to take care of some things and updating your software, but the bulk of the work is done by the web host.</p>



<p>However, if you have a dedicated server or just any hosting where you just have to install WordPress, then of course because a typical, let&#8217;s say you have a dedicated server, you host everything yourself. The typical text tech stack, you have the web server, typically a Unix, Linux operating system. Then you have the web server, Apache, Nginx or something similar. You have also PHP, sort of like a framework, the language that WordPress is written in. You have MySQL the database server, that&#8217;s the most basic.</p>



<p>So you have PHP, Apache, the web server itself of course, and the database. And then of course it depends, like if you need to send emails, you&#8217;re going to have the SMTP server and stuff like that. So when it comes to securing that, let&#8217;s say that one. To be honest when you look at the tech stack software nowadays, it&#8217;s quite easy to keep secure as in like, as long as you configure it properly and securely. Like you read maybe a bit, I don&#8217;t know about the, the best practices, and of course keeping it up to date. Software in general is not a big issue.</p>



<p>The more time passes, I think the last few years we&#8217;re seeing a small shift, because usually it was always, okay exploiting this issue or exploiting this issue. But most of the cases vendors are quite responsive on their issues. The problem in the tech stack, it&#8217;s not actually any component in the tech stack, it&#8217;s the users. As in like, it could be even, you&#8217;re like, if you forgot to update a plugin or if you received a spam email or a phishing attack and you clicked on some untrusted link. Or downloaded something which you, you don&#8217;t know what it is, you know?</p>



<p>There are so many tools nowadays when it comes to keeping your software up to date. There are so many resources. Like, listen, let&#8217;s read the best practices on how to set up a secure Apache server. And there are also, of course, services. You can pay people, you can pay professionals who can do these things for you.</p>



<p>So the actual tech stack is, I wouldn&#8217;t say easy, because you need knowledge to do it, but yeah, it&#8217;s relatively easy if you know what you&#8217;re doing. You have the tools, you have everything you need to keep it secure.</p>



<p>The problem nowadays more weak passwords, phishing attacks, and stuff like that. Using public WiFi, using unpatched computers. Using public computers to access some things. Unfortunately the user has become the weakest link in the whole chain, you know?</p>



<p>[00:19:53] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> So you&#8217;ve got to really be careful what it is that you&#8217;re doing. What machine you&#8217;re using. Where you&#8217;re using that machine, and so on. I&#8217;m just wondering if there is, in your mind, any system which you would regard as pretty safe. I&#8217;m going to say a hundred percent safe, and then immediately withdraw that because I think we all know that&#8217;s not possible.</p>



<p>But is there a position you can get into where you can have done enough. You&#8217;ve raised your guard up so much that you can relax? Or is this more a story of constant vigilance, constant worry, constantly assuming the worst is going to happen tomorrow? Or is it possible to employ the services of a particular, say, SaaS company, or a professional who might look over things for you?</p>



<p>And be entirely happy that, okay, that&#8217;s now handled by somebody else. I&#8217;m entirely safe. Now I know that a hundred percent is off the table, but can we be confident that our sites are mostly safe if we take the right precautions?</p>



<p>[00:20:51] <strong>Robert Abela:</strong> Yes. I think nowadays with all the tools that there are and all the services even the web hosts themselves, they really up to their game the last few years, especially the managed ones. As you said, a hundred percent is, you&#8217;re never guaranteed. But yeah, there are so many tools. If you inform yourself and if you implement some best practices, you websites are relatively safe.</p>



<p>I mean, you should always take precaution steps. Like for example, backups, they&#8217;re very important. So if something happens, you can restore. Test those backups, of course, because many people miss that part. They take backup, like, have you ever tried to restore it? No.</p>



<p>So it is very important. because sometimes of course, it&#8217;s software as well and it can break. So the restore might not work or something has been corrupted. So that is extremely important. But yeah, from the tech stack point of view it&#8217;s pretty much covered. There are a lot of options nowadays.</p>



<p>Even like with a simple managed WordPress hosting, and installing a plugin or two, you&#8217;re pretty much covered, let&#8217;s say. What&#8217;s important is the best practice and the concept that listen, security is not one stop shop. I don&#8217;t think we should, one should be really paranoid to be honest. because as I said, we&#8217;re in a good position.</p>



<p>But it&#8217;s very important for people to keep in mind, especially as the team grows. Because if you&#8217;re on your own one thing, it&#8217;s relatively easy because you know, you have exactly full control between you and the web host. You have roughly full control of, and you know what&#8217;s happening. But as the team starts growing, especially nowadays, in the WordPress ecosystem it&#8217;s very common to have remote businesses.</p>



<p>You don&#8217;t have full control of your employees, as in like, not the employees themselves, but as in their machines and where they use them and how they use them. So I think what&#8217;s very important is of course to raise awareness, train them, train your team. Make them aware that, listen, use your laptop here, or have some sort of guidelines and make sure you can use as many possible tools, documentation, and training to make sure at least you can take care of that part.</p>



<p>Which is, in my opinion, is the hardest part to secure. Because of course, you don&#8217;t have full control of users, users machines. That is the most important, because as I said the tech stack, like of course things can happen, but as long as you keep software up to date and stuff like that, unless there&#8217;s a zero day exploit, you really unlucky whatever. Okay, it&#8217;s never a hundred percent secure, but you are very near that number, you know.</p>



<p>[00:22:57] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> In terms of the tech stack and the maturity of it, do we often get really innovative and unique vulnerabilities in the tech stack that builds a WordPress website? Let&#8217;s say you&#8217;ve got, I don&#8217;t know, a server, Apache Nginx or whatever it may be.. Do we ever find a new, novel attack? Does that typically come across, I don&#8217;t know, once a year, once a decade, something like that?</p>



<p>So can we lower our guards a little bit or do we find, do you find, you&#8217;re the expert? Do you find that there are novel things that are uncovered by security researchers, which have been, maybe they&#8217;ve been exploited for a year or more, but kept very much under the radar, kept quiet. Is the landscape changing? Are there new and novel attacks happening all the time?</p>



<p>[00:23:40] <strong>Robert Abela:</strong> Not really, in terms of vulnerabilities. We&#8217;re still playing with the same, for example, SQL injection was discovered in the late nineties. The first decade of 2000 we started discovering other vulnerabilities, like cross size scripting, cross request forgery, you know, and the other ones.</p>



<p>When you discover a new type of vulnerability that I would say, of course, that is very innovative. But for the last 10 years, even if you look, there are some websites which keep kind of like an aggregate of the vulnerabilities that are found in plugins. It&#8217;s always the same, especially cross site scripting is very common.</p>



<p>By cross site scripting, it&#8217;s also very important to like every different types of cross site scripting, different type of vulnerabilities, have different type of severity. So if a plugin has a cross site scripting vulnerability, it&#8217;s not necessarily that one should panic, because I&#8217;m not saying, okay, just relax, take it easy.</p>



<p>But listen, some of the vulnerabilities, for example, are very, very hard or can be exploited in a very particular edge case. So it is very important to keep things up to date. But yeah, in terms of innovation, no. In terms of new vulnerabilities, not much.</p>



<p>What is really changing? I think the way malicious users are getting much smarter in the way they craft their attack. They&#8217;re still using the same exploits and same, same issues. Exploiting old software, old vulnerabilites. The good old SQL injection, cross my scripting. But the way they are approaching it, the way they are building, drafting their tech, it&#8217;s much more complex.</p>



<p>There&#8217;s a lot of intelligence behind it, like how they use a number of different vulnerabilities to build an attack. First you send an email. If the victim gets the bait basically, if they click something or whatever. And then if they click, for example, install some malware on the computer, which allows you then, for example, I don&#8217;t know, some sort of key logger, and then you see what they&#8217;re doing.</p>



<p>Maybe they are connecting to a website and they&#8217;re uploading something. So we&#8217;ve seen much more complex type of attacks where people are stringing a number of vulnerabilities together to successfully attack some particular target.</p>



<p>But in terms of innovation of new type of vulnerabilities, like new ways of exploiting software, we haven&#8217;t seen much, no. For the last 10 years, it&#8217;s been pretty much same old, same old kind of thing.</p>



<p>[00:25:42] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Now I&#8217;m going to throw a spanner in the works here and ask you about AI. It&#8217;s all the rage at the moment for creating content and probably people in the WordPress space know that people have been able to create plugins, and create all sorts of things around the WordPress space.</p>



<p>Lots and lots of endeavors in WordPress using AI, and I&#8217;m wondering if this has started to become a trend amongst the hackers as well? Whether they&#8217;re using this technology to refine their processes? Possibly to go and look at the source code of things like WordPress or Linux kernel, or whatever it may be. Speeding up the process, finding new novel things. My question really boils down to, does AI and internet security, is that a point of concern, do you think, in the near future?</p>



<p>[00:26:31] <strong>Robert Abela:</strong> I think right now, not really. It&#8217;s still too early, but I think AI is a big changer in general, in every industry, every vertical of the internet industry. Having said that, AI is not a human, so it&#8217;s not necessarily coming up with something innovative.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s still, at the end of the day, it still has some sort of database where it gets information from. The difference is that nowadays, instead of using Google and browsing through search results, trying to find exactly what you need, okay, this website, no, it&#8217;s not here to click on the other one, go on that page.</p>



<p>Rather than going through that process of course, with AI, we&#8217;ve really accelerated that. We&#8217;ve really automated that. So nowadays, like with AI, especially if you know how to ask what you need, you&#8217;re going to get the answer much quicker. So things that usually would take you, let&#8217;s assume a malicious user wants to hack something, a target.</p>



<p>It used to take them days or weeks maybe to craft something and to think of something original and learn about something. Because of course you have to search for everything and read a bit more, and try this and try that. With AI, of course you&#8217;re accelerating this process. And by accelerating that process you&#8217;re achieving much quicker results.</p>



<p>And typically also, true AI, not because AI cannot come up with something new, because it&#8217;s always getting information from what there is. But I&#8217;m pretty sure it can, because of this fast process, I&#8217;m pretty sure it will lead slowly, slowly to also new innovations. In every aspect, content writing, security, security both in terms of attack and defense and every aspect of the internet.</p>



<p>[00:27:55] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Yeah, that&#8217;s an interesting point. I hadn&#8217;t really thought about that. I was thinking about that from the attacker side. But of course, the defense side also has the same tools to deploy, and I&#8217;m imagining that if you&#8217;re the vendor of a, of a security product, whether that&#8217;s a firewall or a plugin or whatever, you&#8217;re also going to be deploying the same tools to try and mitigate what the adversaries are doing.</p>



<p>[00:28:17] <strong>Robert Abela:</strong> The thing is that luckily both the attacker and the, let&#8217;s say the white hat vendor have access to the same tools. So yeah, if you use them wisely. Also, this thing is always a bit of a cat and mouse game. The malicious users do something, the vendors up their game, then they do something, then they up their game and stuff like that.</p>



<p>[00:28:36] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> I want to just turn our attention to a typical WordPress user. Perhaps somebody who really doesn&#8217;t know a great deal about this. They&#8217;re listening to this podcast because they&#8217;re curious about WordPress. They&#8217;ve got a site which they run, it&#8217;s their own. Maybe they&#8217;ve got a couple of sites.</p>



<p>They&#8217;re beginning that journey on creating their own freelance business or something like that. Do you have any guidance as to how often things ought to be done? Is this really a process of you really should be logging in every day, checking for updates, and while you&#8217;re at it, why not just switch automatic updates for Core and all the plugins that you&#8217;ve got on?</p>



<p>Or is this more of a look, once a week is fine. I&#8217;m sure there won&#8217;t be a hard and fast rule, but people who are just beginning their journey with WordPress, they probably do need concrete examples of how they should best handle this.</p>



<p>[00:29:18] <strong>Robert Abela:</strong> It really depends on the scale of the business and how much traffic your website is getting. And also the number of people working on the website. Because one person or two people from the same room, it&#8217;s totally different than being even two people from different locations. And how much the team is security savvy, not necessarily technical, but at least have some basic understanding.</p>



<p>But yeah, in general let&#8217;s say a typical startup where you are switching between kind of like a transitioning from a hobby to a part-time. I think as long as you take care of the obvious, install some plugins, add 2FA, add some logs, add a firewall, make sure that you have backups. Work with a solid web host.</p>



<p>As long as you take care of the basics, you should be pretty much covered, and yes, like everyone else, for example checking Google Analytics, or any type of analytics software for that matter. Yeah like, people are doing it for SEO, but it also helps keeping an eye.</p>



<p>Maybe there&#8217;s a spike of traffic coming from some unusual location. All these things can lead to something. Check your website every day. You know, like it&#8217;s very important, for example especially if you have a very small number of users. You are two or three users. I mean like once a week, maybe you should have some sort of checklist, you know, check how many users are on your website. Run some file integrated scans. You know, like some basic stuff.</p>



<p>Once a week is more than enough at that level. So yes. But what&#8217;s important, I think at that stage, especially if you are growing, it&#8217;s very important to draft policies and follow security best practices when the team is still very small.</p>



<p>Why? Because if you are not organized when the team is very small, it&#8217;ll be much harder, and you&#8217;ll have much bigger problems when the team is very big. It&#8217;ll be much harder to implement a change. Like, I don&#8217;t know, like we used to do something one way, and after one year, the team now is a hundred people.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s much more difficult to convince those hundred people, listen, we&#8217;re going to change this and we&#8217;re going to start doing it this way. And yeah, this can of course, irritate people because people tend to resist change, especially if it affects their productivity or if it&#8217;s too complicated.</p>



<p>So I think what matters is, especially as you&#8217;re starting, set up some policy, some guidelines, some best practice for yourself, have some sort of checklist. Yes, once a week or so. You can also do it almost once a month, but again, play it safe. Why not spend an hour every week, have a checklist, check how many users are there on your website, check some logs, check the traffic on the website, you know, check the list of plugins. check the files.</p>



<p>Especially, a file integrity monitor can tell you lot of things because if there is a file, typically when a website is hacked, there is a file that has changed. A file has been deleted, or a file has been modified, even an actual legitimate file, it has been modified. So yeah, that can tell you a lot.</p>



<p>Luckily nowadays, of course most of these systems, configure email alerts, you can configure some SMS and stuff like that. So of course you&#8217;re automating much and much more. But it&#8217;s still good to take a look. And also it&#8217;s very important because we, for example, we develop an activity log plugin, and some people are, okay, what should I look for in the logs? It&#8217;s very difficult to answer that question, because it truly depends on your business. Because, it&#8217;s very important for website owners to understand what&#8217;s running on their website and how it&#8217;s being used, and only then you can make informed decisions.</p>



<p>Okay, is this log, not just in WordPress, even the web server logs, even in analytics. Is this traffic normal or not? Because, if for example you are based in the UK and typically you get all the traffic from Germany. So by seeing a spike from traffic in Germany, that&#8217;s normal to you. But for someone who&#8217;s based in the UK but only has UK traffic, a spike of traffic in Germany is a problem for them.</p>



<p>So first what&#8217;s very important is to understand your website, have some basic checklists. The most basic stuff, once a week or so. Keep an eye on these things. Traffic, and logs usually, and also log into the website. Why not? You know, just go to the plugins page. Are these all the plugins that I installed? Are these all users that I had? That&#8217;s a really good step.</p>



<p>By setting those best practices and those checks once a week, as the team grows it&#8217;ll be easier to maybe add something new because of course the team is growing, so you need to add more policies or you need to add, secure something else, you know? So, yeah, that&#8217;s very important. It&#8217;s very important to keep an eye on things, just check how things are running.</p>



<p>But of course with managed web hosting, especially for WordPress things, most of these things are almost covered for you. Many web hosts have different packages. Many web hosts nowadays they have their own kind of like internal monitoring systems as well. We&#8217;ve noticed you have this plugin, which is outdated, or we&#8217;ve noticed this. So at least there is a lot going on for you already.</p>



<p>And that&#8217;s why I said even earlier, it&#8217;s good of course, to be aware, and to be conscious that, listen, these things can happen, but we don&#8217;t need to be stressed. If you&#8217;ve done your homework, if you do your own homework, and you follow best practices, you choose a good web host and stuff like that, then you are in a good place.</p>



<p>[00:33:53] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Yeah, I guess it&#8217;s a good point to mention that the WordPress ecosystem, given its enormous size and reach in the website creation space, you&#8217;re in a pretty good spot because there has been so much effort poured into, not only making WordPress secure, but making the update system for plugins and themes trivially easy to switch on.</p>



<p>And I&#8217;m just wondering about that one actually. I&#8217;m just wondering what your thoughts are on automatic updating. Personally I&#8217;ve, in most of the places where it&#8217;s possible, I have switched that on, and have had no negative consequences. You know, none of the plugin updates have destroyed anything in ways which would make me want to switch that off.</p>



<p>But that is an option which I know that a lot of people don&#8217;t make use of, and I&#8217;m wondering what your thoughts are on that. So in the WordPress admin, it&#8217;s possible to automate the whole process of updating. It&#8217;ll just do it on a regular cycle if it knows there&#8217;s a WordPress plugin update, it&#8217;ll just do it for you and hopefully everything will work out.</p>



<p>And obviously now we&#8217;ve got a safe mode built into WordPress not that long ago. So let&#8217;s just talk about that quickly. What do you think about automatically updating everything when possible?</p>



<p>[00:34:59] <strong>Robert Abela:</strong> Speaking about ourselves, we have automatic updates on minor version updates. Because we have like 4.0.1, 4.0.2. We allow that. because yeah, most cases, usually these updates are just small bug fixes here and there. The chances of something breaking, especially with a plugin update is with major version changes, because of course the vendor has implemented a new feature or drastically changed a feature and stuff like that. Of course, for the better.</p>



<p>But, especially for vendors, it&#8217;s very difficult. Let&#8217;s say you have a plugin, it&#8217;s installed onto a hundred thousand websites. It is very difficult to simulate all those a hundred thousand websites, and simulate upgrades. So of course we try our best to do as much as we can to test as much as we can in different scenarios. But it&#8217;s impossible.</p>



<p>So in terms of auto updates, for us and which is something I recommend, I would definitely enable them for minor version updates. In regards to major version upgrades, nowadays again, most hosting providers have the staging websites. Just run it on the staging website, literally, it only takes 10 minutes.</p>



<p>Run it on the staging website. Check the area on the website that is affected by that plugin. I don&#8217;t know if it&#8217;s an SEO plugin, for example, you check that the headers are still loading or the metadata is still loading. Or if, I don&#8217;t know, it&#8217;s the tables plugin, check that tables are still loading properly.</p>



<p>And yeah, if it works, update the live site as soon as possible. WordPress itself of course, as soon as you log into the dashboard, and you go to the plugins pages, you have that even, you don&#8217;t need to go to the plugins pages. You have that icon that you have updates. So it&#8217;s very difficult to miss updates. So that&#8217;s great.</p>



<p>But even if, let&#8217;s say you&#8217;re not logging into your website on a daily basis, there are many services, every vendor usually they have their own change log, you can subscribe to their newsletter. So yeah, whenever there&#8217;s an update, you&#8217;ll get an email or some sort of notification.</p>



<p>So it&#8217;s very important if you&#8217;re not logging into your website every day to see when there are updates. At least subscribe to the vendor&#8217;s newsletter or builds updates or something. So at least you get an email that, listen, we&#8217;ve released an update, especially if it&#8217;s a major update. If you have, of course, the automatic updates for minor version upgrades, especially if you have a big website.</p>



<p>Like an e-commerce website, you can have a good number of plugins, tons of plugins. At least you don&#8217;t have to do almost daily updates. For the major version updates, if it&#8217;s a relatively small website, you might get on with enabling, automatic updates on that as well. But yeah, do it on a staging website. It literally takes a few minutes. Just update the plugin on the staging, run a quick test, 15 minutes maximum and turn on updates on the live website. So yeah, definitely.</p>



<p>[00:37:16] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> It&#8217;s also the kind of thing that once you&#8217;ve done it a few times, it becomes kind of muscle memory and you can do that staging to updating plugin to, you can do that very trivially quickly and get on with your day if that&#8217;s not the main part of your business.</p>



<p>Just one last question. You talked earlier about members of staff and what have you. I&#8217;m just wondering if you&#8217;ve got any guidance, again possibly for the more inexperienced WordPress user, about the kind of roles that you might assign to people in WordPress. Obviously, if you are giving everybody the administrator role, you may well find yourself in a bit of trouble.</p>



<p>And also about the nature of cleansing out the users that you&#8217;ve got on your WordPress website on a regular basis. So, you know, if you&#8217;ve got a big team and you&#8217;re constantly churning through staff, that&#8217;s probably something you want to be thinking about as well, because that&#8217;s an attack that you really can&#8217;t avoid if you don&#8217;t make the effort. You know, if you&#8217;ve given somebody an administrator account and they&#8217;ve got bonafide access to get into the website and you don&#8217;t revoke it. Or you&#8217;ve given them too many permissions and they then get fired and you know, they fall out with you, there could be problems afoot there.</p>



<p>[00:38:19] <strong>Robert Abela:</strong> Yeah, indeed. Definitely one shouldn&#8217;t give admin roles, assign the admin role to everyone. In fact, as a best practice, I would say have an admin account, really difficult to use and that should only be used by you and only as back up. Because even you as a website administrator, you don&#8217;t need admin access whenever you log into the website.</p>



<p>If most of your work is still updating some posts, or maybe changing something from the theme. So no, admin roles shouldn&#8217;t be used that often. WordPress has a number of built-in roles. It depends again on the nature of the website, what you&#8217;re doing with it. For some people, those roles work.</p>



<p>But yeah, the fact that there&#8217;s this technology of roles is, it&#8217;s already good, because there are also a number of plugins which you can use to create different types of roles to assign multiple roles to users. And most plugins nowadays they either create their own roles on your WordPress website, or they have different types of functions where you can, okay, like, literally some plugins, you can say, okay, I created a new role for them and I want these people to do only these type of things on this plugin.</p>



<p>So the role control, and what people can do and cannot do, especially when you use a third party plugin to create your own custom roles and to assign different privileges, is very granular. Definitely no admin access for no people, quite frankly. But yeah, the rest, I definitely recommend using some sort of custom role editor so you can create your own custom roles as well if the default ones don&#8217;t work for you.</p>



<p>We always talk about the principle of least privilege. I was a systems engineer when I used to work for their companies and, the easiest way, I was like, yeah, give them admin access because it&#8217;ll work for sure. Of course. Unfortunately, it&#8217;s a very common practice. But no, the reality is you should, yes, start with the least possible.</p>



<p>And if they don&#8217;t work, see what else they need. Okay. What else do you need? I need to access this page from this plugin, and check. Contact the vendor from the plugin. Listen, do you have specific privileges for this? Or do we need this? Do we need this? And to build slowly. Yes, I understand that it hinders the productivity, kind of slows down things. But it only slows those things for a day or two. Or give them maybe a bit more access for a day or two until you check with the vendor and then reverse that access.</p>



<p>So always give the least possible. It&#8217;s also a question like of user accountability. Some compliance bodies actually have regulations about this. If someone shouldn&#8217;t be seeing certain customer data, regardless if you trust them or not, they shouldn&#8217;t be seeing it. Why are you giving them access kind of thing.</p>



<p>So, it&#8217;s very important to live by the kind of like principle of lease privilege when it comes to users. Give them the lease possible. Even for them, especially if they&#8217;re not tech savvy. This doesn&#8217;t have to do with someone being malicious, or even if they make a mistake, at least they make a mistake within their environment, their privileges. Not a bigger mistake.</p>



<p>Roles definitely should be used. And yeah, there are a lot of plugins. We&#8217;re lucky because there are a lot of plugins which allow you to create your own custom roles, assign different privileges for roles and stuff like that. Definitely roles are definitely things that should be used.</p>



<p>[00:41:05] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> This is a topic that we could probably talk about for days.</p>



<p>[00:41:08] <strong>Robert Abela:</strong> Yeah, roles on their own, yes.</p>



<p>[00:41:10] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> And more broadly about WordPress in general. You know, should we keep the REST API on, and are there a bunch of things that you would switch off by default. But unfortunately we&#8217;re kind of running out of time, so I&#8217;m going to leave those questions possibly for another episode.</p>



<p>Or another way of getting the answer might be, if people want to contact you, Robert, directly. Where can you be found? Do you hang out on social? Is there an email address that you prefer to mention? Where can we best find you, Robert?</p>



<p>[00:41:37] <strong>Robert Abela:</strong> Yes. Uh, our website is wpwhitesecurity.com but as I said, we are rebranding. So we are announcing the new name at WordCamp Europe. The new website will be melapress.com. m e l a press.com. So yeah, my email is very simple, robert at melapress.com or at WP White Security. I&#8217;m also on Twitter and stuff like that. But yeah, I think email is definitely one of the most efficient.</p>



