Post Status has been iterating quite a bit over the last six months since it launched.
However, not everyone noticed.
I’m excited to launch a redesign that reflects the changing purpose that Post Status serves. It started as a link blog, where I wanted to have a lot of input from readers to submit posts. Over time, the site has evolved from that. I realized that readers really preferred when I filtered content for them. I also received a great deal of positive reinforcement when I wrote long form content. And I discovered that I often wanted to say more than I could given room I allowed myself with only the link format.
So, I’ve slowly been writing more original content. I’ve also been more stringent as to what submitted content I approve, and I tend to add commentary to the links I post. The new design reflects this change, and more.
The new design
The latest link posts are now visible on every page in the large sidebar. However, the main home page column will consist of long-form content. I think this lets me showcase long form content for longer periods, while still offering a consistent daily feed of links. Hopefully this will help deliver the right mix of consistent news and further insight when it is merited.
I nerded out pretty hard on the fonts. I subscribed to the new H&FJ Cloud Typography plan and I’m rocking out Gotham Rounded and Archer on this site.
I also went a bit flatter, and restructured quite a bit layout-wise. Be sure to check out the mobile view too. The long-form content and the linked posts are both available easily, right from the top. No sidebar dumping here.
I hope you like the new design. I hastened my launch schedule by a couple of weeks due to unforeseen circumstances, so I’ll be cleaning up bits and pieces over time. Your constructive feedback is welcome, of course.
Exclusive partnership
The second bit of exciting news I have is that I’ve entered an exclusive partnership on Post Status with The Theme Foundry. The Theme Foundry makes beautifully crafted WordPress themes, and they’ve done so since 2008. I’ve gotten to know Drew Strojny, The Theme Foundry’s founder, since meeting him in person last year at WordCamp San Francisco; and we are very much on the same page as to what we’d like to see in a WordPress news source.
I believe in their product, and they believe in mine.
The partnership with The Theme Foundry is ongoing, with an initial term of 3 months. You’ll see the elegant ad integration as a single banner on each page view. You’ll also see material from The Theme Foundry integrated into the newsletter, which I plan to do regularly now, and also periodically in the RSS feed for long form posts. We tried hard to make it unobtrusive, pleasant and deeply integrated. I’m confident that The Theme Foundry and I have forged an outstanding partnership that sets the groundwork for the long-term monetization of Post Status.
Coming up
The redesign and the partnership with The Theme Foundry are both exciting things for Post Status. I’m in this thing for the long haul. And I’ve got (at least) one more trick up my sleeve coming soon as well. Within the next month, look out for a new written resource from Post Status that will be a no-brainer deal for many of you web developers out there to get in on.
And of course, I’ll keep on posting about all things WordPress. And I welcome your submissions as well. I may not take them all, but if you think something is interesting, there are good odds I will too.
Will this ever be my full time job?
No. I think I best service this space when Post Status is a reflection of my other activity in the WordPress ecosystem.
I’m happily employed, and Post Status is a side project that my employer knows about and supports. That’s not to say I’m not fully committed. I’ve written many hundreds of posts over the last three years, on various blogs, all with a full time job. And all that time, I never made a dollar blogging. The new monetization strategies will help prevent burnout and ensure the long-term sustainability of the site.
Will I ever make $10,000 a month blogging here? Probably not. But that’s not my goal. Post Status is geared to be a nice income supplement, but my value here is directly and positively impacted by my consulting and WordPress activities outside of this space.
Finally, I ask of you a favor.
Do you like Post Status? You can do me no greater favor than tell your followers on your social networks and at meetups and WordCamps about it. And when you see a link or a post that you like, please upvote it and share it with your audience. Over half of the traffic on Post Status is from referrals, so every time you share, it makes me very happy, and helps others find out about this WordPress resource.
I hope you all have a great end to your week. Thank you for all of your support on this passion project of mine.
Congrats on the redesign, and great ideas here. Looking forward to seeing Post Status grow!
Thank you, Ryan.
Of course, WPCandy was where it all started for me, and I just got hooked 🙂
The site looks amazing Brian, great job. It’s really good to see Post Status stepping in to fill the void WP Daily has created. I’m sure you’ll carry the torch well.
I’m really excited to see where you take the site. It’s honestly been the only WP news source I’ve checked even somewhat regularly.
PS: Let me know how Google receives some of the changes you’ve made over the next couple months. 😉
Looking very nice, Brian! Best of luck with taking this forward over the next couple of months and beyond.
Congrats on the redesign, partnership, and the merging of long content with the links feature. I think this makes a lot of sense.
