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Tips for Tech-Challenged Bloggers

Grow Your Blog

The Best Solution for Bloggers Who Need Tech Help

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The Best Solution for Bloggers Who Need Tech Help

I have a bit of truth for you that most people don’t want to hear but are very aware of- blogging isn’t easy… especially if you struggle with the tech that comes along with blogging.

Every blog you look at has a ‘Start a Blog to Earn Extra Money’ post and talks about “how easy” starting a blog is. But, it can also be frustrating as hell with several stumbling blocks along the way.

A Familiar Blogging Journey

Does this blogging journey sound familiar to you?

  • You choose a domain only to find out later that “cutesy” domains are okay but domains with keywords tend to do better
  • You use a free theme available on WordPress and stumble through configuring it. Later you discover that you can’t make it look like all the other beautiful, professional-looking blogs. And, with every update you have to reset your font and colors. Bonus: your front page looks nothing like the demo-theme.
  • You finally build enough content to “launch” your blog but no one is reading it so….
  • You dive into Pinterest and start pinning every day but NOTHING IS HAPPENING.
  • You research Pinterest and realize you didn’t have rich pins enabled and your site isn’t verified. You also haven’t focused enough on keywords, your pins aren’t eye-catching, and your titles suck so you have to go back and rework all of that too.
  • Speaking of keywords- Google apparently doesn’t know you exist so you have to learn about SEO and how to do keyword research. You get a subscription to research keywords but have no idea how to read the results or what to do with them.
Limiting beliefs of writer

And on and on…. Does this blogging journey look similar to yours? It was mine and that was AFTER purchasing what is known as the “best” blogging course out there.

Good news is I did eventually get to the point that my blog was successful- I have good traffic, people subscribing daily, and I’m finally turning a small profit. 

But can you imagine how much easier it would’ve been if you had access to a video library to walk you through all of these things?

An Affordable Solution

My experience is exactly what made me want to help other bloggers without charging $400, $200, or even $49 because, let’s face it, most of us wouldn’t have even started a blog if we didn’t need the extra money, right?

My video workshops (aka groups of videos) sell for $12 to $20 a piece but I wanted to go one step further so for my launch month I’m offering access to all current and future videos for only $15/month.

That means you can watch all of my current tutorials on starting a blog, WordPress, blog design, and the best plugins for new bloggers for less than most eBooks. And as the videos and workshops are added you get to benefit from all of those as well.

Future workshops are going to include getting started with:

  • Google Analytics
  • The most popular social media platforms (Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter)
  • Email marketing (walking you through adding an opt-in box to your page to sending your first freebie in Mailchimp and Convertkit)
  • GDPR Walkthrough

… and much more!

You also get a say in what kind of videos get added. I have added a forum space (I know- so 2000s right?) where you can add problems you are having and I will create future video tutorials and workshops on them!

I’m not trying to toot my own home here but I sincerely wish there was something like this offered when I first started blogging.

So if you find yourself struggling with blogging tech- anything from creating your menus to using the best plugins, come on over and check out the videos. You can even get a coupon code for $7 to go towards a video or workshop so you can try them out first (checkout the sidebar or the bottom of this page to grab yours).

Feel free to contact me if you need any help or have any questions. 

Workshops
Membership

How to Stop Blogging to Grow Your Blog

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I have a small confession to make. 

I have had a lot going on with my blog (don’t we all…). But last week I realized I was feeling a little lost.  

I felt like I was spinning my wheels but not making any real headway with the things I was doing. 

I’ve been working on my blog in the morning, during nap times, and as soon as my kids go to bed burning the candle at both ends which makes feeling stuck incredibly frustrating.

There are two main reasons I blog: 

(1) To help other bloggers get their blogs up and running faster without spinning their wheels (because that feeling sucks) and

(2) to help improve my family’s life.

Therefore, the last thing I want to do is take time away from my family for nothing.

So I stopped. 

I didn’t touch my blog or anything social media related for 4 days last week and it was the best thing I could’ve done because what I did instead has propelled me forward more than I could’ve imagined. 

Sometimes taking a step is the best thing we can do to help us move forward. 

Things to Do to Grow Your Blog (That AREN'T Blogging)

As mentioned above, I didn’t blog last week. I didn’t post, I didn’t pin to Pinterest, I didn’t circulate my posts on FB. 