<p>[00:41:58] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Thank you very much, Robert. I really appreciate joining us on the podcast today. Thank you.</p>



<p>[00:42:02] <strong>Robert Abela:</strong> Thank you. Thank you very much.</p>
</div>



<p>On the podcast today we have <a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/robert681/">Robert Abela</a>.</p>



<p>Robert is the CEO and founder of <a href="https://melapress.com/">MelaPress</a>, formerly known as WP White Security. They make niche WordPress security and admin plugins. He has over 18 years experience in the IT and software industries, and has written numerous web security articles and white papers.</p>



<p>We all know that your website is potentially under attack 24 hours a day, 365 days of this year, but why is that, and what can we do to mitigate that risk?</p>



<p>Robert talks about the security of WordPress Core and how it’s matured over the years. He feels that in most cases, it’s not the Core of WordPress that you need to be concerned about, rather the array of plugins and themes which are added on top. The unique cocktail of software that you add to your site makes it challenging for security products to secure it.</p>



<p>That being said, Robert is optimistic that there are strategies you can adopt which will make your site less likely to fall prey to malicious actors or bots. Updating plugins on a regular basis, keeping fresh backups, and the monitoring of logs all play a vital role and are straightforward to do.</p>



<p>Robert is also at pains to point out that this is not a one click, or one time fix. You’re going to need to dedicate time and resources to your website security, and those resources and time will need to be increased as the importance and reach of your site grows. Evolution is the key here. What worked yesterday might not work so effectively tomorrow.</p>



<p>Another topic which we touch on is the automated nature of many of these attacks. Unless you are hosting a website of some importance, hackers are not trying to break your specific website. They’re deploying automated attacks, trying to infect many websites at the same time. But why do they do this, what are the motivations of these bad actors? Robert explains that it’s not personal, but that does not mean that you can ignore the threat.</p>



<p>We also chat about the many layers which go into making your website work. Typically you’ve got a web server, a database, and often much more, and Robert explains why you need to be mindful of all these when drawing up your security posture.</p>



<p>Then of course there’s the users of your site, the people who you’ve allowed to have legitimate access to the WordPress admin. If you’re in a large company with a high churn of employees then you’ll need to make sure that only people who need access have access, and that the permissions that they’re afforded are correct for the work they need to do.</p>



<p>If you’re curious about how you can secure your WordPress website as it grows, this podcast is for you.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Useful links.</h2>



<p><a href="https://www.wpwhitesecurity.com/">WP White Security</a></p>



<p><a href="https://melapress.com/">Melapress</a></p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Wed, 14 Jun 2023 14:00:00 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:14:"Nathan Wrigley";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:30;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:29:"Matt: WordCamp Europe Keynote";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:22:"https://ma.tt/?p=87795";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:46:"https://ma.tt/2023/06/wordcamp-europe-keynote/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:438:"<p class="is-style-matt-rothko-style">I had a great time at <a href="https://europe.wordcamp.org/2023/">WordCamp Europe in Athens</a> this year, here&#8217;s the keynote &#8220;Variations on a Theme&#8221; with presentations from <a href="https://josepha.blog/">Josepha Haden Chomphosy</a> and <a href="https://matiasventura.com/">Matías Ventura</a>, and Q&amp;A from all three of us.</p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">

</div>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Wed, 14 Jun 2023 10:06:14 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4:"Matt";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:31;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:112:"WPTavern: WordPress Accessibility Day Secures Nonprofit Status for Annual Event, Calls for Speakers and Sponsors";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:30:"https://wptavern.com/?p=145758";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:115:"https://wptavern.com/wp-accessibility-day-secures-nonprofit-status-for-annual-event-calls-for-speakers-and-sponsors";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:2527:"<p>WordPress Accessibility Day, an independent 24-hour virtual conference, will <a href="https://2023.wpaccessibility.day/">return in 2023</a> &#8211; this time under an official non-profit status. </p>



<p>The first edition of the event was hosted in 2020 by the WordPress core Accessibility Team. They wanted to manage it independently of the WordPress Foundation in order to reserve the option to do things like pay speakers for their time and expertise. The most recent 2022 event ran its finances through  WP Accessibility Day Board President Amber Hinds&#8217; company, Equalize Digital,   to expedite the process of getting started.</p>



<p>The success of last year&#8217;s event, which drew 1,604 attendees from 52 countries, thanks to 28 sponsors and a 32-person volunteer crew, inspired organizers to keep pushing to make the organization a nonprofit. </p>



<p>Through a fiscal sponsorship partnership with <a href="https://knowbility.org/">Knowbility</a>, an Austin-based digital accessibility advocate and services provider, WP Accessibility Day has secured 501(c)(3) nonprofit status. </p>



<p>“When I helped found this event in 2020, I already knew that our biggest challenge would be ensuring that the event wasn’t dependent on a single person to survive,” WP Accessibility Day Board Secretary Joe Dolson said. “Setting up as a non-profit and partnering with a larger organization helps us reach our goal of creating an event with a life of its own. Knowbility’s dedication to accessibility education makes them a great match for our mission.”</p>



<p>This arrangement makes sponsorships and donations to the WP Accessibility Day event tax-deductible in the United States. Past sponsors include Cloudways, Gravity Forms, WP Engine, Yoast, GoDaddy Pro, Weglot, among other WordPress companies.</p>



<p>The next <a href="https://2023.wpaccessibility.day/">WP Accessibility Day</a> event is scheduled for September 27-28, 2023, and will feature a single-track that runs for 24 hours. It will also include live captioning and sign language interpreters. Organizers plan to publish the sessions following the event with transcripts and updated captions.</p>



<p>Speaker and sponsor applications are already open, and speakers will be compensated with a $300 stipend per session. The deadline to submit an application as a speaker has been <a href="https://2023.wpaccessibility.day/speaker-submission-deadline-extended/">extended to June 18, 2023</a>. Attendance is free via livestream.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Tue, 13 Jun 2023 22:20:57 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:13:"Sarah Gooding";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:32;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4:"Matt";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:22:"https://ma.tt/?p=87648";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:28:"https://ma.tt/2023/06/87648/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:113:"<p>Julia Evans writes <a href="https://jvns.ca/blog/2023/06/05/some-blogging-myths/">Some blogging myths</a>.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Tue, 13 Jun 2023 06:53:17 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4:"Matt";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:33;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:96:"WPTavern: WordPress.org Enables Commercial and Community Filters on Plugin and Theme Directories";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:30:"https://wptavern.com/?p=145792";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:107:"https://wptavern.com/wordpress-org-enables-commercial-and-community-filters-on-plugin-and-theme-directories";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4126:"<p>During the <a href="https://wptavern.com/state-of-the-word-2022-matt-mullenweg-highlights-gutenbergs-progress-announces-new-community-tools">2022 State of the Word</a>, Matt Mullenweg announced a plan to add new &#8220;Community&#8221; and &#8220;Commercial&#8221; taxonomies for the theme and plugin directories that would help users more quickly ascertain the purpose of the extensions they are considering. Shortly after the announcement, instructions were published for theme and plugin authors to <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/plugins/2022/12/16/plugins-themes-categorization/">opt into the new taxonomies</a>. </p>



<p>The new filters are <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/meta/2023/06/13/new-filter-controls-discover-commercial-and-community-in-the-theme-and-plugin-directory/">now enabled</a> on both the theme and plugin directories, giving users the ability to quickly sort between free community extensions and those with commercial upgrades. Anything with a &#8220;pro version&#8221; should be designated as Commercial. These usually come with some upsells for more features than are offered in the free version. So far, the number of themes identified as commercial vastly exceed the number of community themes. </p>



<img />



<p>In the Plugin directory, extensions designated as free are nearly equal those designated as commercial. Many of the most widely used plugins have already been identified as commercial, including Yoast SEO, Jetpack, Akismet, Elementor, WooCommerce, All-in-One WP Migration, and more. Examples of community plugins include the WordPress Importer, Classic Editor, Classic Widgets, Gutenberg, Performance Lab, and Debug Bar.</p>



<img />



<p>In both directories it appears only a small percentage of authors have designated their extensions using the commercial or community taxonomies. At this time, use of the taxonomies is not required. This gave rise to some questions in the comments of the announcement.</p>



<p>&#8220;Would a better classification system would be to just have either no label for the majority, and then something closer to &#8216;includes paid upgrades&#8217; that just implies they also offer additional services on top of their free (and often fully functional) version?&#8221; WordPress developer Kevin Batdorf said.</p>



<p>&#8220;All plugins are open source regardless of whether they sell something, and that doesn’t make those developers any less passionate about open-source. Nor does it imply non-commercial plugins have any less features, or that the level of dedication to support is any less dedicated.&#8221;</p>



<p>Batdorf also asked if use of the taxonomies would be a requirement in the future, because, at the moment, their low usage could give some plugins an advantage under these new classifications.</p>



<p>&#8220;Should it also be a requirement?&#8221; he said. &#8220;Otherwise this also seems like something to be gamed for visibility. Do Community or Commercial (or neither) plugins show higher install growth? I guarantee you people are tracking this already.&#8221;</p>



<p>WordPress&#8217; Meta team is seeking feedback on the current implementation. Automattic-sponsored contributor Steve Dufresne said &#8220;work is continuously underway to improve the browsing experience and refine the visual aspects of the Theme and Plugin Directory as part of the site redesign.&#8221; The new filters will be incorporated into the <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/meta/2023/04/10/wordpress-org-redesign-update-2/">upcoming redesign changes</a> that have been slowly rolling out across WordPress.org.</p>



<p>These filters will also be making their way into the admin theme and plugin browsers, so users can access them from wherever they search for extensions. In the meantime, users and theme and plugin developers can leave feedback via Meta Trac on the specific tickets outlined in the <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/meta/2023/06/13/new-filter-controls-discover-commercial-and-community-in-the-theme-and-plugin-directory/">announcement</a>, as the team continues to iterate on the project.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Tue, 13 Jun 2023 04:11:36 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:13:"Sarah Gooding";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:34;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:54:"WPTavern: WordCampers Demand Changes to Q&amp;A Format";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:30:"https://wptavern.com/?p=145760";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:60:"https://wptavern.com/wordcampers-demand-changes-to-qa-format";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:5951:"<p>Q&amp;A segments at a live event are a valuable point of connection where attendees have the opportunity to gain the undivided attention of the speaker or panelist and get answers to important questions. Inevitably, people who abuse the format can lower the quality of the experience for everyone. A Twitter thread addressing this chronic problem is gaining momentum today following the conclusion of WordCamp Europe 2023.</p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">After <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WCEU?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WCEU</a> is before the next WordCamp! There's one thing in particular that is dear to my heart with the organization of these events that needs to change: the Q&amp;A format. 1/x</p>&mdash; Felix Arntz (@felixarntz) <a href="https://twitter.com/felixarntz/status/1668104835005046785?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 12, 2023</a></blockquote>
</div>



<p>&#8220;One problem is that they often add very little value &#8211; although they&#8217;re supposed to achieve the opposite,&#8221; WordPress Core Committer Felix Arntz said. &#8220;Unfortunately, those who &#8216;ask&#8217; are often telling stories, promoting themselves or their business, [or] mansplaining the speaker.</p>



<p>&#8220;Sometimes they&#8217;re not even asking any question at the end which is ridiculous. If that is you, you may not even notice it, but you are seriously wasting people&#8217;s time, potentially harming the speaker, and preventing folks from actually learning something.&#8221;</p>



<p>Arntz suggested that those asking questions longer than a minute should forego the Q&amp;A time and ask the speaker informally at a later opportunity if it is relevant.</p>



<p>&#8220;Just to clarify, while some of the issues apply especially to sessions with more exposure, like a Matt Q&amp;A, they all also apply to any other session,&#8221; he said.</p>



<p>&#8220;While these problems mostly occur due to individual folks in the audience, I think the WordCamp organization needs to take action to improve the situation as it&#8217;s been happening for years.&#8221;</p>



<p>Arntz proposed a number of actionable ideas, including submitting questions to a central platform where they can be upvoted by community members, discarding lengthy questions, and providing mandatory training or documentation for emcees on how to handle problematic Q&amp;A situations. He also noted that having questions in writing can assist non-native English speakers in understanding other non-native speakers.</p>



<p>Arntz also contends that Q&amp;A should be optional, depending on the speaker&#8217;s preference. This may also have the added effect of creating a more inclusive environment for speakers.</p>



<p>&#8220;Particularly for new speakers, it can cause lots of distress or anxiety, especially because, as mentioned before, it very often isn&#8217;t questions but any of the aforementioned problems,&#8221; he said.</p>



<p>&#8220;All of this can be another blocker for folks from underrepresented groups to even apply to speak, which came up in the session on women &amp; non-binary folx of WordPress.</p>



<p>&#8220;Making Q&amp;A optional is a great and simple way to at least improve the latter issue while working on addressing all the other problems. It&#8217;s literally just a decision to make, so I urge the community and organizing teams to make it.&#8221;</p>



<p>Arntz&#8217;s thread has received positive feedback and support, and other WCEU attendees have joined in with suggestions for improving the Q&amp;A format.</p>



<p>&#8220;Many other open source conferences use apps that do more with Q&amp;A, rating speakers, and even helping attendees schedule networking,&#8221; GoDaddy Developer Advocate Courtney Robertson <a href="https://twitter.com/courtneyr_dev/status/1668139699268120577">said</a>. &#8220;The favorited events export to iCal/gCal.&#8221;</p>



<p>Raymon Mens, a first-time-attendee at WCEU, <a href="https://twitter.com/raymonmens/status/1668146081496956933">said</a> he was &#8220;negatively surprised by the Q&amp;A part&#8221; for every session. &#8220;I would have preferred some more time for the speaker to go more in depth and not have a long Q&amp;A that doesn’t add a lot.&#8221;</p>



<p>Jon Ang, an organizer for WordCamp Asia, <a href="https://twitter.com/Kenshino/status/1668223052155617281?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1668223052155617281%7Ctwgr%5Ecb693e283a61a9b5b9ae45ea5f2e017df763ad60%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwptavern.com%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost.php%3Fpost%3D145760action%3Dedit">said</a> he is taking Arntz&#8217;s feedback into consideration for their next event, and future global leads for WCEU <a href="https://twitter.com/taekereijenga/status/1668238519477628929">said</a> they are also discussing these ideas for next year. </p>



<p>&#8220;At WordCamp San Francisco 2011 there was a Q&amp;A session with Barry and it used a P2,&#8221; WordPress core committer Aaron Jorbin said. &#8220;For the off topic questions, others often chimed in. I think an MC with knowledge of the subject matter asking questions off this would be perfect.&#8221;</p>



<p>Changes will likely originate from WordCamp organizers who can recognize the existing problems with the current Q&amp;A format and depart from tradition with a better way of bringing quality questions to speakers who wish to entertain them. Getting Q&amp;A right may also become a stronger priority as WordPress&#8217; community team <a href="https://wptavern.com/wordpress-community-team-evolves-wordcamp-format-to-promote-adoption-training-and-networking-for-professionals">evolves the WordCamp format to promote adoption, training, and networking</a>. Based on the feedback on Arntz&#8217;s Twitter thread, it&#8217;s past time to update the Q&amp;A format and WordCampers are eager to see it happen.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Mon, 12 Jun 2023 22:27:35 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:13:"Sarah Gooding";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:35;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:53:"WordPress.org blog: Twenty Years of WordPress at WCEU";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:35:"https://wordpress.org/news/?p=15167";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:69:"https://wordpress.org/news/2023/06/twenty-years-of-wordpress-at-wceu/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4620:"<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Inspiring the global community</h2>



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<p>The atmosphere was electric at WordCamp Europe (WCEU) 2023 in Athens, Greece, as WordPress celebrated its <a href="https://wp20.wordpress.net/">20th anniversary</a> and the opportunity to gather in person for inspiration and engagement. More than 2,500 individuals from 94 countries came together in person or through the live stream to participate in a remarkable three-day event (plus Contributor Day) filled with talks, networking, and learning opportunities. The event concluded on June 10 with a captivating keynote address by WordPress co-founder <a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/matt/">Matt Mullenweg</a>, Executive Director <a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/chanthaboune/">Josepha Haden Chomphosy</a>, and Gutenberg Product Architect <a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/matveb/">Matías Ventura</a>, who highlighted the advancements and upcoming milestones of the WordPress Project.</p>



<p>One significant update shared during the keynote was the successful reactivation of WordCamps. This time last year, we organized eight in-person WordCamps, and by the end of 2022, the number had risen to 23. Thanks to the enthusiasm and involvement of the WordPress community, we are already on track to organize 25 WordCamps in the first half of this year alone.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Josepha also emphasized the importance of the upcoming Community Summit on August 22-23. This in-person gathering brings contributors together across the WordPress open source project, fostering cross-project discussions vital for future growth and sustainability. For more information, visit the official <a href="https://communitysummit.wordcamp.org/2023/">Community Summit website</a>.</p>



<img src="https://i0.wp.com/wordpress.org/news/files/2023/06/Five-for-the-Future-WCEU-1.png?resize=585%2C365&ssl=1" alt="Total contributors: 7788 (737 new)
Contributors pledged to 5ftF: 780 (95 new)
152 companies total with confirmed contributors (30 new)" class="wp-image-15171" width="585" height="365" />



<p>Discussing the <a href="https://wordpress.org/five-for-the-future/">Five for the Future</a> (5ftF) program, Josepha highlighted the impressive growth in active contributors and company pledges over the past year. She also underscored the expansion of the WordPress ecosystem, citing examples like <a href="https://openverse.org/">Openverse</a>, which now provides access to nearly 800 million images and audio files, all easily accessible in the Site Editor.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Another exciting addition to the WordPress repertoire is <a href="https://playground.wordpress.net/">WP Playground</a>. This new feature allows users to build WordPress applications instantly in the browser without needing a PHP server. This tool provides a swift and seamless experience, reducing the installation time from five minutes to a near-instantaneous 500 milliseconds. The application of WP Playground may seem like magic, but its practical application promises tangible and revolutionary benefits for WordPress users.</p>



<p>Matías Ventura then took the stage to share updates on Gutenberg. Through a visually stunning video built entirely with blocks, he showcased the six-year development journey and the transition from words to blocks to a final design. The upcoming WordPress version 6.3 will mark the completion of the first two phases of Gutenberg, consolidating all these features into a cohesive and user-friendly experience. He also highlighted the introduction of features such as the Wayfinder tool, Style Book, and the ability to save patterns, further empowering users to own their web presence and voice.</p>



<p>Following the keynote presentation, the WordPress leadership engaged in a<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VzKiKRodHQ0"> lively Q&amp;A session </a>with the audience, further illustrating the continuous evolution within the WordPress Project. This session highlighted how the WordPress community innovates, iterates, and continually improves to create a better platform for today and tomorrow.</p>



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<p>Join the global community and be part of the WordPress journey toward a brighter future!</p>



<p><em>Special thanks to <a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/cbringmann/" class="mention"><span class="mentions-prefix">@</span>cbringmann</a> and <a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/eidolonnight/" class="mention"><span class="mentions-prefix">@</span>eidolonnight</a> for review and collaboration</em>.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Sat, 10 Jun 2023 22:21:51 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:16:"Jonathan Pantani";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:36;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:77:"BuddyPress: How should back-end &amp; front-end BuddyPress Interfaces evolve?";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:32:"https://buddypress.org/?p=330029";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:90:"https://buddypress.org/2023/06/how-should-back-end-front-end-buddypress-interfaces-evolve/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:7371:"<p>This is the number 4 of our post series about the new direction we plan to take regarding plugin maintenance and evolutions. Our <a href="https://buddypress.org/2023/04/buddypress-has-a-new-purpose/">first post</a> was about shared our new purpose, the <a href="https://buddypress.org/2023/05/lets-better-organize-the-buddypress-plugin/">second one</a> explained how we think we can better organize the BuddyPress plugin, and the <a href="https://buddypress.org/2023/05/what-new-features-will-be-coming-to-buddypress/">third one</a> dealt with BuddyPress’ next features. It’s now time to analyze the feedback you shared with us <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://buddypress.org/support/topic/what-is-the-most-important-thing-buddypress-is-missing/" target="_blank">here</a> &amp; <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://wptavern.com/buddypress-plugin-usage-declining-remaining-contributors-discuss-path-forward" target="_blank">there</a> about BuddyPress’ user interfaces.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Key feedbacks about the BuddyPress UI</h2>



<ul>
<li>«&nbsp;<strong>Deep admin integration</strong> for all core components and logged-in Members&nbsp;»</li>



<li>« A default set of universally wrappable <strong>theme-side template parts</strong> »</li>



<li>«&nbsp;<strong>Modern</strong> UI/UX&nbsp;»</li>



<li>«&nbsp;Make a <strong>simple theme for BP</strong> so that developers can modify it as they please. <strong>Install the theme when BP is installed</strong>&nbsp;»</li>



<li>«&nbsp;I believe BuddyPress can be ground breaking for any <strong>mobile app</strong> that built with WordPress&nbsp;»</li>



<li>«&nbsp;I was a little disappointed when I saw that it is not at all possible to <strong>use Gutenberg to style the absolutely required pages</strong>&nbsp;»</li>



<li>«&nbsp;Most people install BuddyPress &nbsp;with a default theme and the result is not pretty. <strong>A BuddyPress theme that looks modern and nice would be a great addition</strong>.&nbsp;»</li>
</ul>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">A standalone Modern theme!</h2>



<p>10 years ago we took a very ambitious challenge when we made <a href="https://buddypress.org/2013/04/buddypress-1-7-is-now-available/">rendering BuddyPress templates into most WordPress themes optimal</a> <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f469-1f3fc-200d-1f3a8.png" alt="??‍?" class="wp-smiley" />. Being able to have a community area looking pretty nice, right away, into your site without having to change for a specific theme was and I believe is still great and <strong>quite impressive</strong>! By the way and even if we should overcome our dependency to jQuery (it’s on our todo list), our «&nbsp;Legacy&nbsp;» &amp; «&nbsp;Nouveau&nbsp;» template packs already behave well with the next generation of themes (the block ones).</p>



<p>That being said, as <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/johnjamesjacoby/" target="_blank">John</a> who regularly shares with us his will to build a brand new &amp; modern theme <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f468-1f3fd-200d-1f3a8.png" alt="??‍?" class="wp-smiley" /> for the project, I feel we should build it as soon as possible &amp; deeply explore the new possibilities provided by the WP Block API like I’ve announced in <a href="https://buddypress.org/2023/05/what-new-features-will-be-coming-to-buddypress/">episode 3 of this series</a>. We’ll make customizing your community area a piece of cake thanks to the WordPress Site Editor, you can count on us!</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">What about bringing back the BuddyPress Dashboard?</h2>



<p>I agree we should also improve the BuddyPress Administration experience to let Members manage their community content and update it just like it’s possible on front-end. Moreover, I think this community member dashboard can act as a plan B or a fallback <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f198.png" alt="?" class="wp-smiley" /> if something went wrong on the front side due to a JavaScript traffic jam, for example. This dashboard can also become the only community area if some site admins need to dedicate the front-end to top-down content and collaborate on it from the back-end.</p>



<p>Taking the community member dashboard road also re-opens the discussion about where administrators should manage and moderate BuddyPress settings and content. Before version 1.6, we used to put everything about BuddyPress inside a top level Administration menu. I believe we should come back to our initial idea and improve it. I like what <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/johnjamesjacoby/" target="_blank">John</a> suggested a while ago about introducing a new column before the WP Admin menu to switch between the WordPress dashboard and a new BuddyPress dashboard, a bit like the column Slack adds to switch between your Slack spaces.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<a href="https://buddypress.org/wp-content/uploads/1/2023/06/bp-dash.png"><img src="https://buddypress.org/wp-content/uploads/1/2023/06/bp-dash.png" alt="" class="wp-image-330030" width="226" height="264" /></a></div>


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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">A BuddyPress Progressive Web App?</h2>



<p>About the Mobile App (or the Desktop App) point <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f933-1f3ff.png" alt="??" class="wp-smiley" />. I’d love, just like it’s possible to manage sites thanks to the WordPress <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://wordpress.org/mobile/" target="_blank">project’s App</a>, to have an App to manage my different BuddyPress profiles, <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/imath/" target="_blank">starting with this one</a> and this <a href="https://buddypress.org/members/imath/">other one</a> <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f609.png" alt="?" class="wp-smiley" />. </p>



