The 6 Basic Principles of Internet Marketing Success

You may have heard the stories before; so and so makes (insert amount) every month from internet marketing.  Although many are vastly inflating their income in order to be perceived as an expert, others truly are making a small fortune each and every month from online earnings.  Let’s be honest, it’s not as easy as some may portray.  If it were, then everyone would be doing it, right?  However, it’s not as complex as astrophysics either.  You don’t have to be born a genius or part of the intellectually elite to earn a living through internet marketing.  Believe it or not, success only boils down to a few basic principles.  Albeit, you have to become really really good at applying these principles in order to garner the type of lifestyle you read about online, it is absolutely attainable for the average joe.  It shouldn’t take a lifetime to learn and you absolutely shouldn’t have to shell out your life savings for courses and techniques by so called “gurus”. 

Principle #1 – This may be counter intuitive to what some others may say, but I believe you should target a niche the you are interested in.  

Some will say this is incorrect and that you should “follow the money niches”, but as long as you know that this niche has a large following, then you should be fine.  Internet marketing has a massive turnover rate because people quit prematurely.  If you are creating a product or producing content in a niche that you strongly enjoy, then you won’t see it as a chore, and will be far more likely to stick with it. 

Principle #2 – Now that you’ve found your niche, it is time to dig deeper.  

You must discover what problems the people within your niche (your target audience) are facing.  For instance, one of the hottest fitness products as of the last decade has been P90x.  Why?  There must fill a need or fix a problem that people must have.  Let’s look at the target audience for answers;

• People want to lose weight and get fit.  P90x offers a method for both.  
• Many people want to workout from the convenience of their own home.  Gyms can be expensive and intrusive.  P90x is a dvd set that allows consumers to workout at home.  
• People want things done quickly.  No one wants to workout for 3 hours a day, so the intensity of the workout must be high.  P90x offers short, intense workouts so consumers can get fit while working out for a shorter duration.  

P90x addresses all of these problems.  So, it’s no wonder it is so successful, it fixes many of the problems that people within the weight loss niche are suffering from.  

Principle #3 – Fix the problem!  

You don’t even need to re-invent the wheel either.  If others have already done it, then do it better.  What can you improve upon.  If you develop a product or service that directly solves the potential consumer’s problem, then they will be more likely to purchase.  Provide something of high value. 

Principle # 4 – Create an enticing offer and present it in a manner in which your target market simply cannot refuse. 

Free bonuses, affordable pricing, or an intense sales video that shows that you identify with the plight of your target market.  You could also make it look cool and edgy like P90x did.  Their commercials make it sound as if the workouts were part of the most intense, groundbreaking, program ever developed by science. 

Principle #5 – Find your vessel and master it.  

How are you going to get your product or service in front of the masses?  After all, no one can purchase it if they don’t see it.  Some prefer blogging, many prefer social media, while others rather take advantage of Youtube.  There is no right or wrong method as long as the eyes of your target audience is on your new brilliantly crafted offer.  It’s important not to be a “flip flopper” and jump from one method to the next.  Instead, focus your efforts on mastering one method and find a way to automate it as best as you can.  If you prefer blogging, hire a writer.  If Facebook is your thing, then find a freelancer to create posts for you.  If making videos works best for your business, then find someone to create videos.  Then you will realize that you suddenly have more time to focus your efforts on other methods. 

Principle #6 – Rinse and Repeat.  

To summarize, you’ve located a niche, discovered a problem, created a product/service to fix that problem, created an offer your niche can’t refuse, and found/automated a vessel in which to get your offer in front of the right people.  Now, the choice is yours.  You can continue to go back and improve each principle, or start from scratch, i.e., find a new niche, new problem, new product, etc. 

Whatever you do, it must be done with vigor and an unrelenting style of focus and hard work.  If you master each of these basic principles, with a work ethic that outmatches your competitors, then you WILL become successful and you WILL attain the life that you’ve always wanted. 

