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Jan
14

Blogging With Professionalism and Productivity Revisited

By | 12 Steps to Success, Conferences

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Heather Solos of Home-Ec101 and I are both firm believers in the idea of treating a business like a business. When we had the chance to speak at BlogWorld Expo LA this is precisely what we spoke about.

Here is the slideshow and audio of our presentation. You will find a couple main focuses in this conference session.

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Professionalism as a Blogger

Speaking with Heather Solos at BlogWorld Expo LA 2011

We talk about the benefits of professionalism and why it’s important. From there we touch on the hallmarks of professionalism, what it looks like, and how to increase yours.

Blogging at the next level doesn’t mean you have to put you into a corporate mold – you can still be yourself and keep a flexible schedule. However, if you want to be paid well for your blogging, you have to make sure that you are worth paying!

Acting with professionalism as a blogger means cultivating the business knowledge and experience that you need (see my list of must-read business and blogging books). Other hallmarks of professional blogging behavior include clear communication, acting with reliability, and knowing where you are heading.

Productivity as a Blogger

The other thing that happens when you are blogging as a business is that you have to get stuff done. Bottom line. You can’t not blog for weeks or months at time and expect to be taken seriously in this arena. I’m not saying you have to blog 5 times a day, or even every day. But you should be blogging regularly.

Our tips for getting more done aren’t magical in any way. Most are common sense but sometimes you need a reminder. Consider this your friendly kick in the pants. Plan your goals ahead. Prioritize your task list carefully. Delegate wisely and be sure you’re making the most of every opportunity. And use your tools wisely – you don’t have to do it all on your own with today’s level of technology.

I hope you enjoy the BlogWorld Expo presentation Heather and I put together. If you want to see the rest of the incredible BlogWorld Expo sessions from far more experienced bloggers than me, check out the BlogWorld Expo Virtual Ticket where you’ll get access to nearly every session.

See all Twelve Steps to Successful Blogging for more in this learning series.

What are your favorite tools for productivity? What areas are you best in when it comes to being professional?

Dec
20

Investing in Your Business – Two Great 2012 Opportunities

By | Conferences

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Invest in yourself - woman typing on computerOne of the things I attribute my success in building a viable income from home (Number 8 on the list) to is investing in myself through conferences, webinars and other learning opportunities. I know it’s not always easy to do so – but in my opinion that’s when you need it the most.

I struggled with this for awhile. I used to say “When I make a little more money I’ll buy a conference ticket or go to this event” and it took my husband setting me straight to change my perspective. He said, “I think you should consider it an investment and learn what you need to learn to be more successful, more quickly.” Logic that was hard to argue with and has resulted in fabulous networking, motivational and learning for me on this journey of mine.

This coming year I’m hitting a couple conferences in person, and I’m also attending a couple online events – a much easier option for me with five little ones at home! February will find me at the Small Biz Success Summit (online event!) and at BlissDom 2012 Conference in Nashville.
Invest in Yourself!

Small Business Success Summit 2012

This online event will run through much of February and all the sessions and learning materials will be available not only live, but also recorded for playback later (or if you miss a session or two). Last year I attended one of the summits put on by Social Media Examiner and I got a lot out of it. I also developed a couple new clients and met some amazing people as a result of the networking that took place in the LinkedIn Group specifically created for registrants. You can check it out and register for the summit here (Note – I get a commission if you register using that link – I hope to see you there!)

BlissDom 2012

Join Me At Blissdom!I’m super excited about the set-up of this year’s sessions and the fact that we’ll have built in time for connecting with newbies. This is one conference I’m excited to be traveling to for the learning, connections and community. And also – I need to work on my photography skills and hello? Me Ra hKoh is teaching a full session in the Photography Track!

Sometimes the hands-on help is exactly what is needed to assist you in taking your business to the next level. See the list of amazing BlissDom ’12 speakers that have been announced so far – brilliant!

Invest in Yourself!