<p>I had the chance to participate to a demo of such an App for BuddyPress and I must admit I was really amazed by the fluidity it gave to user interactions and conversations. To be honest I doubt the project will have one in the near future, but if some of you are motivated to help the team explore this world, we’d be very happy to be shown the path. We will be making sure our next/first BuddyPress Block theme is optimized for all devices and exploring/testing the Progressive Web App (PWA) direction.</p>



<p>To sum-up about modernizing BuddyPress UIs, we’ll do our best to reach a first milestone before 2024 starts and we are very open to contributions!</p>



<p>Our next &amp; final post of this series will analyze your feedback about the BuddyPress community &amp; how we need to improve the tools we use to manage contributions to BuddyPress.</p>



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<p><strong>Props</strong>: many thanks to <a href="https://buddypress.org/members/dcavins/">@dcavins</a> for his review <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f618.png" alt="?" class="wp-smiley" /></p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Fri, 09 Jun 2023 18:42:10 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:12:"Mathieu Viet";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:37;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:19:"Matt: Whoop Podcast";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:22:"https://ma.tt/?p=87066";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:36:"https://ma.tt/2023/06/whoop-podcast/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:1293:"<p><a href="https://www.whoop.com/">Whoop</a> is an excellent biometrics bracelet I&#8217;ve been wearing for a few months since my friend <a href="https://jaimewaydo.com/">Jaime Waydo</a> joined as their CTO. After many years of being very <a href="https://www.garmin.com/en-US/p/621922">in the Garmin 945 camp</a>, I now do an <a href="https://www.apple.com/apple-watch-ultra/">Apple Ultra</a> for all the smart stuff, and Whoop for all the great sleep, HRV, and recovery information that I use to be aware of my energy levels throughout the day, complemented by the <a href="https://www.risescience.com/">Rise sleep and energy tracker app</a>. This has been my ideal combo. </p>



<p>The founder and CEO of Whoop, <a href="https://twitter.com/willahmed">Will Ahmed</a>, interviewed me for their podcast, which we covered for a more mainstream audience my passion for open source and creating an open ecosystem for a web, how I got started as an entrepreneur, how <a href="https://automattic.com/">Automattic</a> hires, growth mindset and mental clarity, working with <a href="https://artofaccomplishment.com/about/">Joe Hudson</a> as an executive coach, and day-to-day routine (or lack thereof, sometimes).</p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<div>    <div></div>    </div>
</div>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Fri, 09 Jun 2023 00:21:10 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4:"Matt";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:38;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:64:"Post Status: Launching a WordPress Product in Public: Session 16";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:32:"https://poststatus.com/?p=149596";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:74:"https://poststatus.com/launching-a-wordpress-product-in-public-session-16/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:42284:"<p><a href="https://poststatus.com/planet/feed/#h-transcript">Transcript</a> ↓</p>



<p>In this episode, <a href="https://twitter.com/corymiller303">Cory Miller</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/coreymaass">Corey Maass</a> explore the delicate balance between professionalism and creativity in branding and marketing. They also discuss the importance of incorporating feedback into the product development process, utilizing user testing and testimonials to refine features and continually improve. The impact of their collaborative efforts has led to clarity around the momentum of partnering can bring to the creative process.</p>



<p><strong>Top Takeaways:</strong></p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Balancing Professionalism and Creativity</strong>. The balance between professionalism and creativity in branding and marketing can be difficult. Even for playful, fun brands, there is a need to maintain a level of professionalism. Clean designs, corporate markets, and conveying value to potential customers are important.</li>



<li><strong>Using Feedback for Product Refinement</strong>. There is value in receiving feedback and incorporating it into the product development process. User testing, testimonials, and refining the features offer continual improvement opportunities. Creating a product that meets the needs of the target audience and continually improving it based on user feedback requires commitment.</li>



<li><strong>Leveraging Collaboration for Productivity</strong>. The productive nature of collaboration and bouncing ideas off each other is energizing. Take time to brainstorm, make suggestions, and provide insights that contribute to refining the product and marketing strategies with your teams. A collaborative approach helps generate new ideas, solve problems, and keep the momentum flowing.</li>
</ul>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">

</div>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading eplus-wrapper" id="h-mentioned-in-the-show"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f517.png" alt="?" class="wp-smiley" /> Mentioned in the show:</h3>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://crop.express/">Crop.Express</a></li>



<li><a href="https://www.omgimg.net/">OMGIMG</a></li>



<li><a href="https://openai.com/blog/chatgpt">ChatGPT</a></li>



<li><a href="https://central.wordcamp.org/">WordCamp</a></li>



<li><a href="https://twitter.com/lindseymillerwp">Lindsey Miller</a></li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading eplus-wrapper" id="h-you-can-follow-post-status-and-our-guests-on-twitter"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f426.png" alt="?" class="wp-smiley" /> You can follow Post Status and our guests on Twitter:</h3>



<ul class="eplus-wrapper">
<li><a href="http://twitter.com/coreymaass">Corey Maass</a></li>



<li><a href="https://twitter.com/corymiller303">Cory Miller</a> (CEO, <a href="https://twitter.com/post_status">Post Status</a>)</li>



<li><a href="https://twitter.com/lemonadecode">Olivia Bisset</a> (Intern, <a href="https://twitter.com/post_status">Post Status</a>)</li>
</ul>



<p class="eplus-wrapper has-background">The <strong>Post Status Draft</strong> podcast is geared toward WordPress professionals, with interviews, news, and deep analysis. <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f4dd.png" alt="?" class="wp-smiley" /><br /><br /><a href="https://poststatus.com/category/post-status-podcasts/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Browse our archives</a>, and don’t forget to subscribe via <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/post-status-draft-wordpress/id976403008" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">iTunes</a>, <a href="https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5zaW1wbGVjYXN0LmNvbS8ySkU5c2M4UA" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Google Podcasts</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/PostStatus" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">YouTube</a>, <a href="http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/krogsgard/post-status-draft-wordpress-podcast" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Stitcher</a>, <a href="https://wordpress-post-status-draft-podcast.simplecast.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Simplecast</a>, or <a href="https://feeds.simplecast.com/2JE9sc8P">RSS</a>. <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f3a7.png" alt="?" class="wp-smiley" /></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading eplus-wrapper" id="h-transcript">Transcript</h2>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Session 16 Corey &amp; Cory Launch a WordPress Product Live</h2>



<p><strong>C&amp;C 16</strong></p>



<p>[00:00:00] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Everything sounds like a country song.</p>



<p>Working from Panera.</p>



<p>Good, I got that</p>



<p>screaming live on.</p>



<p>Apparently country music for me is all, um, ing. Yeah. Is all, uh, what was that show? Beverly Hillbillies. Oh man. Classic. You can tell I don&#8217;t listen to country music. Well, I&#8217;m&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:00:42] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> from Oklahoma, so it&#8217;s kind of wired in.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:00:46] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Yes, you&#8217;d have to.</p>



<p>[00:00:50] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> We got song Dance by Corey. This is a great way to start a webinar. Section 16, launching a product. What is on our agenda, my friend? I think I have some two things. Logo and website.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:01:10] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> What&#8217;s on your, uh, for me, the big thing is I. Wound up doing a couple of pretty good re refactors again, of the plugin. Um, I, in in particular, I coded myself into a corner or had coded myself into a corner and then, um, putting things over.</p>



<p>So there&#8217;s, there&#8217;s sort of two versions of. In, in coding parlance you have instances of things, right? So there&#8217;s sort of two instances of the app. Um, one is sitewide and then one is per post or per. Per object. So attached to a podcast episode or attached to a post article or attached to something, you wanna have images, um, and then attached to the entire site, which in WordPress, there is no site thing.</p>



<p>Um, so there&#8217;s, you know, these sort of two instances of apps and I had done a lot of coding initially. Where I had abstracted out for these two instances and then done a bunch of refactoring based on our conversations for the site-wide instance, and then porting that back over to apply to posts and things.</p>



<p>Um, it all broke, um, or I encoded myself into a corner in a number of ways. So I wound up just ripping it all out and simplifying it. So we&#8217;re real close. Um, but I&#8217;m between, uh, allergies and, uh, life getting in the way. I&#8217;ve been feeling a little burned out. Um, I messaged you the other night like I have, uh, you can hear me sniffle and, um, Yeah, and in insomnia that I suffer from once in a while.</p>



<p>And so I&#8217;m staying up all night coding, which is not, I&#8217;m, I&#8217;m coding because I&#8217;m up all night. I&#8217;m not staying up all night coding. But it, because of that, I tend to like burn out and I&#8217;m, I&#8217;ve also, I&#8217;ve solved these problems four times now. I just need to keep cleaning them up and keep revising them. So the truth is I&#8217;m taking a couple of days away from the project.</p>



<p>But we&#8217;re close. I mean, I keep saying that week after week, but um, I do think that we&#8217;re, as soon as we get a logo locked down, which helps to find colors and styles, which helps to find the website, it also lets me go back into the app and plug in the logo in a couple of places and then, you know, it&#8217;s sort of branding complete version 0 0 1.</p>



<p>And then, you know, I think we can roll from there.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:04:01] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> Okay. Um, that&#8217;s, that&#8217;s a great update. And then transitioning to the logo for a second. So it just made me think as I&#8217;m, I want, I want to talk through those logos that we were just talking through on Slack. I&#8217;ll screen share those in a second, but it just made me think I&#8217;m doing this horizontal one particularly.</p>



<p>Mm-hmm. With the designer. And what are the needs for plugin? Like, do we need just a logo mark, for instance? Brandmark, whatever do we need to, what, what kind of ratios and sizes do you need?&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:04:33] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Right. I, the, the, the one that I, we were talking about the most just a minute ago is horizontal omg i m g next to each other.</p>



<p>Um,</p>



<p>sorry. Um, oh, now we know all your secrets. So, uh, This one. I like the font choice, but the graphic is kind of meh, like it&#8217;s been done before. I like the colors. Um, this one I like conceptually better and I dropped in a few notes. I honestly think that they should take the font from the first one and do this treatment to it, simplifying it, taking out the drop shadow.</p>



<p>And I liked your suggestion of switch or reversing it. Um, and then the color&#8217;s up here. Exactly. So it&#8217;s bigger and bold. Yeah. And then, and then honestly, I think that&#8217;s good enough. Um, okay. The, so yeah, if they swap out the, the, the font, cuz then it&#8217;ll be, the font feels more square, big and bold, simple. And, and at that point, what I guess I anticipate doing is if you&#8217;ve got OMG next to img, um, it&#8217;s easy enough to put one on top of the other.</p>



<p>So you might actually tell them like, you know, here are our notes and please com create one that is horizontal as they&#8217;re doing now, but, but one that&#8217;s stacked with OMG over img. So maybe the OMG is, is in color and the IMG is in black or something. Um, but honestly, that way we&#8217;ve got. I think we, we cover our bases, right?</p>



<p>We&#8217;ve got a horizontal version and we&#8217;ve got a essentially a square version. Hey, you&#8217;re wondering if I&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:06:29] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> remembered? I&#8217;m sharing&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:06:30] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> my screen. I, I did. Yeah. I see that</p>



<p>this is the true ride along entrepreneur ride along.</p>



<p>I like that ride along. Oh yeah. There&#8217;s a, a subreddit called Entrepreneur Ride Along.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s not a great subreddit, but I, I like the, I like the gist of it and some of it there occasionally. There&#8217;s a good question or a good post.</p>



<p>And honestly, I, I will, I think instead of gray, it should be, it should be black and white, so it&#8217;s color going, but it, but we don&#8217;t, we can, I can change that when we get it. That&#8217;s fine. Yeah.</p>



<p>Okay. So yeah, use that font, flip it upside down. Um, remove the drop shadow. I don&#8217;t, I don&#8217;t like that. The 3D effect of it doesn&#8217;t do anything for me,</p>



<p>man.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:08:16] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> I&#8217;m looking at where are you seeing shadow, like right here.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:08:19] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Yeah, so that bar has a shadow below it.</p>



<p>Um, and then lastly, if they make those changes, um, create a version where the OMG is above the img.</p>



<p>So it&#8217;s, we, this is a, if this is a, a horizontal, ver horizontal version, we need a, yeah, it&#8217;s essentially a, a vertical version. Ooh, that&#8217;s&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:08:53] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> awesome. The top could be colors, um, g the bottom, and there&#8217;s a bar. Okay, cool. Yep.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:09:00] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Let&#8217;s see.</p>



<p>And for anybody who asks, it&#8217;s, oh my gosh, images. Because we are non religiously affiliated.</p>



<p>I would say another version that is vertical.</p>



<p>Yes. Okay. And I think, I think that&#8217;s fine.</p>



<p>I like the color choices. I like the feel of it and as we&#8217;ve talked about it, like we could, we could spend tons of time and effort, but good enough. It&#8217;s cute, it&#8217;s interesting. Like it, it does what I wanted. Um, whatever it was that I had in my head, I didn&#8217;t have any, you know, the requirements that were in my head.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s like bold and fun and interesting. The big, big heavy font like that to me says like O M G I M G, you know, it feels, it matches the name. Um, I like the colors vi, vibrant. Interesting. So&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:10:21] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> I almost wonder, like on the vertical one, it&#8217;s like leave a little black on the omg. Mm-hmm. Like the bars maybe split a little bit.</p>



<p>Okay, let me, that&#8217;s in, that&#8217;s in progress now. Great. Next thing I had was website and, um, I don&#8217;t think you&#8217;re in the space to be able to do this, but, um, just focused on logo and I only had time for logo, so I didn&#8217;t get website going, but the, I&#8217;m gonna go back on pod squeeze K card. Text content and I&#8217;ll just start getting buckets of text&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:11:06] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> for those blocks.</p>



<p>Yeah, I think if you wanna even just do it, um, flat, so on, you know, open up a Google Doc or something. Let&#8217;s look at the few different, um, websites that we&#8217;ve bookmarked for design and content. Um, and we found this awesome new site this morning, um, called, where&#8217;d it Go? Jelly Laid and their their welcome screen.</p>



<p>Uh, how do we want to, how, how does one say it? Uh, we can be, we can be inspired by. Inspired by, so, Yeah, I mean, and, and big props to Jelly La um, j e l l y l a d e, whether, um, whether we&#8217;re we, we borrow from them or not. It&#8217;s a really neat site, well laid out, well thought out. Um, and there&#8217;s a number of overlap.</p>



<p>Number of overlaps where they, they&#8217;re creating screenshots and beautiful screenshots. So they&#8217;re one of those kinds of tools. We&#8217;re doing something a little different, but, you know, some of the UI elements end up being the same, creating, um, specific sized images and stuff like that, just like we were doing for Crop Express.</p>



<p>So, um, but I like the, what I realized on, on looking at their site, um, where is it about, So here I can share. Maybe don&#8217;t need to do subtitles, I need to share the screen.</p>



<p>Um, so they&#8217;re, they&#8217;re heavy on listing out features, not benefits. So, um, but we did like, uh, some of the, the wording. Um, for your website and social media, um, that resonated. So the, so anyway, we&#8217;ve got that guy and we&#8217;ve got, um, what did you say? Squeeze was the other one we really liked the look of. Yeah.</p>



<p>And then, um, this one I just really liked. Again, running with the, the big, bold colors. Um, I just liked the big, bold fonts, so I think this might be a treatment that we look at doing, um, when we actually sit down and design our site. But it&#8217;s, uh, you know, if so, Yes. I don&#8217;t think we should sit here and, and try to actually mock up the site right now, but if we want to create essentially a, a, just a flat doc, because I mean, most standard websites, you, you have a hero era area with a title, a paragraph, and a call to action testimonials.</p>



<p>You&#8217;ve got, you know, list the three benefits kind of thing. I mean, most of these sites are pretty. Have similar sections. So I think if we go through and we can lock down just some wording. Um, and then once we have the colors and things from the logo set up, like we could just, we have text. We could just drop in.</p>



<p>Hey, I&#8217;m gonna&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:14:49] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> start that. I can share it&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:14:51] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> with you. Cool. I&#8217;ll stop sharing. You could share a dot.</p>



<p>Yeah. Perfect.</p>



<p>With the little back and forth in Slack we came up with.</p>



<p>Yeah. So this is very dry,</p>



<p>but the tagline of, I&#8217;m just opening the doctor.</p>



<p>Yeah, create professional images. Love that. One of the things that I reacted to, I realized thinking about the tagline, um, from, um, jelly La was there&#8217;s those create beautiful something, something and, you know, I&#8217;m like, well, beauty is at the behi in the eye of the beholder. And I always pry really hard not to.</p>



<p>Fall into words that are, it&#8217;s like the, the tagline that every, uh, every website tries at least once of the, the, the dot.dot that you&#8217;ll actually use, you know, and stuff like that. And it&#8217;s all just fluffy. So it&#8217;s like, I, I, I think you and I have talked about this before, like we&#8217;d rather it actually said what it did.</p>



<p>Yeah.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:17:19] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> I&#8217;m trying to go back and find, because you, you made some points, I think in Slack&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:17:25] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> that I wanna</p>



<p>try to scan it.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s like at some point, you know, you wanna, uh, uh, a clever turn of phrase tends to be the big headline and then, excuse me. Um, and then we&#8217;ve got that little. Paragraph underneath. So some of this could get ex extended. Um, the other thing we can do since the world, this is the world we live in now. Uh, we open up chat g p t and we say generate 10.</p>



<p>Whoever we&#8217;re ways to summarize.</p>



<p>Following</p>



<p>right. 10 clever taglines. To summarize the following statements,</p>



<p>I should have shared my screen for people who are not.</p>



<p>See, uh, have not played with chat G p T.</p>



<p>So that&#8217;s what.</p>



<p>Oh,&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:19:18] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> you know what? It&#8217;s not on here. It&#8217;s over here, I think.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:19:23] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Oh, there you go. It&#8217;s notes.</p>



<p>So professionalism at your fingertips. Images that speak a thousand words.</p>



<p>Professionalism made easy. Anyway, these are all good phrases to play with. Oh,</p>



<p>[00:20:02] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> something about your image matters.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:20:05] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Hmm,</p>



<p>I stumped chat. G p t</p>



<p>[00:20:27] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> right here. I like this one. Turn your content into captivating social images. Yep. Right there.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:20:35] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Oh my word. Oh my word. All right, so then I</p>



<p>said rewrite them with using puns or light humor. And so version two, humor. You ready for this? I actually really like these. Don&#8217;t let your social media be a blur.</p>



<p>Website, feeling math, spice it up with professional social images.</p>



<p>You just tell it to be funny. Yeah. I said, well, I said Add, add a pun or light humor. Words are great. Images are greater. That&#8217;s honestly fantastic. Yeah. Like it&#8217;s, I mean, it&#8217;s, it&#8217;s not funny, but it&#8217;s Right. The kind of</p>



<p>like, to me, words are great, but images are greater as the, the big headline in the hero area. And then below that it&#8217;s saying something like, Use your word, you know, turn your WordPress content into valuable, shareable, professional images,</p>



<p>easily create professional images from your,</p>



<p>because I, yeah, I, one of the concepts that came up right is I, I really like the idea of. You&#8217;ve already done the work, and this is what we&#8217;ve been talking about since Crop Express, which is you&#8217;ve, you&#8217;ve set up a website, great. You&#8217;ve written a blog post. Great. That&#8217;s a lot of work. That&#8217;s a lot of effort.</p>



<p>That&#8217;s a lot of thought. And, and how we, we jumped from Crop Express to OMG is the idea of how do you, how do you not only, um, Make a featured image more compelling, but how do you take the content that you&#8217;ve already written, the work you&#8217;ve already done to add more value? And how do you make an image, um, what do I wanna say?</p>



<p>Direct? Um, share that value, you know, immediately.</p>



<p>[00:23:13] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> You, you created content for your WordPress website. Now you need a package and showcase it.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:23:18] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Mm-hmm. Or showcase it.</p>



<p>Let your images do the talking. Oh,</p>



<p>winners there, our words are great, but images are greater. And let your images do the talking.</p>



<p>Okay.</p>



<p>Yeah, you and your problem statements. I love that. I never think to do that.</p>



<p>[00:24:29] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> Yeah, that&#8217;s our. I love how we do this. So problem is you create content on your WordPress website. Now you want to showcase it, make it shine. The problem is you have to go outta WordPress, you have to do all these, you have to have all these other tools&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:24:49] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> and</p>



<p>uh, common featured images. Don&#8217;t</p>



<p>tell the content. Ooh, what do you wanna say by themselves?</p>



<p>They often are just a nice image and you rely on. The headline or bullet points or quote elsewhere to draw the user in.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:25:39] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> So you created the content. Now make it sizzle, sparkle, shine.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:25:44] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Nice.</p>



<p>I keep talking about the loop and I, I keep coming back to that and I don&#8217;t still don&#8217;t know how to explain that, but it&#8217;s the, like, you create, you create words that are compelling. You find an image that&#8217;s compelling, but the, the problem as it exists now for most websites is if you share a blog post, there&#8217;s a, there&#8217;s an image that&#8217;s compelling, but it doesn&#8217;t have any of the words in it.</p>



<p>And then you&#8217;re relying on the headline and an excerpt. You know, you&#8217;re relying on Facebook to, to present the whole thing. And if somebody just sees an image or fails to skim the little bit, the little bitty headline under the image, they&#8217;re not gonna, they only get half the half the compellingness of it.</p>



<p>And so it&#8217;s like taking, taking your content and, and combining it with your featured image. It&#8217;s like one plus one equals three kind of situation where it&#8217;s like adding a big fold headline on top of that&#8217;s compelling, on top of a featured image that&#8217;s compelling, is more compelling than just sharing the image and the headline.</p>



<p>So you create&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:27:14] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> a content, now you wanna make it shine. Problem is you have to go outta WordPress. You have workflow one. Uh, the internal WordPress stuff doesn&#8217;t really sell the content. Plus they should, they should help entice images, should help entice people summarize and entice something like to get &#8217;em back to the site.</p>



<p>So,</p>



<p>[00:27:45] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> yep.</p>



<p>Typing, boring, featured, featured images don&#8217;t create intrigue. They don&#8217;t sell the content.</p>



<p>They don&#8217;t captivate the imagination. That&#8217;s not the right.</p>



<p>They don&#8217;t. Spark the imagination. Something like that.</p>



<p>So&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:28:26] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> the problem is it goes outta your workload. Boring featured images or afterthoughts Plus, they should make it. They should. They should be&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:28:35] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> enticing. Yeah. It&#8217;s like there&#8217;s lots of different ways that an image can. Add value. And I know like we are, we might be thinking about it more deeply than people often do, but I think maybe that&#8217;s the point, right?</p>



<p>Like a lot of the time now people like you&#8217;ll see a, if I go to Medium and I see an article about writing code, there&#8217;s some clip art of. A person behind a laptop or of a robot, and it&#8217;s like, then, then why even have the image? And I know why, like human image, human brains are wired to be attracted to images, but, but there&#8217;s no value added there.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s just you&#8217;re just checking a box. And that&#8217;s heartbreaking. So</p>



<p>there&#8217;s our three&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:29:37] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> features. Stay in your workflow? No more boring afterthoughts.</p>



<p>[00:29:45] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Wow. Yeah. Wow. Who canice people to click?</p>



<p>Wow.</p>



<p>We&#8217;re, we&#8217;re, we&#8217;re, we&#8217;re somewhere here. We&#8217;re we&#8217;re in the range. Yep. We&#8217;ll&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:30:05] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> work on the features next, but. Stay in your workflow.</p>



<p>Something here. No more boring afterthought, smell images. Stale, boring, stale, afterthought. Like there&#8217;s probably something here we can refine. It&#8217;s like put, put your images to work.</p>



<p>Something to the effect of like, Born and still is opposite. Active, helpful prompting is better. Like that&#8217;s where we come in with the, uh,</p>



<p>because we&#8217;re trying to show &#8217;em a vision of what could be better. Like right now it&#8217;s just boring. They&#8217;re afterthoughts,</p>



<p>but you could transform that to help. That&#8217;s where we go. Sell the sizzle or shine.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:31:07] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Yep. Make your&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:31:08] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> images shine. Make your content shine&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:31:14] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> fresh. En. Engaging. Engaging. Memorable, engaging,</p>



<p>relevant.</p>



<p>Relevant. Helpful. Ooh, helpful. That&#8217;s a good&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:31:36] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> word, is to keep all these words, because I think we&#8217;ll put a list of things. Oh, here it is. The before and&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:31:43] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> after. Nice. Yep. Nice. Yep. Morning. Thoughts. Still homogenized.</p>



<p>Oh man, what, what&#8217;s&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:32:01] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> the word for like, they&#8217;re just taking up&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:32:03] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> space. Checking a box. Placeholder. Placeholder. No more placeholders.</p>