Best Regards,
DWD Solutions
073 996 4696
info@dwdsolutions.co.za
www.dwdsolutions.co.za

Why Responsive Design Support is the Most Important Feature You Can Add To Your Website

Why Responsive Design Support is the Most Important Feature You Can Add To Your Website

Different websites will have different needs and will therefore require different features to be added that are important to the success of those sites. For instance, an Ecommerce site that sells products may need some kind of inventory control feature to ensure that the items listed for sale are actually available and in stock. While critical to the success of an Ecommerce site, this feature would be pointless on a site for an accounting firm that is promoting the services they offer, but not actually selling physical products online. Regardless of a site’s needs, however, one feature that is critical to all sites’ success is mobile-friendliness and responsive design support.

What Is Responsive Web Design?

Responsive web design allows a site’s layout to change as the screen size being used to view that site changes. A wide screen display can receive a site design with multiple columns of content while a small screen can have that same content presented in a single column with text and links that are appropriately sized to be read and used on that smaller display.

So why is responsive web design the most important feature that you can add to your website? Here are 4 key reasons:

1. Supporting the Multi-Device User

We live in a world where our sites are not only being visited by a variety of different devices and screen sizes, but the same customers are returning to our sites at different times using these different devices. This means that, to best support their experience, our sites must work well regardless of which device they may be using at a given time. The same content that they have access to on one devices must be present when they return on other devices to ensure consistency in the information that they are seeking.

If a customer is visiting your site looking for information or using a specific feature, and they return later on a different device but cannot find that same information (perhaps because you decided to not include it on a “mobile-only” version of the site), then you run the very likely risk that that person will simply leave your site and take their business elsewhere. By ensuring consistency of information across all devices, but with a layout and experience suited to each individual screen size, you do your best to support your customers and do not give them any reason to abandon your site halfway through their overall experience.

2. One Site to Rule Them All

It’s hard enough to keep one website updated and relevant. Trying to keep multiple sites up to date and consistent with messaging is even more of a challenge. This is why a responsive website is much preferred over separate websites for desktop displays and mobile phones.

Commonly known as the “mobile-only” approach, this is where your site detects whether or not a visitors is using a mobile device and, if so, send them to a separate, mobile-optimized version of the site. This is problematic for a number of reasons. First off, you now have two sites to keep updated, which means you have just doubled your workload. Second, most “mobile-only” sites feature a small subset of content and features found on the “normal” site version. As we covered in our first point, this content and feature disparity between versions of the site will frustrate multi-device users who expect access to the same information across the various devices they may choose to use to visit your site. If you decide to eliminate some of that content on the mobile version, your audience may decide to eliminate your site from their browsing history.

Having one website to manage and one place to manage that site from will make it easier to keep the site updated. If you build your websites using a platform like the cloud-based Webydo and leverage their Pixel Perfect Responsive Editor, you will be able to centralize all management of that site while still having total control over how that site displays for different screens.

3. Improved Search Engine Rankings

Google has long recommended using responsive web design to support different devices and screen sizes, but the search engine took this recommendation a step further in 2014 when they began adding a “Mobile Friendly” label to websites that used this approach when those sites appeared in a search results page on a mobile device.

While this designation was a nice to have, Google said at the time that they envisioned using mobile-friendliness as a ranking signal in the future. Well, as of April 21st 2015, that came to fruition and Google began rewarding sites that were built responsively for multi-device support.

By rewarding sites that are mobile-friendly, Google is effectively penalizing those that are not, making responsive web design an important factor in SEO (search engine optimization) strategy plans!

4. Future Scalability

One of the best things about a responsive website is that this approach gives you the best chance to support newer devices and screens in the future. Responsive sites are fluid, scaling up or down as needed to best fit the screens being used to access the site. This means that as new devices hit the market with screen sizes unlike what we have seen before, our responsive websites will already be prepared to meet those new devices with a design and experience best suited to whatever screen sizes they throw at us.

In Closing

Every website, regardless of that site’s goals or the audience that it serves, will benefit from a display that works great across different screen sizes and on various devices. By ensuring that responsive web design is feature that you make a priority on all website projects.

Best Regards,
DWD Solutions
+2773 996 4696
info@dwdsolutions.co.za

The Power of Consistency!!

