RAJAVANYA SUBRAMANIYAN

Category: WordPress Tips

  • Save Your Site And Sleep By Understanding WordPress Plugin Versions

    The other day, I found some plugins installed by a junior WordPress developer on a LMS membership site I’m building for a client.

    I was scanning through them and found one of them had the version number 0.16.8.

    I immediately disabled it and instructed him never to install such plugins again on a site which is going to be used by thousands of students once it is live.

    How did I know not to use something just by looking at a number?

    I’ll explain in this post.

    WordPress has about 56,888 plugins as of writing this article for the first time.

    You might be surprised to know that a plugin’s code is reviewed only the first time! After that the developer is free to update (or abandon) as they wish.

    So its better that you know a little bit about version numbers and what they mean. This will help you save a lot of your headaches and keep your site safe.

    All plugins have version number in the format X.Y.Z

    The first number X is the major version number. The second number Y is minor version number. The third number Z is patch version number.

    When a plugin is updated with a bug fix or similar small fixes, only the last number is changed.

    When a feature is added, the middle number is changed.

    Usually if the middle or the last number is changed, it means that nothing in your plugin should break. Updating it is not expected to break anything.

    But this isn’t a guarantee by any means and often developers have subjective usage and opinions. Still, it helps avoid a lot of problems to simply even understand these numbers.

    If the first number is changed, then a major set of breaking changes have been done. This usually means the update can break inter-communication with dependent plugins/themes etc.

    So why did I ask him to not use a plugin with a version number like 0.16.8?

    Because if the first number is 0, it usually means its alpha version software. The developer is telling you that it is not ready for production and you can use it at your own risk.

    Usually if you have low-profile, low-risk sites (like a new website with low traffic), then you might want to use it.

    But if you have a site that you depend on for leads / sales regularly you are better off using plugins with minimum version number 2.x.x

    Additionally, I recommend that you use as less plugins as possible, and only those that are recommended by popular and trusted plugins / developers to avoid a site spaghetti.

    Additional Reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Software_versioning

  • Switching WordPress Themes? Avoid Breaking Your Site With This Checklist.

    Over the last few years, I’ve done numerous WordPress website redesigns.

    In every case so far, I’ve helped clients switch to a new WordPress theme. And when you switch to a new WordPress theme, so many parts of your website can break.

    Here is a “WordPress Theme Switch Checklist” you can use to reduce the risk of your WordPress website breaking when doing that.

    • Shortcodes that your existing theme provides.
      • Make a list of shortcodes that your old theme supports.
      • Search for it across your pages, posts and custom post types.
      • Remove or replace it with similar functionality.
    • Scripts
      • This includes everything like Facebook pixel, Google Analytics, Hubspot tracking code etc.
      • Usually it might be inserted inside your theme’s option panel.
      • Re-insert them after you switch to the new theme
      • A better way is to use Google Tag Manager for all your scripts so that there is only one script on your website.
    • Pages created with different page builders
      • Manually check pages created with page builders (like Elementor, Thrive Architect etc.) to see if they render properly in your new theme.
    • Custom CSS or JS from WordPress Customizer panel
      • This is an additional place where your developer(s) might have inserted codes.
      • This has to be done even if you are simply switching to a Child theme.
    • Are you switching from an old theme you bought from ThemeForest?
      • Check for revolution sliders embedded across your site.
      • If you were using Visual Composer (which I advice you to get rid of), you might have to recreate most of your pages
    • WooCommerce generated pages (cart, checkout, thank you etc.)
      • Check if your new theme provides the same WooCommerce template overrides.
    • Take a backup before switching. If your hosting doesn’t support it, use UpdraftPlus plugin. Its free.

    Frequently asked questions about this topic

    How to change WordPress theme on live site?

    Also in some cases, you might change WordPress theme on live site. I don’t recommend that. But you might have constraints where setting up a staging is not possible for you. Then this checklist will help you with damage-control only.

    How to change WordPress theme without losing content?

    The checklist above also helps you change WordPress theme without losing content. Remember that, even if your content disappears it is only temporary. Sometimes content might disappear if you deactivate some plugins. So beware of this. Always have backup and test on staging site before changing theme on a live site.

    I really hope that checklist helps you save some headache!

    Bookmark this page, or print this page so it comes handy when you switch to a new theme on your WordPress website.

  • The 1st Thing I Recommend You Do When Setting a New WordPress Website! (Esp. DIYers, Solopreneurs)

    Just wanted to share this, as I noticed by experience that this is the most common mistake most clients of mine do (and amateur web developers.. and less experienced web designers) …The mistake is that THEY USE LARGE IMAGES. (and this can kill their website’s potential)

    And by the way if you’re using Thrive themes’ themes, viz. – Rise, Minus, Ignition etc.) your chance of making this mistake is prevented in majority (not all) of cases as the theme takes care of resizing.

    But today, we use Thrive themes plugins with a lot of external themes. And no matter how much themes help you, it is not a fail safe.

    And honestly it hurts me to realize how much leads, subscribers, customers, clients and sales people lose out because of this.

    WHY? BECAUSE

    Using large images = using more internet bandwidth
    Using internet bandwidth = Slower load times
    Slower load times = Increased bounce-rate/drop-offs
    Increased drop-offs/bounce-rate = loss of subscribers, leads, sales, readers etc.

    HOW CAN YOU AVOID THIS?