So, whatever level you are currently at, you can only benefit from investing in your business and taking yourself seriously. Serious entrepreneurs invest in their businesses and we can do the same. If you can make it to Nashville – COME! If you can’t, check out the online options available like Small Biz Success Summit 2012. I hope to see you at one or the other…or even both.

What are you doing this year to invest in yourself?

Nov
19

Blogging Motivations by Darren Rowse – Marrying Heart and Smart

By | Conferences

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He really is as friendly as he looks.

This is a live-blogged recap of a keynote session by Problogger Darren Rowse he delivered at Blog World Expo in LA earlier this month. These notes were typed up in real-time and I’ve only edited for stray typos. If I add my own thoughts they will be in parenthesis and italics. If you missed Blog World Expo, or missed this session, you should check out the Virtual Ticket that will give you access to power point slides and recordings of ALL the fabulous sessions from the conference.

Blogging Motivations – Darren Rowse

Bloggers sharing their blogging motivations. Heart-based reasons were the initial ones – had to share my story, had something important to say, etc. One brave soul said “I started blogging because I heard you could make money.” Others began sharing – platform, job creation/to get a job, etc.

The Myths are: “If you blog from the heart the rest will take care of itself.” but this leads to disillusionment.

Or for money – “I’m following the following but it’s not working.”  Content + branding + ads + SEO + Marketing + Link Bait + Design + etc = Successful Blogging?

When Harry Meets Sally is the sweet spot!  When the Heart Meets Smart.

Are you Heart-Brain Blogging?

You should be blogging from the heart, but you should do some smart strategic things to help develop a successful blog. (Oh my gosh thank you SO much for saying this. I’ve been saying this to the bloggers that I teach or mentor for YEARS and sometimes it’s a hard sell.)

Part One – Blogging From the Heart

Bring Passion –

“No Tears in the Writer

No Tears in the Reader

No Surprise in the Writer

No Surprise in the Reader

~ Robert Frost”

Your passion and engagement with the topic will draw readers and become contagious.

Tell Stories! – The most emailed and commented on posts on both digital photography or problogger are the STORIES. Not the how-tos and technical detail. (I have found this to be true as well. At conferences a reader who purchased my ebook on Making Money Online may comment about a photo I tweeted of our beehives, or newborn goats.)

Build Community! – They want belonging and they want to participate. Engage with your readers! Connect with them.

Inspire People! - Example post he shared was “Long Exposure Photography 15 Stunning Examples”

The photos were inspiring and the post went viral. With inspiration comes the how-to searches as a result.

Start with a photo. Start with a story. Start with a dream. Start with a quote.

Be Personal! The personal touches helps build a memory and build your brand.

Be Playful! Example shared - His spoof post about problogger being acquired by google. Surprises are fun.

Write in a Different Voice! Shared an example where he wrote a post as though from his 2 year old son.

Be Yourself! Sometimes trying to emulate a style that you don’t feel comfortable in is a sure way to kill connection. A more casual style is his style – often turns an email into a blog post.

Do Good! Went to Tanzania with CBM (?) Turn your passions into an opportunity to raise awareness for something you’re passionate about. Can twist it into a relevant angle no matter what your niche is.

Be Useful! “You’ve helped me out of so many holes/issues that I faced.” You’re creating something that is valuable and lasting!

Part Two – Blog Smart

If you want your blog to be a business “one day”….Treat it as one Today! (I love this quote. Ended up using it in my session about “No Excuses” because I think it’s ok to make money while still helping others. Doctors do. Hair dressers do. Why should bloggers and writers be exempt from that? Hint – the answer is ‘we shouldn’t')

Define Success – What is success for you? “4 Hour Work Week” book. Knowing what you’re aiming for will help you achieve that.

Naming those things helps you put steps into place. Makes it easy to plan your efforts. (I have written a lot about creating a smart blogging plan. One of my favorite posts on the subject is from my Ten Habits Series – Have a PLAN.)

It's ok to think strategically - as long as you're also keeping it real!

Know Your Readers – Who do you want to reach? Who are you reaching? Put together a persona about your readers. “Reader Profiles” post on Darren Rowse. Issues, challenges, where they hang out, etc.

