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samedi 12 novembre 2016

Who’s Reading This? Tips for New Bloggers Looking to Increase Traffic

alt="Who’s Reading This? Tips for New Bloggers Looking to Increase Traffic" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/writing-a-blog-500x333_c.jpg" />

class="border" src="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/images/2011/0922-2.jpg" alt="Blogging Guide" width="750" />
Image credit: href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/justonlysteve/2281405824/" target="_blank">JustOnlySteven

When you’re new to the world of blogging, the possibilities seem both endless and exciting. You eagerly put hours into crafting fresh and entertaining articles. You spend a good chunk of each day thinking about your blog and carefully putting your thoughts into words. When you re-read your work after hitting “publish”, you’re proud of what you’ve written.

Unfortunately, you’re the only one reading it.

It can be discouraging and frustrating as a new blogger to see little or no growth in readership. It’s important to remember that building a loyal audience doesn’t happen overnight! Try some of these simple and effective ways to increase traffic to your blog.

Keep to a Schedule

This is probably the simplest blogging truth: if you don’t write, then people won’t read. Choose a blogging schedule – whether you plan on writing daily or weekly – and href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/blogging-tips/10-tips-to-help-you-find-time-to-blog/">stick to it. Once readers see that they can trust you to keep adding interesting and original content on a regular basis, they will be more open to investing their time in your blog.

Comment on Other People’s Blogs

Blogging is about more than finding a niche; it’s also about building community. When you read and comment on blogs written by people with similar interests, you’re also sharing your own blog with all of their readers. Blog owners love receiving comments, and there’s a good chance that they might click on your link and visit your blog. Even more importantly, everyone who reads through the comments will be exposed to you and your blog.

Remember that commenting is, first and foremost, an opportunity to engage in discussion. If all you’re trying to do is bring readers to your blog with generic comments like “Great post!” people will see through that and ignore you. The best comments – both for engaging in discussion and for convincing new readers to click on your link – are the ones that are thoughtful, original and meaningful. Take the time to really read a blog post and think about how you can contribute before leaving a comment.

Link to Other Blog Posts

Many blog platforms offer the possibility of backtracks or linkbacks. What this means is that you can write a post on your own blog and link directly to someone else’s related blog post. Your link will show up under the comments, which could bring new readers to your site.

Even if you’re not using backtracks or linkbacks, linking to another person’s blog can bring that blog’s author to your site. Most blog authors like to keep an eye on their traffic sources to see where their readers are coming from. Once someone clicks on the link in your post – or even if you click on it yourself – it will pop up on the other blog owner’s statistics page.

Join Link Parties or Blog Carnivals

Link parties or blog carnivals are special blog posts that aim to bring together bloggers with similar interests. The host blogger provides a space in their post where other bloggers can add their URLs. Readers can then visit some or all of the posts in the party to read and comment on other people’s work. Link parties are a great way to build your blogging community and to get to know other blogs and bloggers.

To find a link party, think about your blog’s focus and then do a quick search online. “DIY link party”, “recipe link party” or “book review link party” will all bring up links to parties that might be the perfect match for your blog.

Link to Your Blog When Using Social Media

id="floatright">class="alignright" src="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/images/2011/0922-3.jpg" alt="Blogging Guide" width="235" height="300" />

This tip is particularly useful if you already participate actively in message boards, groups and other online communities dedicated to the same topic as your blog. By adding a link to your blog in your signature, you’re exposing your writing to people with similar interests. Hopefully, some of them will visit your blog. The more established you are as a contributor, the more likely people are to click on your link. Don’t stop at message boards; include a link to your blog on your twitter and facebook accounts, as well as any other social media that you use.

Write a Guest Post for Someone Else’s Blog

Once you’ve been blogging regularly for a few months, there’s a lot to be gained from href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/write-for-us/">writing a post for someone else’s blog. While your first reaction might be to wonder why you’d spend precious time writing for someone else, the fact is that posting your work on other people’s blogs exposes your writing to many new readers. If you make an effort to write an engaging and entertaining guest post, some of your host blog’s readers are very likely to visit your blog. Hopefully, this will lead to new loyal readers.

Make sure that your guest post ideas are focused and original. For instance, if you want to guest post on a running blog, a post called “How Interval Training Helped Me Shave Minutes Off my Mile” will probably be better received than something more generic like “How to Run”. Blog owners are also more likely to accept your offer to guest post if you’ve already engaged with them by reading and commenting on past posts.

Don’t Give Up

While there are stories out there of overnight blog success, the truth is that most blogs build slowly over time. Be patient and take time to enjoy the act of blogging. Keep reading and writing about topics that you’re passionate about, and eventually you will see your readership grow.

Happy blogging!

Page 26 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed

Write Headlines Like Brian Clark, Neil Patel, and Jon Morrow: 35 Headline Samples From The A-List Bloggers

alt="Write Headlines Like Brian Clark, Neil Patel, and Jon Morrow: 35 Headline Samples From The A-List Bloggers" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0409-2-500x507_c.jpg" />

class="alignright size-medium wp-image-642" alt="Quick Sprout Case Study Headlines" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0409-8-300x297.jpg" width="300" height="297" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0409-8-300x297.jpg 300w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0409-8-150x150.jpg 150w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0409-8-130x130.jpg 130w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0409-8.jpg 313w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />

There are two things you bloggers should know: One, great bloggers write great headlines, and two, great headlines often follow sets of similar formulas.

Great headlines follow sets of rules – they are compelling, specific, intriguing, and often follow sets of proven formula.

Yes, just like maths, there are formulas that can help us to write headlines that work. It’s no coincidence that three out of four Neil’s case studies headlines on QuickSprout started with the phrase “How I…”. Headlines written based on certain sets recipes simply get more clicks and reads online. And these types of headlines will always work, because good headlines tap into psychological triggers that are programmed into the human mind.

In other words, the easiest way to write powerful headlines is to follow these recipes. As a smart blogger, you should keep a set of headline formulas, templates, or cheat sheet for your writing references. And, that’s what I’m going to offer in this article – we are going to look into five most frequent-use headline formulas and some real life examples.

List Headlines: X Ways To Get This And That Done

Brian Clark of CopyBlogger once title="7 Reasons Why List Posts Work" href="http://www.copyblogger.com/7-reasons-why-list-posts-will-always-work/" target="_blank">said this about list-headline:

Any headline that lists a number of reasons, secrets, types, or ways will work because, once again, it makes a very specific promise of what’s in store for the reader. A nice quantifiable return on attention invested goes a long way toward prompting action, and as long as you deliver with quality content, you’ll have a satisfied reader.

Truth is, you can never go wrong with headlines consist of a list.

style="text-align: center;">class="aligncenter wp-image-643 border" alt="List Type Headlines" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0409-2.jpg" width="750" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0409-2.jpg 650w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0409-2-295x300.jpg 295w" sizes="(max-width: 650px) 100vw, 650px" />

Here are a couple of recent list-headlines written by title="ProBlogger.net Darren Rowse" href="http://www.problogger.net/archives/author/darren/" target="_blank">Darren Rowse. Note that how these titles state clearly the reason why you should read the articles; and without doubt, they attract me to click in and read it.

1. 9 Steps To Creating A Successful e-Course

2. 9 Benefits (and 3 Costs) Of Building Community On Your Blog

3. 7 Strategies For Growing Community On Your Blog

Other Similar Headline Samples

In case you need more samples, here are couples similar headlines extracted from other popular blogs.

4. 5 Tips to make Facebook Marketing Mobile Friendly

5. 4 ways to maximize the social media presence at your next event

6. 10 sure-fire headline formulas that work

7. 7 more sure-fire headline templates that work

8. 101 sure-fire ways to make people hate your marketing

How-To Headlines: How To Do This And That

style="text-align: center;">class="aligncenter wp-image-644 border" alt="Neil Patel's headlines" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0409-1.jpg" width="750" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0409-1.jpg 650w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0409-1-300x289.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 650px) 100vw, 650px" />

I believe you see this type headlines everywhere. Why not? How-to headlines work like a charm always. If you are a frequent reader on title="Quick Sprout" href="http://www.quicksprout.com/" target="_blank">QuickSprout, you should know Neil Patel loves using this headline method to hook his readers. For instances:

9. How To Use Rejection To Achieve Your Business Goals

10. How To Make Your Site Insanely Fast

11. How To Think Like Google

Other Similar Headline Samples

There are plenty of variations you can use on how-to headlines. Here’s a few that pop up in my mind while writing this article. With a little brainstorming session, I am sure you can come up with a lot more than these.

12. How to lose fats without exercising

13. How to make money without sacrificing your TV time

14. How to jump higher and play basketball like Michael Jordan

15. How to build a twitter account with tons of followers and make ,000/mo

16. How to make use of Pinterest for your social media success

17. How to make use of your house sofa for your six pack abs

Hey You! Headlines Focusing On Target Audiences

class=" wp-image-645 alignright border" alt="Swine Flu Posts On Huffington Post" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0409-4.jpg" width="300" height="300" />

Headlines that call names or focus on certain group of views are often very effective in building rapport with the target audience and hence creating awareness.

The image on your right (extracted from href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/04/28/swine-flu-what-travelers_n_192436.html" target="_blank">Huffington Post) is a very good example: This article has information about Swine Flu for travelers. Not parents, not teachers, not doctors; but only for folks who are on the road or will be travelling soon.

Other Similar Headline Samples

Here are some real life examples displayed by bloggers at Copy Blogger, Boost Blog Traffic, and Out Spoken Media.