<p>So we Wow. You, you&#8217;ve seen those, uh, Home pages that have a, like a slider before and after. And on the left we show, you know, an image of a landscape and a, you know, 10 places to go camping. But as it&#8217;s presented in Facebook with just a big, big image that&#8217;s pretty, but it has no value. And the headline that has no treatment and then you swipe and it shows the.</p>



<p>Our treatment of the image with a background and, and, uh, a color treatment to it. And then a clever font or an interesting font and like, so we do a bunch of those where it&#8217;s like, here&#8217;s your boring placeholder, nothing. And here, even if we just, even if that&#8217;s all you give us, here&#8217;s, here&#8217;s how we make it Compelling.</p>



<p>Compelling would love that before and after.</p>



<p>Okay.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:33:35] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> I like this before, Hey, if there, this is a wishlist, not a, but If there was a sample, you know, it&#8217;s almost like, here&#8217;s your. Here&#8217;s your social graph before and, and paid a bar. He goes, pull the bar down. Transformation.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:33:56] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Wow. Wow. Yes. Yeah. That was the kind of UI I was picturing. Like if you go to, they&#8217;re the, they&#8217;re the, the little web apps that are like, we&#8217;re moving a background or whatever, and you, and they have a slider and so you see the image and as you, you move a, move a bar, Back and forth.</p>



<p>And so yeah, in our case, we&#8217;ll, we&#8217;ll have it, you might move the bar up and down or something, but that matches our logo. That&#8217;s amazing.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:34:22] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> See and pull it down and we can share like a post status. We&#8217;ve got this, you know, we&#8217;re using this, so like before they, we looked at it sucks. Pull it down. Here it is like, yep.</p>



<p>Here&#8217;s what we&#8217;ve done to showcase, make the content shine, entice people, comp compelling, I love that word compelling, you said. Mm-hmm. What? Boring to compelling. Boring To&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:34:49] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> compelling. Yeah. And again, I love the idea of, of valuable too. I put engaging. Yeah.</p>



<p>Because it&#8217;s, yeah, we, we, we take, and it&#8217;s also, we take these pieces. And put them together. And that to me is where the value comes from. And it&#8217;s like, so even if, even if you only ever see it, just the image, you don&#8217;t see the headline because the headline can be in the image, then it, then there&#8217;s, um, the image itself, it&#8217;s more valuable.</p>



<p>Like that&#8217;s not, that&#8217;s not the only use case. And it might not even be the most common use case, but like one of the things that. You talked about early on was, you know, creating slides essentially, or slide shows. And so being able to create images that have bullet points that summarize a post or quotes that summarize a quote, a post, you know, so there, there&#8217;s, there can actually, you know, if it&#8217;s um, if you interview somebody and they are really inspiring and you create a bunch of these images and you put them on your social media every [00:36:00] day, like, You are inspiring.</p>



<p>You could be inspiring people. So&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:36:05] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> it makes me think when you were saying that about the, I was trying to capture those again, even though we&#8217;ve done it a bunch. So like, can you see my little cursor here? Mm-hmm. In the copy, in the, uh, text editor part. It&#8217;d be awesome to have these. Oops, this touch, not that touch choices.</p>



<p>You know what I&#8217;m talking about, like here, um, bullets. Numbers, check boxes, because when you said that 50 places to visit mm-hmm. Here&#8217;s 10 in their check boxes. Mm-hmm. The point is where I kind of default to, but I wonder if there&#8217;s a way to do so. Like the arrows.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:36:44] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Sure. Capture this back.</p>



<p>You already know all this bullets. No, it&#8217;s I&#8217;m capture it. We need it captured.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:37:04] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> Text boxes, numbers,</p>



<p>[00:37:09] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> emojis. Oh&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:37:10] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> God, you read my mind, but I didn&#8217;t wanna say it because I was like, I don&#8217;t wanna,&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:37:15] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Hey, if we, if we&#8217;re, we&#8217;re starting a product with the OMG in the name, like we have to double down on the whole cute, uh, style, you know, emojis and butterflies. And&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:37:30] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> I&#8217;ve been working with Lindsay on, on some of her work for my marketing assistant, and it did dawned on me.</p>



<p>She was like, it was. Uh, her personality is fun. Like she likes to have fun. Mm-hmm. And like, there&#8217;s, you&#8217;re not feeling fun here. And so it was like reintroducing that and I think mm-hmm. Uh, I&#8217;m gonna capture this too, is like, make&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:37:57] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> your content a party. Nice. Yeah.</p>



<p>Everyone wants to go to, Nah,</p>



<p>that&#8217;s an advertising campaign right there, like a whole bunch of ads that are like, do people want to go to the we to your website? Make your website a party that everybody wants to get go to. That&#8217;s really fun.</p>



<p>Okay. I&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:38:42] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> think we got a lot here. I think the benefits we can, we got enough to, like, we can put this back in chat, G B T two, but we just need three benefits and Yep. Um,&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:38:56] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> which we ha we have four. I mean, you can always have more, but Yep. Stay within your workflow. Convert these. Well, and it&#8217;s, and we, and I think it&#8217;ll end up being, um, before and after is like the first big benefit.</p>



<p>And then we could do the three underneath of stay. Stay within your workflow, stay in the zone. Create more value, all those things.</p>



<p>That is the technical term thingy</p>



<p>stuff, stuff. It&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:39:45] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> makes me think, I&#8217;ve been doing the, uh, party emoticon, mo emoji. Mm-hmm. I&#8217;m like this little party thing. All&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:39:56] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> right, now I&#8217;m just having fun.</p>



<p>This might be the most, um, productive, midlife crisis anybody has ever had. Bless you, dude,&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:40:09] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> about four to five years ago, this has been really timely. Saying, I&#8217;m outta it. I&#8217;m just saying&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:40:18] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> I&#8217;ll take it now. We&#8217;ve learned to manage it anyway. Um, great test. Well, uh, homepages need testimonials, which we&#8217;ll add once we, uh, have them, the features can, we can fill out as we go.</p>



<p>Um,</p>



<p>[00:40:44] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> Well, thanks for doing this. This is, I work best like this, planning off, you know, collaborating. Sure. So I appreciate this. Okay. See, do I have access to Omgm? I know I do.</p>



<p>[00:41:05] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> I don&#8217;t. Yes, you do. You have your, uh, Corey Miller account and then, um, so yeah, it&#8217;s, it&#8217;s just Beaver Builder. So go drop in blocks or, um, or I can, and then the biggest thing, I mean like any of these websites, uh, Again, the, once the logo is locked down, and maybe we already have the colors, but we can use those colors to define what the, what the boxes on the page look like.</p>



<p>And then, um, the actual images always, usually takes me the longest of like, okay, you want screen, you want product screenshots. Go create the perfect product setup so that you can then take the perfect product screenshots. So, But I need to actually finish the damn thing. Wanna do&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:42:02] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> that? Cool. Dude, we&#8217;re flowing.</p>



<p>Well, I&#8217;m starting to flow with you.</p>



<p>[00:42:13] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Well, and I&#8217;m, yeah, I&#8217;m, there&#8217;s been stuff that for me because I&#8217;m, this is how I work half the time anyway. Right? Like, I build and I rebuild, and I rebuild. And the whole time I&#8217;m thinking, and I&#8217;m, that&#8217;s why I keep trying to throw stuff at you or WeChat during the week, um, because it helps me redefine the product and, and wording and stuff like that.</p>



<p>And so it&#8217;s things that, like at one point we said, what do, what do we call it? And so in, in my mind, the, um, like the name of the company and the name of the product is O M G I M G. Um, which I kind of, it makes me giggle when it&#8217;s like people talk about like I B M or cvs and so it&#8217;s, it&#8217;s just way more letters, but it&#8217;s still like, sound it tongue in cheek in a tongue in cheek way.</p>



<p>It sounds very corporate cuz it&#8217;s a bunch of letters. Um, it,&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:43:12] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> but if it makes you smile, that&#8217;s a really good thing, like Right. Hearing that it makes you smile too, because cvs, by the way, is my favorite story ever.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:43:22] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Good man.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:43:22] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> I&#8217;m anti Walgreens, our insurance. Ooh, seriously. I like Walgreens with the number two cvs.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s clean like an Apple store for a pharmacy and I don&#8217;t know, tape some of them that&#8217;s clean. Uh, chips. Yep. Weird dehydrated products in the front anyway. Okay.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:43:47] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Yeah, I, I&#8217;m a, I&#8217;m a sucker for those kinds of stores for sure. Uh, little bit of everything. I love a, do I love a good dollar store? Um, five below extremely dangerous for me to walk in.</p>



<p>Oh, dude,&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:44:00] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> we, you and I should not go on five below&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:44:04] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> or we should. Um, but so the other thing that, um, I, uh, have been. It&#8217;s like, okay, so I&#8217;m, I&#8217;m not yet using the product, but as I&#8217;m building the product, I&#8217;m thinking about using it, et cetera. Right? And so, um, one of the other things that I realized I was doing was, so O M G I M G, name of the company, name of the product, um, OMG Images is the asset that it creates, right?</p>



<p>So it&#8217;s like, turn your, turn your image into an OMG image. And that&#8217;s where like when we did a demo whenever it was, Um, you know, a few, a few calls ago you were like, okay, change, change the buttons to say, you know, create new whatever it was. And I&#8217;m like, oh, okay. So, so in most of those places now, we, we are saying like, create a new i OMG image, or here is a list of your OMG images, because it&#8217;s basically any image that&#8217;s been enhanced by OMG img.</p>



<p>I love it. And we are going to be OMG people because we&#8217;ve been also been enhanced by OMG I mg. This is&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:45:21] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> totally silly, but in the vein of creativity, ob absurd. Of course the t-shirt on the front might be OMG in the back is, I don&#8217;t know. That&#8217;s the silly thing. But I was like, I love this. The bar coming down.</p>



<p>Mm-hmm. Um, That thought. So like we&#8217;ll need that,&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:45:43] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> that front. Oh, I, what I want is the, the T-shirt. I&#8217;m gonna stand up here some, the Panera, the T-shirt where the graphic is, the whole thing. And it&#8217;s going to be, it&#8217;s going to be omg, img, you know, but, but the whole front of the site or whole front of the, sure.</p>



<p>So it&#8217;s huge bright colors. OMG img.</p>



<p>Like, when I was doing conbon, I wanted to be very clean and corporate because I was, I&#8217;m like, that&#8217;s, I think that&#8217;s gonna be my market. You know, it&#8217;s not fun and creative. It&#8217;s project management. Um, and eventually I, I started trying to, like a lot of, a lot of WordPress products have. Little critters, you know, little creatures, logos and stuff.</p>



<p>So eventually I introduced these very austere birds that I had designed, um, anyway, so at some point maybe we need something like that, but it&#8217;s like the, the conbon shirts were black polos with the little logo here and I did have it pretty big on the back cuz I&#8217;m like across word camp us. You need to be able to see it.</p>



<p>But with this, we&#8217;re going the other action as big and as bold as possible, you know? Love it.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:47:11] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> Yeah. I don&#8217;t mind being&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:47:14] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> silly, right? Me neither. I. As&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:47:18] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> we have everybody listening going, uhhuh,&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:47:20] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> duh. People like, yeah, that&#8217;s what I didn&#8217;t, I, I, I, what I should have said to chat G b t is take these 10 taglines and make dad jokes outta them.</p>



<p>Let&#8217;s see what we got. Um, but anyway, um, so yeah, we can sign off for today. I, I would task you with, um, Jump into the homepage if you&#8217;ve got time, you know, and or even just revise and finalize some of that wording. Um, maybe show it to Lindsay, see what she thinks. And cuz ideally by the time we get to that homepage, we are just plugging it in and going, oh, we need a new section.</p>



<p>We need a new product image.</p>



<p>Uh, I lost you. Can you hear me? Yes. Sorry, I lost you for a second. Yeah, I&#8217;m Panera&#8217;s they&#8217;re doing their lunch rush, so I think the wifi is starting to brown out.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:48:24] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> Ison broccoli, uh, chitter soup for me cuz that&#8217;s my favorite. All right.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:48:30] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Thanks brother. Shout product, product placement. Uh, shout out to Panera.</p>



<p>Yeah,&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:48:35] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> yeah. Sponsored by Panera. Today everybody skips unlimited broccoli. Dip those chips in the broccoli cheese&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:48:42] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> soup. That&#8217;s a winner.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:48:46] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> Hey, let&#8217;s talk about working camps at some point. Um, probably in the next two weeks I&#8217;ll be ready to make some, uh, hotel arrangements&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:48:54] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> and stuff. Okay, great.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:48:57] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> Just it&#8217;s on my mind.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s not a priority. We&#8217;ll get it done. Um, but anyway, shaping up&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:49:03] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> plans for that. Yeah, I&#8217;ve got it sort of on the long list. I&#8217;m gonna be taking a train down, which will be fun. Oh, you&#8217;ve read my mind.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:49:12] <strong>Cory Miller:</strong> Ask you that. Oh, I wish I could do that here. I wish I could do that. We have Amtrak. It just takes 13 hours to get to Dallas, which like seriously, I&#8217;ve seen all of this part of Oklahoma in depth.</p>



<p>[00:49:26] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Yeah, I&#8217;m sure. But yeah, everybody, uh, we&#8217;ll, we&#8217;ll start. This is, this is the first plug for, um, you know, O M G I M G is going to be, uh, revealed in many ways, uh, at Word Camp Pass with the brightest shirts you&#8217;ve ever seen. Love it.</p>
<p>This article was published at Post Status — the community for WordPress professionals.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Thu, 08 Jun 2023 22:20:13 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:11:"Cory Miller";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:39;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:59:"Do The Woo Community: The Future of the WordPress Community";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:28:"https://dothewoo.io/?p=75235";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:54:"https://dothewoo.io/future-of-the-wordpress-community/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:407:"<p>When I shared 20 years of WordPress community at WordCamp Lisboa, I touched on the future of the community. Today I elaborate on that part.</p>
<p>&gt;&gt; The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://dothewoo.io/future-of-the-wordpress-community/">The Future of the WordPress Community</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://dothewoo.io">Do the Woo - a WooCommerce Builder Community</a>	.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Thu, 08 Jun 2023 03:00:00 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:5:"BobWP";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:40;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:24:"Matt: WordPress &amp; AI";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:22:"https://ma.tt/?p=86874";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:35:"https://ma.tt/2023/06/wordpress-ai/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:234:"<p class="is-style-matt-rothko-style">I did an interview with <a href="https://www.pootlepress.com/author/jamie-marsland/">Jamie Marsland</a> where we talked a fair amount about AI.</p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">

</div>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Wed, 07 Jun 2023 19:35:21 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4:"Matt";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:41;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"HeroPress: Because of WordPress";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:56:"https://heropress.com/?post_type=heropress-essays&p=5613";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:114:"https://heropress.com/essays/because-of-wordpress/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=because-of-wordpress";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:9226:"<img width="1024" height="512" src="https://heropress.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/060623-min.jpg" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="Pull Quote: The tech industry needs more boss ladies." />
Listen to Amy read her own story.






<p>When we choose a spouse, we choose someone who matches our values. When we choose a home we choose a space that matches our needs. We look for all the green flags, all the boxes to be checked, and we don’t accept red flags. We say no to cockroaches, no to cheaters, no to leaky plumbing.&nbsp;</p>



<p>When it comes to a job, though, we take what we can get. We fear losing, we let red flags slide and when it’s bad, we still stick around and hope it gets better. We tell ourselves it’s the only option we have.</p>



<p>We don’t imagine that there could be real fulfillment. We believe this is it: the 9 to 5, the endless grind. Work for the man and hope you end up with a retirement plan, at best. Hold on to that job &#8211; you never know how far and how hard you could fall without it.</p>



<p>A space without hierarchy, a space where everyone has a voice, a space where inclusion and diversity are virtues seems like a smoke dream.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Until you discover WordPress.</p>



<p>And so it went for me. Deep in the work, sleep, die cycle. Thinking this was it. I kissed my dreams goodbye, succumbed to being a slave to my paycheck because after all, I have a family to feed. Priorities, Amy. Priorities.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Discovering WordPress</h2>



<p>Sometimes you aren’t even looking and you trip over something, not knowing what you’ve stumbled into. Then suddenly five years have passed and you have lasting friendships and a whole a$$ career. Your kids are fed, your bills are paid and you are happy.</p>



<p>And that’s how it happened for me. I did what I had to, grabbed what job I could, worked hard and then got shoved face first into the lap of WordPress, without a clue what I was getting into. Without a clue that my life had just changed. I was actually quite angry. I was supposed to be promoted from my wildly underpaid tech support job to a wildly underpaid live chat supervisor job. How DARE they change their minds and pigeonhole me as a WordPress Tech!!?</p>



<p>But the reality unfolded rather quickly after that. That when it comes to WordPress, there are only green flags. There is only a match in values. There is only a world where people&#8217;s human needs are met.</p>



<p>The need for community, the need to be part of something bigger than you, the need for connection, the need to learn, to grow, to watch something else grow. The need for one step to lead to the next, where paths are abundant and there are no dead ends. I had no idea what I had just been shoved into.</p>



<p>I made the best of it. I helped form a new WordPress dedicated support team. I fixed websites, I trained other agents, I determined policies and practices, and I started going to WordPress.org team meetings. At first I thought that I was just supporting the endeavors of my employer, but the truth is, it was much more than that.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-finding-the-community">Finding the Community</h2>



<p>My first meeting was with the Hosting team. I hopped on Zoom unaware that I would already know every face in the room. Unaware that I would be going to these meetings every week for the next five years. Unaware that I’d become a Team Rep and get my fingerprints all over the Open Source Project. Unaware that I would find friends, learn so much, build skills and be offered jobs. Unaware that there were 30,000 people on the other end of the keyboard, and 400 million opportunities.</p>



<p>I stayed in that job for years, and I extended myself way beyond my technical support role. I had ideas for how to support WordPress users and brought them to the leadership team. They were interested, though not completely onboard, but still gave me the greenlight to go ahead and try.&nbsp;</p>



<p>I started offering developer services to their enterprise WordPress customers, instead of turning them away saying “we don’t do that here”. The customers were into it. They wanted and they needed that type of support. I stumbled upon more and more customers that needed developer help and offered them that help. I got my teammates involved. We were seeing results and the results were good.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Happy customers, new streams of revenue and increased customer retention. Instead of being angry and at a loss, tech support customers had real options for resolution. They were willing to pay extra and they kept coming back for more. They praised us and our work.&nbsp;</p>



<p>The VP of product and the CEO started noticing. They decided to mentor me and trained me in product development, agile software development and leadership. I started to flush out user journeys, product packages and made a two-year strategy for the growth of the developer service that is now a full blown product offering. After the first year they had me do a win loss report, and we found that the service had earned revenue just through word of mouth, before it was even established. Boom.</p>



<p>And yet I was struggling to buy food. I was living under the poverty line. I was being praised, but not paid. Business owners take heed, this is how you lose good employees.</p>



<p>I was a tech support agent who was helping run a team, fixing customer problems, developing a product, pushing code, creating business strategies and making revenue for the org. All while starving. All while witnessing my developer friends at the same company make six figures. I became disgruntled, I became more vocal about it, and I lost the favor of leadership by complaining &#8211; despite the fact that my complaints were valid. Lesson learned. After a while, I was just too unhappy with what I was paid for my numerous roles and quit out of frustration.</p>



<p>I had no idea what was going to happen next. I started studying code and blogging. I was elected into a Team Rep position on the WordPress Open Source Project. I practiced making WordPress themes and plug-ins. I learned Symfony, I learned some Javascript and Python, I learned how to have faith in myself and how to acquire clients outside of the stream of tech support. I became a Meetups organizer and got involved in WordCamps. I started sharing skills that I had learned and had used to survive in the tech field.</p>



<p>I never wanted to be a freelancer or a web developer though. I actually prefer doing system administration over web development &#8211; so I kept looking for a full-time gig. After a few months, I landed a job as a WordPress Tech Lead. I got to work with design and development and build out pipelines, work with servers, clients and code.</p>



<p>Then Covid happened, and I think everyone can agree what a nightmare that was. I got hit with the first strain of Covid and was so, so sick. I couldn’t move for three months. I lost my job and I was too sick to care. I was blessed that my colleagues in the WordPress community cared, though. They supported me and some of them even prayed for my recovery. One of my hosting teammates suggested applying to a job with his employer. I said “alright whatever”, found an easy tech-support role that I definitely could do and applied.&nbsp;</p>



<p>They interviewed me and turned me away, saying I was overqualified. Bummer. Then a few weeks later, I got a phone call from them offering me an interview for a different position. A job as a Web Development Manager. I liked the idea despite my wicked imposter syndrome, and after some rounds of interviews, they offered me the job. I was there for two years and I loved my team. I was working with designers and developers, leadership and marketers. I got to work with servers, various tech stacks, DevOps pipelines, design systems, accessibility and SEO.</p>



<p>From there, I was recruited into a Solutions Architect position. Then I was recruited again for a Developer role. I didn’t apply anywhere, I wasn’t looking and all I did was work hard, invest in my skills, be open to options and oh yeah &#8211; get involved with WordPress.</p>



<p>Now I keep picking up clients and I have more work than I can realistically handle. I’m going to have to start hiring other people to help me out soon. Maybe I&#8217;ll file for an LLC and take all that knowledge and experience, all that momentum and roll it up into one big future as a boss lady. Bring the WordPress values I feel so aligned with to the table on MY terms. The tech industry needs more boss ladies.</p>



<p>I don’t honestly know what’s coming next, but I know I don’t need to worry because I have the right community, the right skills, the right resources and endless opportunities.</p>



<p>All because of one little package of code. All because of the amazing people behind it. All because of WordPress.</p>
<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://heropress.com/essays/because-of-wordpress/">Because of WordPress</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://heropress.com">HeroPress</a>.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Wed, 07 Jun 2023 12:37:36 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:10:"Amy Kamala";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:42;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:103:"Post Status: Improving Visa Support • Event Tooling • WP-CLI Updates • Block Inspector Sub-groups";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:32:"https://poststatus.com/?p=149581";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:102:"https://poststatus.com/improving-visa-support-event-tooling-wp-cli-updates-block-inspector-sub-groups/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:20116:"<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-this-week-at-wordpress-org-april-3-2023">This Week at WordPress.org (June 5, 2023)</h2>


<div class="has-background has-theme-palette-8-background-color wp-block-post-excerpt"><p class="wp-block-post-excerpt__excerpt">Community team is considering tooling around the building and using the WordCamp websites, in addition to the naming of events.  To help speakers attend WordCamps, additional lead time for visas is requested as well. Share your thoughts now.<br /> <br />WP-CLI has released 2 updates. Get a look at what new features are available. <br /><br />See the dev blog for more ways to use the block inspector.  </p></div>


<div class="wp-block-spacer"></div>



<div class="wp-block-kadence-infobox kt-info-box_94d1bd-77"><div class="kt-blocks-info-box-link-wrap kt-blocks-info-box-media-align-left kt-info-halign-left"><div class="kt-blocks-info-box-media-container"><div class="kt-blocks-info-box-media kt-info-media-animate-none"><div class="kadence-info-box-icon-container kt-info-icon-animate-none"><div class="kadence-info-box-icon-inner-container"><span class="kb-svg-icon-wrap kb-svg-icon-fe_userPlus kt-info-svg-icon"></span></div></div></div></div><div class="kt-infobox-textcontent"><h2 class="kt-blocks-info-box-title">Improving Visa Support • Event Tooling • WP-CLI Updates • Block Inspector Sub-groups</h2><p class="kt-blocks-info-box-text"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f6c2.png" alt="?" class="wp-smiley" /> <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/community/2023/06/01/early-speaker-and-volunteer-selection/">Early Speaker and Volunteer Selection and Improved Visa Support</a><br /><br /><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f4c6.png" alt="?" class="wp-smiley" /> <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/community/2023/06/06/discussion-next-generation-event-tooling/">Discussion: Next Generation Event Tooling </a> <br />> <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/cli/2023/06/05/wp-cli-v2-8-1-release-notes/">WP-CLI v2.8.1 Release Notes</a> &amp; <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/cli/2023/05/31/wp-cli-v2-8-0-release-notes/">WP-CLI v2.8.0 Release Notes</a><br /><br /><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f5d2.png" alt="?" class="wp-smiley" /> <a href="https://developer.wordpress.org/news/2023/06/using-block-inspector-sidebar-groups/">Using block inspector sidebar groups</a><br />><br /></a><br /><br />><br /></a><br /><br /></p></div></div></div>