But, this doesn’t mean I didn’t focus on my blog.

Check out the things I did do, and you can too, to grow your blog moving forward. 

Meet With Your Mastermind Group

A fellow blogger whom I barely knew reached out to me when I was only a few months into blogging about joining a mastermind group with her and two other ladies. It was the best thing I could've done for my blog.  

Being in a mastermind group allowed me to bounce ideas off of others and kept me accountable. When I’m done talking to them I always feel like my path is a lot clearer and that was definitely the case after last Friday’s meeting.

Moral of the story: If you’re not a part of a mastermind group, be proactive and reach out to other bloggers you’ve gotten to know or create a post in a large blogging group about creating a mastermind to help each other succeed. It is one of the best things you can do for your blog.

Read a Blogging or Business Book

There is a new blogging book coming out that looks at the habits of bloggers who earn 6-figures a year from their blogs. At first, I was leery about it but it was free so I dove in. 

Mind. Blown.

It was an amazing book with actionable tips.

It helped me reevaluate what I was doing in my blog and encouraged me to implement systems to keep growing and moving forward.

It was just what I needed at the moment.

Bonus: it also suggested plenty of other business books to read in the future. 

Evaluate Your Activities Compared to Their ROI

ROI stands for Return on Investment.

 I wrote down everything I’ve been doing for my blog and then I put a 1, 2, or 3 next to them according to how important I felt those tasks were for monetizing and growing my blog.

I then reordered them so I could clearly see the tasks I should be focusing on instead of the ones I had been focusing on.

I’m now working on tasks that are mostly ones in order to propel myself forward quicker and it feels great.

I Gave Myself Permission to Let Some Things Go

So this is a hard pill to swallow but I have been working really hard to grow my Medium account but, for now, I am going to let it take a back seat because I have other tasks I need to focus on right now. 

This doesn’t mean I will never get to it- it simply means it’s not a priority at this very moment.

A few other things I decided to let go for the time being include: 

Long Posts

Long, in-depth posts are great but I've been doing short, simple, to the point posts and started a 'Quick Tips' section in my blog.

I’ve gotten a lot of great feedback on it so I’m going to stick to those for the moment.

SEO

I AM NOT TELLING YOU TO NOT FOCUS ON SEO.

SEO is huge when it comes to organic search traffic.

But, researching a great long-tail-keyword for my post and then optimizing them adds about five hours to every post. 

Therefore, for right now, my marketing efforts are going to be elsewhere where I will be able to get more of an immediate return on investment.

My point is, sometimes you need to make hard choices and do what you feel is best for your blog at the moment. 

I may fully come to regret this choice when I go back and have to optimize all of my posts in the future but that’s a risk I’m willing to take.

Facebook App (on my phone)

I was spending a lot of time on my phone sharing posts (mine and others) but I was also burning a lot of time scrolling through my feed. 

Since I deleted it, I have read 2.5 blogging and business books which is a much better use of that time. 

Moral of the Story

This blogging thing is hard and there is always something else to learn. Learning is important but without executing the right things your blog will go nowhere. 

if you start feeling like you’re spinning your wheels, take a step back and reevaluate.

It may feel like you’re losing valuable working time but the clarity you gain will propel your blog forward much faster than the activities you were probably filling your time with before. 

Like this article? Sign up below to receive more and gain access to my FREE resource library where you can download Free e-books and a 25 page Blog Content planner. 

7 Important Things to Know if You Do ‘Follow for Follows’

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Recently I decided to join a ‘Follow for Follow’ thread on Facebook.

In case you’re not familiar with them, a follow for follow thread is where everyone drops a link for a social media account, blog post, Pinterest pin, etc and everyone follows each other back. 

Up until this point in my blogging career, I’ve been leery about doing follow for follows but you never know until you try so I gave it a shot. 

Before I continue, let me say that I’m not bashing any of the bloggers I followed. We are all doing the best we can with the knowledge we have. 

 I just want to share some of the things I noticed- both good and bad- so we can all continue to grow as bloggers. Now, let’s dive in. 

Lessons from My First Follow for Follow Experience

Lesson 1: Your Subscriber Box Should Be Easy to Find

There were so many sites that I couldn’t find a subscriber box on and if a reader can’t find what they need in 8 seconds, they will leave.

