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WordPress Plugin: Parse.ly Content Helper

Overview

The Parse.ly Content Helper is a new set of content insights available to WordPress users of the Parse.ly plugin. When viewing the WordPress dashboard and Posts lists, and editing or authoring a post in WordPress, users can rely on the Parse.ly Content Helper for curated analytics, content insights, and information that is otherwise only available within the Parse.ly dashboard. Learn more here on how to install the plugin, and review frequently asked questions on the plugin.

Where to find it in WordPress

Dashboard

See the top posts on your site in the last 10 minutes, 1 hour, 2 hours, 4 hours, 24 hours, 7 days or 30 days using our dashboard widget in WordPress. The top posts can be ranked by page views or average engaged time.

To add this widget to your WordPress dashboard, select Screen Options from the top of the Dashboard page. Then select Parse.ly Top Posts. The widget will now display on the dashboard.

Posts

When viewing or searching for posts in WordPress, you can use the Parse.ly Content Helper to show you data on the performance of published posts for the last days. This data will display in the Parse.ly Stats column for published posts with at least 1 page view.

Similar to the dashboard widget, users can add this Parse.ly Stats column to their Posts view by selecting Parse.ly Stats from the Screen Options on this page in WordPress.

Editor

The Parse.ly Content Helper is a curated set of content insights available on any post being edited, right from within the WordPress Editor. Users can access the Helper by selecting the Parse.ly icon from the top right navigation of the Editor. The Parse.ly Content Helper contains two types of content insights: Performance Details and Related Top-Performing Posts. These features are visible as a sidebar on the right of the post when editing or authoring.

How to use the Parse.ly Content Helper in the Editor

Performance Details

The Performance Details panel shows content insights for the last 10 minutes, 1 hour, 2 hours, 4 hours, 24 hours, 7 days, or 30 days on the post being edited:

  • Number of views and visitors.
  • Average time spent on the page by visitors.
  • Referrer data, including direct visits.

From within this panel, it is also possible to open the published post/page to view it on the website, or visit a detailed analytics page on the post within the Parse.ly dashboard.

Use the performance details data to:

  • Gain quick insight and context into a post’s recent performance without switching tools or focus.
  • Identify channels to focus on for future promotion by reviewing the current top referrers.

It is worth noting that:

  • Data can only be shown for content that is published and has at least 1 view.
  • The period for which data is shown defaults to the last 7 days and cannot be changed.

The Related Top-Performing Posts panel provides a list of the website’s most successful posts that are most similar to the content currently being edited. You can filter the related posts shown by two metrics:

  1. page views
  2. average engaged time

And you can filter the data used to show related top posts by:

  1. Tag
  2. Sector
  3. Author

This list of content insights can be used to:

  • Gain insights and identify patterns on what makes a post successful, in order to write similar content in structure, style, keywords or other criteria.
  • Get a list of top-performing related posts for linking purposes from/to the current content. Linking related posts increases depth of engagement with your website and improves the recirculation rate on your content.
  • Identify top-performing posts that merit a deeper review; content refresh for evergreen posts, updates to author names, addition of new tags, and more.

From within this panel, it is also possible to open the related published posts, or visit their statistics page on the Parse.ly dashboard.

It is worth noting that:

  • The similarity is based on the current content’s tag, category, or author (in this specific order of priority).
  • Only one of the above is taken into account for similarity at the moment. You can, however, choose which data point you want to prioritize.
  • If the content contains multiple categories or tags, only the first category or tag (as returned by WordPress) is taken into account for similarity.

How to disable the Parse.ly Content Helper

We’re sorry if you want to disable the Content Helper, but we understand that this might be needed for your use case. In wp-parsely 3.9 and newer, it is possible to disable the Content Helper using filters. If you are not sure which version you are currently using, please check the plugin settings page, where you will see the version number.

By default, all Content Helper features are enabled. Here are the filters that can be used to disable the Content Helper:

// Disable the Content Helper entirely.
add_filter( 'wp_parsely_enable_content_helper', '__return_false' );

// Disable the Content Helper Dashboard Widget.
add_filter( 'wp_parsely_enable_content_helper_dashboard_widget', '__return_false' );

// Disable the Content Helper Stats Column.
add_filter( 'wp_parsely_enable_content_helper_stats_column', '__return_false' );

// Disable the Content Helper Editor Sidebar.
add_filter( 'wp_parsely_enable_content_helper_editor_sidebar', '__return_false' );

// The above filters can be used in conjunction. Here's an example of 
// disabling all Content Helper features except for the Dashboard Widget.
add_filter( 'wp_parsely_enable_content_helper', '__return_false' );
add_filter( 'wp_parsely_enable_content_helper_dashboard_widget', '__return_true' );

Troubleshooting

The Content Helper cannot be disabled using filters

Verify that you’re using wp-parsely 3.9 or newer and that the filters in question return false or '__return_false'.

The Content Helper’s icon is missing

Verify that you’re using wp-parsely 3.4 or newer. Also, note that the Content Helper is available only in the WordPress Editor. As such, it will not be visible in the Classic Editor or 3rd-party page builders.

The Performance Details panel is missing

Verify that you’re using wp-parsely 3.6 or newer, and have access to the Parse.ly content API. You will need the Parse.ly API Secret as part of your plugin settings If you plan on using the Parse.ly Content Helper. If you have purchased the API, you can find your API Secret in the Parse.ly Dashboard under the “API Settings” menu item. If you have not purchased the API and would like to do so, email your account manager or support@parsely.com.

The Performance Details panel is not showing any performance data

Verify that the post has been published and received at least 1 page view. If there is still no data, please contact our support team.

The Content Helper does not seem to work correctly

Under the hood, the Content Helper leverages the Parse.ly API to get its data. However, ad blockers or browser tracking protection can sometimes interfere with the Content Helper’s HTTP requests to the Parse.ly API. Please add the website to any applicable allow lists and try again. If issues persist even after doing this, please contact our support team.

Please note:

You will need the Parse.ly API Secret as part of your plugin settings If you plan on using the Parse.ly Content Helper features in the Editor. If you have purchased the API, you can find your API Secret in the Parse.ly Dashboard under the “API Settings” menu item. If you have not purchased the API and would like to do so, email your account manager or support@parsely.com.

Last updated: November 13, 2023