You’re in a great position here and the timing with changes in the WP news landscape couldn’t have been better. It makes me think there was some sort of plan here;)
…and partnering with Drew is monetization that I welcome with open arms. He’s a great guy, great products, and as you said above, fits nicely into the site.
Congrats to both of you!
I also like the redesing and new steps that you’re taking! Looks and feels good. I hope you keep on rocking. Couple of questions.
1. How do you find time for all this? You must work 16 hours per day.
2. If you start to getting more and more dead presidents from this blog, would you like it to be your main job?
Nice move. Right place, right time. 🙂
The design is sexy! That typography is really easy on the eyes. Your nerding out was totally worth it! Best of luck with all the future holds Brian!
Lookin’ good brother!
Looks gorgeous 🙂 Subscribed to your newsletter and your RSS feed – bring it on.
Looks good, Brian. I like the sponsorship setup. All in all, very elegant.
Now all you need is a logo! 😉
Nice job! I’ve been impressed with the quality of posts on here. I find myself returning often for the content. Keep up the good work!
Great job Brian. Wish you all the best.
We’re obviously super excited over at The Theme Foundry to be supporting the great content here at Post Status. We couldn’t ask for a better partner. Brian obviously has the talent, dedication, and skills. He’s also shown an incredible knack for covering everything WordPress (and then some) in a focused but comprehensive way. It’s a recipe for success. We look forward to more first-rate WordPress content and seeing the site grow over the next few years.
Loving the updates, Brian, keep ‘me coming.
The redesign looks good, I’m looking forward to reading more of your own posts.
That’s a pretty epic redesign, Brian. I LOVE the commenting area and features. Very crisp and easy to read all-around.
Looks sweet Brian, typography looks very classy. Congrats on the redesign and best wishes for this new stage.
Awesome re-design, with more whitespace. Keep up the great work ! I like it that you change the sidebar to tab instead of pushing it to the bottom. Never think of that before 😉
Very cool, lovin’ it my friend. Congrats on the redesign.
Nice work Brian, keep it up!
Looks lovely! Keep up the good work.
A great improvement in the design.
Looks great sir Crogsalot!
Nice redesign! The site finally looks more like a designer’s website, and not a developers. I’m really looking forward to your new material.
Keep on keeping on! The site looks awesome and I am excited about your approach.
Well deserved coverage and I look forward to seeing Post Status grow!
Congratulations Brian! The site looks so, so good! Great partnership too!
Really, really digging your use of fonts, Brian. Great work — looking forward to more!
The highlight to quote feature is frickin’ genius. I’m not sure if that’s part of this go-round, but it’s pretty sweet. Next up, when clicking “quote”, the option to choose the social medium (other than the comment form) to share the quote would be awesome.
I’m also a huge fan of your typeface selections, so props to your font nerdery!
All in all, great work Krogsgard!
I’ve had a few comments about the… comments 🙂 It’s actually an existing free plugin from interconnect/it called Spectacu.la Discussion. http://wordpress.org/plugins/spectacula-threaded-comments/
I hand to wrangle it pretty good to get it to do what I want, but the functionality if fantastic. Your rec for what to do with the quote button is a great idea. I’m going to talk to them about that.
I think I’ll also do a post about this plugin in general, as it seems not too well known for such a nice product.
I feel like I’d be spamming emails if I responded to each comment here, but I just want to say THANK YOU all for your kind words. I love this platform and the WordPress community, and I’m proud to do what I can to be a part of our ecosystem.
I’m excited for the future, and I really appreciate all of your compliments and feedback. I’m not a designer by trade, so this is a stretch for me 🙂 Fake it ’til you make it, right?
The redesign looks great, Brian. I love the font choices… I might have to steal this combo on a future project. 🙂
Well done Brian. Looking forward to a long future! 😉
Exciting news and nice job on the redesign, Brian! I mentioned it before, but I really appreciate the focus on quality content. I think a strong partnership with an anchor sponsor is the ideal route for monetizing a venture like this, so it’s great to see The Theme Foundry recognize the value and step up to support Post Status.
Congrats on the redesign! It looks absolutely stunning. Excited to see what you’re up to next 🙂
Love the redesign, Brian. Great job :).
Redesign is super cool. All the best Brian.
This is great news for the WP community. Congrats on the redesign and I can’t think of a better partner than The Theme Foundry.
Nice design Brian that will work great with your approach to content.
But Auburn colors? Come on, I know your an alum, but that’s that’s tough on the rest of us 🙂
Looks good guys, cant wait to see where you go with things.
It feels kind of strange having a Login button in the taskbar, even when you’re logged in. Perhaps hiding it or replacing it with a Logout button? The
wp_loginout()function can do this for you btw.