Consistency is a necessary ingredient in success. It’s strange, because most people do not seem to know its true power.

Whenever I start a project there’s that initial excitement that always keeps me going for weeks to sometimes months.

When it wears off things can get rough, that is when you truly want to know you’re doing something you love.

I don’t even want to count the amount of projects I’ve started and given up after the initial steam.

Even when you’re passionate about something, you still have to whip out your discipline to keep going through the dips. When you get through that first valley, the results can sometimes be quite amazing.

How long does it take? That’s a hard question, because there are no set time limits in the universe. You can start a blog about a subject you love, run out of steam after one month – while still loving what you do – and have to just go through the motions for six months before things start picking up.

So often with blogs you lose your initial motivation when you see that no one is reading what you’re writing, but it all comes back as you put in the work and after six months you start seeing hundreds of people coming to appreciate your reading every single day.

The 4 Laws of Consistency

1. Discipline. Having a well-trained discipline muscle comes in handy when you run out of steam, as I said above. You can build your discipline in many ways. A few things I like to do is do any chores that pop into my head, such as taking out the garbage, washing the dishes or whatever else you might think of. Of course, I’m not flawless and often fail to do these things (okay, okay… extremely often ;)), but when you push yourself just a little bit more each time, your discipline muscle grows.

2. Patience. We live in a quick-fix society. I consider myself to be a very impatient man, but I overcome this by figuring out a realistic time-frame for what I can expect with the amount of work I am putting in. It’s hard to arrive at exact answers, but a ballpark figure always helps. For example, if you’re starting a blog in a good niche, you can expect anywhere from 12-24 months until things start happening, if you work hard.

3. Taking Action. Taking action and doing stuff that matters has to be one of the biggest secrets of success. It’s tough and it’s grueling at times, but that is why you want to do something you’re passionate about. If you love what you do, you’ll enjoy the process so much more. Working your ass off in a bank would kill my soul, but working on this blog day and night just gives me more energy, because I know where I’m heading. So don’t just sit on your ass, take action and be consistent!

4. Focus. You have to take action, but you cannot just take random action. It has to be on tasks that matter. Remember the pareto principle? 20% of the tasks you do are responsible for 80% of your success. When it comes to blogs, a few tasks I’m focusing on right now are writing content, making connections and guest posting. Outsource as much as you can so you can focus on the truly important things.

Enjoy the Process

Being unhappy until you reach your goals is a bad way to go through life. That’s why you should focus on having goals that enhance your life right now. It always comes back to doing something you’re passionate about, doesn’t it?

Interesting how that works. Millions of blogs are started all the time and most of them just die a slow death, because people think they can make a quick buck blogging. Being passionate about making more money doesn’t last. Find something that does.

The 4 Effects of Consistency

1. The hockey stick. The funny thing is that progress usually doesn’t happen in a linear fashion, so you might see 100 daily readers on your blog on month 3, but on month 4 something happens and one of your articles goes viral. Now on month 5 you suddenly have 500 readers. It’s the hockey stick effect in action. You never know when it will smack you in the face.

2. Passion. The number one benefit of being consistent has to be being able to follow your passion and even make a living doing it. I’m not one of those people that believe everyone can make a living just following their passion. There’s a lot more to it than that, but I do believe if people work hard – or even partner with someone who knows what they are doing – they can succeed quite brilliantly.

3. Value. The more consistent you are, the more people you reach and the more value you are able to give. My goal is to help and connect with as many individual souls as possible in the coming year. As more and more people read, comment and e-mail me, I feel better and better. It’s an awesome feeling, especially for me since I’ve come from playing soccer to make of money to writing this blog, creating websites and focusing entirely on helping you, the reader, rock your life.

4. Results. We all want results. We want more readers. We want more connections. We want more love. We want more things. And some of us even want more money. There’s nothing wrong with that. We all have our paths to follow. Consistently doing the right things leads to amazing results. How can you know what the right things are? Find someone who’s doing what you want to do and model them.

Hope these points will help you rock your business!!