18. Bloggers beware: Avoid these pitfalls when you start a blog

19. What you need to know as a web hosting shoppers

20. Everything a marketer needs to know can be learned from journalism

21. The woman’s guide to having it all

22. An open letter to all the bloggers cluttering the web with forgettable content

Case Study/Report Style Headlines

By clipping the phrase ‘Case Study’ (or other similar words) into your headlines, you inform your readers that your articles are thoroughly researched and consist of valuable information. title="Beth Hayden" href="http://www.copyblogger.com/author/bethhayden/" target="_blank">Beth Hayden has some perfect examples for this type of headlines on CopyBlogger.com.

style="text-align: center;">class="aligncenter wp-image-646 border" alt="Case Study Types Of Headlines" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0409-3.jpg" width="750" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0409-3.jpg 650w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0409-3-300x287.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 650px) 100vw, 650px" />

For examples, Hayden wrote these two headlines recently.

22. Case Study: How To Build A Vast Audience by Mastering The Art Of The Interview

23. Case Study: How Aurelien Amacker Escaped The Cubicle

However, do note that this type of headlines might backfire if it’s not handled properly – a case-study-titled article requires lots of in-depth research and detail writings as the readers’ expectation is high. You certainly do not want to write a case study headline for your 500-words-simple-article.

Other Similar Headline Samples

24. Case study: How Jane made ,000 during dot-com booms

25. Tax report: Why the riches are getting richer

26. Case study: The truth about unlimited web hosting offers

27. Consumer report: Are you spending too much on your SEO campaign

Threat Headlines: Don’t Say That I Never Warn You

style="text-align: center;">class="aligncenter wp-image-647 border" alt="Treat Headlines" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0409-7.jpg" width="750" height="432" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0409-7.jpg 650w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/0409-7-300x172.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" />

What is your readers’ greatest fear? What’s keeping your readers up at night? Good salesmen leverage human’s fear to sell more; a good writer should do the same his/her headlines. A threat headline gets us to take action because it creates fear. It also implies that something we trust has misled us and may be at risk. If you are serious about writing a blog that sells, you should use more treat headlines.

Here’s what Jon Morrow has to say when it comes to writing good treat headlines.

The key is to be specific. You want the reader to think, “How on earth did they guess that I’m afraid of that? Are they psychic?” Like many headline hacks, your power to use it will grow in proportion to how well you know your audience.

Now, let’s look at some samples, shall we?

More Similar Headline Samples

28. 15 warning signs that your business sucks

29. SEO scams – 12 warning signs that you hired the wrong SEO

30. Can we really trust bought email lists

31. Suicide, shame, and the painful truth about accomplishing your goals

32. 9 great lies of online sales and marketing

33. The biggest lie in email marketing (why most email is junk mail)

34. The shocking secrets about budget hosting (must read)

35. Alert: The new social media marketing scam to avoid

Bottom Line: What’s Next?

Okay, so now you have five surefire formulas and 35 headline samples for reference. Ready to write some kick-ass headlines? Here’s what I want you to do, in your next blogpost, use one of the headline formulas stated above and post the link in the comment box below. I might not read everything you write. But if it comes with great headlines, I promise that I will glance thru and add your headlines as samples #36 and so on.

Credits: This article uses multiple references from various A-list blogs, including title="Copy Blogger" href="http://www.copyblogger.com/blog/" target="_blank">Copy Blogger, title="Pro Blogger" href="http://www.problogger.net/blog" target="_blank">Pro Blogger, title="Social Media Examiner" href="http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/" target="_blank">Social Media Examiner, title="Boost Blog Traffic" href="http://boostblogtraffic.com/" target="_blank">Boost Blog Traffic, title="Out Spoken Media" href="http://outspokenmedia.com/" target="_blank">Out Spoken Media, title="Quick Sprout" href="http://www.quicksprout.com/" target="_blank">Quick Sprout, title="Distilled Blog" href="http://www.distilled.net/blog/" target="_blank">Distilled Blog, and title="Hub Spot" href="http://blog.hubspot.com/" target="_blank">HubSpot Blog. Thanks a lot for all the great work – I wouldn’t have learn so many about persuasive writings without you guys.

Page 21 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed

7 Habits of Highly Effective Bloggers

alt="7 Habits of Highly Effective Bloggers" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/calender-500x300_c.jpg" />

I am sure you read before that over 95% of blogs that are created are abandoned. This statistic could be skewed due to the fact that most people who create a blog do not have any plans on doing it long term. That is, this figure probably incorporates people who are simply trying blogging out. Still, there is no denying that the overwhelming majority of people who try blogging do not stick at it.

Everyone starts blogging enthusiastically. It is not uncommon for some new bloggers to update their blog every day for the first few weeks due to how much they enjoy it; though it soon becomes clear to them that blogging is a lot of hard work. It can take months or even years before a blog acquires a good readership and when this becomes apparent, most people become discouraged. They simply do not have the time, patience or desire to stay in for the long haul.

Even those with experience with making money online have struggled to build a successful blog. I have seen many successful internet marketers dismiss the power of blogging after they failed to develop a blog they launched. They went into it thinking that if beginners can create a blog and make it successful, surely someone with a proven track record of making money online can do it? Sadly, that is not the case. They wrongly assumed that blogging was easy and that their prior success with other websites ensured they would be successful with it. Rather that admit their own failures with their blog, they dismiss the medium as not giving a good return for your investment.

Many do persevere with blogging and go on to make their blog’s a success. Those who do have qualities that others did not. Today I would like to talk about the habits that effective bloggers have and how it helped them succeed.

1. They Are Highly Motivated

style="text-align: center;">class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-6577 border" alt="Yes! Bloggers "can-do" attitude " src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/yes.jpg" width="750" height="450" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/yes.jpg 750w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/yes-300x180.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" />

People get motivated in many ways. Some work hard out of necessity whilst others are driven by the fact that they have not achieved what they wanted in life. Whatever their source of their motivation, it is clear that all successful bloggers are highly motivated in making their blog a success.

They are willing to to make sacrifices to ensure that their blog reaches its potential. Without doubt, the biggest sacrifice anyone can make is with their time. So if you want to develop a successful blog, you must be prepared to reduce your leisure time in order to get things finished.

“Motivation will almost always beat mere talent” – Norman Ralph Augustine

2. They Stay Up To Date

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-6570 border" alt="Get up to date" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/calender.jpg" width="750" height="450" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/calender.jpg 750w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/calender-300x180.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" />

Knowing your subject matter is essential to blogging. Top bloggers all stay up to date with the latest news and views surrounding their topic. It simply is not possible to write with conviction if you do not know what you are talking about. Therefore, it is important that you stay up to date with the latest news and events.

“Every addition to true knowledge is an addition to human power” – Horace Mann

3. They Plan Ahead

style="text-align: center;">class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-6574 border" style="line-height: 1.5em;" alt="Plan and be flexible" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/rubberband-ball.jpg" width="750" height="482" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/rubberband-ball.jpg 750w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/rubberband-ball-300x192.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" />

Planning will help you define your long term goals and push you to take the steps necessary to reach them. Being content to simply plod along one day at a time is unlikely to lead to great things. By planning ahead you can break down what needs to be done and then commit yourself to doing them.

“One way to keep momentum going is to have constantly greater goals” – Michael Korda

4. They Treat Their Blog Like a Business

style="text-align: center;">class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-6569 border" alt="Treat your blog like business" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/business.jpg" width="750" height="499" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/business.jpg 750w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/business-300x199.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" />

If you treat blogging like a hobby, you will likely see hobby results. You need to give blogging the respect it deserves. Don’t worry; treating your blog like a business does not mean that you will no longer have fun updating your blog. What it does mean is that you need to take blogging seriously and title="Successful blogging: How? " href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/blogging-tips/how-to-create-a-successful-blog/">have a purpose in everything you do with your blog.

Think about the end result of everything you do. If something is not going to increase your readership or increase your bottom line, perhaps you need to evaluate whether it is worthwhile.

“The superior man understands what is right; the inferior man understands what will sell” – Confucius

5. They Analyse What They Do

style="text-align: center;">class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-6578 border" alt="Analyse your blog" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/analysis.jpg" width="750" height="480" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/analysis.jpg 750w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/analysis-300x192.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" />

Being analytical does not always mean checking Google Analytics several times a day (though for some bloggers it does). Successful bloggers are always reviewing what works and what doesn’t. To do this effectively you need to be able to look at your own work objectively and say whether your previous decision was right or not.

Has your decision to write longer more in-depth posts proved worthwhile? Is your lack of interaction with readers effecting your blog’s growth? Examine everything you do with your blog, from how you are using your time to how you are investing your money.

“Twice and thrice over, as they say, good is it to repeat and review what is good” – Plato

6. They are Doers

style="text-align: center;">class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-6572 border" style="line-height: 1.5em;" alt="You can do it! " src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/doers.jpg" width="750" height="300" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/doers.jpg 750w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/doers-300x120.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" />

Having a clear vision of what needs to be done is obviously important, however it means nothing if steps are not taken to actually make that vision a reality. All successful bloggers have a track record of actually getting things done. Great ideas are worthless without execution.

Becoming a successful blogger is less about what you have done in the past and more about what you are prepared to do in the future. Your dreams will not become true unless you make them so.

“Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races one after the other” – Walter Elliot

7. They Do Not Let Setbacks Keep Them Down

style="text-align: center;">class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-6573 border" style="line-height: 1.5em;" alt="push" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/push.jpg" width="750" height="421" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/push.jpg 750w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/push-300x168.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" />

You need to be willing to take risks and try out things that you have no previous experience with. Sometimes this works out well, sometimes it does not. To be an effective blogger, you need to be able to accept that everything will not go to plan. The issue is not whether you will experience setbacks – you will. Traffic and income targets may be missed and articles may not be well received. The key thing is to not let these setbacks discourage you from moving forward.

“Even if you fall on your face, you’re still moving forward” – Victor Kiam

By looking at the working habits of top bloggers and examining what drives them to do what they do, you can learn a lot about what is required of you to reach the same heights. What makes some bloggers successful and others not is a subject I find fascinating and something which I discussed in great detail in my free eBook title="The Traits & Habits of Successful Bloggers" href="http://www.kevinmuldoon.com/books/traits-habits-successful-bloggers/">The Traits & Habits of Successful Bloggers.

I would like to leave you with some questions that I hope makes you think about your own situation:

What drives you to become successful?
What are you willing to sacrifice in order to become a success?
Is your blog going in the direction you want it to?

Thanks for reading, Kevin

Photo credit: href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/eyefruit/179553810/">(michelle), href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/23912576@N05/2962194797/">laverrue, href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36821100@N04/5417281120/">Aristocrats-hat, href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/steffen_ramsaier/8351116782/">sramses177, href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/plasticbrain/9239853121/">bicycle thief, href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/safari_vacation/5961260280/">SalFalko, and href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/marinadelcastell/9429495502/">MaRiNa.

Page 18 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed

8 Reasons Why Bloggers Should Be Culture Leaders

alt="8 Reasons Why Bloggers Should Be Culture Leaders" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/blogging--500x248_c.jpg" />

An article by href="http://smartblogs.com/leadership/2012/11/20/corporate-culture-changes-only-when-people-change/" target="_blank">S.Chris Edmonds at SmartBlogs, published last November, made me think about bloggers and the cultural phenomenon they generate. Chris explains how corporate culture leaders can influence the growth of their business by positively influencing their employees — and as a consequence, their productivity.

But how could bloggers ever be culture leaders, too?

The reason lies in the power of their message: because businesses, politicians, noprofits and other public entities rely heavily on bloggers’ opinion.

Bloggers are culture leaders in the online world and they have the power to change the course of events. Why? I’ll give you 8 reasons below, all connected to the positive influence bloggers can have on the worldwide web by means of a simple tool: their unique voice.

Chris Edmonds says that successful culture leaders “create specific, measurable, and trackable performance standards” and that they “define values in observable, tangible, measurable terms”. The 8 reasons I list in this article will tackle exactly these aspects of the blogosphere influence on today’s world. Look at the image below. It’s not a random pick and it will make sense as you continue reading. :)

style="text-align: center;"> class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-6731 border" alt="Blogging as culture leaders" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/blogging-.jpg" width="750" height="372" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/blogging-.jpg 750w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/blogging--300x148.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" />

1. Bloggers give authority to a brand

There’s no success for a brand if nobody mentions or recommends its products. This is where bloggers come useful: they spread the word about what brands do, the services and initiatives they enjoy, they make friends and colleagues aware of the brand existence (‘word of mouth’ promotion) and help attract more people to try out the same products, services and initiatives.

What’s in for YOU

As a blogger, you have a lot power in your hands. You can turn any brand you write about into a success, or contribute to its downfall. You don’t need to kiss feet or use excessive sales language to give yourself, the brands and people you talk about an authority: just support your arguments with facts, case studies, white papers, news and annual reports. Informed opinion adds value to the community even when you feel compelled to highlight a negative aspect of a product or service.

2. Bloggers influence the public opinion

We hear it often on the news: “Mr. Who said such and such in a blog post”, “Such singer/politician/public figure was mentioned on X thousands blogs this week”. Bloggers are that important to the public opinion and the traditional media like to report on it. There’s a reason for the sponsored advertising network href="http://izea.com" target="_blank">IZEA to call its bloggers “influencers”.

What’s in for YOU

Because your blog can influence the public opinion, try to keep your mind open when you focus on a sensible topic in your blog post. Engage with your readers in a constructive way and make your and other people’s knowledge (documents, reports, etc.) available to them. Influence is responsibility, so when you’re not speaking of the facts but of your own opinion, state clearly that’s your opinion being discussed and remind your readers that they are entitled to have one, too.

3. Bloggers boost the conversation

In older times, when the Internet was nothing more than a military and scientific tool for a restricted group of people, corporations had no way to learn about their customers’ opinion unless the customers found a way (and money) to send them letters, postcards or to publish a review on a local magazine or newspaper. Today we have bloggers starting conversations about products and services everywhere in the world, they’re instant (no need to wait for postal service delivery!) and they’re effective. An authoritative blogger can lead a company to sell thousands of an item a day with a single well-written blog post (see reason #2).

Because bloggers can be powerful culture leaders, in 2011 FTC decided to take action against any dishonest effort on behalf of companies to influence bloggers’ opinion behind compensation or free samples. You can find the FTC guidelines href="http://www.ftc.gov/os/2013/03/130312dotcomdisclosures.pdf" target="_blank">here.

What’s in for YOU

Use href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/hosting-reviews/">honest and engaging product reviews to draw a loyal readership to your blog. Reviews shouldn’t be your primary reason for blogging, but they add up credibility and show your effort to deliver quality content to your readers. Having reviews on your blog helps you monetize your efforts as well, because quality reviews attract serious PR people and can get you engaged in a sampling campaign. Just remember FTC’s guidelines for disclosure honesty and word-of-mouth. Never publish a fake review just to earn a compensation or a freebie.

4. Bloggers inform the average Web user

When something happens, you will find that millions of bloggers are blogging about it in a matter of a few hours. That means the average user browsing the Web for information will have a higher chance to be informed via a blog post than a news article.

Big businesses and marketers are well acquainted with this phenomenon, that’s why Press Releases exist in the online world, too— so that e-zines, portals AND bloggers can write about it. Bloggers are an important slice of today’s press.

What’s in for YOU

Don’t just state opinion in your posts. Provide your readership with information that comes from authoritative sources. Even if you’re angry about that political decision, make your post not about your anger, but use your anger to bring up social and political issues your readers can relate to. href="http://www.makealivingwriting.com/2012/04/09/clear-phlegm-blog-posts/" target="_blank">Use your personal life as an anecdote to engage your readers— then get on with the info!

5. Bloggers create a community behind a service or product

When I mentioned Chris Edmond’s line that culture leaders “create specific, measurable, and trackable performance standards” I was referring to blogger communities (conversations) created behind a product or service and how beneficial this social phenomenon can be for companies who need to measure and track the popularity and saleability of their products.

To say it with Paul Chaney from href="http://www.practicalecommerce.com/articles/2804-7-Ways-to-Build-a-Brand-Using-Blogs" target="_blank">Practical Ecommerce— this is branding.

What’s in for YOU

Be honest when you review or mention a product or service, and encourage conversations from your readers. Don’t just recall the FTC guidelines as a matter of rules, but use them as your chance to connect with your audience and provide them with some genuine information that will improve their living. Your effort will put you under a good light with both visitors and the reviewed brands.

6. Bloggers build trust

Internet users trust bloggers. Not because they are some celebrity or superstar, but because they tend to be genuine about what they write. Whether they write for work or as a hobby, serious bloggers are serious about what they do.

Still unsure about trust? Read (and watch) href="http://www.brandmeetsblog.com/tips-for-bloggers/building-trust-blogging/" target="_blank">Louisa Claire’s post at BrandMeetsBlog.com.

What’s in for YOU

Build trust in your readership by showing them that you do your research before you write and that you won’t believe the first stranger that comes up with some fancy story on the Web — but that you refer to authoritative sources and, when in doubt, involve them in an expert interview or even an e-mail or Skype/VoIP chat. Show your readers they’re getting information, tutorials and first-hand experience from you, not yet another baloney.

7. Bloggers can listen (and answer)

In a world of Internet celebrities and contact policies, bloggers are and remain the most available persons to get people’s concern listened to and get a helpful answer from. A 2011 research by href="http://www.invoke.com/" target="_blank">Invoke Solutions shows that users trust bloggers (especially if they have authority or a relationship to them) more than social media news. Brands follow suit, connecting to influential bloggers because they know how to ‘listen’ to their needs and answer with a successful word-of-mouth campaign.

What’s in for YOU

Make yourself available to your readers — and brands — for contact, feedback and support. You may consider adding a small forum or ‘ask me’ function to your blog so your readers can leave their concerns there for your to look up later. Another piece of advice comes directly from Chris’ article: “Connect with staff throughout the organization to learn how well the culture is operating”; he suggests corporate culture leaders spend 30 minutes a day wandering around the offices and connecting with the stuff. You, as a blogger, can follow this advice by spending 30 minutes a week (or bi-weekly) connecting with both readers and other bloggers to see how the ‘blogger culture’ is ‘operating’ and help if needed. To know how to listen is a sure way to build authority, credibility and an overall positive reputation that will attract more relevant (and remunerative) contacts.

8. Bloggers can write stories

Bloggers can write stories that engage the public. Their followers don’t just consume information passively, for leisure or to put it to use later, but they are act, practice and discuss what they read and interact with the blogger — whether that’s tips, tutorials or opinion. Good stories can influence human culture to an extent that they become citation-worth sources when a certain subject is discussed.

Brian Clark says, in a Copyblogger href="http://www.copyblogger.com/how-to-write-a-story/" target="_blank">post, that “well-crafted stories allow readers to draw the conclusion you want on their own, and people rarely second-guess their own conclusions”. People come to your blog to find information they can put to use right away— will you help them?

