Wordpress Ninja – Altering The Default Text For Protected Posts

While editing PHP is probably over the heads or 99% percent of the readers here, If you really want to become a Wordpress ninja, or just a web design ninja in general, at some point you have to take the leap. I encourage you to open the hood on your Wordpress site, dive in, and get your hands dirty editing the some of the PHP files that make it work. While this will be a stretch for many of you, once you start, you will find that it really isn’t that hard, and it makes your Wordpress site a much more powerful business tool.

First, an important note: BACKUP YOUR SITE before you attempt this!

Here are the steps to take, to back up your Wordpress site:

1. Log in to your Wordpress Dashboard – enter “http://YOUR_BLOG’S_ADDRESS/wp-admin” in your address bar, and enter your username and password.
2. Click the “Manage” tab at the top of the page.
3. Click the “Export” option.
4. Make sure “All Authors” is selected in the “Options” section of the “Export” page.
5. Click the “Download Export File” button at the bottom of the page.
6. Name the exported file and save it to your computer.
7. Using an FTP (I recommend Cyberduck for Mac, or WS FTP for Windows) program, download ALL of the files from your web server, to your computer.
8. Make sure all everything you just downloaded is secure. Preferably, burn them to a DVD or CD and store them offsite. If this isn’t possible, an external hard drive works well too.
9. It might not be a bad idea to back up your MySQL database right now, but that is outside of the scope of this post, and I personally have never done that. If you follow the instructions here, you will have everything you need to restore your site in the event of a major meltdown.

For a great introductory lesson, try making a subtle change to your “functions.php” file. This will add some really great functionality to your blog, and it isn’t hard to do.

Edit some PHP

In my personal blog, www.GarrittHampton.com I talk about a change that I made to my “functions.php” file, to change the text that is displayed for “Protected” wordpress Posts. You can see the results here, http://hampton-family.com/Yvette/?p=161. This was a simple change, that has made a big difference for my site. It has made it much easier for readers to subscribe to my VIP Content, and that means MORE SUBSCRIBERS!

I encourage you to take the time to try this on your own site. I think you will be happy you did.
For Clear Instructions, CLICK HERE.

Don’t forget to visit the Wordpress Support Forums for more great ideas and expert help.