Best Regards,
DWD Solutions
info@dwdsolutions.co.za
+27 73 996 4696'

www.dwdsolutions.co.za

New Website, Put in Your Comments

This is our new website look. Obviously there will be great staff as we go along and updates regularily. Kindly have a look and share your thoughts or comments.

How Often Should You Update or Rebuild Your Website?

When it comes to updating your business website in a timely manner, the one rule is this: There are no rules. That’s according to Christian Riggs, president of Riggs Creative Group, a user-experience design and website development firm in San Diego. Riggs says that deciding whether to update, redesign or re-engineer your site should depend entirely on your business goals, objectives and economic considerations, rather than on some superficial time frame pulled out of thin air. We asked him to explain.

Q: Why would I redesign the look and feel of my website but not rebuild it?

A: A variety of factors can make a redesign worth considering, but here are several that almost always require an update. You’ve got new branding and colour standards, and you need to make sure your new look extends to your website. Your bounce rates are extremely high, meaning people visit but few convert; a well-thought-out redesign can turn this around. Or your business has grown, and plans call for new products and services; your site’s design may need to reflect that change. Last, your customers complain about your site, claiming that it looks out dated or doesn’t work well.

Q: What developments might require me to reengineer my website from scratch?

A: The most important one is if your current site doesn’t adapt to mobile device screens. Fixing this is an absolute must in today’s mobile-driven world. Another would be if your site was originally built using Flash: Apple’s iPads and iPhones don’t support Flash. That’s reason enough to rebuild, but there’s another reason: Flash can slow your site down.

Anyone in your company should be able to learn and use your content management system (CMS) to update your site. You shouldn’t have to hire a programmer to make simple changes and fixes. Along those same lines of keeping things simple: If your site takes forever to load, you need to reengineer the backend. Nobody puts up with long waits anymore.

Q: Should I invite my customers to be part of the redesign process?

A: Yes! Customer opinion and feedback give you the kind of insights that convert visitors into customers. Start by asking what they think of your proposed design and if it appeals to them. Then ask about the problem they’re looking to solve and if the information they need access to is easy to find in the new design. After you relaunch the site, ask them again if they like it. If they say no, address their concerns through incremental design enhancements, which your new site should allow you to do without starting over.

In short, you want to follow the lead of sites like Apple.com and Amazon.com, which rarely undergo complete facelifts. Instead, their sites evolve over time using an iterative process that results in near invisible refinements that have the bonus of maintaining the user experience that customers know and like.

DWD Solutions
+27 73 996 4696

info@dwdsolutions.co.za

https://www.dwdsolutions.co.za

www.blogger.com/dwdsolutions

www.twitter.com/dwdsolutions

Key Steps To Building Your First Small Business Website!!

A website is a necessity for entrepreneurs, small businesses, home-based businesses, and anybody selling products or services. Regardless of your other marketing methods, enabling potential customers to either find you through a Google search or learn more about you after they've seen your other marketing material is key to creating and developing new customers.

If you're selling online services or products, having a website is obvious. But even if you don't sell anything directly online, the website can serve as an extension of your business card, with information about you, your business, and services offered. Most important, your website should detail your background, experience, and other credentials to give you credibility and give potential customers more confidence when deciding whether or not to deal with you.

Creating a website for your small business can be easier than you think. You can do it yourself if you are so inclined or need to keep costs down, you can get a friend to help, or you can hire a Web developer to do it for you at a modest cost if you use available content management software instead of having a website custom developed for you. Whether you do it yourself or hire someone to do it for you, it will be easier if you understand these steps, which are an important part of the process to create your small business website.

1. Decide the Purpose for Your Website

The first step is to decide what your website is going to do for you. It may be fairly static (i.e., no new content added periodically) and simply provide more information to potential clients about your services and credentials if they want to check you out online. Or, you may want to use it for information about your company and provide articles or information you've written to provide useful information to clients and potential clients. You may even choose to start a blog to interest and engage potential customers as part of your overall social media strategy. Of course, you might also want to sell products and services directly online.

