Wordpress: Static front page or loop?

by dclodge

Posted: 16 years ago 18 replies

INTERNET MARKETING

Okay, I have to admit that Wordpress is growing on me - when you are used to doing everything by hand, it's hard to let the program take over!

I know there are a ton of WP sites out there. What is the recommendation in regards to the front page?

Is it better to have a static front page so visitors see the same thing each time they visit and navigate from there (splash page-ish i guess you would say)

OR

is it better to just leave things alone and go with the loop that generates a list of recent articles.

Dean

#front #loop #page #static #wordpress

Anna Thomas 16 years ago

Hi Dean,

I personally don't do splash pages. If you look at some of the most popular blog sites out there, you will see that they just jump right in with articles.

My opinion is that a splash page is just a roadblock that keeps people from your content, which is what will keep them at your site, and coming back for more!

Hope that makes sense!
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Kael41 16 years ago

I use a hybrid approach. Top half of the page is static..bottom half has new content.
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- 1 reply
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- dclodge 16 years ago
  
  Originally Posted by Kael41
  
  I use a hybrid approach. Top half of the page is static..bottom half has new content.
  
  Half and half? Is that possible with Wordpress?
  
  Thanks
  
  Signature
  MyLast5Dollars.Com - Internet Marketing For The Rest Of Us
  
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Mike Bogowski 16 years ago

It all depends on the purpose of your site...

I have some review sites that have lots of content but I keep the front page as a static review of the product because that what Im trying to push. The rest of the content is just to help with rankings.

If your site is a blog then id go straight in with the loop, keep the homepage fresh.

Hope this helps
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- dclodge 16 years ago
  
  Thanks for the input. I guess if there were postings I wanted to be "static" while the whole site was looped, I could add tabs or something at the top.
  
  Dean
  
  Thanks
  
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  Ouroboros 16 years ago
  
  A blog platform such as WordPress is a versatile platform that can be used in a lot of different ways. Some promotions lend themselves to static pages with posts as a fill-in and some are better approached as a blogging platform with constant updates.
  
  As always, it will depend on your niche and your readership. As I see it, Wordpress has three (or more) levels of heirarchy. They are Categories, Pages (and child pages), and Posts.
  
  You have to decide what you want to do with the platform. And when you figure it out, post it so the rest of us can figure it out!
  
  Steve
  
  Thanks
  
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xlfutur1

16 years ago

I like to have a static page as the home page so it does not look like a blog, but then have the new posts show up in the menu as "articles" or "questions/answers" or whatever. I'm using wordpress now as a minisite platform for specific products. Works really well and with the right plugins a site can be put together in 1-2 hours. then you just add to it every day, or a few times a week with blog posts. Every time that happens, the search engines are notified.

Thanks
1 reply

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Quentin

16 years ago

It all really depends on what you are doing.

For example when selling a product etc then a static page is best.

Example: MP3 Sound Stream Streaming Audio made Easy

When providing more ongoing content then a blog style is better

Example: Photoshop Tutorials and Downloads

Work out your audience and delivery first then pick your style.

Quentin

Thanks
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abelacts

16 years ago

Originally Posted by Quentin

Ditto.

If I use blog for the purpose "selling" a product, I will use static page as front page. See my PLR site in my signature.

If I use it as content site, the front page will show the latest article.

Again, it depends on the purpose of the site. Wordpress is nothing more than just another publishing tool to help us achieve our objectives (making money!?).

Thanks
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David_Thompson 16 years ago

I agree with Quentin on this one it really depends on what type of site
your are setting up, if you are selling a static page is good but if you
are delivering content the a CMS style is better but again it depends
on your market and what they want.

--David
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Monetize 16 years ago

If you are going to use the blog format, unless you plan to
update often, please remove the time/date function. I hate
encountering WP sites that haven't been touched since the
beginning of time.
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clbnc 16 years ago

Heh, this is the exact question that I was mulling over as I get ready to dedicate more time and effort to IM.

I thinks I will need more time with my site to see if a static front page is better than the post loop.
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edynas Banned 16 years ago

If you put a file called home.php in your theme directory it will serve as your frontpage. Next what you insert in that file is totally up to you and you can take fi parts of the loop (showing only the x last post(s)) and mix that with static parts.

I like to take wordpress and turn it into an affiliate shop site like fi Kayak Shop | and I really like the magazine style themes like wp-remix.com , revolutiontheme.com, woothemes.com etc

Most people use wp as a blog platform...but it's imho more a cms. As an internet marketer I love wp because of it's loveaffair with Google. I used to build sites myself too (hardcore with notepad) but those were liked...wp seems to be like a hot babe to big G. when you give it a tiny bit of make-up (plugins like all in one seo, permalinks etc)
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Joe721 16 years ago

I just use a short sticky post, only one, as the first thing people see just before regular posts. This is by way of a welcome message with an announcement that I need people to see.
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clbnc 16 years ago

Sticky post? Is this a plugin, or hidden setting that I am not aware of?
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Joe721 16 years ago

Here you go, very useful, I believe WP will actually incorporate this soon:

WP-Sticky 1.31
PHP Programming Portfolio | lesterchan.net
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- clbnc 16 years ago
  
  Originally Posted by Joe721
  
  Here you go, very useful, I believe WP will actually incorporate this soon:
  
  WP-Sticky 1.31
  PHP Programming Portfolio | lesterchan.net
  
  Thanks.
  
  Thanks
  
  1 reply
  
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  JohnMcCabe 16 years ago
  
  Most of the time I go with the hybrid approach.
  
  The front page gets an opt-in box right in the hot spot (center column, above the fold). Below that is a box I use to draw attention to whatever I want. Alternatively, I'll put in a list of the categories with links and short descriptions - this lets me add related keywords on the front page.
  
  Last, I have a list of recent posts, maybe a news feed or recent comments, maybe an ad block of some kind. Some type of frequently updated content to keep the page fresh.
  
  As others have said, it all depends on what you are trying to accomplish...
  
  Thanks
  
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Wordpress: Static front page or loop?

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