Make your subscriber box easy to find and put it in a lot of places. 

WordPress.com currently has their follow button hidden at the bottom of the page BEHIND the Cookies consent which is ridiculous.

A few great places you can add an opt-in box are: 

  • Notification bars
  • Welcome mats
  • The TOP of the sidebar (don’t bury it after your about me page or recent posts)
  • At the bottom of posts
  • In the middle of posts with a content upgrade

Because of my experience, I plan to add a ‘subscribe’ button to my menu.

Lesson 2: Do Not Ask for Last Names

I’m a big fan of asking for a reader’s name when they subscribe so you can personalize emails. However, asking for their last name is overly personal and will likely scare people off. 

The more you ask of people the less they will give so keep it simple by asking for first names only. 

Lesson 3: Feedburner is Redundant

Feedburner is an email collection service which I’ve never seen before and I was less than impressed.

I found it to be redundant and it didn’t look good. Something about the colors and the way it’s put together makes it look really old school.

Each time I hit subscribe a separate box popped up that I had to confirm a Captcha for and then click subscribe. Then I had to go to my email and confirm my subscription again and another separate tab opened up. 

I understand double confirmation but this seemed like triple confirmation.

Unfortunately, the more actions we ask a reader to take, the less likely they will be to complete a sequence and this will cost you readers. 

Lesson 4: Have a Welcome Email

I got a lot of plain ‘Thank you’ emails. This is such a waste of an email. 

The average open rate for most emails is 20-25%. But, the open rate for the first email is often over 80%.

Take advantage of this and introduce yourself, let your readers know what they can expect, give them a freebie, and encourage them to follow you or join a group. Help them remember you and give them a reason to open future emails.

Lesson 5: Don't List ALL of Your Social Sites in One Email

It’s tempting to list every social media account you have in your welcome email but don’t.  Studies have show that the more options a reader has, the less likely they’ll be to choose any of them. 

Pick your top three social media accounts and list those. You can invite your email list to sign up for other platforms in other emails. 

Lesson 6: If you plan to use Amazon Don't email your posts

When I first started blogging, I used to send my blog posts to readers inboxes until I discovered you can’t email Amazon affiliate links. It’s against their Terms of Service and they can kick you out of their program for doing it (yikes!).

The simple solution for this is to include links to your blog posts in emails and people can click to read your posts on your page. 

In my most recent email to my subscribers I gave them a link to follow AND a link to pin for later by saying:

Have you seen my newest post about ‘Follow for Follows‘?  If you’re interested in reading it later you can save it to Pinterest. 

Convenient for them and it encourages people to share my content. Talk about killing two birds with one stone. 

Lesson 7: You Won't find your tribe

Your tribe are the followers and fans who love you. They love your posts, your emails, and they closely relate to a lot of what you have to say. If this person was a real-life friend of yours, it would be the person that you could sit for hours and talk with without any awkward silence. 

Those are the fans you want. 

Those are also the fans you will most likely not find in a follow for follow thread. You may find one or two but that’s about it.

This isn’t a huge deal except that: 

  1. You could probably be using your time to do something that would help you really find your tribe and 
  2. Once your email list gets to a certain size, it goes up in price so as you grow, you will probably find yourself pruning the dead weight from your list anyway. 

Final Thoughts

Are ‘follow for follows’ a good way to increase your numbers? Yes.

If you’re brand new to blogging and need a few followers to your social accounts then trying a couple follow for follows will increase your numbers (albeit temporarily). 

However, if you are an established blogger then I wouldn’t suggest doing a follow for follow. There are many other activities you could be doing with your time to help you find your true fans. 

One final tip- if you decide to do follow for follow threads, find ones that are NOT follow all.

If you can find threads that are follow 2-10 then you can pick and choose the posts or social media pages that fit the best within your niche instead of sharing random posts or following random niches. 

Are there any other tips you would give people who do ‘Follow for Follow’ threads? If so, drop them below!

How to Dominate the Keyword Game and Get Found on Pinterest

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How to Dominate the Keyword Game and Get Found on Pinterest

Learning any new platform can be challenging and Pinterest is no different. As the saying goes- you don’t know what you don’t know.