<div class="wp-block-kadence-spacer aligncenter kt-block-spacer-_b57166-6e"><div class="kt-block-spacer kt-block-spacer-halign-center"><hr class="kt-divider" /></div></div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-news"><a href="https://wordpress.org/news">News</a></h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2023/06/the-month-in-wordpress-may-2023/">The Month in WordPress – May 2023</a></li>



<li><a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2023/06/episode-57-the-power-of-wordpress-mentorship/">WP Briefing: Episode 57: The Power of WordPress Mentorship</a></li>



<li><a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2023/05/people-of-wordpress-stefano-cassone/">People of WordPress: Stefano Cassone</a></li>
</ul>



<div class="wp-block-kadence-spacer aligncenter kt-block-spacer-_8f6276-eb"><div class="kt-block-spacer kt-block-spacer-halign-center"><hr class="kt-divider" /></div></div>



<div class="wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-7">
<div class="wp-block-column is-layout-flow">
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">WordPress 6.3</h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/design/2023/05/25/wordpress-6-3-design-kickoff/">WordPress 6.3 design kickoff</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/05/25/bug-scrub-schedule-for-6-3/">Bug Scrub Schedule for WordPress 6.3</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/05/18/wordpress-6-3-planning-roundup/">WordPress 6.3 Planning Roundup</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/05/18/roadmap-to-6-3/">Roadmap to 6.3</a></li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">WordPress 6.4</h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/06/05/wordpress-6-4-development-cycle/">WordPress 6.4 Development Cycle</a></li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/accessibility">Accessibility</a></h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/accessibility/2023/06/07/contribute-to-accessibility-at-wordcamp-europe-contributor-day/">Contribute to Accessibility at WordCamp Europe Contributor Day</a></li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">CLI</h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/cli/2023/06/05/wp-cli-v2-8-1-release-notes/">WP-CLI v2.8.1 Release Notes</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/cli/2023/05/31/wp-cli-v2-8-0-release-notes/">WP-CLI v2.8.0 Release Notes</a></li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-community"><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/community">Community</a></h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/community/2023/06/06/updates-to-the-community-team-mentor-program/">Updates to the Community Team Mentor Program</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/community/2023/06/06/what-happens-when-a-wordcamp-doesnt-provide-a-transparency-report/">What happens when a WordCamp doesn’t provide a transparency report</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/community/2023/06/06/discussion-next-generation-event-tooling/">Discussion: Next Generation Event Tooling </a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/community/2023/06/02/wceu-2023-contributor-day-community-team-topics-focus/">WCEU 2023 Contributor Day – Community Team topics/focus</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/community/2023/06/01/early-speaker-and-volunteer-selection/">Early Speaker and Volunteer Selection and Improved Visa Support</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/community/2023/06/01/wordcamp-mentors-june-check-in/">WordCamp Mentors’ June check-in!</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/community/2023/06/01/next-gen-wordcamp-talking-points-share-your-ideas-for-a-new-event-format-and-make-it-happen/">Next Gen of WordPress Event Talking Points – Share Your Ideas for a New Event Format and Make It Happen!</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/community/2023/05/31/community-team-meeting-agenda-for-1-june-2023/">Community Team Meeting Agenda for 1 June, 2023</a></li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-core"><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core">Core</a> </h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/06/07/wp-feature-notifications-at-wordcamp-europe-contributor-day/">WP Feature Notifications at WordCamp Europe Contributor Day</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/06/02/contribute-to-core-at-wordcamp-europe-contributor-day-2023/">Contribute to Core at WordCamp Europe Contributor Day 2023</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/06/02/gutenberg-15-9-1-is-now-available/">Gutenberg 15.9.1 is now available</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/05/17/command-center-request-for-feedback/">Command Center: Request for feedback</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/05/16/proposal-retiring-older-default-themes/">Proposal: Retiring Older Default Themes</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/05/22/core-editor-improvement-smoother-site-editing/">Core Editor Improvement: Smoother Site Editing</a></li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-developer-blog"><a href="https://developer.wordpress.org/news/">Developer Blog</a></h3>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://developer.wordpress.org/news/2023/06/using-block-inspector-sidebar-groups/">Using block inspector sidebar groups</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/06/02/developer-blog-editorial-meeting-01-june-2023/">Developer Blog Editorial Meeting – 01 June 2023</a></li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-meetings">Meetings</h3>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/06/06/dev-chat-agenda-june-7-2023/">Dev Chat agenda, June 7, 2023</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/06/06/editor-chat-agenda-june-7th-2023/">Editor Chat Agenda: June 7th 2023</a></li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Design</h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/design/2023/05/25/wordpress-6-3-design-kickoff/">WordPress 6.3 design kickoff</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/design/2023/06/06/design-share-may-22-jun-2/">Design Share: May 22–Jun 2</a></li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hosting"><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/hosting">Hosting</a></h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/hosting/2023/05/15/is-wordpress-compatible-with-php-8/">Is WordPress compatible with PHP 8?</a></li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/meta">Meta</a></h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/meta/2023/06/02/matrix-chat-summary-june-1-2023/">Matrix chat Summary – June 1, 2023</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/meta/2023/06/02/meta-at-wceu-2023-contributor-day/">Meta at WCEU 2023 Contributor Day</a></li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-mobile"><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/mobile">Mobile</a></h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/mobile/2023/04/11/contribute-to-the-future-of-the-wordpress-app/">Contribute to the Future of the WordPress App</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/updates/2023/05/31/mobile-team-update-may-31st-2/">Mobile Team Update – May 31st</a></li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-openverse"><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/openverse">Openverse</a></h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/openverse/2023/06/06/community-meeting-recap-2023-06-06/">Community Meeting Recap (2023-06-06)</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/openverse/2023/06/05/last-week-openverse-2023-05-29-2023-06-05/">A week in Openverse: 2023-05-29 – 2023-06-05</a></li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-performance"><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/performance/">Performance</a></h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/06/06/performance-chat-summary-06-june-2023/">Performance Chat Summary: 6 June 2023</a></li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-plugins"><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/plugins">Plugins</a></h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/plugins/2023/05/17/plugin-review-team-update/">Plugin Review Team Update</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/plugins/2023/03/21/use-of-code-generators-must-remain-gpl-compatible/">Use of Code Generators Must Remain GPL Compatible</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/plugins/2023/03/10/advance-notice-of-retirement/">Advance Notice of Retirement</a></li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-polyglots"><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/polyglots">Polyglots</a></h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/polyglots/2023/06/06/experiment-translation-review-assistance-from-chatgpt/">Experiment: Translation Review Assistance from ChatGPT</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/polyglots/2023/06/05/xpost-come-join-the-training-team-as-a-translation-coordinator-faculty-role/">Come join the Training Team as a Translation Coordinator (Faculty role)</a></li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-project">Project</h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/project/2023/05/30/proposal-establishment-of-a-formal-wordpress-sustainability-team/">Proposal: establishment of a formal WordPress Sustainability Team</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/project/2023/05/17/wordpress-contributor-mentorship-program-pilot-program-proposal/">WordPress Contributor Mentorship Program: Pilot Program Proposal</a></li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Support</h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/support/2023/05/suggested-stance-on-the-use-of-ai-tooling/">Suggested stance on the use of AI-tooling</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/support/2023/06/summary-for-june-1st-support-team-meeting/">Summary for June 1st Support Team Meeting</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/updates/2023/06/02/support-team-meeting-updates-for-june-1st-2/">Support Team Meeting Updates for June 1st</a></li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-test"><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/test">Test</a></h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/test/2023/05/18/fse-program-testing-call-23-rapid-revamp/">FSE Program Testing Call #23: Rapid Revamp</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/updates/2023/06/05/test-team-update-5-june-2023/">Test Team Update: 5 June 2023</a></li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-theme"><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/theme">Theme</a></h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/themes/2023/06/06/themes-team-at-wordcamp-europe-2023/">Themes team at WordCamp Europe 2023</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/updates/2023/06/06/themes-team-update-june-6-2023/">Themes team update June 6, 2023</a></li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-training"><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/training">Training</a></h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://learn.wordpress.org/learn-wordpress-june-2023-newsletter/">Learn WordPress June 2023 Newsletter</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/updates/2023/06/02/whats-new-on-learn-wordpress-in-may-2023/">What’s new on Learn WordPress in May 2023</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/training/2023/06/07/information-sources-for-6-3/"><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/training/2023/06/07/information-sources-for-6-3/">Information Sources for 6.3</a></a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/training/2023/06/05/training-team-meeting-recap-30-may-2023/">Training Team Meeting Recap – 30 May, 2023</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/training/2023/06/05/come-join-the-training-team-as-a-translation-coordinator-faculty-role/">Come join the Training Team as a Translation Coordinator (Faculty role)</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/training/2023/06/05/announcing-github-updates-for-subject-matter-experts-and-content-translators/">Announcing GitHub updates for Subject Matter Experts and Content Translators</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/training/2023/06/03/recap-and-next-steps-training-team-onboarding/">Recap and Next Steps: Training Team Onboarding</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/training/2023/06/02/wordcamp-europe-2023-contributor-day/">WordCamp Europe 2023 Contributor Day</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/training/2023/05/30/analysis-of-the-individual-learner-survey-results/">Analysis and results of the Individual Learner Survey</a></li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tutorials"><a href="https://learn.wordpress.org/tutorials">Tutorials</a></h3>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://learn.wordpress.org/tutorial/templates/">Using Page Templates</a></li>



<li><a href="https://learn.wordpress.org/tutorial/how-to-switch-from-a-classic-to-a-block-theme/">How to switch from a classic to a block theme</a></li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-online-workshops">Online Workshops</h3>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://learn.wordpress.org/?meeting=wp-dev-livestream-sendig-block-theme-5">WP dev livestream: Sendig block theme</a></li>



<li><a href="https://learn.wordpress.org/?meeting=new-to-wordpress-getting-to-know-the-dashboard">New to WordPress? Getting to know the Dashboard</a></li>



<li><a href="https://learn.wordpress.org/?meeting=the-wide-world-of-wordpress-events-3">The Wide World of WordPress Events</a></li>



<li><a href="https://learn.wordpress.org/?meeting=rescheduled-event-create-a-four-page-wordpress-website-create-effective-pages">[Rescheduled Event] Create a four page WordPress website: Create effective pages</a></li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-courses"><a href="https://learn.wordpress.org/courses">Courses</a></h3>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://learn.wordpress.org/course/creating-a-4-page-business-website/">Creating a 4-page business website</a></li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-wptv">WPTV</h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://wordpress.tv/category/year/2022/">Latest WordPress TV videos</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-related-news">Related News:</h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://blog.jquery.com/2023/05/11/jquery-3-7-0-released-staying-in-order/">jQuery 3.7.0</a></li>



<li><a href="https://nodejs.org/en/blog/release/v20.2.0">Node v20.2.0 released</a></li>



<li><a href="https://www.php.net/archive/2023.php#2023-04-13-1"></a><a href="https://www.php.net/archive/2023.php#2023-05-11-1">PHP 8.2.6 Released!</a></li>



<li><a href="https://www.php.net/archive/2023.php#2023-05-11-2">PHP 8.1.19 Released!</a></li>



<li><a href="https://262.ecma-international.org/13.0/">TC39</a></li>



<li><a href="https://github.com/composer/composer/releases/tag/2.5.5">Composer 2.5.5</a></li>
</ul>



<p class="has-theme-palette-7-background-color has-background">Thanks for reading our WP dot .org roundup! Each week we are highlighting the news and discussions coming from the good folks making WordPress possible. If you or your company create products or services that use WordPress, you need to be engaged with them and their work. Be sure to share this resource with your product and project managers. <br /><br /><strong>Are you interested in giving back and contributing your time and skills to WordPress.org?</strong> <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f64f.png" alt="?" class="wp-smiley" /> <a href="https://wordpress.org/support/article/contributing-to-wordpress/">Start Here ›</a><br /><br /><strong>Get our weekly WordPress community news digest</strong> — Post Status&#8217; <a href="https://poststatus.com/news/week-in-review/">Week in Review</a> — covering the WP/Woo news plus significant writing and podcasts. It&#8217;s also available in <a href="https://poststatus.com/newsletter">our newsletter</a>. <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f48c.png" alt="?" class="wp-smiley" /></p>



<div class="wp-block-spacer"></div>



<div class="wp-block-media-text alignwide is-stacked-on-mobile has-background"><a href="https://poststatus.com/"><img src="https://poststatus.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/vertical-post-status-logo-250.png" alt="Post Status" class="wp-image-85823 size-full" /></a><div class="wp-block-media-text__content">
<p class="has-text-align-left has-normal-font-size" id="h-get-ready-for-remote-work">You — and <a href="https://poststatus.com/#Agency">your whole team</a> can <a href="https://poststatus.com/#choose-membership">Join Post Status</a> too!</p>



<p class="has-text-align-left has-small-font-size"><strong>Build your network. Learn with others. Find your next job — or your next hire.</strong> Read the <strong>Post Status</strong> <a href="https://poststatus.com/newsletter/">newsletter</a>. <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/2709.png" alt="✉" class="wp-smiley" /> Listen to <a href="https://poststatus.com/podcasts/">podcasts</a>. <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f399.png" alt="?" class="wp-smiley" /> Follow <a href="https://twitter.com/post_status/">@Post_Status</a> <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f426.png" alt="?" class="wp-smiley" /> and <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/post-status-llc/">LinkedIn</a>. <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f4bc.png" alt="?" class="wp-smiley" /></p>
</div></div>



<div class="wp-block-spacer"></div>
<p>This article was published at Post Status — the community for WordPress professionals.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Wed, 07 Jun 2023 10:47:10 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:18:"Courtney Robertson";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:43;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:34:"Matt: Apple Journals &amp; Day One";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:22:"https://ma.tt/?p=86717";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:45:"https://ma.tt/2023/06/apple-journals-day-one/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:1458:"<p>Apple almost never fails to wow, and they had <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYkq9Rgoj8E">a lot of cool announcements at WWDC yesterday</a>. Apple&#8217;s previously favorite (app of the year!) journaling app was <a href="https://dayoneapp.com/">Day One</a>, one of <a href="https://automattic.com/">Automattic&#8217;s</a> products, but they <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2023/6/5/23738869/apple-journal-app-ios-iphone-wwdc-2023">announced their own Journal app</a>. One nice thing about competing with Apple is they only really interoperate with their own devices, and they&#8217;re usually not good at social. Day One is launching Shared Journals soon, a social feature so you can have fully end-to-end encrypted shared private journals with friends and family. It&#8217;s been the thing I&#8217;ve been most excited about since we bought the app. (<a href="https://twitter.com/paulmayne">Paul</a> can attest how much I ask him about it!)</p>



<p>That complements <a href="https://dayoneapp.com/blog/apples-journal-app-and-day-ones-evolution/">another advantage Day One has</a>, which is being cross-platform. If you have a family member on Android, you don&#8217;t want to ostracize them from your Shared Journal. Apple doesn&#8217;t care, their priority is getting everyone on the Apple ecosystem. You care, and Day One/Automattic does too, that&#8217;s why it works great on all Apple devices, Android devices, and the web itself.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Tue, 06 Jun 2023 20:47:26 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4:"Matt";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:44;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:95:"Do The Woo Community: Blocks, Full-site Editing, Performance and more DevChat with Sean Conklin";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:28:"https://dothewoo.io/?p=75271";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:60:"https://dothewoo.io/woocommerce-developer-chat-sean-conklin/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:405:"<p>Carl, Zach and Sean cover a lot of WooCommerce developer ground in this show. And I mean a lot.</p>
<p>&gt;&gt; The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://dothewoo.io/woocommerce-developer-chat-sean-conklin/">Blocks, Full-site Editing, Performance and more DevChat with Sean Conklin</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://dothewoo.io">Do the Woo - a WooCommerce Builder Community</a>	.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Tue, 06 Jun 2023 10:17:00 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:5:"BobWP";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:45;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:55:"WordPress.org blog: The Month in WordPress – May 2023";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:35:"https://wordpress.org/news/?p=15100";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:67:"https://wordpress.org/news/2023/06/the-month-in-wordpress-may-2023/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:15705:"<p>May has been a month of celebrating WordPress and the open source community that makes it possible. In honor of the project’s 20th anniversary, WordPress Executive Director <a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/chanthaboune/">Josepha Haden Chomphosy</a> reflected on <a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2023/05/celebrating-20-years-of-wordpress/">this journey</a> and the opportunity to build a better future for those who come after:</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">
<p>The more our community invests in itself and supports one another, the stronger WordPress and the open source software movement become.</p>
<cite>Josepha Haden Chomphosy in <a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2023/05/celebrating-20-years-of-wordpress/">Celebrating 20 Years of WordPress</a>.</cite></blockquote>



<p>Read on for highlights of this milestone and the latest updates in the WordPress space.</p>



<div class="wp-block-spacer"></div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">WordPress at 20</h2>



<p><strong>May 27, 2023, marked the 20th anniversary of WordPress’ first release</strong>. Since its inception by <a href="https://ma.tt/2023/05/wp20-audrey-scholars/">Matt Mullenweg</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/mikelittlezed1/status/1662013891856027649">Mike Little</a> in 2003, the project has transformed the digital publishing landscape and enabled millions of people to craft their stories.</p>



<p>WordPress enthusiasts from all over the world gathered at more than <strong>130 events</strong> to celebrate this important milestone. WP20’s commemorative book, <a href="https://wordpress.org/book/"><strong>Building Blocks: The Evolution of WordPress</strong></a>, was published in tandem and documents some of the most significant moments and changes of the last decade of the project.</p>



<img width="1024" height="576" src="https://i0.wp.com/wordpress.org/news/files/2023/06/wp20-celebrate-desktop-1.png?resize=1024%2C576&ssl=1" alt="3D wallpaper of a number 20 formed by words in commemoration of the 20th anniversary of WordPress." class="wp-image-15106" /><a href="https://wp20.wordpress.net/download-3d-wp20-themed-media/">Download the new WP20 wallpapers made in 3D</a>.<br />



<p>The anniversary date may have passed, but the <a href="https://wp20.wordpress.net/news/">festivities and fun aren&#8217;t over</a>. You can still <a href="https://wp20.wordpress.net/">join a meetup</a>, sign the #WP20 From Blogs to Blocks campaign <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/marketing/2023/05/27/day-20-wp20-from-blogs-to-blocks/">birthday card</a>, or participate in #WP20 social celebrations.</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote has-extra-large-font-size">
<p>Join Josepha Haden Chomphosy in <a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2023/05/episode-55-happy-anniversary-wordpress/">Episode 55 of WP Briefing</a> as she looks back at the 20 years of WordPress and how the community made WordPress what it is today.</p>
</blockquote>



<div class="wp-block-spacer"></div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">WordPress 6.3 is expected on August 8</h2>



<p>Work on WordPress 6.3 officially kicked off with the <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/05/18/wordpress-6-3-planning-roundup/">announcement of its development cycle and release squad</a>. <strong>Set for release on August 8, 2023</strong>, this version will be the second major update of WordPress in 2023 and will mark the end of Phase 2 of the project’s <a href="https://wordpress.org/about/roadmap/">development roadmap</a>.</p>



<p>WordPress 6.3 aims to bring a cohesive site editing experience by introducing expanded functionality, richer interfaces, and a dedicated focus on refinement.</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote has-extra-large-font-size">
<p><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/05/18/roadmap-to-6-3/">Check out the 6.3 roadmap post</a> for a tentative preview of anticipated features.</p>
</blockquote>



<div class="wp-block-spacer"></div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">WordPress 6.2.2 security release</h2>



<p><strong><a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2023/05/wordpress-6-2-2-security-release/">WordPress 6.2.2</a> became available for download on May 20, 2023</strong>. This release was a quick response to resolve a regression introduced in <a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2023/05/wordpress-6-2-1-maintenance-security-release/">6.2.1</a>, specifically with shortcode support in block templates, and to further patch a vulnerability already addressed in the previous version.</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote has-extra-large-font-size">
<p><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/02/01/core-editor-improvement-strengthening-style-options/"></a><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/04/25/the-benefits-of-prioritizing-and-measuring-performance-in-wordpress-6-2/"></a><a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2023/05/wordpress-6-2-2-security-release/">Update your site if you haven’t yet</a>.</p>
</blockquote>



<div class="wp-block-spacer"></div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">New in the Gutenberg plugin</h2>



<p>Three new versions of Gutenberg have shipped in the last month:</p>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/05/04/whats-new-in-gutenberg-15-7-03-may/"><strong>Gutenberg 15.7</strong></a>, released on May 3, 2023, brings a new direct option to upload and replace a site&#8217;s logo from the block settings sidebar. Other enhancements include easier access to duotone filter controls via the style settings sidebar and an update to fluid typography to refine responsiveness.</li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/05/20/whats-new-in-gutenberg-15-8-may-17/"><strong>Gutenberg 15.8</strong></a> shipped on May 17, 2023, and includes a new &#8220;Pages&#8221; item in the Site Editor sidebar to edit pages without leaving the interface. Moreover, this version brings the ability to navigate through revisions in the global styles interface and to preview block themes inside the Site Editor.</li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/05/31/whats-new-in-gutenberg-15-9-31-may/"><strong>Gutenberg 15.9</strong></a> is ready for download as of May 31, 2023. The latest Gutenberg release comes with a new command tool and several enhancements to the Site Editor experience, including a more intuitive drag-and-drop function for moving blocks.</li>
</ul>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote has-extra-large-font-size">
<p><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/02/01/core-editor-improvement-strengthening-style-options/"></a>The latest <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/05/22/core-editor-improvement-smoother-site-editing/">Core Editor Improvement post</a> highlights features such as revisions and the ability to preview block themes, and how they enable a smoother site editing experience.</p>
</blockquote>



<div class="wp-block-spacer"></div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Team updates: Next-generation WordCamps, proposal for a Sustainability Team, and more</h2>



<ul>
<li>The Community Team proposed <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/community/2023/05/08/the-next-generation-of-wordcamps/">broadening the purpose of WordPress events</a> to &#8220;spark innovation and adoption by way of accessible training and networking.&#8221; This opens the door to organizing a more diverse range of formats focused on specific topics and audiences.</li>



<li>WordPress contributors suggested <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/project/2023/05/30/proposal-establishment-of-a-formal-wordpress-sustainability-team/">creating an official Sustainability Team</a>.</li>



<li>The Polyglots Team rebranded the WP Translation Playground tool as Translate Live and <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/polyglots/2023/05/08/translate-live-updates-to-the-translation-playground/">announced improvements</a> that make translating plugins and themes easier.</li>



<li>The new<strong> </strong><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/project/2023/05/17/wordpress-contributor-mentorship-program-pilot-program-proposal/">WordPress Contributor Mentorship Program pilot</a> aims to provide cohort-based and 1:1 mentorship to prepare new and aspiring contributors for success.</li>



<li><a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2023/05/2022-annual-survey-results-next-steps/">Results of the 2022 WordPress Annual Survey</a> were announced last month.</li>



<li>The Training Team published a new course on <a href="https://learn.wordpress.org/course/creating-a-4-page-business-website/">Creating a 4-page business website</a>. See <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/updates/2023/06/02/whats-new-on-learn-wordpress-in-may-2023/">What’s new on Learn WordPress in May 2023</a> for the latest learning resources.</li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/themes/2023/05/04/stacks-the-first-community-theme/">Meet Stacks</a>—the first community theme born from the <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/themes/2023/03/03/hallway-hangout-community-themes-initiative/">Community Themes initiative</a>. This theme is designed for creating slide decks that can be used for a presentation.</li>



<li>This Core proposal explores ways to <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/05/16/proposal-retiring-older-default-themes/">reduce the maintenance of older default WordPress themes</a> and retire them.</li>



<li>The May 2023 issues of <a href="https://developer.wordpress.org/news/2023/05/whats-new-for-developers-may-2023/">What’s New for Developers?</a>, the <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/polyglots/2023/05/10/polyglots-monthly-newsletter-may-2023/">Polyglots monthly newsletter</a>, and the&nbsp;<a href="https://make.wordpress.org/community/2023/05/18/meetup-organizer-newsletter-may-2023/">Meetup Organizer newsletter</a>&nbsp;are available for reading.</li>



<li>Find out how WordPress and its global community of contributors made a difference in Stefano Cassone&#8217;s life in the <a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2023/05/people-of-wordpress-stefano-cassone/">latest edition of People of WordPress</a>.</li>
</ul>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote has-extra-large-font-size">
<p>What is WordPress Playground, and why it matters? <a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2023/05/episode-56-what-to-know-about-wordpress-playground/">WP Briefing Episode 56</a> discusses the benefits and potential of this tool with special guests Rich Tabor and Adam Zielinski.</p>
</blockquote>



