Sometimes you don’t want the most recent blog posts to be the highlight of your web site. The typical blog aggregate page works well on our custom home blog, because we’re highlighting the construction process and the progress is marked by the current phase. But your site may be best suited to feature something else.
Some examples:
- On this site, for example, I create blogging tips and blog tutorials for my clients. But when someone arrives at the home page, the featured item they see is the service we provide for those who want to start blogging.
- An engineering company uses a blog to keep customers updated on firmware updates, new products, and promotions, but features it’s LonTalk router on the home landing page.
- A Utah County community theater uses a blog post for all it’s changing information (new shows, auditions, etc.), but wants to keep the currently playing production front and center, so theater goers can easily find out the details.
If you site is best suited to have a static landing page to feature your products or services on the home page, with a regularly updated blog on a back page, this tutorial is for you. Follow this step-by-step tutorial to create a static landing page in WordPress with the Thesis theme.
Login into the WordPress dashboard area.
Create a new WordPress page for your new landing page. Enter the info you’d like. Publish your page.
Create a new WordPress page that will be used as the blog aggregate page (typically seen as the home page in blogs, with most recent post listed first). Publish your page. [This step is optional if you're going to use this as a static site without blog entries.]
Click Settings>Reading in the left navbar.
Click the radio button Front page displays>A static page.
Select your landing page from the Front page popup menu.
Select your blog aggregate to appear on (if any), from the Posts page popup menu.
Click Save Changes.
Click Thesis Options>Thesis Options in the left navbar.
Expand Navigation Menu>Select pages to include in nav menu by clicking the + on the right side.
Uncheck the box next to your landing page name.
Check the box next to your blog page name.
Now you have a static landing page on the home page of your site and a blog aggregate page on a less prominent page.
{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }
It can be done in any themes..but thesis can also use for building sales page. howtomakemyblog dot com has a great tutorial on this
Absolutely it can, Fazreen. These tutorials are written for my clients who all use the Thesis theme, so I wrote it specifically with that theme’s menus and customization pages in mind.
And it make that we can create site instead blog from wordpress.
Dana @ Blogging Update´s last blog ..How To Uninstall WordPress Blog Manually
Dana, you lost me on that one.
Hi Alison., I don’t use the thesis theme but I’m sure many of our members at blog engage will benefit form this.
Thanks for sharing and posting it.
bbrian017´s last blog ..Blogging back to basics
I definitely hear what you are saying about the static landing pages. One more popular application of the static landing page is that you can have it be the “About Me” page of your blog.
This way, people will know what your blog is all about right off the bat. This will make the reading experience much more enjoyable for them.
I bounce back and forth over this concept depending on what my current post is about. With only a few blogs up and running (am a newbie to this world), I guess I should be more specific with a static home page on a couple blogs.
Thanks Alison
Lisa´s last blog ..Spring Has Sprung, Almost
Lisa, if the blog itself is the feature of your site, I’d leave the aggregate page up front. But if the blog is an addendum, a sideline, an addition (like it is for this site), then think about creating a great splash page for the front. Either way, it’s a good idea to have an easy way for folks to identify what your site is about, if the URL/title/header don’t make it completely obvious.
Thanks for commenting!
Thanks for the great tutorial!
Debbie Lattuga´s last blog ..Polar F11 | Video Review
Debbie, thank you. I’m glad it was helpful!
I think I first read about this on Joost’s blog and it makes perfect sense. Your blog money pages should always be in the same place (structurally speaking) within your blog.
Being a big fan of Thesis I can only say, Good work Alison
Leo´s last blog ..Accountancy website design ? Now we can help!
Leo, thanks for your input and your kind words. I’m obviously a big Thesis fan, but I’m a Joost fan, too. He always has insightful posts and information.
Great article – thanks! I just bought thesis theme and am in the process of making a video opt in page.
I am copying and pasting bits of code I find here and there to get what I want. Do you have any suggestions for good resources? I’m not afraid to learn, but also don’t want to spin my wheels.
Thanks!
Cheri´s last blog ..Today’s Going To Be A Great Day!
Cheri, I’m afraid the question is so broad that I’m not sure where to start! What specific resources are you looking for?
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