““Most Recommended” by Blogging Geniuses at WordCamp Boston” plus 2 more |  |
- “Most Recommended” by Blogging Geniuses at WordCamp Boston
- 4 Tips for Pitching Guest Posts Like a Pro
- Six Things I Learned in My First Six Months as a Problogger
| “Most Recommended” by Blogging Geniuses at WordCamp Boston Posted: 25 Jul 2011 01:30 PM PDT This guest post is by Marci Reynolds of marcireynolds.com. The July 2011 WordPress WordCamp Boston rocked! Hundreds of eager WordPress users gathered to watch more than 40 speakers who presented on topics from social media to themes to shortcodes to security.
Most recommended WordPress pluginsPlugins were a hot topic in every session, but only three rose to the top as the "most recommended":
Most recommended WordPress SEO tipsIn addition to the hearing about the importance of fresh, high quality content ("content, content, content"), a number of experts reinforced these WordPress SEO tips:
Social media … of courseI think it's required that every 2011 conference, whether it's about real estate, insurance, or cat food, must include several sessions on how to use social media, and WordCamp (WC) was part of that group. However, there was an obvious division in the WC audience. Some WC attendees like me, were well versed in social media 101 and 102 and were looking for something new and advanced. The remaining attendees (seemed like 50% of humans) were beginners and were looking for advice on how to get started. One conference attendee was skewered on Twitter, hashtag #wcbos, for asking how to spell "Mashable." Understandable! The general themes on how to use social media to support your WordPress efforts were:
Overall, WordCamp Boston was a great experience, and well worth the time and money investment. I saw some very talented speakers, networked with other WordPress users and learned many new things. I look forward to attending next year's conference. Have you attended a WordCamp event? What did you learn? Marci Reynolds, based in Boston, MA, is an operations leader by day and an active blogger after-hours. She enjoys writing about sales support, service operations, process improvement and social media best practices. Learn more about Marci. Originally at: Blog Tips at ProBlogger "Most Recommended" by Blogging Geniuses at WordCamp Boston     |
| 4 Tips for Pitching Guest Posts Like a Pro Posted: 25 Jul 2011 01:04 PM PDT This guest post is by Aman Basanti of Ageofmarketing.com. Since launching my blog in Mid-may 2011, I have guest posted on a number of A-list blogs in the blogging and online marketing niches (including ProBlogger, MarketingProfs, and Daily Blog Tips). In doing so, I have learned some important lessons in getting guest posts accepted on big blogs. But rather than boring you with the usual advice (pick the right blog, research the blog, pitch quality content etc.) I will attack a specific aspect of guest posting—preparing the pitch. If you want to learn about other aspects of guest posting check out Ali Luke's post, How to Get Your Guest Posts Accepted Every Time. I’ve identified four important elements that can greatly increase your chances of having your article or pitch accepted. 1. Pitch multiple post ideasI had been reading ProBlogger for over a year before I pitched them a guest post. By any measure, I had done my research. Still, my judgement of what would be accepted was way off. The post I thought would be best for ProBlogger was rejected, as was the one I thought would be second best. The one I least expected to be published was accepted. Had I not pitched three post ideas at once, I would never have known. I’ve had similar experiences with other editors. So the lesson here is to pitch multiple posts. You cannot guess what the editor will find interesting. Stop trying to be a mind-reader. Place your trust in probability. 2. Write solid outlinesIf you pitch multiple pieces, do not simply include them as attachments. A-list blogs get a ton of pitches every week and do not have the time to read through them all. Make it easy for the editor and write a short description for each piece. Here’s a sample outline: The Pimp, the Grocer and the Hit Man: Magnetise Your Headings Using the Power of the Unexpected An article about how humans are wired to pay attention to unexpected events and how bloggers can use unexpected details to write more attention worthy headlines. Sending article pitches, rather than articles, also benefits you. You do not have to have the post written before pitching it. You pitch it, see if the blogger is interested, and then write based on their feedback. Pitching multiple posts with outlines is the single most important thing that has helped me get more posts accepted. It cuts out the guesswork. 3. Use the right keywordsAs editors are busy, they do not have the time to imagine how your post relates to their niche. Your pitch has to be specific to their blog from the outset. The simplest way to make your post appear more specific is to use the right language. This is where your research will come into play. Most sites target specific keywords. ProBlogger, for example, targets blogging-related keywords. So if you are pitching to this site, use the word “blog” instead of “website” and “post” instead of “article.” Even cosmetic fixes like these can make your pitches more appealing. As Georgina explained it to me: "I, like the search engines, like to see [keywords] used in the posts I’m reviewing. There’s plenty of content online that’s relevant to blogging, but unless it’s specifically and explicitly tied to blogging and bloggers, we can’t accept it." 4. Show samples of your workInclude in your