12 Useful Twitter Hacks and Snippets For WordPress

Everybody loves twittering these days. Don’t believe me? The statistics should make you a believer. As of 2012, Twitter had 500 million active users! The 140 character post social media platform is ruling the world, second only to Facebook. Considering the huge number of Twitter users, people are using Twitter options like plugins and add-ons on more and more websites.

These plugins and add-ons can have varied uses and applications. For example, some commenting systems like Discus allow you to post a comment with your Twitter picture being displayed in the comment as your Avatar. This helps you not to upload your display picture again and again whenever you want to comment and hence saves a lot of time. See entry #3 below for more on this.

Or maybe you want your blog posts’ links to become tiny so that your readers may share them on Twitter. As we all know…Twitter has a 140 character limit. Under such a constraint it is not a wise practice to share large URLs on Twitter as you will want some room to type out some text relevant to the link in your tweets to tell your followers about what you are sharing. Option #7 below enables you to achieve this.

There are 10 other options below that combine the technology of WordPress and Twitter to produce great results. Check them out by scrolling down.

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25 Helpful Twitter Plugins for WordPress 2013

Twitter is one of the most visited social networking platforms on the planet. WordPress is one of the most widely used blogging platforms. When the two meet, you can expect beautiful things to happen.

Below we present you with 25 helpful Twitter plugins for WordPress – Plugins can make your WordPress site do virtually anything.

Here’s an example of what you can achieve with one of these Twitter Plugins for WordPress.

It is a common habit nowadays that people sign into their Facebook, Twitter, and Gmail accounts when they start their computer, and after checking their accounts they typically close all these web pages but do not sign out of their accounts. Instead they go on to work on new web pages and they occasionally return to their accounts to check any latest updates. Now there is a plugin named “Simple Twitter Connect”, no. 5 below in this list, which enables you to log into your WordPress dashboard through your Twitter profile. Once you install the plugin and sync everything then you can login to your WordPress dashboard with your Twitter account. If you have the habit of being logged into your Twitter account all the time then you can log into WordPress by just a click of the button – you will just have to hit the “Sign in with Twitter” button and you will be in.

This is just one example of the power of the Twitter Plugins presented below. Scroll down for more info on these wonderful Plugins for 2012 – 2013.

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7 Stunningly Creative WordPress Themes for 2012

1. Creative Skeleton Responsive WordPress Theme

Attention Creatives! Looking for a colorful and creative theme to match your sense of creativity? If you are, then take a look at Creative Skeleton, a responsive portfolio style theme that will satisfy your colorful and artistic side. Creative Skeleton gives you several portfolio layout styles and two unique single portfolio layouts (Pile and HoverScroll) to choose from. Pile stacks your images on top of each other and brings each one to the forefront once you click on it while HoverScroll works like a carousel of images that scroll left or right when you hover on the directional arrows. All these layout configurations give you maximum flexibility to create the look and style of your online portfolio just the way you want.

Creative Skeleton Theme: $35 | Demo & Download

2. Melrose Responsive Portfolio WordPress Theme

Dramatic in white and even more dramatic in black – with a myriad of accent colors to choose from – that’s Melrose Premium WordPress Theme for you. Melrose is an impressive and professional looking WordPress theme for the serious creative agency. It’s the perfect backdrop to house an equally impressive portfolio. The design elements are amazingly well-thought out and the features included will surely make you feel like you’ve bought everything in a candy store. This easy to work with, beautiful and flexible theme will definitely create a lasting impact on your visitors and eventually on your site’s conversion statistics.

Melrose Theme: $50 | Demo & Download

3. Vitrux Responsive Fullscreen Portfolio WP Theme

Creative Agencies and Multimedia Professionals will love Vitrux Premium WordPress Theme. Many portfolio themes include full screen portfolios on the homepage but not all of them offer full screen sliders with audio and full-screen videos as alternatives. This is what sets this portfolio style theme apart from the rest. Not only that, you also have a variety of Gallery presentation options to choose from. If you’ve amassed a large body of creative work in different multimedia formats and you want to give each project the exposure that each portfolio item deserves, check out Vitrux Premium WordPress Theme. It just might be the portfolio theme you need.