So it’s no wonder that when I first started blogging I had no clue what I was doing on Pinterest.

Thankfully, I have learned quite a bit over the least year- especially how to properly use keywords to my advantage which is what I plan to share with you now.

Pinterest: Social Media or Search Engine?

One thing you should understand before we get started though- Pinterest is often grouped in with Facebook, LinkedIn, Google Plus, and all of the other social media platforms but- Pinterest is not a social media platform.

Pinterest is a search engine just like Google, Bing, and YouTube.

Why is this important? Because knowing this will help you succeed at promoting your content on Pinterest.

What Are Keywords on Pinterest?

Keywords are the words that Pinterest looks for to figure out what your pins and content are about.

Pinterest also uses keywords to help people find what they need.

To assist them in this, Pinterest suggests keywords to people as they search.

Let’s say you want to search ‘bedroom decor’. Below is what you will see if you search ‘bedroom decor.’

The words in the light brown boxes are keywords associated with the words ‘bedroom decor’ and there are a lot more if you push the arrow at the end of the words on the right.

How to Use Keywords to Get Found on Pinterest

Every time you do anything on Pinterest you want to make sure you are using keywords relevant to your main topic and niche.

You should include keywords in your:

  • Personal Profile
  • Board Descriptions
  • Pin Descriptions
  • Pin Tags
  • Meta Descriptions (located in WordPress when you create a post.

You still want the descriptions to sound conversational. People are reading your descriptions- Pinterest is just analyzing them.

For example, if you have a ‘Bedroom Decor’ board then you will want to try and include as many relevant keywords listed as possible.

In this case, the words include bedroom decor, master, apartment, DIY, cozy, for teen girls, for couples, rustic, on a budget, small, boho, ideas, glam, and farmhouse (there are many more listed but we can’t see those).

The board description should say something similar to:

“Discover the best bedroom decor ideas for your home or apartment. Plenty of DIY ideas for a cozy farmhouse home or small apartment for couples on a budget. You will even find ideas for the glam teenage girl who wants nothing more than a boho style bedroom.”

As you can see, almost all of the keywords were incorporated but in a conversational manner which reads like you’re talking to a reader- not a computer.

Getting found on Pinterest can seem like fighting an uphill battle but incorporating the keyword tips above will guarantee you more traffic to your page and more followers.

Want more Pinterest tips? Check out these tips taken directly from a Pinterest rep!

How to Explode Your List on Autopilot with Post Gopher

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If you’re new to blogging then you’ve probably been overloaded with information. 

  • Create and format great content. 
  • Make sure all of your posts are optimized for SEO.
  • Learn how to make your own graphics. 
  • Create a business account and start circulating your pins on Pinterest.
  • Build an email list.

The list goes on and on (no pun intended).

With everything you have to do and learn when it comes to blogging, it’s nice to come across something that you can literally set it and forget it. That’s exactly how Post Gopher works.

What is Post Gopher?

Post Gopher is an awesome WordPress plugin that puts a button either at the top or the bottom of your post that allows readers to have the post emailed to them in PDF form. 

A reader clicks on the button, enters in their name and email address, and the post is emailed to them. 

Post Gopher is perfect for those longer posts that we all leave open on our phones but never get around to reading.

Since installing post gopher I have seen a 10% bump in my sign ups and it was something that took very little effort from me that my readers love. It doesn’t get much better than that. 

How to Get Post Gopher

Getting Post Gopher is easy. Simply go to their site and sign up for a free 14 day trial. 

Be careful because they do have one of those auto-enrolls that if you don’t cancel (not that you’ll want to!) you’ll get charged at the end of the trial period.

How to Set Up Post Gopher

After you’ve signed up for Post Gopher, download the zip file for the plugin. 

Head over to your WordPress Dashboard and hover over ‘Plugins’ and then select ‘Add New’. Upload the Post Gopher File and then select ‘Activate’.

Post Gopher will then show up in your WordPress Dashboard. Simply walk through the steps and configure your buttons, opt-in box, and email. 

Setting up Post Gopher is simple but I made a quick tutorial for you below just in case. 

I hope you get as much out of this plugin as I have. Happy Blogging! 

[hss-embed-video videoid="86405" version="full"]

How to Make Your Blog Memorable with Amazing Branding

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When I first started blogging I used to love how professional, sleek, and consistent other blogs looked. I didn’t know it at the time but what I admired about those blogs was their branding.

