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Overview
Articles turn your Clubessential website into an interactive portal that allows for new content to be created by Club Admins and Editors. Articles are also dynamic in that Articles can be scheduled to post and have the ability to be archived. Distribution is also dynamic, by assigning categories to Articles, so they’re distributed throughout the website appropriately. Website security is gaining significantly more attention as Google and other browsers have begun forcing SSL adoption. This guide covers the basics of SSL and the impact SSL Certificates (or lack thereof) have on the Member/Visitor experience on your Club’s Website. SSL stands for Secure Socket Layer, which is the defacto method used to encrypt sensitive data such as usernames, passwords, and other private information that is passed back and forth over the Internet between your website, visitors’ browser(s), and your club’s website server. An SSL Certificate provides visible assurance to visitors of the site, that the site is legitimate, and that data encryption is taking place to ensure their sensitive data is protected. Once the site has SSL, an “s” is placed after the http:// of the website’s address - i.e. https://www.anyclub.com. Use Case(s)Articles have multiple uses, such as: blogs, tournament results, meeting minutes, or news announcements. The Article Plug-in is typically added on the member home page, however, the plug-in may be added anywhere throughout the website as desired. Clubessential can assist with adding and designing the Article Plug-in.
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Video
This video contains highlights from a training Webinar given on Articles.
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Accessing Articles
To access Articles follow the steps below depending on your access role.
Admins: Hover over Admin bar in the left hand corner of the screen, select Articles.
Editors: Hover over Admin in the main navigation, select Main Tools, and then Articles.
The following Article Interface screen will launch.
Article Interface
Current Articles: shows all published Articles.
Archived Articles: shows all Articles that are now Archived.
Unpublished Articles: shows Articles that are still being edited and not yet published, or archived.
Filtering: similar to calendar filtering, allowing the users to choose which Category of Articles to view.
Adding Articles
Click the Add Article button.
This will bring up the Add Article Interface.
Title: this will display on the Article Listing when is the Quick View Display.
Article Listing Quick View Display:
Author: this will display in the Listing View under the Current Articles tab.
Author in Listing Viewing Display:
Post Date: allows for creation prior to posting.
- May set a date and time to post.
Expiration: allows to move the Article to the Archived Tab at set date.
- May set a date and time to expire.
Text Summary: allows for a short description of the Article. This usually shows on the Quick View Display.
Text Summary is Listing Display:
Days to Show: choose which days the Article should show on. This could be all days, or select days.
Interest Areas: choose a Category for the Article to be assigned to. This is how Articles are distributed throughout the website. Note: you must assign an Interest Area to save and continue.
Settings for Plugin Display: for advanced use. Designs the layout of the Articles. Set-up by Clubessential.
Image Source: if the Article display is using a thumbnail image, add an image here. This will launch the Image Explorer, so an image can be chosen.
Double Click on the image to add it to the Image Source.
Once the image is added, you will see the thumbnail in the Image Source section.
Image Link URL: add event, document, page, or hyperlink.
Full Article Link: this is the ‘read more’ text that will display on the on the Article Quick View Display. This may be set to a desired text. Example: Read More, Click Here, Continue, etc.
Full Article Link in Quick View Display:
Date Style: set-up by Clubessential, but used for the Article Quick View display.
Save to continue to add content to the Article.
A Click to Edit will now appear beneath the Add Article Interface. Open the Click to Edit to access the Editor to begin adding content.
Once the Editor is open, open content, imagery, and hyperlinks to create content. Save in the Editor when finished.
Save again in the Articles Interface.
FAQs
Q: Do you offer a blog?
A: You may use Articles as a blog quite easily. Articles allows for features similar to blogs such as: scheduling posts, archiving posts, and categories. Article Plugin stylings can vary, so we can accommodate for a certain look as desired that can be determined with the help of Clubessential.
Best Practices
Try to post weekly Articles so content is fresh and new. Since Articles can be written ahead of their actual post-date, this allows for Articles to be written in advance.
If you haven’t written an Article in awhile, do not draw attention to this fact in your next post. This will remind users that you have not written, which is unnecessary.
Articles are a great resources for news and blog items. Keep the content concise and interesting. Enhance the content by adding imagery and hyperlinks.
Use Interest Areas appropriately so the right content is getting to the right crowd. If you need additional Interest Areas set-up, Clubessential can assist by adding these at any time.
Change the Author to the Club Name so the posts are all coming from one source. If the post is from the President, however, be sure to change the Author to the President’s name. Whomever’s account you’re signed into will automatically pull the name into the Author box until changed.
You can remove Articles from the Archive tab if needed and publish again. To do this, simply navigate to the Archive tab and click Edit under the Article name. From here, you can update the post and expiration date as needed.
Members are unable to see the Unpublished Tab. This tab is only for Admins and Editors.
Downloadable Guide
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SSL Protection Options
Clubessential offers Basic and Advanced SSL Protection Options.
Basic
Basic Protection has the padlock instead of the full green bar. Additionally, Basic covers just Domain Validation (DV), meaning just the domain ownership is checked prior to issuing the certificate.
FAQs
Q: Can’t we just purchase our own SSL Certificate?
A: We handle it for you. There’s no need for you to purchase your own SSL Certificate. Even if you did purchase your own certificate, there’s still back and forth work needed between your club and Clubessential to set up and maintain the SSL.
Q: I’ve seen some free SSL Certificates. Why would I pay Clubessential for SSL?
A: Most of the free SSL Certificates are actually free trials which are only valid for a short period of time. Also, many web hosts that offer “free” SSL are actually bundling it with their other products and services, which you’ll still have to pay for.
Q: Why wasn’t SSL included with our website to begin with?
A: It has not always been absolutely necessary to get SSL. Your website is already secure as is. Google's Chrome browser is now forcing SSL adoption. Google announced that beginning in October 2017, anyone using Google Chrome version 62 to view a website that's not protected by SSL, will also begin seeing "Not Secure" warning messages when entering sensitive information into online fields like password or credit card fields, or email fields on forms.
Imagine if your members enter their passwords on the login screen of your website and receive the following message, “This site is NOT SECURE.” They're going to be concerned, and they're going to call you to see if the website is secure.
Furthermore, let’s say a potential member fills out a membership interest form on your public website… she’ll likely get the not secure warning too. That will lower your conversions and scare off some potential members.
Q: Have you ever been hacked?
A: No hacker has ever gained access to the Clubessential servers.
Q: What do you do if you suspect you are being hacked? What is your Incident Response Policy?
A: Clubessential's first response to a major attack would be to work with its security partners to immediately block the attack. Clubessential would block the intruder at the firewall if that can be done via IP address or type of protocol being used. Depending on the type of attack Clubessential might also pursue immediate legal action. Clubessential is constantly being scanned, crawled and attacked. Our email servers are attacked on a daily basis via spam. Dictionary attacks are common and we have been through several DDoS attacks. Our firewall is strictly controlled to open only needed ports and both our firewall and Barracuda server utilize intelligent algorithms to detect and block attacks. Clubessential has also installed enough web servers to handle load spikes in the event we are attacked or have usage spikes. In the event of an attack Clubessential would immediately notify any affected clients.
Q: How often do you monitor for network intruders?
A: Clubessential's production network is constantly being monitored by Level3 and Zyedge. The internal office network is constantly being monitored by Zyedge (a company that specializes in network security and support). Clubessential also utilizes advanced security technology from Cisco, including Intrusion Detection.
Downloadable Guide