Vitrux Theme: $45 | Demo & Download

4. Fashionista Responsive WordPress Blog Theme

Tired of your boring blog layout and want something fresh? Why not check out Fashionista Premium WordPress Theme, a blog style WordPress theme that’s meant for bloggers but can also be used for other purposes. Pinterest-styled themes are the latest trends today and their popularity is still on the rise. Fashionista is not strictly Pinterest but uses an Isotope Masonry plugin that mimics the Pinterest look. What is interesting about this layout style is that every post is accessible and available to the visitor. This means that posts and articles are not buried in the archives where they may be forgotten – out of sight, out of mind. For bloggers, this ensures that every post gets equal exposure and importance on the homepage. Check out Fashionista Premium WordPress Theme and bring your blog style up to date today.

Fashionista Theme: $40 | Demo & Download

5. Point Break Responsive Agency Theme

Point Break Premium WordPress Theme is a responsive portfolio theme and the sixth of the Super Skeleton Themes released by Epicera. This theme is more than just a WordPress theme because it also functions as a comprehensive HTML5 framework and a templating system as well. It’s an innovative way to creating and customizing themes and it’s primarily designed “for users, not geeks.” It’s innovative and definitely worth looking at especially if you want something that will be flexible enough to withstand the next WordPress update.

Point Break Theme: $45 | Demo & Download

6. Unique: Customizable WordPress Magazine Theme

What’s so unique about Unique? We included Unique Premium WordPress Theme in our list because of the guy behind it – Justin Tadlock. This premium magazine-style WordPress theme is Justin’s first foray into ThemeForest and is part of his experiment to “improve” ThemeForest from within, with the goal of getting as many authors to adhere to WordPress coding standards and practices. Unique may not stand out as far as “looks” are concerned but its creativity lies under the hood. It’s back to good old code and just enough cool features without going overboard with the bells and whistles. Check out Unique today.

Unique Theme: $40 | Demo & Download

7. Creative Portfolio Business WordPress Theme by Gavick

You have to see Creative Portfolio Premium WordPress Theme by Gavick in action to see what it does. This uniquely creative premium WordPress theme with parallax scrolling effect is surely going to catch the attention of your visitors and create a lasting impression. If you want to start your website with a bang or re-launch an old site with an ultra new look, then you need to check out Creative Premium WordPress Theme by Gavick. The experience will definitely be unforgettable.

Creative Theme: $99 | Demo & Download

3 Top Photography Templates for WordPress

Check out some of the latest photography templates in the WordPress market today:

The Folio Elements WordPress Theme by Press75

Folio Elements Premium WordPress Theme is a video/photography theme that would be great for photographers who simply want to create an online gallery of their photos and videos using WordPress. Folio Elements is a fun and fresh theme. This is not a cookie cutter theme and it is a departure from the typical photo/video theme but its design and code quality cannot be dismissed. This responsive WordPress theme is translation ready and is also a fully responsive theme which means that your site & photos will look amazing on any device. It is always refreshing to see something different in the WP themes market. Jason Schuller’s avant garde approach to design is evident in all his themes (this one included) and is always a welcome intermission to the regular programming.

Folio Elements Theme: $75 | Demo & Download

MediaBook Multimedia WordPress Theme from ThemeForest

MediaBook Premium WordPress Theme is a wonderful and unique theme that can be used by photographers and creative professionals. If you need a theme that combines Minimalism and Focus/Simplicity and Function into one, then MediaBook is an excellent solution for you. If you’ve had big, flashy, slider overload, MediaBook is a sight for sore eyes. This easy to setup premium WordPress theme delivers the goods straight to the point. Some of the key features of this theme are: Dynamic Content Loading, Global Loop Showcase System, accepts Multimedia Content, can be configured as a Blog or as a Single Page site, and the Gallery can be color customized if you prefer to. If you want to try something different and fresh, check out MediaBook today.

