This guide will take you through all the steps to add an event to the Visit Mississippi website. Before you get started, you’ll need to register to be a WordPress user on our website. Once your registration has been approved, you’ll be able to add draft events to the website. Click the button below to get started.
Register NowHere’s a short video that takes you through the entire process of adding an event to the Visit Mississippi website. The blocks below will give you a more detailed explanation of each step. To enlarge the video, hover over the video player and click the “Fullscreen” button in the lower right corner.
From the WordPress dashboard, click “Event” in the side menu then select “Add New Event.”
IMPORTANT: Do not add Points of Interest (POIs) to the event listings. POIs are handled separately.
IMPORTANT: Check the “Pending Review” box in the top right of the page so your event can be reviewed by our editors after you publish.
Type your event’s name in the “title” field in the top left of the page.
Write a short paragraph in the field below that describes the event. Just the basic facts are all that’s needed. You’ll be adding details like the address, dates, and website in the next step, so there’s no need to include that information here.
Write the description from a neutral perspective (Visit Mississippi’s perspective, not the event organizer’s.)
Avoid the following: First person pronouns like “we” and “our.” Exclamation marks! Puffery, subjective claims, and boasts. (Mississippi’s greatest festival. You’ll love it. The best bands ever.)
Start adding your event details by clicking “Add Row” and choosing a detail from the popup menu. Be sure to include, at a minimum, the dates and times of your event and a web address.
“Start Date” * – The first day of your event
“Start From Time” – The starting time of your event
“Start To Time” – The ending time of your event
“End Date”* – The last day of your event. (If you have a single-day event, enter your “Start Date” again)
“End From Time” – The starting time of your event on its last day
“Start To Time” – The ending time of your event on its last day
* Only “Start Date” and “End Date” are required
Start typing your event’s address into the search bar and then select your address from the autocomplete suggestions.
IMPORTANT: Be sure to select a valid map location, or your event will not show up in the Visit Mississippi mobile app event listings.
In the right sidebar labeled “Types,” check the boxes of the categories your event belongs to. You may choose multiple categories.
Underneath the checkboxes, there’s a “Select Primary Type” dropdown menu. Choose a parent category for your listing (if applicable). For example, the primary type for an arts festival is “Arts & Culture.”
Click the gray box that reads “Set Featured Image.” On the window that pops up, click “Upload Files.”
Be sure to size your image to 1920×1080 pixels for best results. Smaller images will appear fuzzy on screen. Also, keep image file sizes under 500 KB to prevent slow page loading.
Make sure you have rights and/or permission to use the photograph.
Add “Alt Text” about the image (for visually impaired visitors) and a “Description.” You can leave the “Caption” field empty.
Click the “Mark As Already Compressed” button if your image is a jpeg or png.
Click “Set Featured Image for this Event.”
Set the region for your event. If you’re unsure, check the Visit Mississippi Regions map.
IMPORTANT: Keep the “Featured” switch set to “No.”
After you have reviewed your webpage for errors and missing information, you can preview it by clicking the “Preview” button. When you’re satisfied with your event listing, click “Publish.”
Your event will be saved as a draft and, once approved, it will be added to the Visit Mississippi website’s live event listings. Events may take 24 hours after approval before appearing on the mobile app.