What’s in for YOU

Learn how to write good stories to make your blog authoritative and citation-worthy. There are numerous free courses you can join online to hone your writing skills. Among these free resources, the following are top ranked among writers:

href="http://www.copyblogger.com/copywriting-101/" target="_blank">Copywriting 101 by Copyblogger
href="http://www.probloggingsuccess.com/free-ebook-time-management/" target="_blank">Blogging and Time Management (e-books) by ProBloggingSuccess
href="http://www.makealivingwriting.com/2013/01/16/mailbag-glori-building-blog/" target="_blank">How You Can Build a Blog That Stands Out Among the Millions by MakeALivingWriting
href="http://beafreelanceblogger.com/how-to-write-concisely/" target="_blank">All Killer, No Filler: 6 Simple Tips for Concise Writing by BeAFreelanceBlogger

Why NOT All Bloggers Can Be Culture Leaders

style="text-align: center;">class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-6571 border" alt="Blogging world is a very competitive world" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/competition.jpg" width="750" height="450" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/competition.jpg 750w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/competition-300x180.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" />

Chris is very clear about the ethics a culture leader should abide to: “Be consistent role models of performance standards and valued behaviors yourself. No excuses.”

That doesn’t leave room for poorly crafted blog posts with nonexistent background research. A blogger that wants to influence the blogosphere, the media or even just their readership, needs to href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/blogging-tips/10-killer-strategies-to-win-more-traffic-for-your-blog/">put some serious effort into their work. If you are a personal blogger, or a niche blogger that’s just beginning, but want to develop into a culture leader (or even just an humble influencer), start learning and practice what you learn. Put your readership at the center of your efforts.

Be timely. And start today. Even now.

Image credit: title="Steve Bridger" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/62457680@N00/2404978535/" target="_blank">Steve Bridger

Page 18 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed

Basic HTML for Bloggers

alt="Basic HTML for Bloggers" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/html-codes-500x266_c.jpg" />

style="line-height: 1.5em;">Ten years ago, you had to know some web coding to protect yourself, but now there are so many editors and plugins available that even knowing the basics of HTML is no longer required to href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blogging-with-whsr/">run a blog.

class="border aligncenter wp-image-9449 size-full" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/html-codes.jpg" alt="html codes" width="750" height="400" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/html-codes.jpg 750w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/html-codes-300x160.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" />

The problem with this is that if you don’t know a few basics, you can easily get into real trouble in your blog and have to hire a pricey developer to fix what may be a minor problem. Not only that, but creating changes to your blog such as adding a custom text widget requires a little knowledge. And if you are experiencing content layout doesn’t look right, HTML knowledge can get you back on track.

Here are some very basic HTML pointers for bloggers.

Word of Warning Before Writing HTML

style="line-height: 1.5em;">I want you to get comfortable using these tags, but you should always remember that if you leave out a portion of the tag, you can cause serious problems.

style="line-height: 1.5em;">Each tag has an end and a beginning, and leaving one of those out tells the computer that the tag is still open…and all the following code will be included in that tag. In addition, please type it out. If you copy and paste what I’ve written, you may get problems when the site interprets your code.

Links: The <a> tag

style="line-height: 1.5em;">One of the most important things to know is how to make links. The latest update of WordPress is experiencing some issues with some “no follow” plugins, so while you are waiting for a compliant plugin, you’ll need to know how to set up a nofollow link for your sponsored and product review posts.

style="line-height: 1.5em;">The tag looks like this:

<a href="http://www.websiteyouarelinking.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Website Name</a>

style="line-height: 1.5em;">In the “a” is the tag, “href” tells the browser where to take the visitor once she clicks the link. The target “_blank” tells the browser to open that link in a new tab – very important so that visitors don’t leave your website completely. Next, we have the all-important “nofollow” link that you need to ensure you don’t get penalized by Google for compensated posts. (If you are writing a post that is not compensated, you can leave out ‘rel=”nofollow”’ to give the link a boost on Google.) Next comes the title – make it accurate and SEO-friendly. Finally, “</a>” closes this tag.

style="line-height: 1.5em;">Images: The <img> Tag

style="line-height: 1.5em;">Sometimes you’ll want to create text widgets that includs images or linked images. This is the code:

style="line-height: 1.5em;">Pulling in a single image:

<img alt="Gluten Free Brownies" src="http://mom-blog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/2014016_brownies.jpg" width="490" height="293" />

style="line-height: 1.5em;">Notice that this is a SINGLE tag, but it ends with “ />” to close the tag. In this tag, you’ll see “alt” tag. This is what you fill out after you load your image and is necessary for visitors who are visually impaired. (Make sure you use it to denote what the photo is, and not what you want your SEO to be.) “Src” is the link to where your image is actually located. “Width” and “height” are just that – the size of your image in pixels. This is optional, and should match your actual image size, or else the image will appear warped.

style="line-height: 1.5em;">Here’s how to set up an image with a link:

<a href="http://www.websiteyouarelinking.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><img alt="Gluten Free Brownies" src="http://mom-blog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/2014016_brownies.jpg" width="490" height="293" /></a>

style="line-height: 1.5em;">As you can see, you simply replace the text from our <a> tag example (“Website Name”) with an image link and viola!

style="line-height: 1.5em;">The Paragraph Tag: <p></p>

id="attachment_9421" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright">class="size-full wp-image-9421" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/20140418-TextWidget1.jpg" alt="Text Widget on Page" width="300" height="266" />class="wp-caption-text">All created with a text widget and basic HTML

style="line-height: 1.5em;">Obviously, this tag puts your text or image in it’s own paragraph with spacing above the opening <p> and after the closing </p>.

style="line-height: 1.5em;">Usually, your theme’s blog or will have it styled so that there is a certain amount of space above or below it. You can easily adjust that by with a bit of style right in the tag.

style="line-height: 1.5em;">This is how it’s done:

<p style="width:200px; padding-right:5px; text-align:center;">Welcome to my blog!</p>

style="line-height: 1.5em;">That style tag allows all kinds of sizes and options, but here are these basic ones.

“Width” is the actual width of that paragraph. This had created a 200 pixel width paragraph. Make sure you width is NOT bigger than your column or just leave width out to spread text to the size of the column.
“Padding” literally puts space around your paragraph. You can add 5 pixels of space just to the right, for example, like it’s done here, if you feel your paragraph is too close to the edge on the right side. You can do the same for padding-left, padding-top and padding-bottom. You also have the options of “padding:5px” to put 5 pixels around each and every side.
“Text-align” justifies your text within the paragraph. Options are center, left, right and justify which spreads the text out to be even on both sides.

style="line-height: 1.5em;">Finally, you can use a paragraph with images and links as well but make sure your images’ width fits in your column too. Note that padding is added to that width:

<p style="padding-right:5px; text-align:center;"><a href="http://www.websiteyouarelinking.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><img alt="Gluten Free Brownies" src="http://mom-blog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/2014016_brownies.jpg" width="490" height="293" /></a><p>

style="line-height: 1.5em;">The Link Break Tag: <br />

style="line-height: 1.5em;">This tag gives you a one line return without a paragraph. It can be used inside a paragraph if you want a series of lines where you single line breaks that you select yourself (so that you can even out the lines) and still have a paragraph around it, like so:

<p style="width:200px; padding-right:5px; text-align:center;">Welcome to my blog!<br />Come in and make yourself at home.</p>

style="line-height: 1.5em;">Styles

style="line-height: 1.5em;">Now that I’ve already showed you some styles, I’m going to quickly list a few more that are useful for creating those text widgets:

BOLD: Place bolded text inside these tags: <strong>Text goes here</strong>
ITALICS: Place italicized text inside these tags: <em>Text goes here</em>
BOLD+ITALICS: Place text inside:<strong><em>Text goes here</em></strong>

style="line-height: 1.5em;">Heading Tags

id="attachment_9420" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright">class="size-full wp-image-9420" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/20140418-TextWidgetCode.jpg" alt="Text Widget Code" width="300" height="375" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/20140418-TextWidgetCode.jpg 300w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/20140418-TextWidgetCode-240x300.jpg 240w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />class="wp-caption-text">What text wdget code looks like

style="line-height: 1.5em;">For SEO purposes, you may want to use critical tags with your site’s main keywords in text widgets (on your sidebar, footer, etc.) These are heading tags and Google gives more weight to them. For example, your blog’s theme will usually have titles and site name within these tags.

style="line-height: 1.5em;">These tags are:

<h1>Text goes here</h1>
<h2>Text goes here</h2>
<h3>Text goes here</h3>
<h4>Text goes here</h4>
<h5>Text goes here</h5>
<h6>Text goes here</h6>

style="line-height: 1.5em;">hese tags are in size order, with <h1> being the largest. Google gives the most weight to text in <h1>, next weight to <h2> and so on.

style="line-height: 1.5em;">Often, <h1> tags are quite large and may have a color. To eliminate that, you can enter something this:

<h1 style=”color: #000; font-size: 12px; font-weight:normal;”>Your new title here.</h1>

style="line-height: 1.5em;">That will give you black text (color: #000;) in a 12 pixel font (font-size: 12px;) and remove bold (font-weight:normal;). If this does not work, your site may have been coded in a more complex manner and you may simply want to select a smaller heading tag.

style="line-height: 1.5em;">Bullets

style="line-height: 1.5em;">Bulleted or numbered lists are a great way to show content to your audience. But you might find “weird” or inconsistent spacing when you edit them. This is what they should look like in your text editor:

<ul>
   <li>Item 1</li>
 <li>Item 2</li>
 <li>Item 3</li>
 </ul>

style="line-height: 1.5em;"><ul> means “unordered list” – this will give you bullets. (If you want to use a numbered list, simply change all the “ul” tags to “ol.”) <li> means list item. There are times you’ll hit a return and it will create another <ul> within your list or close your list and start a new one in the middle. It should look like some variation of the above, so if you see extra “<ul>” opening and closing tags, you can delete them.