I tried to recreate the looks of those blogs but failed… hard. Somehow my blog looked childish and screamed ‘AMATUER!’ but I couldn’t figure out the problem. Thankfully, I was able to research the problem and discovered the steps I needed to take to improve my branding with a few simple changes.

If you are struggling with branding your new blog (or need help rebranding) check out these simple tips to help you create the blog and look you’ve always desired.

What is Branding?

Before we go into how to brand your blog, let’s go through what branding is. Branding is the process of creating a unique name, message and image in a consumerís mind.

The goal of branding is to differentiate yourself from others in your niche to attract and retain customers.

There are actually many elements that go into a branding including:

  •  Your Logo
  • The Personality or voice you use in your content and marketing pieces
  • Website colors, header, and layout
  • Mission
  • Tagline and Message
  • Images used in content and marketing materials

Your brand is communicated through every piece of content your blog puts out. It’s communicated on your blog, in your content, in marketing materials, in social media posts and with any interaction you have with a reader. Your brand is an essential element of your marketing success.

How to Create Brand Consistency

The only way to ensure your readers will remember you is by repeated exposure through multiple channels used during your marketing efforts and social media.

Your brand should provide your readers with the same message and experience each time they see your content. If your brand is different on social media than it is in your email messages, the end result is confusion which can drive people away.

Tips for Creating Brand Consistency

  • PROJECT A CONSISTENT LOOK
    Make sure that your logo is used on social media, in your autoresponder messages, on your blog, and on your marketing materials. The colors you use, the style of your images and the look/feel of your marketing materials should all help your reader immediately identify you.
  • USE A CONSISTENT TONE AND VOICE
    You have a voice and a personality. Make sure to express it in every single marketing piece and communication you share. For example, if you’re witty on your blog then you want to make sure that your social media communications share the same style.
  •  USE A CONSISTENT MESSAGE ON SOCIAL MEDIA
    If your brand is about exceptional customer service then that message needs to be integrated into your content and marketing.

Consistency is about making sure your prospects and customers never doubt who you are. Each time they come across your blog or business your readers receive a branding experience that further solidifies you in their mind. It’s about creating expectations and then meeting them every time you make contact with your reader.

As you create your marketing strategy and plan, make sure that your branding is consistent across all of your tactics and channels. Branding is comprised of words, actions, and visuals.

How Your Reader Perceives Your Brand

A brand is more than colors, fonts, images, and a tagline. Your brand is a unique, voice and a consistent style which both play a role in how your readers perceive you.

Humans are visual beings. We create impressions in our minds of a blog or company based on their visuals. Before your prospect reads a single word, they’ve created a definition of who you are and what you’re about.

This means the visual elements of your brand not only need to be aligned with your brand definition, they also need to be strong enough to speak on their own. So what goes into a brand? What are the visual elements to consider?

    • Logo- A logo should be simple and memorable
    • Colors- Colors evoke emotions so make sure the colors you choose reflect how you want your audience to feel.
    • Font- The font you choose is important. If no one can read your font, then they can’t read your blog but it should also convey the right image. For example, a tax accountant shouldn’t use the font Comic Sans because it’s more whimsical than professional.
  • Photos/images- There are different photographic and image styles to consider. Some businesses use a cartoon or drawing style for their images, while others are more stylish or traditional. The images you use also need to support your brand definition and relate to the topic you are writing about in some way.

Words and visuals work together to create a consistent and cohesive brand message. As you create your blog and marketing materials, keep your brand definition in mind.

What Is a Tagline?

A tagline is a sentence or phrase that shares your brand message and identity. It’s designed to communicate who you are and what you do in just a few words and is sometimes referred to as a slogan.

Next to your business name, the most important element of your branding is your tagline. Unfortunately, many blogs and businesses fall short of creating a tagline that truly defines their brand.

Tips for Writing a Good Tagline

  • BE MEMORABLE
    Use power words that evoke emotion.
  • KEEP IT SHORT
    Try to keep your tagline shorter than eight words.
  • SPECIFY HOW YOU’RE UNIQUE
    Your tagline should explain what makes you different of how your readers will benefit from you.
  • BE APPEALING
    A good tagline grabs a reader’s attention.