Branding – Branding for Darren has been intuitive and gut

“A brand is what people say about you when you’re not in the room” ~Jeff Bezos(?) What do you WANT people to say about you? Will inform the content, relationships, technology used, etc.

Marketing – “Build a great blog and people will find you” – that doesn’t happen right away. You have to get it out there and build it.

Where are your potential readers gathering? How can you participate there?

Hooks – You get readers to your blog – do you let them pass through? Or do you STICK THEM

Social media followings (facebook/twitter/newsletter sign ups/etc) – Email is the biggest on digital photography.

Problogger = twitter and RSS readers are bigger percentage. Take into consideration the audience.

Visit – Subscribe – Follow – Comment – Join – Buy – Spread the Word (What is the path of interaction that you want your readers to follow when they land on your blog?) Think of ways to reinforce your connection.

Create Something to Sell – Ebooks, affiliates, courses, etc. What you writing about? What are your readers coming to you for? (You all know I’m a HUGE proponent of creating an ebook out of the topics you’re already known for. If you need help pulling it together check out How to Make and Sell a Fabulous Ebook in 30 Days.)

Editorial Strategy – What are commented on? What are trafficked? Posts for current readers. And also think about posts that are highly shareable and will go “viral”. Interaction with my readers and inspire people. Mix it up and consider frequency of your posts.

Experiment – Test – Tweak

(I love that he included the need to re-evaluate your strategies periodically. Don’t be afraid to change things up a little so you can improve your performance.)

Nov
04

No Excuses – Professionalism and Productivity BlogWorld Expo

By | Conferences

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Heather Solos and I are teaching a session about professionalism and productivity at BlogWorld Expo today. You can download the document of our slide notes so you can follow along and take notes, or see what we’re speaking on for your own if you weren’t able to attend.

Professionalism in Blogging

With so many newcomers to the space it’s important that even those with no background in entrepreneurial business smarts learn the basics of what it means to have a blog as a business!

Productivity

How do you get things done, Angela? If I had a dollar for every time someone asked me that I’d be rich. Heather and I are going to share our top tips and tools for getting done – not everything – but what NEEDS to get done.

 

Jul
17

Grab the Savvy Blogging Summit Recordings at 50% off!

By | Conferences

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Savvy Blogging Summit 2011 has just ended and as a result, the recordings from last year’s sessions are on 50% discount between now and July 23rd. If you’ve been following blogging topics on Twitter at all, you probably follow two main hashtags: #savvyblogging and #blogchat. These are the gals behind the #savvyblogging hashtag and they are worth a listen.

I’m picking up my copy of the Savvy Blogging 2010 Summit and using the coupon code “TheSprings” which drops the price to under $50. It’s a fabulous deal for 13 sessions, plus handouts where appropriate. Not only that, but pick up your copy before July 23rd and you’ll get a bonus code to download Phil Hollows session about Email Marketing as soon as it’s available.

Yes, this is the same Phil Hollows who is the author of List Building for Bloggers ebook, and is CEO of Feedblitz. That Phil Hollows.

You can see a full list of the available sessions at Savvy Blogging Summit Recordings. As a busy mother I cannot always make it to as many conferences and I would like to go to, five a year is my maximum. So I always appreciate the ability to learn these types of things right from the comfort of my own home!

Jan
10

Blogging Success Summit 2011

By | Conferences

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As a mother of four in the middle of nowhere Oklahoma, most Blog Conferences mean time away from my family and/or tons of travel. It’s two hours to the nearest airport. If I speed. So a blog conference isn’t just right in my neck-of-the-woods.

So when I found out about Blog Success Summit I knew this was for me. An amazing line-up of speakers that I can listen to without having to pack the kids a suitcase. I’m especially excited to hear Darren Rowse, author of Build a Better Blog in 30 days (the blog series I did last year on this site), Brian Clark and Mari Smith.

The really cool thing is that I’m going to not only attend myself, I’m going to sponsor the Community Manager of Untrained Housewife to attend because since she’s overseas, she never gets to attend any of the other conferences I’m going to this year.