Knowing what you plan on doing with your website is an important first step because it will guide you on how to develop it going forward. Keep in mind, it's not a static thing and even if you start off without online sales, for instance, it can be relatively easy to add that at a later date. Whether you write a blog initially or not, you should consider how you will eventually use your website. At some point you may decide that a blog will be a good way to generate interest and attract visits who will then see your company’s services or product. It's also a great tie-in to other social media techniques you use.

2. Choose Your Web Content Management Software

Based on what you want to do with your website, you have several choices in software. Many of them are even free (open source) with minimal costs for various add-ons. You would probably be surprised at how many websites you visit use one of these solutions, either stock or customized.

E-Commerce 

If your primary purpose is e-commerce, particularly for products, you should select software which is specifically designed for e-commerce. However, if e-commerce is only a small part of your website’s purpose, you can get free or low-cost add-ons that work with the most popular free content management software discussed below, Joomla! and WordPress. For examples of free e-commerce application, visit the following solutions: VirtueMart Magento osCommerce OpenCart

Joomla!

Joomla! is free content management software that gives you a great deal of flexibility; however, as with all similar software, your website will be limited in how it's structured. While to a pure Web developer, this is a constraint they may not like, the templates available for Joomla that affect their visual appearance and functionality are extensive and it is likely you will find one that meets your needs. For live examples of Joomla websites, visit their Community Showcase.

In addition to templates, there are thousands of add-ons which give you a great deal of functionality for your website with no programming and very little effort. In some cases the free version doesn't have as many features as the paid version, so be sure to carefully review the features available.

As a content management system, the idea of Joomla is to avoid needing to code a website from scratch. It also enables very easy changes and updates going forward, something even you could do yourself, with a little assistance on occasion from a Web developer. While it is possible and relatively easy to install and set up Joomla yourself, it will be time consuming, particularly if this is the first time you’ve done it. At the very least, consider finding a Web developer with experience in Joomla who can do it for you.

WordPress

Similar to Joomla, WordPress is an easy-to-use content management system. It also uses templates to give it different looks and add-ins to provide you with additional functionality. A key difference with WordPress is that its core design is as a blog. While you can use it just like Joomla with regular webpages, its main homepage or even a specific page you select can be set up as an easy-to-use blog with all the typical features you see in the ones you might read today.

You can also get many plugins for WordPress that add functionality, just like Joomla. That includes e-commerce, social media, picture galleries, memberships, podcasts, videos, newsletters, and much more. You can browse many of the WordPress plugins at their Plugin Directory or do a Google search for the functions you want. You will probably be surprised at what is available.

As with Joomla, you may want to consider hiring a Web developer to do the initial setup for you at a minimum.

3. Choose a Web Host

Once you decided on your software, you need to choose a Web host, the remote location where your website and related software will be held and made available to visitors. Your choice of website host will depend in part on the software you choose but also on the speed and number of visits you expect to receive. With some companies, you can start off with less expensive but less powerful shared hosting services and, if required, you can step up to faster and more powerful dedicated hosting. This option is something you should consider when choosing a host, even if you start with the least expensive option.

Another consideration, particularly if you are setting up your website yourself, is whether your host provides for automatic installation of your chosen content management software. Most of the popular hosting services will enable you to do this with the click of a button. And in most cases you can use the same host from more than one website. If you are doing it yourself, the host’s support services should be an important consideration. While few, if any, will support the software, the hosting application and related issues can be complicated.

4. Choose a Template and Plugins for Your Website

Once you've chosen your software and decided on a host, you have to start thinking about other features. The first one is the template. With many content management systems, and in particular with Joomla and WordPress, you can pick from hundreds or even thousands of different templates that give your website the look and feel you want. Some templates are fairly generic while others are either themed to a particular type of product or service (with background graphics and other visual elements that reflect the product or service) or have built-in features that may make it attractive for you.

For instance, if you are a real estate agent, you would look for a template that is geared towards selling real estate. This would include a template that might have a relevant background and features that enable you to showcase your listings. Whether you are a consultant, dog groomer, or roofer, you should be able to find a template that meets your requirements.