submission samples of your writing from around the web. Ideally, you want to list your top three pieces, with at least one of them (if not all) being on a site other than yours. This will help the editor get a better idea of the quality and style of your writing. Even if they do not read it, it shows social proof. It shows that other blogs have found your writing interesting. A sample submissionHere is the email template I use to submit my guest posts. This should bring the tips listed above together into an actionable plan that you can use next time you submit a guest post to a blog. Hello [name of editor], My name is Aman Basanti and I am a consumer psychology writer from Australia. I am interested in writing a guest post for your blog. Are you currently accepting guest posts on your blog? If yes, I have the following ideas for you to consider. - The Christina Aguilera Error: Are You Saying Ironic When You Mean Coincidental? - The Pimp, the Grocer and the Hit Man: Magnetise Your Headings Using the Power of the Unexpected - Idea 3 Also, you can see samples of my writing at: - 4 Success Secrets of Infamous British Author, Jeffery Archer - The Joe Girard Method: What the World's Greatest Salesman Can Teach You about Sales and Marketing - The Margaret Thatcher Effect: Does Familiarity Breed ConteMPT or ContENT? I look forward to hearing from you, Aman Basanti There are no magic bullets to getting guest posts. Quality posts pitched to the right publications in the right way will increase your chances of scoring a guest post and reaping the associated benefits. Do you submit pitches to sites you want to guest-post on? Let us know how you approach pitching in the comments below. Aman Basanti writes about the psychology of buying and teaches you how you can use the principles of consumer psychology to boost your sales. Visit www.Ageofmarketing.com/free-ebook to get his new ebook—Marketing to the Pre-Historic Mind: How the Hot New Science of Behavioural Economics Can Help You Boost Your Sales—for FREE. Originally at: Blog Tips at ProBlogger 4 Tips for Pitching Guest Posts Like a Pro     |
| Six Things I Learned in My First Six Months as a Problogger Posted: 25 Jul 2011 07:02 AM PDT This is a Guest Post by John Saddington of TentBlogger. Like many professional bloggers, my journey started years ago, as I dabbled in blogging for myself and for my friends. I’m not exactly sure when it happened, but it did—the date doesn’t matter much here. And, to be completely honest, I had really no idea of what I was doing at the time. Nearly a decade later, I jumped into the deep end, going pro as a full time blogger. I decided that I’d try my hand as a professional blogger, “blogging for fun and for profit,” and seeing where it would take me. So far it’s been everything that I had expected, but even moreso, it’s been extremely eye-opening, humbling, and down-right scary at times. I finally had the time to actually review that first half-year and here’s what I came up with. My hope is that I can pass these learnings on to you so that you can jump to that stage in your blogging (if you wish). Hopefully, you’ll be even more prepared for what lies ahead! 1. Count your penniesMaking the jump from a full-time job into professional blogging took a lot of patience, calculation, and financial management. Heck, I had mouths to feed (I already had one daughter, and a second on the way!) and I couldn’t afford to make a serious capital error on my finances. In other words, it just had to work and I had to stay ‘in the black’ as best as I could. I was diligent, I was safe, and I was conservative as much as the next fiscally responsible person—and although I’d never call myself a professional financial accountant, I was confident in my ability to make the ends meet. But the importance of being on top of my finances kicked up a serious notch the moment my blogs became the number one source of income. What I wish I’d done was to take into account every single penny that was going in and going out from the blog; yes, to that degree—pennies. You see, I had general (and accurate) estimations of my earnings but without the exact penny figures I couldn’t completely optimize my earnings in the specific areas that needed to be optimized (like affiliate marketing, direct sales, etc). I encourage you to start counting those pennies today, even if it is just pennies—you’ll be even more ready to make the jump when you do. Practical application
2. Go free or go homeI love the applications that I use for my work, and most of them have been paid applications. The challenge of being in the freelance world—and especially the problogging world—is that there are always newer and shinier programs out there that are constantly enticing me. Heck, some claim to make me money instantly so why not, right? Wrong. My approach quickly changed to finding open-source or free alternatives to paid apps. Sure, there’s nothing wrong with paying for your apps, but every single dollar counts—especially in the beginning, as you work your way to a profitable blog. You need to save where you can save, and do it over and over again. Take the time to find the right free apps. Develop a thick skin for those moments when you see advertisements for apps that say they’ll help your blogging more if you just buy them today (especially if it’s a “limited time only” offer). You can go pro without paying a dime—in fact, why not challenge yourself to do just that? Practical applications