<div class="wp-block-spacer"></div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Feedback &amp; testing requests</h2>



<ul>
<li>Core Team members seek <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/05/17/command-center-request-for-feedback/">feedback on the new command tool</a> introduced in the Gutenberg plugin and its API.</li>



<li>The latest <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/test/2023/05/18/fse-program-testing-call-23-rapid-revamp/">call of the Full Site Editing (FSE) Outreach Program</a> invites you to test some features being worked on to upgrade and polish the experience of using the Site Editor. Share your thoughts by June 8, 2023.</li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/updates/2023/05/31/mobile-team-update-may-31st-2/">Version 22.5</a> of the WordPress mobile app for iOS and Android is ready for testing.</li>
</ul>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote has-extra-large-font-size">
<p>Which next generation of WordPress events would you like to see? <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/community/2023/05/24/idea-generation-next-gen-wordcamps/">Share your ideas</a> and <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/community/2023/06/01/next-gen-wordcamp-talking-points-share-your-ideas-for-a-new-event-format-and-make-it-happen/">start exploring</a> new event formats this year.</p>
</blockquote>



<div class="wp-block-spacer"></div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">WordPress events updates</h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://europe.wordcamp.org/2023/">Get ready for WordCamp Europe 2023</a> from June 8-10 in Athens, Greece! The event will start with <a href="https://europe.wordcamp.org/2023/contributor-day/">Contributor Day</a> on June 8, followed by two days of presentations and workshops. Attendees can join a <a href="https://europe.wordcamp.org/2023/welness-track-activities/">wellness track</a> and a <a href="https://europe.wordcamp.org/2023/wp-connect/">dedicated space</a> to connect, among many other initiatives.</li>



<li>The WordCamp US organizing team is <a href="https://us.wordcamp.org/2023/wordcamp-us-2023-call-for-volunteers-open/">calling for volunteers</a>.</li>



<li>For another year, the <a href="https://wordpressfoundation.org/news/2023/kim-parsell-memorial-scholarship-for-wordcamp-us-2023/">WordPress Foundation&#8217;s Kim Parsell Memorial Scholarship</a> will award funding for a woman-identifying contributor to attend WordCamp US 2023. Applications are open through June 12, 2023.</li>



<li><a href="https://sylhet.wordcamp.org/2023/">WordCamp Sylhet 2023</a>, the second ever WordCamp in Bangladesh, was successfully held on May 19-20 with its first <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/design/2023/05/23/wordcamp-sylhet-2023-contributor-day-recap/">Contributor Day</a>.</li>



<li>Join #WPDiversity with a free online workshop on <a href="https://www.eventbrite.com/e/how-to-own-your-expertise-start-speaking-at-wordpress-events-apac-tickets-648295107117">How to Own Your Expertise &amp; Start Speaking at WordPress Events APAC</a>. The event will take place on July 2, 2023.</li>



<li>Don’t miss these other upcoming WordCamps:
<ul>
<li><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f1ea-1f1f8.png" alt="??" class="wp-smiley" /> <a href="https://cartagena.wordcamp.org/2023/">WordCamp Cartagena</a>, Spain on June 10-11, 2023</li>



<li><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f1fa-1f1f8.png" alt="??" class="wp-smiley" /> <a href="https://montclair.wordcamp.org/2023/">WordCamp Montclair</a>, NJ, USA on June 24, 2023</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote has-extra-large-font-size">
<p>Join WordPress project leadership on June 10 at WordCamp Europe 2023 to hear about the latest developments and what’s next for WordPress. <a href="https://europe.wordcamp.org/2023/schedule/">Check out the schedule for details</a>.</p>
</blockquote>



<div class="wp-block-spacer"></div>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-text-color has-light-grey-color has-alpha-channel-opacity has-light-grey-background-color has-background" />



<p><strong><em><strong><em><strong><em>Have a story we should include in the next issue of The Month in WordPress? <strong><em>Fill out </em></strong><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/community/month-in-wordpress-submissions/"><strong><em>this quick form</em></strong></a><strong><em> to let us know.</em></strong></em></strong></em></strong></em></strong></p>



<p><em><em>The following folks contributed to this Month in WordPress: <a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/rmartinezduque/" class="mention"><span class="mentions-prefix">@</span>rmartinezduque</a>, <a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/nahidsharifkomol/" class="mention"><span class="mentions-prefix">@</span>nahidsharifkomol</a>, <a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/chaion07/" class="mention"><span class="mentions-prefix">@</span>chaion07</a>, <a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/devinmaeztri/" class="mention"><span class="mentions-prefix">@</span>devinmaeztri</a>, <a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/bsanevans/" class="mention"><span class="mentions-prefix">@</span>bsanevans</a></em></em>, <em><em><a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/ninianepress/" class="mention"><span class="mentions-prefix">@</span>ninianepress</a>.</em></em></p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Tue, 06 Jun 2023 10:15:56 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:15:"Reyes Martínez";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:46;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:78:"WordPress.org blog: WP Briefing: Episode 57: The Power of WordPress Mentorship";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:53:"https://wordpress.org/news/?post_type=podcast&p=15089";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:80:"https://wordpress.org/news/2023/06/episode-57-the-power-of-wordpress-mentorship/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:7747:"<p>Join WordPress Executive Director Josepha Haden Chomphosy in the 57th episode of the WordPress Briefing as she discusses the Contributor Mentorship Program to help increase the success of new contributors over time.</p>



<p><em><strong>Have a question you’d like answered? You can submit them to&nbsp;<a href="mailto:wpbriefing@wordpress.org">wpbriefing@wordpress.org</a>, either written or as a voice recording.</strong></em></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Credits</h2>



<p>Editor:&nbsp;<a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/dustinhartzler/">Dustin Hartzler</a><br />Logo:&nbsp;<a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/javiarce/">Javier Arce</a><br />Production:&nbsp;<a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/bjmcsherry/">Brett McSherry</a><br />Song: Fearless First by Kevin MacLeod</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Show Notes</h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://europe.wordcamp.org/2023/">WordCamp Europe 2023</a>, Athens, Greece. This event includes a <a href="https://europe.wordcamp.org/2023/session/matt-mullenweg/">special Keynote from Matt Mullenweg, Josepha Haden Chomposy, and Matías Ventura</a>. </li>



<li>&nbsp;<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://make.wordpress.org/project/2023/05/17/wordpress-contributor-mentorship-program-pilot-program-proposal/" target="_blank">WordPress Contributor Mentorship Program: Pilot Program Proposal</a>&nbsp;</li>



<li>Make WordPress Community: <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://make.wordpress.org/community/2023/05/24/idea-generation-next-gen-wordcamps/" target="_blank">Idea generation: Next Gen WordCamps!</a></li>



<li>WordPress &#8216;Milestones&#8217; volume two book <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://wordpress.org/book/" target="_blank">Building Blocks: The Evolution of WordPress</a> is available in <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://github.com/WordPress/wp20-book/tree/trunk/Formats" target="_blank">several formats for download on GitHub</a>.</li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Transcript</h2>


<a class="wp-block-read-more" href="https://wordpress.org/news/2023/06/episode-57-the-power-of-wordpress-mentorship/" target="_self">Read more<span class="screen-reader-text">: Episode 57: The Power of WordPress Mentorship</span></a>


<p>[Josepha Haden Chomphosy 00:00:00]&nbsp;</p>



<p>(Intro music)</p>



<p>Hello everyone, and welcome to the WordPress Briefing, the podcast where you can catch quick explanations of the ideas behind the WordPress open source project, some insight into the community that supports it, and get a small list of big things coming up in the next two weeks.&nbsp;</p>



<p>I&#8217;m your host, Joseph Hayden Chomphosy. Here we go!</p>



<p>(Intro music)</p>



<p>[Josepha Haden Chomphosy 00:00:40]&nbsp;</p>



<p>Over the course of this year, there has been a lot of research and examination of the contributor funnel in the WordPress community. That research confirms some assumptions about what most contributor stories have in common: the hurdles, the general paths taken, and the way that problem-solving was done. Then in February of this year, Hari Shanker published a proposal for a mentorship program for WordPress.&nbsp;</p>



<p>And now we&#8217;ve got a pilot program that&#8217;s been defined and is waiting for your feedback. If you&#8217;ve not read the post about the contributor mentorship program, for one do it. But if you would rather hear a synopsis from me, don&#8217;t worry, I&#8217;m about to give you a 10-cent tour.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[Josepha Haden Chomphosy 00:01:22]&nbsp;</p>



<p>First up, who is doing this? This pilot program has been outlined by a community working group. We often have working groups in WordPress, and they almost always have specific projects around events or programs, or code updates. Since this working group is focused on a project-wide program, there is project-wide representation in it. All the names are at the bottom of the post, which you can find in our show notes. But it&#8217;s got folks who contribute with code or contribute with time or contribute with design folks who are self-sponsored or corporately sponsored, just a nice mix of people. The program as a whole, though, is being stewarded by Hari Shankar, a longtime supporter of and contributor to WordPress. </p>



<p>[Josepha Haden Chomphosy 00:02:06]&nbsp;</p>



<p>So next, what is this for? There are a few goals for the program. But the overarching goal is to increase the success of new contributors over time. We can all agree that if we were to have 1000s of new contributors every day, but they couldn&#8217;t find their way to impactful contributions or meaningful connections quickly, then we would have done them a disservice. And they probably won&#8217;t continue to be part of the community without a bit more effort.&nbsp;</p>



<p>The when and the where are essentially “right now and right here,” so that brings us finally to Why. Why are we doing this mentorship program? Apart from to help people who want to contribute have an easier path to success – which frankly is enough of a reason anyway – the why is wrapped up in our overall philosophies in the project. If we believe that good ideas can come from anywhere and that contributions of any size matter. And that open source is an idea that can change our generation and that we are democratizing publishing, then bringing new people brings new ideas, and beginner contributions can grow over time. We can maintain this idea, this concept of open source, into the next generation and to future generations. And always keep our sights on the open web. To learn more about this and other project-wide initiatives, swing by make.wordpress.org/project or check the links in today&#8217;s show notes on wordpress.org/news/podcast.</p>



<p>[Josepha Haden Chomphosy 00:03:53]&nbsp;</p>



<p>Which brings us now to our small list of big things.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[Josepha Haden Chomphosy 00:03:56]&nbsp;</p>



<p>First on the list is WordCamp Europe. That&#8217;s coming up at the end of the week on June 8 through 10th in Athens, Greece. There will be a major update from Matt and friends, so even if you aren&#8217;t there in person, keep an eye out for those recordings. But for those who are there and you&#8217;re curious about the mentorship program or anything else to do with WordPress and contributing to the project, you can come find me or Angela Jin, Hari will also be there, Chloé will be there, Héctor will be there, lots of people, and we want to hear your thoughts and answer your questions.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[Josepha Haden Chomphosy 00:04:27]&nbsp;</p>



<p>Second is a call for brainpower! A call for your brainstorms! On the subject of the next generation, we&#8217;ve got a discussion going on about the next generation of WordCamps. We&#8217;ve been discussing what new types and varieties might be available, and that might make sense for people as we get back to in-person events. So if you&#8217;ve got a kind of WordCamp that you&#8217;ve been desperately wanting to try, now&#8217;s the time to let folks know about it. </p>



<p>[Josepha Haden Chomphosy 00:04:54]</p>



<p>And the final thing is the second volume of The WordPress history book called Building Blocks: The Evolution of WordPress is now available for download in several formats as well as on GitHub. Stop buy, give it a read, and relive some of the highlights of the past ten years of the WordPress project.&nbsp;</p>



<p>&nbsp;[Josepha Haden Chomphosy 00:05:12]</p>



<p>And that, my friends, is your smallest of big things. Thanks for tuning in today for the WordPress Briefing. I&#8217;m your host Josepha Haden Chomposy, and I&#8217;ll see you again in a couple of weeks.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Mon, 05 Jun 2023 13:00:00 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:14:"Brett McSherry";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:47;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:25:"Matt: Coltrane and Dolphy";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:22:"https://ma.tt/?p=86465";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:43:"https://ma.tt/2023/06/coltrane-and-dolphin/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:303:"<p>Check out this <a href="https://www.npr.org/2023/05/31/1179098682/john-coltrane-eric-dolphy-village-gate-1961-lost-album">great article on an exciting discovery of John Coltrane and Eric Dolphy playing together</a>. The album comes out July 14<sup>th</sup>. <cite>Hat tip: Aaron Wieczorek</cite>.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Mon, 05 Jun 2023 08:31:16 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4:"Matt";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:48;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:121:"Gutenberg Times: Block themes are the future, bibliography block, a dynamic block with AI and more –Weekend Edition 256";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:35:"https://gutenbergtimes.com/?p=24348";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:127:"https://gutenbergtimes.com/block-themes-are-the-future-bibliography-block-a-dynamic-block-with-ai-and-more-weekend-edition-256/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:17696:"<p>Howdy, </p>



<p>Before, I got the reward of seeing my WordPress buddies, friends, and colleagues in Athens, I had to work hard with the moving company to get our furniture organized in our new flat. I wasn&#8217;t hopeful, if I will find the packed lanyard with all my pins in time for WordCamp Europe, so I will start a new one. Get ready sponsors, I will hunt for swag again ?</p>



<p>Have a fantastic weekend! </p>



<p>Yours, ?<br /><em>Birgit</em></p>






<div class="wp-block-group has-light-background-background-color has-background is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow"><div class="wp-block-group__inner-container">
<p><strong>Table of Contents</strong></p>



<div class="wp-block-sortabrilliant-guidepost"><ul><li><a href="https://gutenbergtimes.com/feed/#0-word-press-release-information">Developing Gutenberg and WordPress</a></li><li><a href="https://gutenbergtimes.com/feed/#1-plugins-themes-and-tools-for-nocode-site-builders-and-owners">Plugins, Themes, and Tools for #nocode site builders and owners</a><ul><li><a href="https://gutenbergtimes.com/feed/#2-icymi-new-tutorials-on-learn-word-press-for-users-br">New tutorials on Learn.WordPress</a></li></ul></li><li><a href="https://gutenbergtimes.com/feed/#2-word-press-6-0-1-and-6-1-scheduled">Theme Development for Full Site Editing and Blocks</a></li><li><a href="https://gutenbergtimes.com/feed/#3-building-themes-for-fse-and-word-press">Building Blocks and Tools for the Block editor. </a></li></ul></div>
</div></div>




<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="0-word-press-release-information">Developing Gutenberg and WordPress</h2>



<p>Release lead, <strong><a href="https://twitter.com/c4rl0sbr4v0">Carlos Bravo</a></strong>, published <strong><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/05/31/whats-new-in-gutenberg-15-9-31-may/">What’s new in Gutenberg 15.9? (31 May)</a> </strong>. the release included 171 PRs by 56 contributors, eight of them new. Congrats to all. </p>



<p>The highlights: </p>



<ul>
<li>The command center  (working title: Wayfinder) is now out of experiments, and needs further testing and feedback. You can find details in Riad Benguella&#8217;s post <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2023/05/17/command-center-request-for-feedback/">Command Center: Request for feedback</a></li>



<li>More enhancements to the Site Editor experience: resize your site editor window, improved drag and drop (? ?), simplified switching between different styles and menus and so much more</li>
</ul>



<div class="wp-block-group has-light-background-background-color has-background is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow"><div class="wp-block-group__inner-container">
<p><strong>?️ </strong> New episode:  <a href="https://gutenbergtimes.com/podcast/gutenberg-changelog-84-gutenberg-15-9-and-16-0-wordpress-6-3/">Gutenberg Changelog #84 – Gutenberg 15.9 and 16.0, Developer Blog Updates, and WordPress 6.3</a> with special guest, Isabel Brison and host Birgit Pauli-Haack</p>
</div></div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="1-plugins-themes-and-tools-for-nocode-site-builders-and-owners">Plugins, Themes, and Tools for #nocode site builders and owners</h2>



<p><strong>Nick Schäferhoff</strong> published for the Torque Magazine: <a href="https://torquemag.io/2023/06/gutenberg-vs-classic-editor/"><strong>Gutenberg vs Classic Editor: 29 Reasons to Switch (Or Stay Put)</strong></a>. &#8220;You might be one of those people asking yourself whether you should switch from the Classic Editor to Gutenberg or stick with what you know. To help you make an informed decision, this post looks at key differences and features of the two editors and offer advice on which one is right for your website. Whether you’re a novice or experienced developer, by the end you’ll have all the information you need to decide which editor to stick with.&#8221; He wrote. </p>



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<p><strong>Ryan Welcher</strong> released a new version of his <a href="https://wordpress.org/plugins/advanced-query-loop/"><strong>Advanced Query Loop plugin</strong></a>.  With this version, you can now inherit the default query and still control the post count and sorting options! </p>



<p>If you want to <strong>connect with Ryan Welcher at WordCamp Europe</strong>, he made his calendar public, too. He <a href="https://twitter.com/ryanwelcher/status/1663218595118174208">tweeted</a>: I&#8217;m going to be attending WCEU 2023 and would love to chat with you! If you&#8217;re interested, please grab some time <a href="https://calendly.com/ryan-welcher/wceu-athens-2023"><strong>on my Calendly link</strong></a>!</p>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide" />



<p><strong>Sarah Snow</strong> just published a short tutorial on <strong><a href="https://learn.wordpress.org/tutorial/how-to-switch-from-a-classic-to-a-block-theme/">How to switch from a classic to a block&nbsp;theme</a></strong> on Learn.WordPress. &#8220;Are you curious about the process of how to switch from a classic theme to a block theme? If so, this tutorial is for you! Watch to discover what you can expect when you switch from a classic to a block theme, learn the recommended steps to switch a site safely, and find additional resources to get you started in a block theme’s site editor.&#8221; </p>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide" />



<p><a href="https://twitter.com/hluehrsen"><strong>Hendrik Lührsen</strong></a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hluehrsen/status/1659549030337196033">tweeted</a> about his new plugin:  <a href="https://github.com/luehrsenheinrich/wpm-citations"><strong>Citations for WordPress</strong></a> (GitHub). Make sure you download the zip-file from the release, and not the source code. If you use proper HTML &lt; a /&gt; tag notation.  you can add links into the citation field popping up. I tested it, and it works as an MVP, it has it&#8217;s quirks. The block is a starting point for customization. I hope this might come as a plugin to the repository. </p>



<img />



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide" />



<p>On again, off again, <a href="https://twitter.com/ellatrx"><strong>Ella van Durpe</strong> </a>has been working on a Footnotes feature for the Gutenberg project. The latest PRs are: </p>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/50124"><strong>Footnotes stored in the FN block</strong></a> &#8211;  this PR also links back to earlier conversations around this feature, and </li>



<li><a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/pull/51201"><strong>Footnotes: try with post meta</strong></a>.</li>
</ul>



<p>If you have some time, maybe you can help test it. </p>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide" />



<p><strong><a href="https://twitter.com/carolinapoena">Carolina Nymark</a></strong> published a new lesson: <a href="https://fullsiteediting.com/site-creators/creating-sidebars-with-blocks/"><strong>Creating sidebars with blocks</strong></a>. &#8220;If you want to use the same sidebar in multiple places, I recommend using the template part method because it will save you time. Editing a template part is similar to adding block widgets to a traditional sidebar. The difference is that you now choose exactly where you want the sidebar to show without depending on a developer to add the code.&#8221; she wrote. </p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="2-icymi-new-tutorials-on-learn-word-press-for-users-br">New tutorials on Learn.WordPress</h3>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://learn.wordpress.org/tutorial/building-a-page-with-only-patterns/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Building a page with only patterns</a></li>



<li><a href="https://learn.wordpress.org/tutorial/how-to-add-a-blog-or-news-page-to-any-wordpress-website/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">How to add a blog or news page to any WordPress website</a></li>



<li><a href="https://learn.wordpress.org/tutorial/wordpress-editor-modes-for-streamlining-content-creation/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">WordPress editor modes for streamlining content creation</a></li>



<li><a href="https://learn.wordpress.org/tutorial/exploring-category-templates-with-block-themes/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Exploring category templates with block themes</a></li>



<li><a href="https://learn.wordpress.org/tutorial/introduction-to-wordpress-multisite-networks/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Introduction to WordPress Multisite Networks</a></li>



<li><a href="https://learn.wordpress.org/tutorial/managing-a-wordpress-multisite-network/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Managing a WordPress Multisite Network</a></li>
</ul>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide" />



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="2-word-press-6-0-1-and-6-1-scheduled">Theme Development for Full Site Editing and Blocks</h2>



<p><strong>Bill Erickson</strong>, freelance developer and early adopter of the block editor, just posted <a href="https://www.billerickson.net/hybrid-wordpress-theme-starter/"><strong>A starter theme for building Hybrid WordPress Themes</strong></a>. Erickson also explains the interdependencies between Theme.json and Figma Design tokens and how to work within such a design system. </p>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide" />



<p><strong>Brian Gardner</strong> took a deep dive into <a href="https://wpengine.com/builders/responsive-wordpress-websites/"><strong>Intrinsic Design: Building Responsive WordPress Websites</strong></a>. He walks you through the built-in responsiveness of the Block editor with  fluid typography as well as fluid spacing. Gardner also anticipates &#8221; that future updates to Gutenberg, and consequently WordPress core, will give builders the flexibility to modify targeted media queries and even the scale factor.&#8221; </p>



<p></p>




<p><strong>&nbsp;<a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/handbook/references/keeping-up-with-gutenberg-index/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">&#8220;Keeping up with Gutenberg &#8211; Index 2022&#8221;</a>&nbsp;</strong><br />A chronological list of the WordPress Make Blog posts from various teams involved in Gutenberg development: Design, Theme Review Team, Core Editor, Core JS, Core CSS, Test and Meta team from Jan. 2021 on. Updated by yours truly.  <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/handbook/references/keeping-up-with-gutenberg-index/keeping-up-with-gutenberg-index-2020/"><em>The index 2020 is here</em></a></p>




<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />



<p><strong>Nathan Wrigley</strong> discussed with <strong>Mike McAlister</strong> on <a href="https://wptavern.com/podcast/78-mike-mcalister-on-why-block-themes-are-the-future"><strong>why Block Themes are the future</strong></a> in episode 78 of the WPTavern Jukebox podcast. In the introduction, Wrigley wrote: &#8220;Mike explains what the key differences are between a block-based theme and a classic theme. How it’s possible to create themes inside the editor, and how you can do this without needing to know much code. We talk about the fact that, if you’re a coding expert, you could always create complex themes, but this fresh approach opens up the possibilities for those with less technical backgrounds. The experience in the editor might not be exactly what everyone wants, but it’s evolving quickly and maturing with every new release of WordPress.&#8221; It&#8217;s definitely worth listening to, and checking out the resources shared. </p>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide" />



<p>For the third part of the Twitch Stream series <em>Building a developer-focus block theme</em>, <strong>Ryan Welcher</strong> teamed up with <strong>Justin Tadlock</strong> to take a deep dive of theme.json and block theme development. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3d6tqqlBVvo&t=1s"><strong>Building a developer-focus block theme. Part 3.</strong></a></p>



<p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=264Z-YfV6J0"><strong>Part 2</strong></a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJGWb1ZYLMY"><strong>Part 1</strong></a> are also available on Welcher&#8217;s YouTube channel. </p>



<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3d6tqqlBVvo&t=1s"><img /></a>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="3-building-themes-for-fse-and-word-press">Building Blocks and Tools for the Block editor. </h2>



<p>While redesigning his blog, <strong>Rich Tabor</strong> wanted to add a link that navigates to a random post. I created a custom block using the Create-Block script and ChatGPT. It only took a few minutes. He recorded a YouTube video, so you can follow along: <strong><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1bs8g9OdRU">How to Build a Dynamic WordPress Gutenberg Block with AI (ChatGPT)</a></strong></p>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide" />



<p>In his latest posts on the WordPress Developer Blog, <strong>Ryan Welcher</strong> posted a tutorial on <a href="https://developer.wordpress.org/news/2023/06/using-block-inspector-sidebar-groups/"><strong>using block inspector sidebar groups</strong></a>. With the introduction of block inspector tabs in WordPress 6.2, block developers have more control over where custom controls should appear by leveraging the group of the InspectorControls component.</p>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide" />



<p><strong><a href="https://twitter.com/rmors_">Ross Morsali</a></strong> wrote <a href="https://rm.codes/slotfills-and-fillprops-in-the-block-editor/">SlotFills and fillProps in the block editor</a>. After explaining briefly what SlotFills are and offering some user cases for their implementation, Morsali shows an example of how to use is in combination with  opening a modal. </p>