The best way to start formulating a tagline is to write down a list of words, phrases, and sentiments that you want others to associate with your business. Then work with your list of words, phrases, and sentiments and start drafting potential taglines.

Draft as many taglines as you can think of- aim for about twenty.  Then set them aside for a couple of days.

The next time you read over your list, identify a few that resonate with you and feel powerful. Then start asking others for their input and advice on potential taglines. You can even poll your audience and see which tagline they feel best represents your blog or business. Your tagline is important, so take your time with this step.

IDENTIFYING GOALS FOR YOUR BRANDING

In your branding and marketing strategy, youíll want to both identify and prioritize your goals. Decide exactly what you want to achieve with your branding. There are many things branding can achieve including:

Tips for Writing a Good Tagline

  1. CREATING CREDIBILITY & TRUST
    Your brand can be used to create and sustain your reputation. Keeping your brand strong helps to set and maintain customer expectations. This is a challenging metric to track and measure but setting a goal of establishing your brand as a trusted resource can take your business far. It’s a good priority for coaching businesses and service-based organizations.
  2. CREATING AN EMOTIONAL CONNECTION
    Brands can tell a story and connect with your audience on an emotional level. Again, this is a difficult metric to track and measure but you can look at engagement on social media as one way to evaluate branding and emotional connection. This is a good priority for blogs or businesses who have customers that buy based on how they feel about the products or services you sell.
  3. BUILDING BRAND AWARENESS
    Your brand is an opportunity to increase recognition and this goal requires that you invest heavily in marketing channels frequently. You want to reach your audience often wherever they hang out most.
  4. MOTIVATING PURCHASES
    People buy from people they know, like, and trust and your brand is your. You can set a goal to brand and market your blog or business in such a way that you measure and track sales based on branding.

BRAND RECOGNITION & AWARENESS

Once you have a defined brand, one of your goals may be to increase brand recognition. Brand recognition is when someone sees your logo, hears your tagline, or thinks about your products or services and immediately connects that concept with you.

Brand recognition is defined as ‘the extent to which a consumer can correctly identify a particular product or service just by viewing the product or service’s logo, tagline, packaging or advertising campaign.’

Brand recognition is a lofty goal because it actually takes several impressions for someone to begin associating your brand with your company. There are different marketing and advertising models that say it can take anywhere from seven to twenty impressions before a prospect develops brand recognition.

So how do you ensure you get your brand in front of your prospect often and consistently? How do you create brand recognition?

  1. CONSISTENCY
    The first step is to ensure your brand message is consistent across all of your marketing channels, from email to social media.
  2. BEING PRESENT ON MARKETING & SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELS
    The more marketing channels you utilize, the better chance you have of reaching your prospect repeatedly. You might reach some of your readers on your blog, via social media, and as a guest blogger.
  3. FREQUENCY MATTERS
    Whatever marketing channels you use, use them often. For example, don’t send one email a month; send one a week.

Consider how you can engage your existing customers in the conversation. Encourage your readers to share their story and leverage their positive feedback. Word of mouth makes a strong and memorable impression on your audience. Let your readers market and build your brand for you.

BRANDING MISTAKES TO AVOID

  1. NOT STAYING TRUE TO BRAND
    Your brand should permeate everything that you do. It should be part of your email marketing, customer service, blog or business layout and design, social media interactions and all communication you have with your readers or prospective customers. Keep your brand in mind when creating marketing materials, content, and customer service feedback.
  2. NOT KEEPING YOUR BRANDING STREAMLINES
    It’s easy to get carried away with your brand. However, the simpler the message, the easier it will be for your audience to recognize it, trust it, and engage. If your branding is complicated, it may confuse your audience. Clean and simple elements tend to be the most memorable.
  3. NOT BEING
    Simple doesn’t mean vague and you want your branding to be specific and clear. Why? Because generic branding isn’t memorable. Strive to make your branding clear including your logo, tagline and imagery.

YOUR BRAND AND YOUR BLOG

Building a brand doesn’t have to be hard. Take things one step at a time and you will have your brand set in no time and, more than anything, consistency is key.

Need help getting started branding (or rebranding) your blog? Head over to my resource library and download my Brand Your Blog Checklist and start working through the steps to create your brand now!