Are you managing multiple WordPress sites? Perhaps you started with just one to sell a product or share your stories, but now you have a new brilliant idea that requires another WordPress site. Or maybe you want to build a business designing websites for small businesses. Whatever the reason, managing multiple sites can be time-consuming and frustrating. Fortunately, there are tools available to help you manage all your sites from a single dashboard.
One such tool is CMS Commander. While there are other companies that provide all-in-one solutions, CMS Commander is a leader in the industry and offers a simple interface that is easy for beginners to use. Here’s how to get started:
Step 1: Sign Up for CMS Commander
Go to the CMS Commander website and click on the Sign Up button in the menu or select the Try For Free option if you want to test it out before committing to a payment plan. Pricing depends on how many websites you manage (starting at $8, up to $125 for 400 sites). Once the 14-day trial expires, you still maintain access for up to five sites with the basic features. Walk through the process to download by typing in your email address to receive an email with your password and username information. Select the Go to Account button to move forward and view your dashboard.
Step 2: Download and Activate the Plugin
Find the link that states CMS Commander Client Plugin. Click this link and upload (and activate) the plugin to every single site you want to manage on the CMS Commander dashboard.
Step 3: Place All Sites on the CMS Commander Dashboard
Find the Add Your First Website header, and paste in the Site Address, Admin Username, Admin Password, and an optional Group Name to add each of the websites that have the plugin installed. Click the Add Website button for each individual website. The Group Name field works well for people managing several different client groups. Once you complete this process for all of your sites, you can scroll down and see your entire site list. This area is rather powerful because you can scroll over the buttons to see things like stats, backlinks, page speed, comments, and more.
Step 4: Make a Post to One of Your Websites
Let’s say you have an event coming up for your business and you need to create a blog post to let all your readers know about it. Click on the Post Editor tab to move towards the page that lets you create your posts and publish them. This page looks fairly similar to the standard Post page in WordPress, so you can create a title and article for the blog post you want to share. Everything is still there from the Link buttons to the Text Editor.
If you scroll down below the editor, you’ll find an area called WordPress Settings. This module lets you modify things like Categories, Usernames, Post Types, and more. You can even place a featured image in your post to send off to the actual website you have linked. Keep in mind that the Post Type dropdown is included so you can specify whether or not you are creating a post or page.
Once you complete the post, upload all your images and go through your proofreading process. Move to the upper right-hand corner of the CMS Commander window. This provides a list of all the sites you have connected to CMS Commander. You have the option to publish this post to a group that you specified earlier or just a single website. Check off the website you want to publish the post to and hit the Post Article to Selected Sites button. This shoots the article to those sites where you can navigate to later and check to see how it looks.
What Else Can You Manage With CMS Commander?
Since the tool is so expansive, there are far too many features to cover in just one blog post. However, here are some of the more common tasks you can perform with the CMS Commander dashboard:
– Upload bulk content like SEO settings or a file filled with articles on your computer
– View all the past posts and comments so you can modify them and respond to users
– View and create users
– Install plugins to all or some of the sites on your CMS Commander dashboard
– Install themes to all or some of the sites you have activated
– Perform manual and automated backups
– Clone one of your websites
– Create a brand new site instead of going through the regular WordPress installation process
Running WordPress sites from multiple dashboards is time-consuming and frustrating. Not only do you have to juggle all those passwords, but the idea of jumping from one tab to the other in your browser can be overwhelming. By using a tool like CMS Commander, you can manage all your sites from a single dashboard, saving you time and effort. Let us know in the comments section if you run your WordPress sites from a single dashboard or if you manage to make it work with multiple dashboards. We’d love your input!