Try Writing Your Own

style="line-height: 1.5em;">This will help you get started, but please make sure that you back up your site fully first (including theme) so you can restore. If you get into trouble with a widget, you can just remove it to figure out where you wrote the wrong code. Finally, feel free to type as normal in your visual editor and compare what you see in the text editor to get a feel for these basics.

Page 14 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed

Brands & Bloggers: Best Practices for Working Together

alt="Brands & Bloggers: Best Practices for Working Together" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/0611-8-500x302_c.jpg" />

This week, I received two pitches from brands that I really like to review products or link up posts. While this is flattering, the truth is that I’ve already worked with both products – it seemed unknown to them – and one of those brands has pitched me a number of times like this. Because I like these brands, it bothered me so much that I wanted to write this post. While it’s common sense that bloggers should practice proper etiquette when working with brands, it’s also true that some brands do not really know how to work with bloggers and can damage their reputation with lack of organization, missed deadlines, or unreliable information.

Here is a primer for brands and bloggers working together.

Best Practices for Brands

Know about the blog.

Few things are more offensive to a blogger than seeing “Hello!” or “Dear Blogger” especially if their name is prominently featured on the blog. Don’t expect to hear back if you will not use their name. In addition, keep good records to ensure whether or not you’ve had a relationship with this blogger in the past in any way.

Know what the blogger’s areas or niche.

It will make your job, as well as the blogger’s job, easier if you take a few minutes to research what they do and what they writer about. Pro level bloggers will even write their preferred topics on their about page or media kit. Asking a foodie blogger to write about tech gear will not help you promote your product and will look out of place on their blog. This has happened a lot to me.

Don’t contact the blogger over and over to post free content.

id="attachment_10572" style="width: 760px" class="wp-caption aligncenter">class="size-full wp-image-10572" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/guestpost-failed.jpg" alt="How NOT to request for a guest post slot - image credit: Grace Tan" width="750" height="247" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/guestpost-failed.jpg 750w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/guestpost-failed-300x98.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" />class="wp-caption-text">How NOT to request for a guest post slot – image credit: href="http://workingwithgrace.wordpress.com/2014/06/13/how-not-to-request-for-a-guest-post-slot/">Grace Tan

Most bloggers don’t really need content. And while you may have a great cause that does speak to something in the blogger’s interest, it’s possible that the reason you’re not hearing back is that you want something for nothing. Personally, if your email has the word “kickstarter” in it, it goes to my spam folder. I get requests like that every single day. If you are compensating your post, though, and have not heard back, you may have ended up in spam. If so, look at your email subject to determine if it sounds spammy, or reach out on social media.

Spell out your campaign for the blogger.

You don’t need great detail until you’ve signed a blogger on, but then you’ll need to provide as much information as possible to have the best chance of getting quality content that drives your campaign.

Do not be surprised if the blogger wants you to sign a contract.

I’ve been fortunate, but I’ve known bloggers who’ve had brands renege on payment, even if all the specifications were met. Contracts establish trust when you are working with parties you don’t know. And keep in mind, contracts are, or should be, two way streets – you have the right to develop your own standard contract for bloggers.

Do not be surprised if the blogger expects compensation.

Quality blogging is hard work. It takes skill to write posts that will highlight a brand positively and drive consumers to sites, and to create images that align with that. Keep that in mind and provide a budget for your blogger presence. In addition, bloggers cannot fairly assess your product if you don’t provide it to them.

Establish deadlines.

Deadlines are key to ensuring that everyone knows when things are expected from them and keeps everyone on track. Usually, your campaign will have a time limit or season it needs to be done. If you can’t determine when you can pay a blogger, you may not be ready to offer sponsored posts yet. You can still ask for product reviews to bloggers who don’t require payment.

Track packages and keep the blogger posted of delays.

This is especially true if delays occur that affect packages, deadlines or, most especially, payment. Bloggers need to know this because unfortunately, packages do get stolen or lost in the mail. Several years back, I had a 2 or 3 packages go missing and tracking packages could have helped.

Don’t change the rules or promises mid-campaign.

I recently had a brand ask me to “go ahead and post” about a product that had no E.T.A. for a very late package. I started to back out, only to receive the product the same day. Asking for something for free after you’ve promised an item is not a good way to establish trust or build a relationship with a blogger. In addition, a blogger may have scheduled and pre-planned their post for you. Changing up the game makes it challenging for them to provide you quality content.

Best Practices for Bloggers

Use contracts properly.

Read and sign any contracts you are sent right away, or send your own. Nothing fancy required, but it will provide basic recourse if you are not paid in a timely manner.

Establish rules, policies and guidelines to protect your blog.

id="attachment_10508" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright">class="wp-image-10508 size-full" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/blogniche.gif" alt="blog niche" width="300" height="696" />class="wp-caption-text">Posting your interests can help steer brands to or away from you.

It’s professional to post preferred guidelines and your href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/blogging-tips/finding-the-right-niche-for-your-blog/" target="_blank">blog niche on your about page or media kit. For example, if there are industries you are uncomfortable working with, potential brands should know that. Remind brands that you only work within FTC regulations and within the guidelines of social media rules/courtesy, Google and other codes of ethics that apply. And word to the wise: put your name and email where brands can find it easily.

Working without any type of compensation is doable but should be rare.

Keep in mind that a quality blog is your own blood, sweat and tears. Research, photography, editing, SEO – none of that happens in 20 minutes. It takes time and your time is valuable. That said, feel free to champion brands and causes you truly believe in free of charge from time to time.

Ask lots of questions if you need to.

“When can I expect the product?” “Is it ok to mention non-competitive brands in the post?” “Can I post a video?” Hopefully, a brand will give enough guidelines on other things, like what they are trying accomplish with this campaign and what the reader’s call to action should be. If not, ask those things too!

Follow all guidelines.

FTC guidelines, Google policies, social media rules, blogger ethics: href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/blogging-tips/sponsored-posts-and-product-reviews-what-you-need-to-know-to-your-blog-legal/" target="_blank">make sure the brand knows you will strictly follow these. And please, avoid all brands that insist you break these guidelines.

Deliver quality content and promote the heck out of it.

I believe href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/inbound-marketing/12-ways-to-understand-your-audience-and-deliver-stellar-content/">all your content should be high quality, sponsored or otherwise, so hopefully you are working towards that. But it’s also critical to promote the content on social media, amongst your blogger comment/share groups and interested parties. Don’t forget to tag bloggers who have a key interest in what you are writing about and champion the brand as much as you can outside of your post.

Do not sell yourself cheap.

If you do a lot of free posts for brands, you actually are hurting other bloggers. This is free advertising for the brand, helping them to sell a product and make a profit. There are always exceptions, true, but a brand should value your efforts. Find out where you fit in this in terms of href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/blogging-tips/how-to-make-money-blogging-becoming-a-product-reviewer/" target="_blank">compensation and as a product reviewer.

Bloggers: What to do if you end up in a bad situation?

Even trustworthy brands make errors and “stuff happens.” First, talk to the brand to try and clear up the issue. If there’s no email response, try social media – but do be discrete. If you bad mouth a brand, other brands will find out and avoid giving your work. Finally, if you still have not heard back after an effort, just leave your post up and learn what you can from the project.

My Best Brand Interaction

id="attachment_10509" style="width: 760px" class="wp-caption aligncenter">class="wp-image-10509 size-full" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/082014-tapinfluence-e1408561947749.gif" alt="tapinfluence dashboard" width="750" height="211" />class="wp-caption-text">This influencer group gets it right – making it easy for brands and bloggers to work together flawlessly.

href="http://tapinfluence.com/" target="_blank">TapInfluence is an influence marketing group that I work with and, in my opinion, one of the best.

What do they do that impresses me so much?

Campaign guidelines are clearly spelled out, with documentation about everything you need to know emailed directly to you.
Clear, online contracts that are easy to read with commitments spelled out, accessible at dashboard throughout campaign.
TapInfluence members get a dashboard where they can not only view their contract and assignments, they can also see compensation, calendar of due dates, and campaign assets. In addition, they have their own media kit on the dashboard that brands can view for campaigns they apply for. It is a comprehensive system to keep everyone up to date.

Brands and influencers need to work together to continue to make this new field of marketing a thriving business for everyone, and a great source of content for readers to keep coming back – both to blogger and brand sites. What problems have you had with brands or bloggers, and what did you do to fix it?

Page 12 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed

Your Complete Guide for Engaging Brands, Reps and Bloggers

alt="Your Complete Guide for Engaging Brands, Reps and Bloggers" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/100_0430-e1412967517501-500x375_c.jpg" />

Now that you’re blogging, it’s time to get professional about your networking. There are a multitude of opportunities to connect with like-minded bloggers, brands that fit your niche and products that suite your audience. This guide will tell you all the things you need to know to get started with events to build your blog business.

There are essentially 3 types of venues: conferences, expos and niched events. Each has a different feel.

Conferences

These are training events meant to draw people from a particular niche or interested in a common subject and they tend to pricy. There are plenty of conferences for bloggers.