I’m going to BlissDom in three more weeks and am so excited to see everyone in person. I’m also going to Type-A-Conference and SOBCon as well. I do think it’s vital to keep in touch in person as much as possible. Those face-to-face connections are vital.

But the ability to get this quality information FROM HOME is really cool. I hope some of you can join me at Blog Success Summit this year! And it’s so important, I think, to improve your blogging and writing and ability to make money online by LEARNING. Taking every opportunity to  improve and learn from some amazing professionals it vital for improving my blogging.

Check out Blog Success Summit and join me there if you want to help take your blog to the next level. Or come to one of the other conferences I’m coming to and say HI! Either way – take this new year and invest in YOURSELF.

Dec
29

Attend BlissDom Blog Conference – Ticket Giveaway!

By | Conferences

I went to BlissDom Blog Conference last year and spoke at one of the Wisdom Workshops. It was a fabulous experience and the entire conference was not only educational, but an amazing experience. BlissDom is a conference that pampers it’s attendees with great entertainment, fabulous keynotes and an amazing atmosphere.

I’m looking forward to this year’s BlissDom because I’ve seen the conference schedule – the content this year is going to be amazing. I’ll be speaking with Melanie and Shelley in the SEO and Stats – Blogging with Strategy Wisdom Workshop. I’m excited to share more about how to blog smart with you guys.

And on that note – Who’s coming to BlissDom Blog Conference with me? What’s that? You don’t have a ticket yet? That’s ok – I have one for you. One lucky winner is going to win a Wisdom Workshop and Full Conference Pass ticket to BlissDom 2011!

How to enter?

Required Entry – Be subscribed to the newsletter either on this website(Topics – writing/blogging/making money online), or on Untrained Housewife(topics parenting/home management/back-to-basics).

Be sure to leave a comment to let me know that you are a subscriber!

Additional Entries –

1. Subscribe to another newsletter. (leave a comment)

2. Tweet about this giveaway. (leave a comment – one per day)

3. Share about this giveaway on Facebook. (leave a comment – one per day)

Sample tweet or Facebook message “I want to go to #Blissdom with @AngEngland! http://bit.ly/BDTicket”

Winner will be randomly selected from entries received prior to January 5, 2011 at 11:59pm CST. Winner is responsible for any expenses associated with travel, hotel or attending the conference. See you there!

Want another chance to win? Visit my friend Heather Solos at Home-Ec101 who is also hosting a giveaway opportunity!

This giveaway winner was Valerie who attended BlissDom – I was so happy she had a chance to do so.

Dec
10

Teaching Social Media Classes for Local Businesses – Type-A-Parent 2010 Conference Recap

By | Conferences, Social Media

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Sarah Pinnix Teaches About Social Media Classes

Woefully late, I know but between traveling, school with kids and the hacked website, that’s just the way it is. Better late than never, don’t you think? These notes are from @RealLifeSarah‘s session at Type-A-Mom (Now  Type-A-Parent) Blog Conference.

Social Media 101 by Sarah Pinnix

Learn about marketing! Meatball Sundae and UNMarketing are good resources. You have to understand the principles of good marketing.

Establish yourself as an expert – find out what you are doing that is newsworthy and relevant in your community. Get in the news – use press releases or establish reporter contacts in your local community.

Become the “big fish” in your little pond instead of aiming for a saturated national market.

Start promoting your local businessess on your social media outlets. Then tell them you’re doing it! Don’t be afraid to contact someone and say, “I wanted to let you know I mentioned you in my Facebook status message recently.

Offer to help someone for free. Get your feet wet with a business owner friend or an establishment you frequent regularly. Track everything you can to build a portfolio for future businesses.

Start a local blog!

Workshop dates and topics -

Free seminar first to get them in the door. See about sponsors for the local workshop. Teach philosophies of social media, share case studies (Mashable), etc. Teach about blogs and social media and quick updates and usability – dynamic and updateable content. Power of the RSS feed and permission-based marketing. (Illustration of the ball and expectation and not expecting)

Facebook 101 – Stay on top of new rules and regulations. If you are interacting you’ll be seen in the facebook statuses. Must interact. Must get your updates seen to be effective.