MediaBook Theme: $40 | Demo & Download

Photographer Theme by Organic Themes

Are you a professional photographer looking for a complete online solution for your photography business? Would you like to be able to do more than just showcase your photographic skills and portfolio on your website and be able to sell your prints as well? If that is you, then take a look at this fully responsive WordPress theme from Organic themes simply named Photographer Theme. Not only can you showcase your images and multiple portfolios in a professional manner, you also can take advantage of the built-in WooCommerce functionalities to sell turning your simple online gallery into a full-blown money making site as well. Most photography templates are simply online galleries to display images. With Photographer Theme, not only do you have full control of your images, you also have full control over your earnings as well. Check out Photographer Theme by Organic Themes today.

Photographer Theme: $69 | Demo & Download

5 Best Ecommerce Themes for October 2012

The holidays are almost here and what better way to spruce up your website than with some great eCommerce themes to improve the look and function of your e-store. Here’s a rundown of some of the best eCommerce themes to get you ready for holiday shoppers:

1. Sold! Responsive/E-Commerce Theme

Sold! Premium WordPress Theme is an excellent mix of style and function. The clean, white space design does not distract and serves as the perfect backdrop to highlight choice merchandise. Sold has a beautiful slider where you can put your most interesting items on sale. You can even define points on the slide where you can add comments or even zoom images ala Flickr. This is perfect for highlighting detail on specific points of the product. Sold! uses two of the most powerful plugins – WooCommerce and Jigoshop – making it an effective eCommerce solution. Its multi-lingual capability, responsive features and easy customizability enables your store to service both local and global market.

Sold! Theme: $55 | Demo & Download

2. Mercor Responsive WooCommerce WordPress Theme

Another interesting theme worth mentioning is Mercor. Mercor Premium WordPress Theme gives you the look and feel of a department store or supermarket weekly catalogue. This responsive theme’s clean, fresh layout and white space styling creates an uncluttered look that’s easy on the eye even if there are numerous images and texts on the page. Mercor has a dynamic Nivo homepage slider to highlight store specials or to announce store events and sales. Mercor is fully responsive and uses WooCommerce to power e-commerce transactions. This powerful feature combination makes your site current, competitive and able to address the emerging mobile shoppers market.

Mercor Theme: $55 | Demo & Download

3. Intrigue Premium WordPress Theme

This latest eCommerce theme from CSSIgniter is bold and eye-catching. Intrigue Premium WordPress Theme is a responsive eCommerce theme that combines the power of WooCommerce and CSSIgniter’s straightforward theme design. This means that setting up a powerful eCommerce site need not be a complicated and tedious task to accomplish. With Intrigue, you can use a plethora of widgets to create the functionality you require. This theme comes out of the box in a hot red and black color scheme but you can also choose from the available 7 color schemes to create the look most appropriate to your market. Intrigue Premium WordPress Theme is not over the top and includes just the right amount of features and functionalities for whatever you need.

Intrigue Theme: $39 | Demo & Download

4. Mearishop – Clean Responsive E-Commerce Theme

Mearishop Premium WordPress Theme is a great eCommerce solution that’s edgy and modern. The Lookbook-ish appeal makes it a perfect match for a fashion and accessories store. Customers can check out the portfolio or lookbook pages to determine the style that best suits them. Mearishop uses the powerful Hana panel combined with WooCommerce functionality to give you the power to control almost every aspect of the theme. With tons of options available, this features makes this responsive theme perfect for both WP noobs and experienced developers to use. Choose from unlimited color options, 7 backgrounds and 34 patterns to define your custom look. You can even upload your background image. With 7 sliders to choose from, Mearishop gives you the options you to reach your target market in style.

Mearishop Theme: $55 | Demo & Download

5. Xing Business/eCommerce WordPress Theme

Xing Premium WordPress Theme is a modern and clean theme designed to meet the eCommerce needs of both small and large scale business alike. Xing is primarily an eCommerce theme but it is also flexible enough to be used for creative portfolios or for magazine/editorial blog type websites. Xing uses several jQuery powered features like the Flexslider and the jQuery Product Carousels(for WooCommerce recent/featured products). This highly customizable and responsive theme gives you tons of options to create the look you want. Xing is not wanting in anything – from shortcodes, to custom post formats, to custom widgets, to 8 portfolio layouts, to social sharing features and other features and functionalities to help you to create and customize your eCommerce site. Check out Xing today.