Check out my href="http://mom-blog.com/social-media-conferences/" target="_blank">comprehensive list of blog and social media conferences that are scheduled.

id="attachment_11163" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright">class="size-medium wp-image-11163" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/gfexpo-badge-300x240.jpg" alt="gfexpo-badge" width="300" height="240" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/gfexpo-badge-300x240.jpg 300w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/gfexpo-badge.jpg 503w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />class="wp-caption-text">A very good expo for my blog’s focus.

Expos

Expos are events where brands gather to showcase their products to the general public or conference attendees and offer samples, coupons and/or swag to visitors. When they are part of a blogger conference, they are usually included in the ticket price with brands expecting to build relationships with bloggers. Standalone expos tend may have small fees. New niched expos geared toward the general public can give you a leg up on pitching yourself to brands that need visibility.

At last year’s Gluten Free Expo, which was still new, I made a number of great relationships with brands that had not yet working with bloggers.

id="attachment_11161" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright">class="wp-image-11161 size-medium" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/1009-Hasbro0042-L-300x240.jpeg" alt="Hasbro event" width="300" height="240" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/1009-Hasbro0042-L-300x240.jpeg 300w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/1009-Hasbro0042-L.jpeg 500w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />class="wp-caption-text">This Hasbro invitation-only cocktail party / play event was offered through Influence Central and took place near BlogHer 2012.

Niched Events

Private blogger events take place all over the country.

Some coincide with large conferences and most are invitation only. How do you get invited? Generally from either blogger marketing groups, such as Influence Central, or bloggers you know. Bloggers sometimes need to carpool, share expenses, or find a sub when they can’t attend an event. Last winter, another blogger invited me to carpool to the Family Game Summit event. It showcased dozens of Activision’s latest games as well as information on safety for kids gaming online. I got to review a number of games, well as offer up products for my holiday gift guide.

Selecting the Right Event

Between travel, lodging and tickets, events can be costly. Consider the following when choosing the best networking events for you:

Sponsors:
Conferences feature sponsors who supply everything from swag to the food. Pick ones with brands you’d like to work with.

Sessions and speakers:
Is there someone you really want to meet or something you want to learn about?

Event Size:
Smaller conferences allow you a more intimate venue for networking. A brand new conference may have also lower attendance, which may allow face time with the speakers. At the very first She Streams conference (which is now defunct), I met Mamavation’s Leah Segedie, and now I work for her.

Nearby Niched Events:
See if the conference is holding its own expo or if a group is hosting a related event nearby.

You can also bundle your event with that vacation you’ve been waiting to take, to save time and money.

Now that you’ve selected your event, let’s learn how to engage brands, reps and bloggers.

Networking With Brands And PR Reps

Sometimes you will be chatting with people directly from the company, but often you’ll meet the brand’s PR reps. Here’s what to do around the event.

1. Before

Get to know the brands.

While it can be overwhelming to go to a large expo, I recommend that you search out the top 3-5 sponsors that you would love to work with and get to know them very well by following them. Research them in great detail in press and in their feeds, and look for relative news that might affect them, especially if it plays into your niche. For example, Silk recently announced it was removing carrageenan from its products. Food allergy bloggers can capitalize on this news when they meet with Silk’s reps.

Prepare your elevator speech.

Everyone needs to have a 15-30 second speech about what their blog is about, what makes it unique and why people read it. Be sure to fit in which of their products work for your audience and why.

2. During

Share your successes as fact.

Every week, I write about food dangers and toxins in our environment every week, researching the facts from the most reliable sources I can find to get to the bottom of controversies and creating pinnable images for my job at Mamavation. My best posts have gone viral. I didn’t tell you that to brag but to showcase my experience; brands need that information. State it as fact, don’t gush and don’t be too timid either.

Attend early.

You can stop at every single table, but if you hit your top picks first, you can get to them before too many other bloggers have.

Offer teasers on how you can help them.

Share ideas on how to help them, but keep in mind some brands steal bloggers’ ideas while hiring someone else. Just give a teaser. If you have a great idea to promote their product, wait until they engage you with a contract to detail it.

Bring lots of business cards and a one-page media kit.

You probably won’t hand out the kit, but just bring it just in case you are asked.

3. After

Timely follow up.

Do not wait too long to follow up, but not the next day either. Give it a few days or a week, especially if you are going to write a post about the event first. You can then include them and tag them on social media, before contacting them. Refer to your notes when writing.

Don’t hassle them.

If you’ve sent 2 or 3 emails and have heard nothing, and are still sure you have the right contact, they are not interested. This does not mean they will never be interested, and PR reps can turn over a lot. You can certainly ask them why they have turned you down for something, as well, so that you can address the issue.Simply let it go and wait for the next event with this brand.

Be a professional.

Always live up to your commitments. Once engaged, follow these href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/brands-bloggers-best-practices-for-working-together/" target="_blank">best practices for working with brands.

id="attachment_11162" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright">class="size-medium wp-image-11162" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/100_0430-300x224.jpg" alt="Some of my favorite green bloggers, who I met in 2010 and I'm still friends with." width="300" height="224" />class="wp-caption-text">Some of my favorite green bloggers, who I met in 2010 and I’m still friends with.

Networking With Bloggers

For bloggers, most of the above applies, but with a more casual approach. In addition, these tips will help:

1. “What’s your blog?”

Just strike up a discussion with this question. I’ve yet to meet a blogger who didn’t want to talk about either her blog or project. Don’t be shallow though. Take care to listen, note the blog, look it up and be ready to jump in and help if you think you can. Always mention if you recognize their work!

2. Listen more than you speak.

All bloggers all want to be heard. Briedly tell the blogger what you’re all about and then listen to their story and ask questions. You’re more likely to find common ground that way – or learn that you’re not a good fit. If so, it’s ok to politely move on.

3. Help them out.

Can they guest post on your blog? Do they need guest posts? Just like with brands, after you get home, share and favorite their social media posts and comment on their blogs.

4. Build relationships.

Don’t just think about yourself. This means helping bloggers bigger than you AND reaching out to new or small bloggers. You will build friendships as well as professional relationships.

5. Don’t forget them.

Keep in touch, keep promoting them and keep saying “hi”. Attend their Twitter parties. Share and enter their low entries contests. Tag them with things you know they’d love. Give them a shout out on your blog. You might want to build a G+ community and create a Twitter list for bloggers you’ve met at conferences, and do connect again in person at the next conference!

Bonus: Pro Tips To Improve Your Networking

Take a photo.

Ever look at a business card from a PR firm and forget their product? One way to remember faces is to snap a photo with you, the rep and their product. I did this at Blogger Bash to remember who was at what table in the expo. Try to capture their badge to remember their name especially if they’ve run out of business cards.

Take notes.

You had a great conversation with this person – but you also had 20 other great conversations. How can you remember the discussion? Bring a fine sharpie and write a note on their business card.

If there’s no room, you might want to bring small, white stickers to stick over unessential information for notes.

Organize cards and events.

Separate or code business cards from bloggers, brands and reps. if you’re going to multiple events at the same time, sort events. One blogger I met brought a small hole punch and put the cards on individuals key rings labeled with event name.

Dress properly.

Unless otherwise noted, dress business casual – and bring a sweater. Conferences rooms get cold! If it’s an event with dancing and/or cocktails, you can dress a little fancier. You could be standing for 8 hours or more, so wear shoes that allow your feet to hold up. Make sure that you have the necessities you need (smartphone, mobile charger, business cards, media kit) easily accessible and have room to carry home small items and info sheets. A tote or messenger bag is helpful, with a wristlet or holder for cards. Some bloggers keep business cards in their lanyards for easier access.

That is everything you need to network like a pro when you attend events. Share your creative ideas for keeping organized at events.

Page 11 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed

SEO 101 for First Time Bloggers

alt="SEO 101 for First Time Bloggers" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/competition-500x300_tr.jpg" />

Launching a blog is exciting – but more exciting is seeing people actually reading and responding to your content. To make that happen, however, people need to actually find your content – and, like it or not, SEO is a big part of that.

SEO – short for Search Engine Optimization – done right is like today’s equivalent of a premium Yellow Pages listing… but without an actual assigned cost. There are tons of rules and best practices, all of which aim to enhance content that you generate which in turn boosts your search engine rankings – or in simple terms, helps your content and site to show higher in the search results. The higher your ranking, but better the likelihood of someone visiting your site – especially since approximately 75% of internet users never browse past page one of the search results.

How search engines work in a nutshell

Basically, a search engine is just another type of computer software (more or less) that works to index web pages into a database based on a quick scan of each page’s content. Think of it like speed reading for a specific topic – you quickly scan material after material, looking for specific words to jump out at you. This is like a search engine – only a search engine does digital speed reading… and, of course, is constantly evolving in its abilities.

However, search engines don’t just do it all on their own; they bring in their buddies to help, sending spiders out to crawl the web. Those spiders then consolidate their findings and present it to the search engine to rank and summarize your site, pages, and information – alongside all of the other applicable or relevant sites.

class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-10261" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/how-seo-works.jpg" alt="how seo works" width="750" height="411" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/how-seo-works.jpg 750w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/how-seo-works-300x164.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" />

Search engines work off of href="http://moz.com/google-algorithm-change" target="_blank">complex algorithms that are constantly changing – this is why the rules of SEO also constantly change; to keep up. There isn’t necessarily a “how-to” manual that always fits the SEO bill, but there are some rules that have stayed consistent among the change, as well as new rules and tips that have emerged alongside the new algorithm.

SEO is about staying up to date and employing best practices to stay ahead of the competition.

What does this mean to bloggers?