Twitter 101 – Informational – give the info and send them on their way.

She spaces the sessions out by a month to give time to implement.

Integrating social media into existing web presence – the Transformational stage.

Individual class = $75, 3 session pass is $60 each or 5 for $55 each.

Private Consulting for Businesses – A Few Tips

  • Listen First
  • Find out their specific marketing goals
  • Craft a step by step plan to help them achieve that goal
  • Suggest ways they can go beyond their stated goals
  • Do research beforehand, and write a written report with your recommendations**
  • Set rates based on your area’s market
  • Be the Devil’s Advocate

**I want to add a note here. I have personally taken to charging for in-depth analysis reports, especially those that require anything more an hour of my time to put together. I’ve had two situations where I did not charge, hoping for a payback later and in both cases all my action steps were implemented (poorly) by someone else.

By charging my hourly rate I am able to turn over the report feeling fairly compensated, while establishing a base-line of credibility with the business I’m working with. If they choose to hire me later, that’s great (and has statistically happened MORE often when I charge for the reports). But if they don’t choose to hire me later, I can be free from any lingering resentment.

Photo by @Mooshinindy

Feb
14

Blogging Session Notes Link-Up!

By | Conferences

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So, I am not the only one who has been typing up some amazing blogging conference notes from the workshops and training sessions we attended. Here is a gathering of the session recaps and blogging trainings, both here on AngEngland.com and on other websites.

From @JustHeather – Keynote Session w/Kevin Carroll - about blurring the lines between work and play.

From @TipJunkie – Connecting With Your Community of Readers – all about our readers and our community as bloggers. From @JustHeather – Liveblogged Version of Connecting Session.

From @AngEngland – Content is Queen – about high quality writing and finding your voice.

From @JustHeather – Getting Published - about publishing options, tips and tricks.

From @AngEngland – Problogging Session Notes – about taking your blogging to the next level. From @ChristineSatter – Evolving into a Problogger.

From @BostonMamas – Striking a Balance – a realistic look at balancing blogging and life. @JustHeather’s Liveblogged Recap

From @AngEngland – Advertising on Your Blog - examining ad networks and monetizing your blog. @JustHeather’s Liveblogged Version.

From @SGetgood – Disclosure and Slides from “You Should Know Better” - all about the financial, ethical and legal things you need to know as a blogger. From @modernmami Her notes on Disclosure, FTC and Accounting.

From @BeyondJEMS – Memoir Writing Session Notes - all about how to blog your own story.

From @AngEngland – Leveraging Social Media – how to use social media to build your business. @JustHeather’s Liveblogged Notes

From @JustHeather – Inspirational Writing Workshop – sponsored by HallMark, this workshop was all about inspiring others w/your words.

From @AngEngland – Using SEO Techniques as a Blogger – increase your blog traffic through well-optimized posts, w/o losing your unique voice.

From @JustHeather – Niche Blogging Workshop - about finding and maximizing your niche.

From @frelle – Wisdom Workshop Recaps – She has the notes posted from “What’s Your Story” media training workshop, the “Her Story” Writing Track Wisdom Workshop, and the “Social Media and the Women Who Love it” Wisdom Workshop.

I know there are other session notes out there, so leave a link in the comment and I’ll add the blogging session to our list! :-)

Feb
11

SEO Tips For Bloggers – Merging Humanity With Technique Blissdom Workshop Recap

By | Conferences, SEO Tips

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This is the teaching outline and merged notes from the Blissdom Wisdom Workshop on SEO and Stats that was taught by Kelby Carr (@typeamom) and myself, Angela England (@AngEngland). Thanks to @econemicliving who shared her copy of the notes – the basic teaching outline was created ahead of time, but the Q & A’s came from the audience and helped guide the session outcome!