While free templates are readily available, don't be shy to spend a small amount for a premium template that most closely matches your needs. In some cases, you can get a template for as little as $25 or you may be required to join a “template club” for $65 or so. Regardless, it's a cheap way to get a great template. For an idea of what is available, visit these template sites below. For more, search for “Joomla Templates” or “WordPress Themes” Free WordPress Templates Joomla Resource Directory (template providers).

Beyond templates, you may require additional add-ons to provide functionality for your website that makes it easier to use. Like templates, there are many free ones but sometimes the ones you pay are much better, and are also quite reasonably priced. You can go to both the Joomla and WordPress sites and sort through all the add-ons/plugins that are available. Keep in mind that some of the paid versions are listed on their sites. It's particularly useful to visit Joomla to see what's available since they have a very good system of categorizing. Even if you go with WordPress, at least you can see the kind of functionality that's available and search for something similar for WordPress.

Whether you want to add some easy e-commerce, provide social networking share buttons, incorporate videos, start a podcast, require people to sign up to receive free material or downloads, create a portfolio of your photographs, and even run surveys, polls, or a newsletter, just about anything you can think of is available as an add-on.

5. Organize Your Website

At this stage, you need to start thinking about what your website will look like and how it will be used. This includes your logo and other visuals, the menu selections you want to make available, and the kind of information you want to put on each of those pages. With most e-commerce sites, you'll have choices within the software itself to set up your storefront with different formats and styles. If you choose to use Joomla or WordPress, you'll also need to decide what to display on each page.

Templates for these content management systems use a structured approach that enables you to add traditional content and also add-ons with specific information and content that you can position on the page, based on the structure of your your particular template. In many cases, you can even change the visual appearance of the different information so you can highlight certain things.

The starting point is certainly your menu. There is always a home selection, but you get to choose what the main menu selections are and chose submenus off each of those main menu selections. It's important to think carefully about how you want to organize and structure the information on your website to give you the maximum flexibility. Even if you only end up with three main menu selections initially, it's important to consider what you might add at a later date so that your initial design can accommodate it.

6. Develop Your Website Content

Content can sometimes be the hardest part of your website. It needs to be compelling to visitors and convey the right kind of information at the right level so visitors actually read it instead of moving on to the next website. When you write text, think about it from an advertising perspective.

In addition to text, you also need images. Since you should have chosen a template with visual elements or background images that match your particular business, other images and graphics are generally used to supplement the text content or sometimes even replace it. Making the pages professional looking is particularly important as visual impact and appeal are a key part of any website. This is an area where you should not use clipart, and unless you are very good at creating visuals, you might want to hire someone to help you. Visuals can include stock art graphics, images of your products, headshots of yourself and other staff members, or other graphics that might illustrate your process or approach to delivering the service you're selling.

7. Populate and Maintain Your Website

Most text and graphics are added using a built-in WYSIWYG (which stands for “what you see is what you get”) webpage editor that is easy to use and does not require you to know anything about web programming. The WYSIWYG editor allows you to cut and paste your text from a Word document and upload images from your computer. It also give you full control over text size, color, font, and other features as well as the sizing and placement of images. You can preview the material before you actually make it available to Web visitors and easily edit it again at a later date. Since it's so easy to edit content, maintaining your website is easy. If you're simply updating existing information, it won't take very much effort. If you’re constantly adding content, including new pages, additional menu choices, new modules, additional add-ons, or blog entries, it's almost as easy. Each of the software packages provide a control panel which gives you access to all of your material and content, including the Web editor and control over other features of your website.

Of course, if you prefer, you can easily hire a Web developer to do these things on your behalf. Since little if any custom work is required, your costs should be relatively modest.

Best Regards,
DWD Solutions
+27 73 996 4696

info@dwdsolutions.co.za

https://www.dwdsolutions.co.za

www.twitter.com/dwdsolutions

12 Tips To Protect Your Company From Hackers

12 Tips to Protect Your Company Website From Hackers

  

    

Theft is not the only thing on the mind of a hacker: Sheer destruction is a major motivator. Hackers may want to destroy all your records, put a sick message on your customers’ screens or just destroy your reputation.