3. Prepare for the emotional rollercoaster Copyright AVAVA - Fotolia.com The first six months have been riddled with fear, anxiety, doubt, and depression—pretty sweet, right? It’s exactly what you want to hear from a professional blogger! One can get seriously beat up on that emotional rollercoaster ride! The thing is that these are normal emotions for anyone who has experienced a job change. I just didn’t expect that they’d come on as strong in a job that I had been wanting to dive into for so long. It’s like getting to your dream job and realizing that it’s not like your dream at all—well, it’s still a “dream” job but it’s different, right? There is no perfect job, and if you’re looking for it, then don’t be surprised when the kryptonite called reality arrives and you realize that you must still manage the stress and pressure of providing for yourself and your family. But it’s still worth it. There’s no coaching or preparation that I can give you for making a jump into professional blogging but I can tell you that it will be emotional and that’s okay. Practical applications
4. Remember: your environment is everythingSince I started my blogging as a hobby I didn’t really care about where I was when I wrote anything—the fact that I managed to get in front of the computer at all seemed like a feat, and there was no rhyme nor reason to my work environment or circumstance. This worked just fine. As I moved closer to writing seriously, I still didn’t have the full appreciation for my environment: I was writing during my lunch breaks, at the kitchen table after a late-night meal, or early in the morning before the coffee finished brewing. I blogged where I was because that’s where I was when I had the free time to do so. Sure, I tried to find those “optimal” writing environments that I felt helped me stay productive effectively, but it was more of luxury than a necessity. I just wanted to write and I’d write anywhere. Now, as a professional blogger, this is what I do and my environment is under my control—and it’s never been more important that I craft the right environment for optimal thinking, drafting, and publishing. I’m even sharing this experience publicly as I craft the perfect professional blogging office with my community. The challenge, though, is that I wasn’t taking notes for all those years as I spent time in the many different places where I wrote. I wish that I’d been more aware of the places, circumstances, environments, and all of the related paraphernalia that came with those environments, so that I could more easily create that perfect problogging office today. I’d encourage you to start taking notes today if you’re planning to head in the direction of professional blogging. Then, when you do get there, you’ll know exactly what you need to create that perfect writing environment. Practical applications
5. Work smarter, not harder?The well-known adage we hear from many gurus is that you should seek to work smarter, not harder. And I believe that is generally true … except that it’s often not, especially in the space of the professional blogger. I’ve learned that I must do both, at the exact same time, at about the same pace, and with extreme prejudice. There are elements of writing full-time that require you to work a lot harder than you’ve ever worked previously when you were blogging as a side project or hobby. And you need to blog at the exact same time you’re developing new processes and workflows that allow you to work smarter as well. For example, I’m not working fewer hours than I did before. I work about the same (if not more). But I’m also working smarter during those times, churning out blog posts while developing strategy for marketing, awareness, and social engagements that’ll increase traffic. I’m also bucketing time for building a business around the blog as well as doing the administrative tasks that are required of any small business owner. If you make the jump to being a problogger don’t expect to sip pina coladas on a beach in Tahiti working two hours a day with your remote 4G external wifi connection. No, your head is down (in your awesome work environment) making as much progress as you possibly can. After all, there’s no guarantee that your community is coming back to your blog tomorrow. Practical applications
6. It’s not about me: it’s about themAs I ramped up into full-time blogging as a career, I day-dreamed about what it would look like, what it would feel like, and how I’d wake up every morning with a feeling of intense personal satisfaction knowing that I’ve “done it.” It was all about me. What I quickly realized is that professional blogging is less about myself and more about the community that helped you get to this point. And yes, we all know that already but it becomes even more apparent when you realize that your financial stability and generation depends on those that believe in what you write and what you have to say as important (or more important) than the many other voices out there. This truth brings humility and grace at the right time and reminds you that your blog is nothing more than a collection of passionate people that are headed in the same direction. Practical applications
What have you learned?Whether you’re a problogger, a blogging stalwart, a hobby blogger, or a newbie, you’ve probably learned a few lessons of your own. Share them with us in the comments. Written exclusive for ProBlogger.net by John Saddington. He is a Professional Blogger who loves sharing his blogging tips, tricks, tools, and practical teaching covering SEO, WordPress and making money through your blog! You can follow him on Twitter too: @TentBlogger. Originally at: Blog Tips at ProBlogger Six Things I Learned in My First Six Months as a Problogger     |
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