Writing Good SEO Does Not Have to Hide Your Humanity. Photo by Ivan Petrov

Writing Good SEO Does Not Have to Hide Your Humanity. Photo by Ivan Petrov

Kelby -Understanding SEO for Bloggers

SEO does not have to mean geeky/soulless. You do not have to choose between writing for humans and computers.

Reasons SEO is important to bloggers

Look at SEO as a different style of writing, just like newspapers, books, TV, radio, etc. are all media with their own styles. Cover basic standards for web/SEO writing: clear, concise, on point, etc.

Ask Yourself: “What Would I Search?”
Go to Google and do a search before you start writing – what comes up is probably what your title should be. (What is this about?)
-Slight tweaking of a phrase can make a big difference

Researching and choosing your keyword phrase (with demo of doing keyword research)
-Ex: mommy blogger, mom blogger: MOM BLOG, top 10 mom blog
(Google – keyword tool –click on global monthly search volume (keep use synonyms checked) – be sure people are searching it.

(Angela’s Note - one of the best features of my ebook is the step-by-step visual guidance on how to do this. If you are “stuck” on this portion of keyword research, or still having trouble applying it to your specific situation, that may be a resource for you to consider.)

Angela – Implementing Human-Friendly SEO on Your Blog

Understand the ABC’s of Web Writing

  • A – Active Title “No Cutsey” – Start with a good, clear title (should ALSO be title tag next to Mozilla/IE symbol)

  • B – Bolded Subheading – Use Heading (Angela uses H3) setting vs just bolding

-Subheading for clarity, helps catch the eye
-work some of the words in your title into your subheading

  • C – Cut Away Rambling Fluff (narrow focus)

Things that help with SEO also help with human readers -(Sub heads – bullets – scan )

Don’t be Afraid to Tailor SEO to Site  and Situation - (demo of posting book review  to three diff sites)

SEO in Action – Formatting the Post

Tag your photos too – people search for photos- google image search – use hypens between your words – alternative text to increase SEO. Do intro paragraphs for videos and then embed it

From Kelby -Categories = chapters and Tags = index

Takeaway Handout – post from my blog/ebook w/article template for web writing

HUB PAGE – a post to send people to other posts – put your links in a keyword sentence

(Angela’s Note – By popular request, here are some sample hubpages. This is the round-up post for the Ten Habits of Successful Blogging Series on my site. This shows Popular Children’s Books for Preschoolers and here’s one Kelby did about Traveling in the Summer. )

How Can You Improve SEO Now?

  • At the end of post – call to action (what do you think, post a comment, read this) Link to other people
  • Weave your keywords/title throughout your post – words in title should be in first paragraph
  • Google pagerank, firefox browser extensions, seaquake, pagerank
  • Optimize your past posts – will re-index your SEO’s, including your page titles – rework old content
  • When you repeat posts (Freebie Friday) put more interesting title at beginning (CVS freebie – Freebie Friday)

A Word About Stats and Analytics

  • Install Google Analytics – look at referral from google (if under 50%, there’s a problem)
  • Get Clicky – to see what people are clicking on when they leave your site
  • Take advantage of seasonal content
  • Social Bookmarking (wikipedia and digg = no follow links)
  • Curtsey, mom share, propeller, facebook fan page, stumbleupon.com, Hubpages website are follows (This sample from Hubpages includes another example of a round-up page designed to get On-Topic links back to other posts and articles).
  • Google.com/webmasters

-set preferred domain
-Claim a sitemap (please use rss feed as a sitemap) – not ideal, but a place to start

Angela says: Content attracts, relationships keep

Search WP extension: “redirect” if you’re going to start changing page names

Create HUB PAGE with lots of resources – with links – and put in side bar

People love Top 10 Lists

(Angela’s Notes – I couldn’t take exact transcriptions on this session because my mouth was open the whole time so I hope you’ll all forgive the rather abrupt and “bullet pointed” type of notes. The information is, of course, still helpful I hope. :-) Kelby and I bounced off eachother so much through the session it was hard to note who said what sometimes. For Mommy Bloggers SEO Advice, please check out Kelby’s upcoming book which will have more specifics on SEO tips that WON’T make you sound like a robot!)

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