    1. The first things I do immediately after setting up WordPress these days is to install one of the top image compression plugins – ShortPixel or Smush. These plugins take care of massive uploads and also compressing the image. Be careful as they might slightly reduce your image quality in some cases. But you can turn it off in plugin settings.
    2. Second, before uploading images, crop, resize them to the right size manually. Anything above 2048 pixels in width/height should be avoided as much as possible unless in special cases – for e.g. if you have a product zoom feature on your site.
    3. If you use (disclaimer: affiliate link ahead) Siteground to host your website like I do, install SG Optimizer plugin on your WordPress site and enable the image optimization options.

    Question to readers, what are you first steps / default plugin installations when you create your WordPress sites?

  • This Thrive Themes Update/Backup Tip Will Save Your Business $1000 Dollars

    This Thrive Themes Update/Backup Tip Will Save Your Business $1000 Dollars

    Sometimes very very simple tips can save a lot of money and time for you as an online business owner. And this single tip alone can save you several thousand dollars over time. Its related to Thrive themes update and how you should do it.

    I speak this from my experience and my clients, who run successful businesses on WordPress and Thrive themes plugins. I speak this, also from the recent experiences on a facebook group for Thrive themes users who shared their woes.

    Update: Oct 19, 2018. It happened again with their latest 2.1.0 update where they made “just user interface” changes.

     

    Here is the tip – Stop updating your Thrive Themes (and WordPress) plugins mindlessly.

    I know it is advised that plugin updates are “always good”, they have bug fixes and security updates, new features etc.

    All of that is true, except with Thrive Themes (and WordPress in general), it is a bit different.

    So, what has been happening in the past with Thrive themes updates?

    For the last 2-3 years, every time Thrive themes releases a major update, things definitely break and all hell breaks loose. Their forums (now non-existent) get hundreds of bug reports and angry customers.

    I have seen this regularly with my customers too and personal experience.

    Their minor and patch updates are often okay. But still not reliable and can ruin an entire weekend for you because you were trying to fix everything it broke.

    Wait, what are Major, Minor and Patch Updates?

    Every plugin or theme in WordPress (and software in general) has a version number. It kinda looks like this – version 8.4.2.

    The first number is 8 – that is the major version. Second and third numbers are minor and patch versions.

    By definition, major versions can break the internal wirings between your software. But with Thrive themes they even break their own software often. Major versions are the riskiest.

    Patch versions are often the ones which bring in security updates, bug fixes. They are the least risky (aka. relatively safest)

    Minor versions by definition, are in-between, sometimes have new features (but cannot break any functionality on your site).

    Example

    • If your last version is 5.4.1 and you see there is an update for 5.4.2 or 5.4.3, its most likely to be the safest and things can’t break. Again this is only by definition and not guaranteed. Historically Thrive themes have broken things even in patch versions.
    • If you see an update from 5.4.1 to 6.0.0 or more, don’t update immediately. Read their release notes. If that is too hard to understand, do what I explain below and then update.
    • If you see an update from 5.4.1 to 5.5.0, then I usually update it (except for Thrive themes). My recommendation is you do the same.

    So How When Do I Update Thrive Themes Plugins Then?

    The solution is super simple. Just delay updating your plugins.

    When a major version is released, wait for 4-8 weeks. By that time, a lot of minor and patch version would be added as bug fixes and the release gets stable. Lot of early-adopter users are happy to test and help fix buggy software. You can focus on your important business tasks – making content, researching, delivering instead of dealing with broken websites.

    When a minor version is released wait for 2 weeks.

    For patch versions, you can update immediately in most cases. But follow the recommendation below.

    Always Backup Before An Update and Test After An Update

    Does your hosting offer daily backups? If yes, then you are safe in most cases unless you did a lot of work just before you update the plugins. So perhaps update first thing in the morning. Then, if you see things broke, you can immediately restore the previous night’s backup. If not you can setup Updraft Plus.

    Foolproof free backup plan: Install UpdraftPlus – its free and uploads all your backups to Dropbox. Before you update anything, create a backup. The first time setup takes a few minutes. But after that, it takes just 1-click every time to back up your entire site. Also you can schedule it to run automatically regularly.

    Test the updates on Staging site: Not everyone can do this, but web hosts like Siteground (affiliate link), WPEngine, FlyWheel etc. offer 1-click staging sites. You can clone your entire site to a staging site. Then update/test your pages and flows. If everything works fine, then copy the staging back to the live server. This website has been running on Siteground for almost 2 years now. If you are hosting on cheap host like Hostgator, Godaddy, Bluehost, Dreamhost etc, its more likely that its already costing you in speed and reliability. Switch to a better host asap and feel a massive difference in how you operate.

    Have a checklist of pages and important flows to check: After every update, please check your important pages on desktop and mobile. Then check your important lead magnets, sales pages etc. I understand this might seem a bit too much over the top, but it is important to have this regular maintenance routine of checking and testing. Think of it like servicing your car before it stops working. We do this so that it doesn’t break in the middle of your way to the office or a long road trip. And bigger your business is, more the need for this activity.

    Maybe I’m Complaining and Being Too Hard on Thrive Themes.

    I will still continue to use Thrive themes. So will my clients. They have been getting better and releasing new features constantly. I understand the challenges of a growing company and we all love Shane and his team, don’t we? 🙂 They give us great content and help us with our businesses.

    Their products are the cheapest and helped thousands of us to step into online business world.

    So I am just sharing my strategy to err… survive their updates, so that all of you need not waste your time.

    Applies to Other WordPress Plugins and Themes too

    Above points are valid for many other plugins too, esp. in the past I’ve seen WooCommerce updates break sites and few other plugins the same.

    So bottom line – please update your thrive themes plugins and WordPress plugins wisely.