You can never undo the damage done by a hacker, you can take steps to prevent it. Even the most basic protection will discourage many hackers enough to make them go looking for easier pickings elsewhere. Thieves are likelier to steal from people who leave their doors unlocked.

1. Stay updated.

You need to stay up to date with hacking threats. If you have at least a basic knowledge of what is possible then you can protect your website against it. Follow updates at a tech site such as The Hacker News. Use the information you gain to put fresh precautions in place when necessary.

2. Toughen up access control.

The admin level of your website is an easy way into everything you do not want a hacker to see. Enforce user names and passwords that can not be guessed. Change the default database prefix from “wp6_” to something random and harder to guess. Limit the number of login attempts within a certain time, even with password resets, because email accounts can be hacked as well. Never send login details by email, in case an unauthorized user has gained access to the account.

3. Update everything.

Updates cost software companies money. They only do it when necessary, yet many people who use the software do not install updates immediately. If the reason behind the update is a security vulnerability, delaying an update exposes you to attack in the interim period. Hackers can scan thousands of websites an hour looking for vulnerabilities that will allow them to break in. They network like crazy, so if one hacker knows how to get into a program then hundreds of hackers will know as well.

4. Tighten network security.

Computer users in your office may be inadvertently providing an easy access route to your website servers. Ensure that:

·        Logins expire after a short period of inactivity.
Passwords are changed frequently.
Passwords are strong and NEVER written down.
All devices plugged into the network are scanned for malware each time they are attached.

5. Install a web application firewall.

A web application firewall (WAF) can be software or hardware based. It sets between your website server and the data connection and reads every bit of data passing through it.

Most of the modern WAFs are cloud based and provided as a plug-and-play service, for a modest monthly subscription fee. Basically, the cloud service is deployed in front of your server, where it serves as a gateway for all incoming traffic. Once installed, web application firewall provides complete peace of mind, by blocking all hacking attempts and also filtering out other types of unwanted traffic, like spammers and malicious bots. This is a great way to avoid getting hacked like Craigslist.

6. Install security applications.

While not as effective as a full blown WAF, there are some free and paid for security applications that you can install that will make life a bit more difficult for hackers. In fact, even some free plugins such as that from Acunetix WP Security can provide an additional level of protection by hiding the identity of your website’s CMS. By doing so this tool makes you more resilient against automated hacking tools that scout the web, looking for WordPress sites with specific build and version, which has one or more known vulnerabilities.

7. Hide admin pages.

You do not want your admin pages to be indexed by search engines, so you should use the robots_txt file to discourage search engines from listing them. If they are not indexed then they are harder for hackers to find. This tutorial from SEObook.com is all the help you will need.

8. Limit file uploads.

File uploads are a major concern. No matter how thoroughly the system checks them out, bugs can still get through and allow a hacker unlimited access to your site’s data. The best solution is to prevent direct access to any uploaded files. Store them outside the root directory and use a script to access them when necessary. Your web host will probably help you to set this up.

9. Use SSL.

Use an encrypted SSL protocol to transfer users’ personal information between the website and your database. This will prevent the information being read in transit and accesses without the proper authority.

10. Remove form auto-fill.

When you leave auto-fill enabled for forms on your website, you leave it vulnerable to attack from any user’s computer or phone that has been stolen. You should never expose your website to attacks that utilize the laziness of a legitimate user.

11. Back-up frequently.

Just in case the worst happens anyway, keep everything backed-up. Back up on-site, back up off-site, back up everything multiple times a day. Every time a user saves a file it should automatically back up in multiple locations. Backing up once a day means that you lose that day’s data when your hard drive fails. Remember every hard drive will fail.

12. You can't hide your code.

You can buy software that says it will hide the code on your webpages. It doesn’t work. Browsers need access to your code in order to render your website pages, so there are simple ways to get around web-page “encryption.”

Disabling “right-click” as a way to view your website code is annoying to users because it also disables every other “right-click” function, and there are simple workarounds that every hacker knows anyway. If you have been told that it is possible then read this article on HTMLgoodies.com to get in-depth explanations of why you can never hide your code.

Best Regards,
DWD Solutions
073 996 4696
info@dwdsolutions.co.za