Sticky Post

What is a Sticky Post in WordPress?

A Sticky Post in WordPress allows a specific post to stay at the top of your front page of posts, no matter when it was originally published.

In typical blogs, the newest post usually appears first. However, marking a post as ‘sticky’ reverses this norm; it remains at the top even as newer posts get published.

This capability is restricted to the built-in post type labeled ‘post,’ excluding custom post types.

Benefits of Using Sticky Posts

Highlighting Core Content

Sticky Posts are ideal for showcasing significant articles or what are known as Pillar Articles. These can be your most exhaustive and informative pieces or your most frequently visited posts.

Featuring Timely Information

Alongside showcasing important content, Sticky Posts are apt for displaying time-sensitive matters. These could range from a significant product release to temporary giveaways.

How to Create a Sticky Post

Setting up a Sticky Post is a straightforward process. Here are the steps involved:

1. Access the Administration Screen and select Posts > Add New or Edit.
2. Locate the right-side menu and find the Visibility option in the Publish group.
3. Click on the Edit link next to Visibility.
4. Select the ‘Stick this post to the front page’ checkbox.

By following these simple steps, your selected post will remain at the top of your blog’s front page until you choose to unstick it.

Customizing the Appearance of Sticky Posts

Sticky Posts don’t have to look like your regular posts. WordPress provides the post_class() function that can be employed to distinguish Sticky Posts visually. This function adds class attributes to a DIV element, including the term ‘sticky’ for Sticky Posts.

This allows for more flexible styling options, such as unique backgrounds or fonts to make Sticky Posts more noticeable.

Use Cases for Sticky Posts

Educational Content

If your site primarily aims to educate, using Sticky Posts to display introductory or foundational content can help new visitors get up to speed quickly.

Business Announcements

For business websites, Sticky Posts are useful for drawing attention to new product releases, updates, or upcoming events.

Community Guidelines

For blogs that have a strong community aspect, featuring guidelines or rules as a Sticky Post can help ensure that everyone is on the same page regarding behavior expectations.

Additional Considerations

Mobile Responsiveness

Ensure that the style modifications you apply to Sticky Posts are optimized for mobile viewing to maintain a consistent user experience across devices.

SEO Considerations

Even though a Sticky Post remains at the top of your blog page, its position in search engine results will depend on standard SEO factors, like backlinks and content quality.

Expanding on Customization Options for Sticky Posts in WordPress

CSS Styling: A Closer Look

Manipulating the appearance of your sticky posts via CSS is not only effective but also gives you a high degree of control. By adding specific CSS code to your theme’s stylesheet, you can set distinctive features like background colors, borders, or padding to make these posts stand out.

The following code snippet, when added to your stylesheet, alters the background color to light blue, sets a black border, and includes padding of 10px:

.sticky {
background: #A2D9FD;
border: 3px solid black;
padding: 10px;
}

A Survey of Plugin Alternatives

If you prefer a more user-friendly approach or additional functionalities, various WordPress plugins are designed to help you customize sticky posts:

1. WordPress Sticky Anything: This versatile plugin enables you to establish an unlimited number of sticky elements on your site, supporting a range of programming languages such as PHP, JavaScript JS, and CSS. It also gives you control over the position and top space of your sticky elements.
2. Ultimate Sticky Posts Widget: This free-of-charge plugin offers multiple display options for sticky posts, such as sorting them by date, title, or comment count. It also lets you display the post excerpt and control its length from the admin panel.
3. SM Sticky Clicky Star: This user-friendly plugin simplifies the process of making posts sticky. With a single click, you can toggle the sticky status of your posts, thus saving time and effort.
4. Sticky Related Posts: If you wish to display posts that are related by category or tags within a sticky footer, this plugin is a suitable choice. It allows custom settings for fonts and background colors to match your website’s aesthetics.

Theme-Related Customizations

The visual representation of sticky posts can differ widely across various WordPress themes. While some might change the background color to differentiate sticky posts, others may opt to remove additional elements like the date or author info.

An alternative for theme-based customization is the Sticky Posts – Switch plugin. It lets you assign sticky posts not just to your homepage but also to archive and taxonomy pages.

The plugin incorporates a star icon within your WordPress dashboard, under Posts settings, enabling you to make a post sticky without navigating to the content editor.

A Word of Caution

Before committing any changes to your live WordPress site, it’s advisable to conduct tests in a staging environment. This precautionary step will confirm that your updates work as intended and do not lead to unforeseen complications.

Methods for Modifying the Order of Sticky Posts in WordPress

Adjusting the Publish Date

WordPress organizes posts in reverse chronological order by default. You can modify the sequence of your sticky posts by altering their publish dates. Here’s how you do it:

1. Open the post you intend to change.
2. Access the post editing screen and locate the Publish date under the Post panel.
3. Click on it to reveal a date and time popup.
4. Set your desired date and time.
5. Click the Update button to apply your changes.

Adjusting the Publish Date

WordPress organizes posts in reverse chronological order by default. You can modify the sequence of your sticky posts by altering their publish dates. Here’s how you do it:

1. Open the post you intend to change.
2. Access the post editing screen and locate the Publish date under the Post panel.
3. Click on it to reveal a date and time popup.
4. Set your desired date and time.
5. Click the Update button to apply your changes.

Utilizing the Post Types Order Plugin

If you prefer a more intuitive approach, consider using the Post Types Order plugin, which is available for free. To install and use the plugin, follow these steps:

1. Access your WordPress dashboard and navigate to Plugins > Add New.
2. Use the search bar to find the Post Types Order plugin.
3. Install and activate the plugin.

With this plugin, you can easily rearrange your posts through a drag-and-drop interface.

Taking Advantage of the Built-In Sticky Posts Feature

WordPress provides a built-in feature for making posts sticky. You can set a post to stay at the top of your blog by doing the following:

1. Open the post you want to pin to the top.
2. In the post edit screen, locate the Post panel.
3. Check the box for “Stick to the top of the blog.”
4. Click the Update button to save your changes.

Coding to Change Post Order

For those who have coding skills, altering the WordPress query to change post order is an option. To employ this method:

1. Ensure you have a complete backup of your website.
2. Modify the WordPress query as per your needs.

Important Note: Since the sticky post order depends on the publish date, adjusting these dates will effectively re-order them.