For starters, let’s acknowledge that search engines such as Google (who currently own href="https://www.comscore.com/Insights/Press-Releases/2014/4/comScore-Releases-March-2014-U.S.-Search-Engine-Rankings" target="_blank">67.5% of search market according to recent comScore analysis) are incredibly important in our business since it brings visitors to our blogs. Bolstering Google’s importance is tons of research, including a 2006 Forrester Research study that found that 93 percent of all Internet traffic results from search engines. But – of that 93 percent, only about 75 percent will ever scroll past page one – which means that landing your content and your blog on the first page of the search results is imperative to your success.

This is where SEO comes in.

SEO Explained

So we have the what and the why – let’s talk about the how.

Search engines handle unfathomable amounts of data – and while they’re good at digesting the data on their own, SEO ensures that they properly assess your content and index it accordingly. But beyond helping search engines to simply assess what it is that you do, SEO also helps the search engines to assess the quality of your content and your overall relevance to the topic. By using SEO techniques, you are able to essentially give the search engine the cliff notes to your site, highlighting the important pieces of information which in turns secures you a better spot in that search engine’s results listing.

src="//www.youtube.com/embed/hF515-0Tduk" width="750" height="422" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen">

There are hundreds of pieces to search engine algorithm – and, of course, search engines such as Google don’t provide a manual; that would only help people to plug the internet with nonsense and misguided practices. That said, SEO specialists are constantly working to decode the system and find practices that do work to enhance contents’ search listing ranking. Some are more complex than others and some have been around for some time, while others are newer to the rule book. Regardless, all are evolving.

Basic Search Engine Optimizations

SEO is more than just a science subject. Mark Jackson, CEO of Vizion Interactive, href="http://searchenginewatch.com/article/2129924/SEO-is-Both-Science-and-Art">once wrote:

style="color: #444444;">Getting creative with SEO is thinking of how a marketing program can encompass social, graphic design, link building, content generation, and PR to drive toward a common goal. Getting creative with SEO is also about reworking a website’s design/code so that usability and accessibility improve, while maintaining brand guidelines and keeping with “look and feel” requirements, yet improving SEO.
style="color: #444444;">Every day, we must get creative in determining how to best target keywords by determining which method of content generation gives us the best chance at gaining a presence in the search engines and – most importantly – engaging our audience.

That said, however, we have few basic guidelines along the way.

Page Titles

class="alignright size-full wp-image-10265" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/seo-comics.jpg" alt="seo comics" width="360" height="432" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/seo-comics.jpg 360w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/seo-comics-250x300.jpg 250w" sizes="(max-width: 360px) 100vw, 360px" />

Every page has a title and the search engine spiders give weight to them in your “summary.” Use appropriate and relevant keywords in your page titles – doing so, provided that the title is relevant to the content on the actual page, is an SEO plus.

Keywords

Keywords are an original SEO tactic that remain important today, but not with quite the same priority as given in previous algorithms. That said, they’re still an important part of an overall SEO strategy. Keywords – or key phrases – are a single word or combination of words relevant to your content subject. For example, if you are writing about training puppies, “training puppies” might be an important keyword for your blog. As a best practice, incorporate that keyword at a minimum into the post title and content. Be careful not to oversaturate your piece, however – not only is it annoying to readers; it’s also a demerit with the search engines.

Links

Search engines are consistently placing added weight on referring links from credible websites (as it pertains to determining search ranking). The important word being credible.

Consider guest posting on another blog or site, including a referring link back to your own site. Posting relevant tips or information on community forums or social networking sites, such as LinkedIn, are also ways to direct traffic to your blog from legitimate, credible sites. Know that directional links as a tactic is about quality, not quantity – so getting 50 referring links from redirect pages or small sites with very little traffic or history is not going to do you any good. However, sporadic links from credible websites that are part of a post that provides relevant, valuable information, will positively affect your ranking.

Anchor Text

The search engine spiders also take into consideration the links on your actual pages to determine relevancy and applicability to the search term. Again consider keywords* and use them to your advantage. For example, linking the text “click here” is okay, but not going to help you in the SEO arena. Instead, consider linking contextual text, such as “Learn to train puppies” that provides not only a keyword, but context to the topic at hand.

* Note: In the same time, do not overuse the same keywords or keyphrases in your anchor text to avoid search engine penalties.

Content Freshness

Another important piece of the SEO puzzle is the freshness of your blog content. Posting (and updating your existing content) consistently helps your blog to be recognized as a more valuable, reputable resource. In contrast, sites with large gaps in activity and posts are often deemed less valuable – and likely have less traffic and repeat visitors to prove it.

Be consistent, be useful, and be engaging.

Analytics

There are plenty of free analytics programs out there, but Google Analytics is among the most popular. Install it on your site for valuable insight into your traffic and visitors – and also for information that can improve your search rankings. One of the tools within the analytics package shows what people who come to your site through search engines were searching for – and what led them to your site. Repeat terms can be excellent keyword ideas. You will also gain information about referring sites which may provide ideas on where to guest post or on forums and sites with which you could engage and capitalize on an already interested and relevant audience.

Moving on

id="attachment_10263" style="width: 760px" class="wp-caption aligncenter">class="size-full wp-image-10263" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/what-now.jpg" alt="This is just a start." width="750" height="480" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/what-now.jpg 750w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/what-now-300x192.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" />class="wp-caption-text">This is just a start – and I am merely scratching on the surface.

Reading the basics is just the beginning. You will need to learn and do a lot more – everything from link building to content development, on-site optimization, and more – in order to success with SEO. Moving on, here’s a list of recommended readings, forums, and blogs to delve in and follow. Have fun!

Readings for Beginners

href="http://moz.com/learn/seo" target="_blank">MOZ’s SEO Basics – A very comprehensive SEO guide for the newbies.
href="http://www.viperchill.com/wordpress-seo/" target="_blank">Viper Chill WordPress SEO guide – A must read for WordPress beginners.

Blogs and Sites to Follow

href="http://www.seobythesea.com/" target="_blank">SEO By The Sea – Studies on search engine patterns and other super-awesome tips.
href="http://searchenginewatch.com/seo" target="_blank">SEO Articles on Search Engine Watch – Industry news, updates, and latest studies.
href="http://searchengineland.com/" target="_blank">Search Engine Land – The oldest search engine blogs/news site.
href="http://www.portent.com/blog/" target="_blank">Portent Blog – SEO and Internet marketing in general.
href="http://www.blindfiveyearold.com/" target="_blank">Blind Five Year Old – Internet marketing blog by AJ Kohn.

Forums

href="http://www.webmasterworld.com/category30.htm" target="_blank">Webmaster World / Google Section – This is where I spent most of my time during my early days.
href="http://www.blackhatworld.com/" target="_blank">Black Hat World – Largest forums where hardcore/black hat SEOs hang out.

Share Your SEO Tips

Have a must-know tip for SEO? Please share it below – with the ever-changing rules of SEO, we’re all in this together.

Page 13 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed

SMM Tips for Bloggers: Taking Your Social Media to the Next Level

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Social media numbers count.

If you are a blogger looking to make a name and work with bigger brands, but your Google Analytics is not where you want it to be, a large social media following can help you. Experts in social media will tell you that engagement is critical, naturally, but the trend now is to move into more “live” engagement. While automated tools do have their place, getting “into” the medium is your best use of time. You should not automate all the time, but you probably shouldn’t automate content 50% of the time either.

With so many tools and so little time, how can you tackle a successful social media campaign?

id="attachment_11378" style="width: 760px" class="wp-caption aligncenter">class="wp-image-11378 size-full" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/10-31-Pinterest.jpg" alt="Pinterest analytics" width="750" height="700" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/10-31-Pinterest.jpg 750w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/10-31-Pinterest-300x280.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" />class="wp-caption-text">Pinterest analytics

Step 1: Pick Your Top Tools

The first thing I advise is working on one tool at a time, getting it to a place that you’re comfortable with, moving on to the next tool you want to use, and then rotating back to improve the first one – and so on. You do not want to use every single tool available, but pick about 5 to regularly use and at least one or two to master. Work on mastering the tools you are already getting traction on in terms of followers or Google Analytics or, if you’re not getting any traction, pick theone you are on the most.

Step 2: Segregate Your Social Media

Use your social media channels in different ways and for different target audiences. This is an ideal practice for a lifestyle blogger since they cover several niches, but it works for a niched blogger too. For example, the blogger who writes recipes can share those on Facebook, can talk nutrition on Google+, can tweet about food-related giveaway, pin other people’s recipes (and a few of their own) and Instagram eating out.

Here’s how I diversity my channels as a lifestyle blogger:

Facebook Fan Page (outlook: serious, professional; focus: controversial)
Because it’s so hard to engage on Facebook, I keep it all business on this page – no humor but plenty of hot news and controversy, food activism and toxins in the news.
Facebook Personal Page (outlook: fun, light; focus: personal)
On my personal page, I engage with friends and bloggers mostly but also sharing relevant work. I take more of a “lifestyle” approach here. I might post or repost humor, crazy things that happen in my day or alternative health posts that I feel are not serious enough for my fan page.
Google+ (outlook: friendly, optimistic; main focus: green living, family, food)
I’m currently repositioning to mostly focus on green living and real food but here I avoid controversy and share a more inspiring look at the issues in my niches.
Pinterest (outlook: casual; main focus: food, environment)
style="line-height: 1.5em;">style="line-height: 1.5em;">I do a lot of different boards, but my gluten free board is most successful so I spend the majority of my time pinning there, although my “Fun for Kids” board is doing well too. Essentially, I focus on food, family, crafts and toys.
style="line-height: 1.5em;">style="line-height: 1.5em;">Twitter (outlook: everyday, personal, light; focus: anything that interests me)
style="line-height: 1.5em;">style="line-height: 1.5em;">I use this for everything: entering contests, sharing causes, marketing for clients, retweeting posts that fit my blog, sharing things I enjoy that are not discussed on my blog (like live tweeting elections or “The Walking Dead”). I like to say “I’m me on Twitter.” (I will be covering Twitter engagement in depth in my next post.)
style="line-height: 1.5em;">style="line-height: 1.5em;"> Instagram (outlook:casual; focus: family)
style="line-height: 1.5em;">This is strictly for family photo shares. Most of the bloggers I follow do the same. Personally, I’d rather see those kinds of images rather than advertising or marketing, which feels out of place – like all those “body wraps” Instagrammers.