<p>To go deeper on SlotFills, take a look at the WordPress Developer Blog post: <strong><a href="https://developer.wordpress.org/news/2022/11/how-to-extend-wordpress-via-the-slotfill-system/">How to extend WordPress via the SlotFill system</a></strong></p>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide" />



<p><strong>Jeremy Felt</strong> built an <a href="https://happyprime.github.io/wphtml-converter/"><strong>HTML Converter</strong></a> &#8211; It parses WPHTML into JS/JSON with a direct&nbsp;copy&nbsp;of Gutenberg&#8217;s &nbsp;<a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/tree/trunk/packages/block-serialization-default-parser">Block Serialization Default Parser</a>. Felt explains the workflow on the <a href="https://github.com/happyprime/wphtml-converter">GitHub repo</a>: &#8220;When first building a template of blocks to be used as part of a block variation or other template, it is useful to do this work in the block editor. When adding the template to JavaScript in an&nbsp;<code>innerBlocks</code>&nbsp;property, it needs to be formatted differently and again differently when reusing it in PHP. As your templates get more complicated, so does this translation—when done manually.&#8221; Hence, the Converter tool. </p>



<img />




<p><strong><a href="https://gutenbergtimes.com/need-a-zip-from-master/">Need a plugin .zip from Gutenberg&#8217;s master branch?</a></strong><br />Gutenberg Times provides daily build for testing and review. <br />Have you been using it? Hit reply and let me know.</p>



<p><img alt="GitHub all releases" src="https://img.shields.io/github/downloads/bph/gutenberg/total?style=for-the-badge" /></p>




<p class="has-text-align-right has-small-font-size"><em>Questions? Suggestions? Ideas? Don&#8217;t hesitate to send <a href="mailto:pauli@gutenbergtimes.com">them via email</a> or send me a message on WordPress Slack or Twitter @bph</em>. </p>



<p class="has-text-align-right has-small-font-size">For questions to be answered on the <a href="http://gutenbergtimes.com/podcast">Gutenberg Changelog</a>, send them to <a href="mailto:changelog@gutenbergtimes.com">changelog@gutenbergtimes.com</a></p>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide" />




<p>Featured Image: <em>Greek architecture of a rock archway in Crete</em> by Lusp (Luke) found on WordPress Photos</p>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-wide" />



<p class="has-text-align-left"><strong>Don&#8217;t want to miss the next Weekend Edition? </strong></p>



<form class="wp-block-newsletterglue-form ngl-form ngl-portrait" action="https://gutenbergtimes.com/feed/" method="post"><div class="ngl-form-container"><div class="ngl-form-field"><label class="ngl-form-label" for="ngl_email"><br />Type in your Email address to subscribe.</label><div class="ngl-form-input"><input type="email" class="ngl-form-input-text" name="ngl_email" id="ngl_email" /></div></div><button type="submit" class="ngl-form-button">Subscribe</button><p class="ngl-form-text">We hate spam, too and won&#8217;t give your email address to anyone except Mailchimp to send out our Weekend Edition</p></div><div class="ngl-message-overlay"><div class="ngl-message-svg-wrap"></div><div class="ngl-message-overlay-text">Thanks for subscribing.</div></div><input type="hidden" name="ngl_list_id" id="ngl_list_id" value="26f81bd8ae" /><input type="hidden" name="ngl_double_optin" id="ngl_double_optin" value="yes" /></form>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-wide" />";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Sat, 03 Jun 2023 12:30:29 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:18:"Birgit Pauli-Haack";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:49;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:64:"Post Status: Launching a WordPress Product in Public: Session 15";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:32:"https://poststatus.com/?p=149540";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:74:"https://poststatus.com/launching-a-wordpress-product-in-public-session-15/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:54110:"<p><a href="https://poststatus.com/planet/feed/#h-transcript">Transcript</a> ↓</p>



<p>In this episode, <a href="https://twitter.com/corymiller303">Cory Miller</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/coreymaass">Corey Maass</a> discuss their progress on a project related to image generation and sharing. They explore the use of Open Graph (OG) images, social media platforms, and the importance of consistent branding. They mention the need for a logo and discuss the design concept, leaning towards a fun and vibrant style. They also touch on website development, pricing, and marketing assets. The conversation revolves around simplifying the image generation process and creating a user-friendly product. Overall, they aim to finalize the project&#8217;s features, branding, and logo to move forward with the launch.</p>



<p><strong>Top Takeaways:</strong></p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Logo and Branding: </strong>The importance of creating a logo and establishing a consistent branding for your project. You want a logo that represents image generation in a fun and vibrant way, potentially incorporating bright colors and a big, fun font. It should look good on different merchandise items like t-shirts and baseball caps.</li>



<li><strong>Image Generation and Sharing:</strong> The main focus of your project is image generation and sharing. Using a logo generation tool and exploring concepts related to image generation, sharing, and open graph images. The goal is to make the process of generating and sharing images easy and efficient for users.</li>



<li><strong>Project Progress: </strong>The progress of the project, including bug fixes and updates. The plan is to address the bugs and implement additional features and improvements. Once the sitewide and post-level functionalities are handled, the project will be ready to share with others. Defining the project&#8217;s style, including the logo and overall branding, is an important next step</li>
</ul>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">

</div>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading eplus-wrapper" id="h-mentioned-in-the-show"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f517.png" alt="?" class="wp-smiley" /> Mentioned in the show:</h3>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://crop.express/">Crop.Express</a></li>



<li><a href="https://wordpress.com/">WordPress</a></li>



<li><a href="https://openai.com/">OpenAI</a></li>



<li><a href="https://poststatus.com/">Post Status</a></li>



<li><a href="https://www.wpbeginner.com/">WP Beginner</a></li>



<li><a href="https://www.fiverr.com/">Fiverr</a></li>



<li><a href="https://central.wordcamp.org/">WordCamp</a></li>



<li><a href="https://makelogo.ai/">MakeLogo.ai</a></li>



<li><a href="https://twitter.com/vovafeldman?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor">Vova Feldman</a></li>



<li><a href="https://twitter.com/syedbalkhi">Syed Balkhi</a></li>



<li><a href="https://ogp.me/">Open Graph Image</a></li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading eplus-wrapper" id="h-you-can-follow-post-status-and-our-guests-on-twitter"><img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f426.png" alt="?" class="wp-smiley" /> You can follow Post Status and our guests on Twitter:</h3>



<ul class="eplus-wrapper">
<li><a href="http://twitter.com/coreymaass">Corey Maass</a></li>



<li><a href="https://twitter.com/corymiller303">Cory Miller</a> (CEO, <a href="https://twitter.com/post_status">Post Status</a>)</li>



<li><a href="https://twitter.com/lemonadecode">Olivia Bisset</a> (Intern, <a href="https://twitter.com/post_status">Post Status</a>)</li>
</ul>



<p class="eplus-wrapper has-background">The <strong>Post Status Draft</strong> podcast is geared toward WordPress professionals, with interviews, news, and deep analysis. <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f4dd.png" alt="?" class="wp-smiley" /><br /><br /><a href="https://poststatus.com/category/post-status-podcasts/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Browse our archives</a>, and don’t forget to subscribe via <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/post-status-draft-wordpress/id976403008" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">iTunes</a>, <a href="https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5zaW1wbGVjYXN0LmNvbS8ySkU5c2M4UA" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Google Podcasts</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/PostStatus" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">YouTube</a>, <a href="http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/krogsgard/post-status-draft-wordpress-podcast" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Stitcher</a>, <a href="https://wordpress-post-status-draft-podcast.simplecast.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Simplecast</a>, or <a href="https://feeds.simplecast.com/2JE9sc8P">RSS</a>. <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/14.0.0/72x72/1f3a7.png" alt="?" class="wp-smiley" /></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading eplus-wrapper" id="h-transcript">Transcript</h2>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Session 15 Corey &amp; Cory Launch a WordPress Product Live</h2>



<p><strong>C&amp;C 15</strong></p>



<p>[00:00:00] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> All right. Hold on before we go live. Okay. Um, what&#8217;s on your mind&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:00:21] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> today to talk about? It looks like you&#8217;re streaming to YouTube, but I&#8217;m not recording.</p>



<p>[00:00:33] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> Okay, I&#8217;ll just push record.</p>



<p>Hey everybody. Welcome back to Corey and Corey on launching a product lot has been happening in the background. Mainly Corey&#8217;s been on a manic work streak, but we have a working version of the plugin on post edit and uh, he gave me a walkthrough yesterday setting stuff. Corey, what are we, what&#8217;s on your mind today to talk, talk about?</p>



<p>[00:01:03] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Uh, I think we are, uh, getting close to the first milestone of actually having a product that you, you specifically could start using. My clients could start using maybe, um, I&#8217;m gonna install it on all of my websites. Um, But I think we can start. I&#8217;ve got a, after the installing it on post status yesterday, which we chose not to do live, which worked out just fine.</p>



<p>Um, but we&#8217;ve got a, a pretty slick little product, um, a short punch list of bugs to fix that I&#8217;m working on, um, over the next couple of days. Um, But I think we could start pivoting to how we&#8217;re gonna present this publicly. Um, you know, start setting up the marketing site. I&#8217;ve got the e-commerce set up. I think it works to actually take money.</p>



<p>We haven&#8217;t tried that yet, but that&#8217;s okay. Um, so yeah, I think it&#8217;s the, the next steps to talk about here now are, you know, what we need. So, I mean, for us, but also talking abstractly about. You know, once you have a product, uh, what do you do? So&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:02:33] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> yeah, with the product, we&#8217;re in this interesting phase, which is working.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s working. When we put it up on a live site, yesterday, we were both making notes about where the product is. But I, I still go back to, I think this is so valuable. Me putting on the client customer hat and actually using it. And more so than I think any product I&#8217;ve had before is really using it and thinking about it creatively.</p>



<p>How I want those things to come out, I think is gonna formulate back to products. So, so while it already has like our initial OG image, open graph image for site wide. We did some reviews in the past episode. Um, I did some work and I, I really saw some patterns in the synthesis. Mm-hmm. What, like, it is gonna go do.</p>



<p>Well, you, you were like almost simultaneously building it, which is awesome. Um, I gotta tell you from yesterday, um, we got, we got some polish that we, we know we&#8217;ve been working on, um, that you even saw and were like, oh, we need this. Um, I love your openness again about hearing feedback and, Hmm, before using it just shows how good of a data of an entrepreneur you are.</p>



<p>But the, the one I&#8217;m really eager to is getting to the blog posts because for this product, uh, it&#8217;s, it&#8217;s more so than just an open graph image. It&#8217;s like a social image to share with the post to make it compelling. I think all that work we did with Crop Express, So it&#8217;s all good. Mm-hmm. Helped, like think through what we&#8217;re doing now.</p>



<p>But I, I got giddy, you know, that I did some of the work when we did the pattern for the home, home or site default. Uh, I went on with some of the blog posts and I was like, this right&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:04:34] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> here is the money. Yep. Yeah. I&#8217;m, I&#8217;m with you. I think I, one of the. Pivotal moments for us with crop.express was you said, you know, I&#8217;m, I&#8217;m mental octopus.</p>



<p>I&#8217;m all over the place, you know? Yeah. Over here we do this and then we could do this, but it could do this, and over here it&#8217;ll do this and, and you&#8217;re like, what if we start with the feature image? I was like, that&#8217;s. You know, brilliant dart to the center of the dart board kind of thing. Um, and so with this, I really liked you, you did essentially the same thing where you&#8217;re like, OG image for the site.</p>



<p>And it was an easy lift for me to add that. So on activation, the plugin takes you to a little welcome screen, which doesn&#8217;t look pretty yet, but that&#8217;s fine. You upload a logo and you click a button and your site has an OG image. And so we are, I love that you install the plugin and a handful of clicks and we are offering value.</p>



<p>We are taking it already to um, Bringing, bringing your site. You know, we keep de debating about how we actually do this wording, um, but, or, or how we word this. But, you know, within a few clicks, our plugin makes your website more professional. Um, if you&#8217;ve got Yost installed, maybe you&#8217;ve already got an OG image.</p>



<p>If you don&#8217;t, we provide one, um, and our plugin will override. The image. So it&#8217;s like whatever you&#8217;ve done in Canva or elsewhere, you know, you can update, you can update regularly, that kind of thing. Um, so yeah, I&#8217;m, I&#8217;m with you. We&#8217;re, we&#8217;ve, we&#8217;ve reached that minimum viable product mentality in that we are immediately offering value, which I think is really cool.</p>



<p>Um, and then, The next, next thing following that OG image thread is, yeah, for each blog post, for each product, um, figuring, you know, again, initially it&#8217;ll be a, uh, a manual process of like, oh, you&#8217;re, you know, essentially for every blog post you, you are adding going forward, um, Once you&#8217;ve set up the blog post, you then can go set up your OG image.</p>



<p>Um, so we get there and that, that honestly is about 60%, 70% of the cleanup I need to do anyway. I. We are product complete, we are ready to sell a product. Um, and then, yeah, down the road, uh, there&#8217;s, there&#8217;s obviously lots of fun and, and interesting things. One, you know, like I wanna be able to, we&#8217;ve talked about, but I wanna be able to, like for you on post status, you&#8217;ve got, you know, dozens or hundreds of posts that already exist and so they will benefit from the Sitewide OG image.</p>



<p>But wouldn&#8217;t it be nice if you set up a template for a stand, you know, a template that goes with a blog post and click a button and it retroactively goes back and creates OG images for each of those blog posts, stuff like [00:08:00] that. Um, but I kind of think that that&#8217;s one that&#8217;s neat. You know, that&#8217;s icing on the cake.</p>



<p>That&#8217;s a version 1.1 kind of feature. Um, but also I, I do think we want a little bit of validation. Before that happens. Um, and or if we find ourselves twiddling our thumbs and you&#8217;re like, yeah, for post status, I we really need this, then we can call that validation and I can implement it. But, um, but yeah, it&#8217;s, it&#8217;s flushing out.</p>



<p>Being featured complete as far as OG images is, is the way to start. And obviously right along with that, it&#8217;s easy enough to create, um, a duplicate image that is square so you can throw it on Instagram or whatever. Yep.</p>



<p>Um,</p>



<p>behind the scenes, I think what&#8217;s really cool is. We kept, but after doing the, the first install yesterday on post status, Corey set up a first basic OG image. And then due to caching, we couldn&#8217;t see it. We could verify that it was there by viewing the source. And we knew the image was there, but we couldn&#8217;t see it.</p>



<p>And just now during our call, uh, Basically what&#8217;s funny is our Slack, private Slack conversation is just us posting post status.com back and forth, back and forth, trying to see the damn thing work and uh, Corey just posted it and adjusted it did just show up and that is one of the most satisfying things ever.</p>



<p>So yeah, it&#8217;s working.</p>



<p>[00:09:48] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> Absolutely. I do think if I just put on the post status as a customer hat, Um, we do a fair amount of content and we want to, we have a significant following on Twitter and in, uh, LinkedIn and I particularly camp out on LinkedIn for a second. It&#8217;s really compelling to me and, and I, a couple years ago, I kind of, okay, I&#8217;ve just accepted invitations over the years.</p>



<p>Now I&#8217;m gonna see what this is about. I, I really think, especially with Twitter&#8217;s implosion, There&#8217;s a real value back to LinkedIn. Um, even more so than was there. But when I think about post customer for a second, we do a piece of content. We could just do the typical thing, copy, link, paste into Instagram, put a couple of words in it, do that thing.</p>



<p>Um, I think there&#8217;s value though, that image of like, I was just thinking like we do these weekly roundups with tech and business and like, or make wordpress.com for instance, or make WordPress, um, having like just the headlines. Mm-hmm. You know, like weekly roundup is the tech roundup and then there&#8217;s three or four bullets of like what goes into that.</p>



<p>So they&#8217;d know a preview of like, oh, I&#8217;m interested, I&#8217;m gonna click through, go to the link. That&#8217;s valuable to me because right now I&#8217;m just gonna take a link post in there. Hope the featured image looks decent, cuz it always pulls that. So, like, to me that&#8217;s value for, for post status. Client hat is like, it&#8217;s just right there.</p>



<p>Um, I can take a couple steps while I&#8217;m in the post. When I get it done is when I usually put it over there. And now somebody, somebody might schedule that, that&#8217;s cool. However, I kinda like post share it. Sure. Uh, and having that right there with like, I keep going back to my slide content slides I&#8217;ve done for talks and do different things and you know, some header with wall points and, and I think what I worked on the.</p>



<p>Image templates that you also mentioned was like holding in an actual image to that. Right. That&#8217;s always capture thought to me. But if it&#8217;s there, pulled in, adds a little visual pair pto where it&#8217;s just not like a slide.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:12:20] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Yeah. We&#8217;re gonna, it&#8217;s, there&#8217;s, there&#8217;s all these, from a text standpoint, there&#8217;s these, these loops that, or these circles we&#8217;re gonna want to close.</p>



<p>Um, Because it&#8217;s the, and, and we&#8217;re gonna have to think through the, the workflow, the UI for this, um, which, and it might be as simple as a button, but there might be some setup beforehand. So, we&#8217;ll, we&#8217;ll have to walk through this, but it&#8217;s like, that&#8217;s why I tried to wa I tried to talk this all out. I, I don&#8217;t know, two or three calls ago where I was like, okay, the first step.</p>



<p>And just a minute ago, in fact, the first step is the OG image. For the site. The second step is the OG image per post, which you&#8217;re gonna have to set up manually. Fine. Like we&#8217;re, we&#8217;re, we&#8217;re building a product. The, uh, one of the, the circles that I want to close for you and for, for the product pretty quickly is you, you&#8217;ve created a blog post or, again, I, I want to keep harping on product too.</p>



<p>Neither of us are in e-commerce. Particularly, but I, I think this is gonna be a lot of value. Um, but whatever it is, a post of some kind, you up upload a featured image. That featured image gets used in an OMG I M G, an OMG image. We&#8217;ll call &#8217;em that. And then a, and then there&#8217;s an option to replace the featured image, right?</p>



<p>So it&#8217;s like you&#8217;ve uploaded a temporary featured image that then gets incorporated into a template. And generated as an an OMG image that then replaces the featured image so that the, essentially the headline on the blog post, wherever, however the featured image was used, which like you said, a lot of the time when you share.</p>



<p>The featured image comes up and I, I, there&#8217;s going to be instances where an OG image is almost moot because the featured image works has two purposes. One is as a featured image, like if you&#8217;re looking at a blog post, and the second is if somebody shares it. You know, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn will automatically pull in the first image, usually the featured image, which will be, which will act as the OG image.</p>



<p>So, so it&#8217;s one asset, multiple purposes. Um, but in both instances, I think that there&#8217;s, you know, when we were first really exploring this, we went and looked at, um, WP Beginner, I think we looked at, um, Prius&#8217;s blog and, and we saw that a bunch of them, or the two, I think the two of those, and a and a bunch of other sites, the featured image, it was almost redundant, but the featured image itself was s shareable because it had the blog post title and stuff in it.</p>



<p>Um, and I liked what you said a minute ago of like, often, right now you upload a featured image of. You know, business person at laptop looking businessy, you know, it&#8217;s, you know, and it might be a photo of, of somebody. But, but then you go and you share it and you hope that it&#8217;s relevant and you hope that the people will see a title that&#8217;s, that&#8217;s, you know, links the image to the content.</p>



<p>Whereas we&#8217;re, we&#8217;re talking about is, um, Yeah, is inserting, inserting the title right into the image. So again, it might end up being a little, it might feel redundant, or as you&#8217;re doing the workflow, it feels redundant, but you&#8217;re, you&#8217;re guaranteeing that every image has more value. Um, and then, yeah, here you&#8217;re illustrating the second.</p>



<p>Loop that we wanna close, which again, feels kind of meta, but it&#8217;s the like, create a blog post, take a picture of the blog post, pull that that picture in, um, to an, an OMG image, and then use that to share, or even as the featured image. So you&#8217;re gonna end up with, and in theory if you do this, uh, A couple if you, if you create a template using the featured image or create an OMG image using the featured image, and then take a picture of it, you could end up with, you know, a picture of a picture of a picture of a picture all the way down, which is kind of fun.</p>



<p>Anyway. Um, But I think that that&#8217;s, you know, we&#8217;re talking about value and, and a, one of the ways that we achieve value is information. So, headlines, excerpts, bullet points. The other way we, a, we add value is something com is, is by creating a compelling image. And I think at least right now, with the way or a current trend, That achieves, this is exactly what you&#8217;re showing, which is, um, an image of content, but in the context of a device.</p>



<p>So on a screen or, um, yeah, on a cell phone, on a desktop, that kind of thing. Yeah.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:17:37] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> Was, uh, just looking at this for a second, thinking about when you&#8217;re saying the featured image, Is how, like I don&#8217;t mm-hmm. Feel like super, uh, energized by what I did here on these two. And I was like, okay, well, you know, when you go, like there&#8217;s, there&#8217;s two parts.</p>



<p>There&#8217;s the social value, we&#8217;ve already talked about that, but there&#8217;s the search value. Mm-hmm. The image is a piece of content that summarizes mm-hmm. Inspire someone to click through, but like almost go, like that&#8217;s thinking of it as a piece of content that is an image piece of content, but it has valuable stuff on here.</p>



<p>Um, and like it&#8217;s really that slide format is, you know, everybody takes a picture of really good presentations when they&#8217;ve got slides. Cause they&#8217;re like, this is cool. I don&#8217;t know what this is called in Google, Emmett Google search, Google Images, but, Makes me think when we get to this part, we need to have a caption.</p>



<p>Mm-hmm. Um, that when the image is out there, there&#8217;s a caption. It seems like, I don&#8217;t know what this is called within Google, the image side of things, but like, it&#8217;s an opportunity I haven&#8217;t seen really explored that I would mm-hmm. That I would like. You&#8217;re, you&#8217;re searching and those, that image side comes up too, um, where there&#8217;s.</p>



<p>Interesting content summarized for you, like right there, right. Um, that&#8217;s really valuable. So I was trying to think like, okay, how would you really want that to look like if you don&#8217;t have a featured image, which is my problem easily. Um, you know, would we put, even if there&#8217;s, I I was just thinking about&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:19:33] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> that for a minute.</p>



<p>Well, I like the idea too of, um, And I hadn&#8217;t thought of this before, uh, essentially a default featured image like we are using a logo. So let&#8217;s, like for post status, you&#8217;ve got, you&#8217;ve got the little PS infinity symbol everywhere. Um, but also the ev I think a lot of people associate like the homepage of post status has that image of people at.</p>



<p>One of the, the, you know, the post status conference years ago, um, that hasn&#8217;t changed in 10 years, excuse me. Um, but, uh, you know, but that&#8217;s, it&#8217;s now, it&#8217;s now it&#8217;s a bit of your branding, right? Like that&#8217;s now a photo that, that people might actually associate with post status. So if that was, um, if that was the standard featured I, the default featured image that got pulled in everywhere, you know, even if, like one of the things that we&#8217;ve talked about is.</p>



<p>Image, uh, is, is tr image treatments. So it&#8217;s like as a ba if the background was two women chatting with that was, you know, converted to black and white and had, and had an orange filter over the top. And so it was just, again, these are, these are all of the things that humans find compelling, even if it&#8217;s not obvious or.</p>



<p>Upfront or obtuse. Um, you know, having, having two eyes and a s and a smile is known to be compelling to humans at a subconscious level. So it&#8217;s stuff like that that, um, these little simple effects that we can start to explore down the road, or, I mean soon, sooner than later, but it&#8217;s like, as we&#8217;re going along, as we&#8217;re learning about this stuff, we can go, oh, right, let&#8217;s just add a default option for, you know, these background treatments.</p>



<p>Yeah, just looking at seeing.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:21:35] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> Mm-hmm. Some publications like, obviously these&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:21:38] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> are,</p>



<p>it&#8217;s interesting. Yeah. I mean these are, you know, most of these featured image as a background. Yeah. Title pulled in and selected. Put this at the top of the bottom, and some of them have an excerpt below the title. That&#8217;s the whole thing. You know, and so it&#8217;s, it&#8217;s up to the authors or you know, publishers since this is New York Times to find compelling images.</p>



<p>Yeah. I mean, and so un you know, we&#8217;ve talked about that at various points. That&#8217;s not a problem we&#8217;re choosing to solve right now. Um, so as the publisher of a given blog, you still have to go find that compelling image. But once you do, we give you all these options to do something with it. And what I really like is we&#8217;re defining a, a process.</p>