Xing Theme: $55 | Demo & Download

Keep your eyes peeled for more WordPress holiday roundups in the next few weeks!

15 Sensational Mobile WordPress Themes

 

According to a survey I came across a few months back, the number of people who use a smartphone is larger than the number of people who use a toothbrush! This means that if your website is not mobile phone friendly then you are missing on on a lot of visitors. Some people feel that if the number of people who surf the Internet on smartphones is A and the number of people who use the Internet from their computer is B then the total number of Internet users is A + B. Wrong!

A lot of people browse the Internet on their smartphones only when they can’t access it via a computer for e.g. while travelling in a car, train or bus etc. This means that there is a big overlap between A and B. A major portion of smartphone browsers is a subset of computer browsers. So what does this has to do with your website? A lot. If you ensure that your site is easily accessible to smartphones then the number of page impressions your site gets can dramatically increase as the same people who were visiting your site via their computers can visit it even when they are…say…travelling.

Below we have collected 15 beautiful WordPress themes designed specifically for mobile phones. Some are free and some cost a nominal amount. Check them out and see which ones work best for you! NOTE: A post on great Responsive WordPress Themes for 2013 is coming soon!
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25 Very Useful WordPress Calendar Plugins for 2013

Time management is one of the biggest problems faced by business owners be they digital business or brick and mortar. There are too many things to do and when you do one thing you obviously can’t do something else (MBA programs call this the “opportunity cost”). Therefore, to manage your time properly and make the most out of the few working hours that exist each day, you must find the best tools to help you manage your time properly. Enter digital calendars.

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Elegant Themes Shortcodes: Now Responsive!

With the advent of mobile platforms, WordPress themes have to adapt to the demands of this steadily growing user base. It can really be quite frustrating to read articles from any major newspaper’s website on iPhone or Android and get all the content mish mashed. Theme developers and web designers need to move more and more toward this emerging trend towards responsive themes.

It is a welcome development that Elegant Themes recently released its responsive shortcodes. While Elegant Themes has been churning out responsive themes for quite a while, the shortcodes were left out. It took 10 responsive themes before mobile friendly shortcodes were released. Great news, indeed!

So how do these new shortcodes, improve mobile browsing experience? Elegant Themes’ blog cites two examples of their improvement strategy. Tabs have always been an issue when websites typically viewed on a 960px wide screen to a 320px width. No matter what you do, having 10 tabs will alway come out cramped. Solution: Tabs turn into a slider when switching to mobile mode. It just makes sense to have sliders rather than have unreadable tab labels. Another example cited was the case of columns. As the content width gets narrower, text in columns become a bunch of flying letters. Solution: the new shortcodes convert columns into boxes when switching to mobile screens. Brilliant isn’t it? Regarding the new shortcodes, Elegant Themes has declared them to be fluid width giving them the capacity to shrink and expand according to screen size.

Web design and the emerging technology innovation and trends are accelerating even faster. More and more mobile users prefer to access the web through their devices and WordPress Themes providers need to step up their game. For loyal subscribers of Elegant Themes, these concrete steps towards updating and upgrading all Elegant Themes products is always welcome and appreciated.

Congratulations to Elegant Themes for taking WordPress theme development one step further and fully embracing the future of WordPress.

See Elegant Themes’ Responsive Shortcodes

30 Stunning Ecommerce Shopping Website Designs

Ecommerce is one such thing which doesn’t need any introduction. Especially in this century we can say it’s on fire with the innovations and new ventures coming in. Gone are those days where Amazon and eBay are the only destinations for online shopping. One such industry that benefitted from this whole scenario is definitely web design and development. They received an immense number of new opportunities. Small groups and freelances also received a good amount of work in to design themes with the evolution of ecommerce software like Shopify, etc. We tried to collect a few of the best shopping website designs for your inspiration.

These 30 Stunning ecommerce website designs can provide a more enjoyable user experience, and they can also be excellent sources of design inspiration. We hope you enjoy (and get some good ideas).

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