Now, go through your feeds and choose an outlook and focus for each of them. Dedicate one or 2 channels to your personal life and keep the rest professional or dedicated to your blog. You can still share parts of your blog on your personal channels even if you keep it private – but making it public will help get your name out there.

Step 3: Understand Your Followers

Next, you must understand how your audience uses each channel. Before deciding how to split them out, look at what the people you are following in your niche are using it and adapt to that. You need to really keep track of what they are reacting and overreacting to. Follow their hashtags and stop by the online parties or events they are attending. Go back to their sites to get an overview of their blogs. Share about controversial figures in your realm and gage the reactions.

Here is an example of how this works for me: I blog about food activism, but I’m also a brand ambassador for Silk. While the both may seem to be linked, the audience for one can be opposed to the other. So I keep most of my posts for Silk on my personal Facebook page, Pinterest and G+, and share them in my regular blogger comment groups, while keeping them away from my activist comment groups. This sort of segmenting allows you to diversify into more topics, even under the same niche.

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Go deeper: href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/inbound-marketing/12-ways-to-understand-your-audience-and-deliver-stellar-content/" target="_blank">Learn how to better understand your audience and deliver great content with these 12 tips.

Step 4: Ramping Up Your Social Media

Getting Traction on Facebook Fan Pages

I’m happy to say that Facebook engagement has picked up for me and I’ve moved up in the rank of how often my posts get seen – the more important part. My weekly post reach went from a handful a week to roughly 1000 per week, which is about 20% engagement, up from 1% or less– a good number for brands at this point. Here is what I have done, in combination with giveaways, to get more Facebook traction:

Very Frequent Posting:
This is my top tip and it has worked wonders with getting my posts seen. I post as much as humanly possible. The more I post, the more my stream is seen – and the days I don’t post much, much less gets seen.
Posting Earlier in the Day:
style="line-height: 1.5em;">The earlier I posted, the better a post did – even before I got to my desk, which is interesting since I’m on the East Coast in the US so that’s pretty early! Check out your Insights to see what times work best for you – it will also tell what kind of updates do best. You can automate your early post the night before, then engage live in comments the next day.
Posting from Experts:
style="line-height: 1.5em;">Again, it’s not just what I posted, it’s whose data I shared. When I share an item with hashtags and my own comments from someone important, say Robyn O’Brien of “Unhealthy Truth”, I great better engagement. I’m posting about 70% relevant data from experts in my area, and 25% of my own posts with just a few from friends.
Comment on Posts and Shares:
I try to engage here by posting something controversial and asking readers what they think or how they react, or how this has affected me.
Use Visuals Properly:
The post that has the most organic engagement for me had a video attached to it, so I recommend sharing videos in your topic. Also, create the properly sized images. In fact, you can upload an image with a different size if your blog photo is not right See href="http://louisem.com/1733/infographic-facebook-photo-size-dimensions">Louise Myer’s Essential Facebook Photo Dimensions 2014 for exact sizes.
Boost a Post:
There’s so much controversy over this, but if you want to invest to boost a post and see what happens, I say go for it at least once. Make sure it’s a really valuable post! The last one I boosted was a giveaway and I got 1,000 visits from that one-day investment. It’s not something you can do on a regular basis unless you have a big budget, but if your curiosity has the best of you, boost content that you really want to get out there, like expert tips or a free eBook you’ve written. It is definitely worth a shot. Take care to follow their guidelines for images and make sure your boost is worth it. for 1000 views is a great bargain, but for 130 views – not so great.
id="attachment_11376" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright">class="wp-image-11376 size-full" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/10-31-facebooktargeting.jpg" alt="facebook targeting" width="300" height="167" />class="wp-caption-text">Facebook Targeting

Tagging Others:
I honestly don’t do it quite as much as I should but it’s worked well when I knew the person and she was an expert or had a large following. If you don’t know the person, you may run the risk of getting blocked from that user.

Use Facebook Targeting:
Now Facebook also gives you the option to target your audience, rather than sending your posts to everyone. You can select a target based on Gender, Relationship or Educational Status, Interested in (men or women), Age, Location and Language. For example, if I have a post about an alternative health event or giveaway, you can target your location to a certain, Country, Region or State, or City. That is extremely useful for promoting events and giveaways with a local focus.

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Go deeper: href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/socialmedia-marketing/how-to-improve-your-facebook-news-feed-performance/" target="_blank">Here are more tips on how to improve your Facebook feed performance.

Google+ Revisited

Bloggers still have mixed feelings on whether or not to use Google+. and how much time to dedicate to it. G+ is one of those tools that you truly need to personally engage. On Google+, there are more people and groups sharing information than companies who are using it as a marketing tool. Because G+ is valuable for search engine positioning, it’s worth it to invest the time.

Here are some beginner steps:

Get on G+ and engage with bloggers in the niche you want and create a circle of them. Do this by finding them in other forms of social media.
Use G+ like your blog excerpt page. Post your own content properly by writing an excerpt about your content ending in a question, lining up relevant hashtags below, tagging key players, and adding a fabulous image.
Start by giving members +1’s and comments within that circle. Respond with meaningful discussion and not just “cool!”
Tag them individually with helpful posts. Please don’t limit it to your own posts, but items that will truly be of value or curiosity to them.
Target your shares. The advantage is that you can target more finely as opposed to Facebook. Your first step is creating and joining circles and tagging people into the right circles, knowing who the key players are and socializing with them. \ If I had a local event, I could just share with my Philly Social Moms Circle. When I have a gluten free recipe, I share that my gluten and allergy free bloggers. This is an excellent way to sort and target posts for people who have multiple niches.

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Go deeper: href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/socialmedia-marketing/google-communities-an-untapped-gold-mine-for-social-media-marketers/" target="_blank">Here is an in-depth look at Google+ communities and how to engage them.

It’s easy to leave this board alone but it can be your highest source of traffic even when you do very little maintain it but you can build on that.

Make sure you are pinning other people’s content, not just your own. It should probably be about 50/50.
Write meaning comments as well as likes. You can open a discussion, which is a rarity on Pinterest – but it has gotten me noticed!
Do at least 15-20 pins per day. href="http://www.whiteglovesocialmedia.com/pinterest-consultant-how-to-schedule-pins-on-pinterest-to-save-you-time/" target="_blank">This article at White Gloves Social Media has a list of scheduling tools for Pinterest, if you need them, many of which are paid or limited.
Check out your analytics in pins. This will help a lot! It’ll show you what boards are working and which are not, so you can focus your energy on the more popular boards.
Get invited to group boards – or create your own. Pinning with a team on a common topic is great idea. Note that right now, holiday and seasonal boards are hot. The best way to accomplish this is to be part of a blogger group and finding people with common interests.
href="http://www.ahalogy.com/publishers" target="_blank">Request an invitation for Ahalogy. This is a great scheduling tool for Pinterest, but it also allows for engagement and lets you know when it’s time to repin a pin. It also provides additional stats and more advanced tools as you use it.
Check your Google Analytics – you should be getting traffic from Pinterest as well. If not, make sure you are taking these tips. (I assume you have set up your website to be linked to your Pinterest page.)
Embed your board in relevant blog post to invite people to follow.

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Go deeper: Check out href="http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/socialmedia-marketing/google-communities-an-untapped-gold-mine-for-social-media-marketers/" target="_blank">10 Pinterest Boards Every Blogger Must Follow.

Instagram

class="alignright size-full wp-image-11377" src="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/10-31-iconosquare.jpg" alt="iconosquare" width="300" height="410" srcset="http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/10-31-iconosquare.jpg 300w, http://whsr.webrevenueinc1.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/10-31-iconosquare-219x300.jpg 219w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />I love this Instagram.

It’s SO easy: take a great photo and share it – or take a crummy photo, filter it, then share it! First you need to start following people.

If you can find a blogger share group, follow and have people follow back. The key is to see what the people you are following are sharing and imitate it. Top tips:

Hashtag a lot. I recently a photo of my daughter’s Halloween costume, hashtagged it “#frozen” and the official Frozen account liked my image. If Frozen or Disney were my focus, I would follow them and start tagging frozen items as much as possible.
Like other photos, even ones you find in explore.
Commenting! Like Pinterest, this is not used as much as on other mediums, so it gets you noticed. Again, start a meaningful conversation and be flattering.
Use href="http://iconosquare.com/" target="_blank">Iconosquare. In addition to in-depth statistics, you get tools plugins, and more. In fact, they have a plugin so you can install your feed on your website. It takes no more than 5 minutes!

Your Turn!

Take a look at those recommendations and start going through your own social media channels to create your own plan and start generating more social media followers now!

Page 11 – Web Hosting Secret Revealed