<p>So it&#8217;s once you, yeah, that&#8217;s the picture. Um, once you essentially define your style, So it&#8217;s like I, I, I&#8217;ve talked about, I&#8217;m a musician as a hobby, and I actually have a, a new track coming out tomorrow. And so I&#8217;ve put that on my band camp and, um, you know, for every track that I finish, every re you know, release that I do, I now go into Canva.</p>



<p>I hit copy or duplicate from the last. Release image that I created. Yeah. And I changed the title, the text, and I changed the image. But that way the font is always the same. The font size is always the same. The colors, font, colors are always the same. So that&#8217;s what we&#8217;re talking about here is like you creating exactly what you&#8217;re doing.</p>



<p>Say this, you created this and saved this for a first blog post. The idea would be then to say, save this as the default. Blog post featured image template. So then you go into, you, you say word in WordPress, you say add new, you write a new blog post. When you jump in to OMG I M G, this is gonna come up first.</p>



<p>Do you want it, you know, right away create your, you know, A an OMG image from your saved default blog post OMG image template, and you say, yes. And it sucks in the headline, it sucks in the featured image and you might go in and tweak it a little bit. You know, like if the headline&#8217;s really long or it&#8217;s more fun to have like, just like you showed on that New York Times Instagram a second ago.</p>



<p>Depending on the image, you might want the title at the top or the bottom, but most of the work is done with you done for you. You tweak a couple of things, you know, move a couple of sliders and then you&#8217;re good. Um, I&#8217;m excited about that. I think that that&#8217;s gonna be neat. I think that it&#8217;s going to be, it&#8217;s one of those things that</p>



<p>one of the challenges is going to be for, because it, because they are associated with publishing. It&#8217;s. It&#8217;s a, it&#8217;s a hurry up and wait kind of product. That&#8217;s one of the only things, red flags that I have. So it&#8217;s like, if there&#8217;s a button for creating these images for all existing posts, that&#8217;s huge value.</p>



<p>Right? But this is also one of those, like you install it. And then you have to go write a blog post. And that&#8217;s why I&#8217;m really glad that we&#8217;re creating a sitewide OG image. We can create sitewide social images, you know? But if you don&#8217;t have, if you&#8217;re not gonna write a blog post until tomorrow, you don&#8217;t have a reason to use the plugin until tomorrow.</p>



<p>Now we talked&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:25:32] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> about assigning. Mm-hmm. You could go back to a previous post. Mm-hmm. So I wonder if there&#8217;s a thought where we put a preview of a post, you know, To get &#8217;em started or&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:25:43] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> something. Mm, that&#8217;s awesome. So what I took,&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:25:47] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> one of the big things I took for that is the fact that people do are in the rhythm of doing a featured image.</p>



<p>I think I defaulted to these templates because I don&#8217;t. Mm-hmm. That&#8217;s my mindset. So I just was trying to play for a second. I go, I think these things still apply, you know? Oh, for sure. Image on left. Image on right image as background with opa. I was trying to find an opacity here, but, um, yeah, and then you want headline, like pin on the photo.</p>



<p>Do you want it up here?&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:26:18] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Right. You don&#8217;t want it, you wouldn&#8217;t want it to cover a person&#8217;s face, so you&#8217;d move it to the bottom left. But if the image has people on the bottom, then you want it at the top or whatever. So, yeah.</p>



<p>Yeah, I&#8217;ve, you know, as I&#8217;ve been developing, so I, I did a, for anybody listening to this who didn&#8217;t watch the last one, go watch the last one. Um, because we did a, a little walkthrough, um, and, and showed my initial approach to the product specifically, we are not, Canva, we are not drag and drop like I and I at various points.</p>



<p>Like the developer in me wants to take this to the obvious extreme. Um, and, and that in many respects is Canva, which is drag and drop and, and infinite options. And. And I think, I mean, part of that, it it part of, I don&#8217;t want to go down that path because it&#8217;s just a hell of a lot of work and I want to just get this damn thing out the door.</p>



<p>But I also do think objectively that I, at least for now, prefer this approach because of what we&#8217;re talking about. Like if you want to go, if you wanna be in Photoshop, be in Photoshop. If you don&#8217;t, if you&#8217;re, if that&#8217;s a bit too much. Go jump into Canva, get creative, go wild. But this is, to me is meant to be quick and dirty as underselling it, but you know, quick and useful.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s just another step in your workflow. And that was, which is kind of the conclusion we came to out of Crop Express was like, you&#8217;ve got this workflow, here&#8217;s a pain point in your process, but it shouldn&#8217;t be the entire process. Yeah.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:28:14] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> Well, just like playing with this, I go, okay, I get it. You know, put it in the background.</p>



<p>We&#8217;ve got left and we&#8217;ll have a right version of all this stuff. Yeah. But there&#8217;s an option of like set featured image as background. Then they can play with the color options you&#8217;ve given them. And I mean, I call that pretty good. Yeah. If, if you&#8217;re in the, if you just want headline and photo. This is an option if you want, I think, which is gonna be even BA could be even better, is like there&#8217;s a piece of content, like&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:28:53] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> mm-hmm.</p>



<p>Yeah. Again, I think that that&#8217;s like, that&#8217;s version 1.2, right? Where we, you know, one of the things that got us really jazzed talking about this early on was you brought up slides. Um, we&#8217;ve talked a few times about, um, drop, uh, poll quotes, drop quotes, block quotes, whatever you call &#8217;em. And so, you know, I&#8217;m excited about, again, version 1.2 or whatever, where.</p>



<p>We actually have a little wizard that says like, here are the quotes from the page. Ah, and this is where we bring in ai and that&#8217;s why we, we make 2 million. Um, but, you know, throw this content at, at our integration with ai and it come and it comes back with three different bullet point summaries of the content.</p>



<p>And then we, as we automatically just drop that content in. There you go. We figured out the AI integration. I knew it was just a matter of time.</p>



<p>[00:30:10] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> I&#8217;m using in a service called podway. Test it out. Yep. Um,</p>



<p>I can see how something like this&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:30:24] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> would look. Yep. Exactly. And this is where, again, like once, once a, once a template is defined, cuz these are all placeholders, right? So you&#8217;ve got a placeholder for the photo, the, the, the image of. The content, you&#8217;ve got a placeholder for the title, and then you&#8217;ve got a placeholder for a three bullet point summary.</p>



<p>Now either you can write that summary or again, we could have something write it for you, or you could have something write it for you. Um, but I love the idea. So one of the things that, so I&#8217;ve been playing with chat g p t, like everybody else for one of my products. I went into chatGPT, and I said, Write 20, um, 20 tweets.</p>



<p>Yeah. Broadly speaking, you know, for the topic of my product. And then I said, write 20 tweets that target creatives. Specific to my product and then business people, you know? And so it was very similar content, but slightly different. And so in the end, instead of 20 tweets over and over again, I wound up with 60 tweets.</p>



<p>And so I scheduled them one a day. Right. And so I&#8217;m picturing something very similar here where it&#8217;s like, you know, If you, if you had your featured image for the, for the, you know, the, the one you&#8217;re doing in right in front of us, you&#8217;ve got three bullet points. You&#8217;ve got a title, you&#8217;ve got a featured image.</p>



<p>Right. But like this is just one and. In, in our world now, you can&#8217;t, you&#8217;re never going to, or you shouldn&#8217;t, uh, just tweet about something once. You don&#8217;t write a blog post, tweet about it, and then forget about it. You need a long tail of content to be able to share, right? And so ideally, Not only would you say generate, like, say if this, what&#8217;s in front of us right now is, is your, you know, saved template.</p>



<p>Not only would you say generate this, but you would say, generate five variations of this. And you, I, this is again where I think I AI is a perfect candidate. You&#8217;d say, you know, Hey, chatGpT, here&#8217;s my article. Summarize it. With three bullet points in five different ways, and then we suck all that in. And then picture a page that just has this template with the different content.</p>



<p>You know, so there&#8217;s six versions right down, and you, and you go, which ones do you wanted to use? Bang, bang, bang. Save them all, you know, and then schedule them all. And that way, and you&#8217;ve got one that goes out each day or you do two days, four days, eight days. 16 days. So again, you get this long tail of content that isn&#8217;t identical but is all relevant.</p>



<p>That&#8217;s gonna be huge.</p>



<p>Yeah. Assuming that people are actually promoting their content the way they&#8217;re supposed to. Right.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:33:33] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> Which is, is is part of the challenge.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:33:37] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Yeah. Yeah. I think that I, you know, your emphasis we&#8217;re on call 15, right? So your emphasis throughout all of our conversations on agencies and on professionals, teams, et cetera, while it&#8217;s not, I&#8217;m very much like the solopreneur in entrepreneur.</p>



<p>Whatever other funny way you wanna say the preneur word. Um, but I think small, I build small products for myself and so other people in my shoes. And it&#8217;s not at all that I won&#8217;t use this, but again, I, you know, I&#8217;m, I&#8217;m working with clients that have dedicated social media managers. They&#8217;re the target agencies that are doing full-blown marketing campaigns.</p>



<p>They&#8217;re the, they&#8217;re the target because again, it&#8217;s these, this long tail of content that that&#8217;s going to require variation, that are going to benefit the most from this. Yeah.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:34:49] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> Yeah. I&#8217;ve been thinking really much in that regard as like, okay, what would I want? How do I, it&#8217;s like, This slide for that post, you know, something like this, like a treatment over here doesn&#8217;t take up too much space for the the brand, but at least brands it.</p>



<p>Yep. This is a post status thing, and then this is really informative content like mm-hmm. It&#8217;s really that summary. Too long, didn&#8217;t read. Yeah. Take this for any post. It&#8217;s like you said, you can throw that into Chatgpt and get a bunch of these things, but like, yeah. I don&#8217;t know if I worked on something like that, but I go, this case study warrants a lot like headline.</p>



<p>This is a roundup we do about what&#8217;s happening in WordPress core based. Basically, she has these every, every week. These are the things you would just pull from it. Three things you need to know. Have chat. ChatGPT, help you with that if you want, and then to put it here and then you go, okay. What I would normally do is say, save this as an image, and I&#8217;d go over to what if I should do that real quick.</p>



<p>Uh, there we go.</p>



<p>Stay right there. I need to work on the image, image size, of course, but then you&#8217;re just putting in alt text. I dunno why the logo didn&#8217;t show up. Oh, it&#8217;s right there. So you know, if you think about it, right there. You&#8217;re okay. You&#8217;re, you&#8217;re a member of Post, so select the idea is you can look at this and see it a glance, some of the things going mm-hmm.</p>



<p>And then decide to click on. That&#8217;s value for the social right there. We&#8217;ve already mm-hmm. We&#8217;ve already talked about that, I think, but I think philosophically, I&#8217;m shaping this a little bit up and my mind is, it&#8217;s the too long, didn&#8217;t read now. Mm-hmm. You get this and whatever this. Uh, Google image. Like what would be example where if I, here, lemme see how to change a light pole, light switch.</p>



<p>Something. You, you know what I&#8217;m saying? Like this, people also ask, there&#8217;s some, uh, search criteria. They come like this, you know, the video content that shows up. There&#8217;s sometimes, I guess it&#8217;s more pinteresty type stuff like,</p>



<p>Like of a better word, video show up. But isn&#8217;t there a section where images show up sometimes?&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:38:08] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Yeah. Search for a product, search for, um, say like that. So, um, there you go.</p>



<p>So it&#8217;s like in shopping is what I found. Okay. This one. So now hold on, hold on. Um, click and start dragging one of those images like this. Yeah. Did it? Yeah. I just discovered this this morning. So you can drag an image into Google Lens to do, uh, to find out more meta information about. That image and whatnot.</p>



<p>Oh, really? Which I think is, so right now it&#8217;s sort of a hidden feature, but I think that that&#8217;s coming down the road too. But it&#8217;s like, you know, Google, pretty much any, any of these services now can do image parsing, or excuse me, text parsing from images. So they&#8217;re also going to be reading these images, which is really, really cool.</p>



<p>Regardless of what alt text you might provide. Do you know what this&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:39:20] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> is called in Google? Is this&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:39:21] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> og? Uh, I would assume so.</p>



<p>[00:39:34] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> Img, but it&#8217;s 92 by 92.</p>



<p>Anyway, I, I felt like there was, it&#8217;s, it&#8217;s more of the Pinterest thought. You know, it&#8217;s like you go, oh, office.&nbsp;</p>



<p>So when we think about the blog post stuff, This is pulling something here. It&#8217;s gotta be OG based, right? That&#8217;s what I&#8217;m trying to find. Say look at that six is, and then give it a little icon.</p>



<p>[00:40:43] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Be honest. There&#8217;s no direct way to make your images show up, but somebody has to have figured this out.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:40:48] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> Yeah. Because if we can get the specs we haven&#8217;t, we give the client a per a potential to let that show up. Yeah.</p>



<p>Because man, that&#8217;s compelling. I don&#8217;t know. Like this is Zoom ideas. So look at all these images in this display. There we go. See this. Well, I don&#8217;t know how they&#8217;re getting all that. This, this search comes up sometimes. See this? Mm-hmm. That&#8217;s what we&#8217;re unlocking. Whatever this is, we&#8217;ll figure it out and say This is what you want.</p>



<p>This is what it&#8217;s called. And um, OMG mg does it? Yep. Do the possibility to do it, because I think this is where you start going into, I wish I had an idea for this, but I mean, the PINTERESTY type content. Mm-hmm. Recipes.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:41:52] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Oh, there you go.&nbsp;</p>



<p>All of these are really interesting, um, personality tests too, to see what you come up with on the spot. No, I&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:42:08] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> was like, they&#8217;re gonna know I&#8217;ve been liking an celery recipes,&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:42:14] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> but see they as one does.</p>



<p>Yeah, so there&#8217;s, there&#8217;s an I that that image is right there. How do we,</p>



<p>and it looks like&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:42:29] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> it&#8217;s 92 by 92 or that ratio, whatever, that Nope, that&#8217;s not.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:42:34] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> That&#8217;s not it. It&#8217;s a slightly rectangle, but it&#8217;s not. And so what&#8217;s, what would be interesting is, um, view the view the actual source rather than inspecting. So just right click anywhere and say view, source</p>



<p>and search for OG colon image.</p>



<p>Keep typing image. It&#8217;ll pop up. Oh, sorry.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:43:00] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> Hey, so this is interesting. Is this the action type&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:43:04] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> content so that, that you&#8217;d populate by like description you&#8217;d do in Yost and we certainly could do more. Um, like if you don&#8217;t want to have Yost installed since we&#8217;re already adding header, we could add more headers.</p>



<p>But again, not I, I don&#8217;t want to chase that if we can help it.</p>



<p>Same. Go to this. Yeah.</p>



<p>You missed a two on the end, so it re cropped it. Oh, interesting.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:43:52] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> So it&#8217;s live&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:43:52] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> cropping, that&#8217;s all it&#8217;s doing is Google. So the ogn, yeah. So it&#8217;s right. So, um, but it&#8217;s, but where is it? Why, why does it take the square? Because it doesn&#8217;t necessarily know, I mean, not all these websites are gonna have that auto cropping, right?</p>



<p>So, so somewhere too, it&#8217;s saying there&#8217;s a square image. Let&#8217;s, let&#8217;s throw that into the search results. Look at this. They&#8217;re, they&#8217;re pulling the Twitter card too. Mm-hmm. It&#8217;s&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:44:24] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> already baked in, I think. Yep. Interesting. I I just go, man. Um,</p>



<p>you know, some of this, like, these are appealing photos for sure, but I go, if you can put some piece of content right here, That&#8217;s helpful. Yep.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:44:52] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Yeah, I mean, and that&#8217;s the presumption, is that, so actually before you jump, um, go click on the one you just talked about or ultimate click on Ultimate, you know, any of these with that, that has a title, right?</p>



<p>So go to that website. Oh, it&#8217;s you. That might be YouTube. That&#8217;s not gonna help us.</p>



<p>So they&#8217;ve got these big pictures, but I, what I&#8217;m trying to determine is if they have, like they&#8217;ve explicitly set an OG image that has this extra value in it.</p>



<p>Yeah, so they&#8217;ve got two two, oops. Oh, that&#8217;s fine. I&#8217;m sure the first one just gets sucked in</p>



<p>the article.</p>



<p>Yeah, I, so we&#8217;ll do a little research. We&#8217;ll find one of these, find a good example of this, and then see if we can&#8217;t decipher, you know, and or, um, do some more Googling to find out a, you know, when and what is what, when, and why does Google pull in an image in their actual search results? And, and not others.</p>



<p>You know, is it, is it just an OG image and they&#8217;re cropping? It, is it, is there some other tag we don&#8217;t know about,</p>



<p>but I&#8217;m, I&#8217;m anxious to get. This like when the first couple of templates done and out the door and in front of people, because I think it&#8217;s, you know, kind of like how your brain has said, oh, but what about this? And then, oh, I found this other thing over here. Like, it&#8217;s also, you know, but we started with, here&#8217;s what post status is.</p>



<p>Branding already looks like we want recreate that as a starting point. Um, other people are gonna come to us. Vva from FIUs and Sayed from WP Beginner and whoever are gonna be like, okay, but you know, we need a way to accommodate our, our branding or the way the treatments we&#8217;ve already decided on in Canva if we&#8217;re gonna, you know, because we want our images to be pretty consistent, you know, across all socials forever.</p>



<p>You know, how do we create recreate hours? And it&#8217;s like, oh, okay, so we need the option to do background treatments or turn the whole thing 90 degrees, whatever. It&#8217;s, you know.</p>



<p>Yep. But that means that one Corey needs to finish the thing once and for all, and then two. Yeah, we wanna start getting the, the marketing asset aspects, assets out there, um, shopping cart finalized and stuff like that. Cuz it&#8217;s like, even if we get some beta testers, um, and we give them licenses or let them sign up for free or discount or something, you know, first year free, whatever it is, like we wanna get that sorted out.</p>



<p>[00:48:30] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> Started with that yesterday and we didn&#8217;t need it. Didn&#8217;t get it finished. So I&#8217;ve got my screen up here where I started it, the logo, and then the website is part two. Uh, going back&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:48:43] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> to pause, squeeze, I started, um, flushing out just putting rectangles on a page for the homepage of O M G I M g.co. So it&#8217;s quite literally just boxes of color, but ready to have, [00:49:00] um, content float into it.</p>



<p>Okay. All right. I&#8217;m gonna try to&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:49:08] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> carve off some time. Gotta get the logo going in process and then, uh, the website stuff. So&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:49:16] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> I think, yeah, it&#8217;s like I&#8217;m, I think standard, standard formula, you know, compelling tagline, value prop, a buy now button, you know, three icons with. With compelling value, props good enough.</p>



<p>I mean, that&#8217;s all we need to start, so,</p>



<p>okay. Yeah. If&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:49:45] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> I have an hour, um, I can get that cranked, cranked enough to start flushing out our page.</p>



<p>[00:49:57] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Simpler is better. So, you know, feel free to delete or [00:50:00] hide rows. Like yeah, but just enough that we, it looks like something, um, like&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:50:08] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> here a box headline, what it does for you, how benefits you, three things show up in social.</p>



<p>Yeah. And then features are like the nuts and bolts things and Yeah. Pricing. Yep. Yep.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:50:31] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> And yeah, and I&#8217;ve been waiting to do, like, there&#8217;s, there&#8217;s, at this point I&#8217;ve used e d D enough that I&#8217;ve got standard styles that I copy from site to site and ways to set up, like being able to sign in and manage your subscription kind of thing.</p>



<p>Um, obviously they make it very easy, but I have a way that I like to lay things out. Um, but I&#8217;ve been waiting to do that. We, we need a logo, which helps us define a style and colors. To then carry that throughout the rest of the site. So our branding is somewhat consistent. So I&#8217;ve, I&#8217;ve been holding off on that.</p>



<p>Um, you know, but all that takes an afternoon once we&#8217;ve got, yeah. The general look and feel</p>



<p>back in our&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:51:16] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> conversation to, uh, put into there, do we want to go, I know we talked about this in Slack. Do we want to go with a. The eighties funky thought.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:51:32] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> I, I mean, because of the OMG part, like I definitely think we want something fun. Um, but I don&#8217;t have any religion around how the rest of it, since I&#8217;m not creating the logo, like I&#8217;d rather.</p>



<p>Anybody grabs, whatever, whatever comes to their mind, like, that&#8217;s why we pay them. It&#8217;s like when I get on Fiver, I hire five people to do logos because I&#8217;m, I&#8217;m honestly paying them, not so much to create a logo, but to apply their own thinking to, you know, here&#8217;s a, here&#8217;s the color palette that, that jumps out at me when you tell me what the, the product does kind of thing.</p>



<p>So</p>



<p>idea is,</p>



<p>[00:52:23] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> It&#8217;s kind of almost like a Mac app. You know, you&#8217;re, it&#8217;s the thing that&#8217;s solid that helps you look, look good and do things faster. Yep. Um, with images, Paula Showcase, I&#8217;m looking at some of these icons in my tray&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:52:44] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> here.</p>



<p>Yeah, I started walking through, um, uh, product hunt, uh, um, featured, uh, uh, what was it? Make logo.ai. And I started plugging things in to kind of, and they, they want to charge you for the actual logos, but it was kind of neat that they came up, they present you with a bunch of concepts and so it was like, um, A magic wand over an image.</p>



<p>So it&#8217;s like image generation or, um, cuz I, in the description I put in sharing and I put in, um, open graph image, you know, image generation. And so it was like, you know, do you want. Uh, a canvas or the, you know, the, the thing that the artist uses to put the paint on, um, the palette. I was like, eh, you know, do you want a magic wand to poof, an image appears?</p>



<p>Eh, that&#8217;s getting closer cuz I want it to be that easy. You know? Do you want an icon of, they had one that was like, um, you know, a picture like a. A fake painting that had people all around it, like, you&#8217;re sharing that? I was like, no, definitely not. That&#8217;s terrible. You know, so it&#8217;s like these concepts of, um, of what we want, want it to represent.</p>



<p>To me it&#8217;s image generation, because that&#8217;s part of, that&#8217;s the, if you&#8217;ve got a workflow in the middle, you know, you&#8217;ve gotta write words, but you&#8217;ve also gotta generate images. And to me, that&#8217;s the problem we&#8217;re solving. But that&#8217;s also, that&#8217;s, that&#8217;s feature not benefit. Yeah. I,&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:54:36] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> I&#8217;m looking to pro probably kind to get some thoughts here to put into the designer.</p>



<p>Okay. I think I&#8217;ve got enough here. I&#8217;ll riff on. Cool.</p>



<p>Okay.[00:55:00]&nbsp;</p>



<p>All right,&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:55:00] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> man. I, I just need a logo that looks really good because I&#8217;m gonna have a t-shirt made for Word camp us.&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:55:06] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> Yeah. Oh, that, that&#8217;s even better. Um,</p>



<p>it&#8217;s almost like, huh? Okay. How would we want that to lick on the shirt?&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:55:19] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> That actually helps me frame it to me, to me again, because of. Because of the OMG in the name, and we talked about going all, all caps, it&#8217;s like not a rainbow, but gradient of bright colors, you know, big fun font. Like I don&#8217;t want it to be goofy.</p>



<p>I don&#8217;t want it to be clown like, um, and that&#8217;s why I guess I&#8217;m shying away too from. Um, actually your, your MAC icons concept is, is a good idea of like, over to me. A lot of them are overwrought, three-dimensional, big drop shadow kind of thing, and it&#8217;s like, eh, I want, I want something, you know, more fun than that.</p>



<p>Like if you, if you were gonna have a magic wand, like you&#8217;d want a bend in it, you&#8217;d want it to be almost cartoon-like or something. But then it&#8217;s, but then it&#8217;s not professional enough, so I don&#8217;t know. I don&#8217;t know. Uh,</p>



<p>it has to, it has to look good on your baseball cap there and it&#8217;s gotta go look good on my chest here. Yeah.</p>



<p>The swag is more important than anything, let&#8217;s be honest. It is&nbsp;</p>



<p>[00:56:45] <strong>Cory Miler:</strong> a good frame for me though, is like, how would that pop and how would we want that to look?</p>



<p>[00:56:54] <strong>Corey Maass:</strong> Yeah.</p>



<p>All right. Let&#8217;s be done today. Um, I should have an update for you soon this week. Um, addressing all the, um, the bugs and extra bells and whistles that we talked about. Um, And in particular, I want to, like we said, I want to cut everything over to we&#8217;ve, we&#8217;ve got the sitewide handled, we need the post per post handled, like you said today.</p>



<p>Um, and then plug in a logo, plug in a little, uh, style once we&#8217;ve got a style defined and then the plug-ins, I think ready to share. So that&#8217;ll be cool.</p>



<p>Okay. Cool, man. Keep me posted. All right. Well thank.</p>
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