I'm always looking for different ideas, better ways...or just things that will help me to continue to learn. Video Hosting for Business. 120 Marketing Tactics For Your Blog (Infographic) Part of a good content marketing strategy, blogging helps you position yourself as an expert in your area. Content marketing consists of producing and publishing information that builds trust and authority among your ideal customers. It is a way of creating relationships and community so people feel loyal to your brand, and it helps you become recognized as a thought leader in your industry. Successful blogs play a pivotal role in delivering your brand message, and help drive sales without using traditional hard-sell tactics. They don’t merely push out your sales pitch over and over — they offer insights, answer common questions, and help readers make better decisions. 5 steps for creating a successful blog The key to successful blogging is creating content that your target audience wants to read. 1.
It’s important to know what you want to accomplish and how you’ll measure your success. 2. Who are you trying to reach? 3. 4. 5. The highest ROI way to increase signups: Make a minimal homepage (Guest Post) Mattan Griffel has written some great essays on user growth over at Growhack, and you can follow him on Twitter at @mattangriffel. In particular I’m fond of his essay The Minimal Homepage, which states something that everyone who’s A/B tested their homepage knows: Keep it simple, and ask for your signup upfront.
It’s one of the easiest and highest ROI ways to increase signups, because your visitors won’t find their way onto low conversion pages and bounce. Surprisingly, it’s still counterintuitive to many. I’ve referred people to this blog post before, and Mattan graciously offered for it to be reposted here. Enjoy! -Andrew What do you notice about the homepages of the fastest growing companies in the world? Here’s what I’ve noticed: No access without signup. When I tell people these things they often complain: “But everyone knows Twitter and Facebook, so they don’t have to explain what their product is about. You are wrong. The same is true for your startup. How to Set Up Your Blog In 4 Minutes - Anti Wantrepreneur. If you want to get your name out there, you MUST have a website.
Starting a blog is the easiest way to form your own website. Blogs can be turned into platforms, stores, or just a place to vent. Enter the 4 Minute Blog There are many options out there, but self-hosted WordPress blogs are the best. We use WordPress here at AntiWantrepreneur.com. Check out this video on how Eugene Hennie, co-founder of Anti Wantrepreneur, set up the site in under 4 minutes. Watch the video below or on YouTube. Yes, many people have a hard time doing this, but you won’t if you follow the steps in the video. For those of you that need step by step instructions, we are going to walk you through the process in text format. You can launch your blog by following these seven steps: 1. If you are new to setting up a website, think of it like this.
You should have an idea as to what you want for your domain name. We recommend BlueHost 2. We are using BlueHost. Head over to the BlueHost home page. Click OK. Click Next. Almost Awesome Blog Posts | How To Find And Fix Them. Editors Note: What follows is a specific process for finding good blog posts and making them great. If you’ve been writing a blog for more than six months or so, this process is a better use of your time than writing another article. Some blog posts are better than others. They sound better, rank higher, and convert more visitors than the other posts.
They jump out in your Analytics. You know which ones they are. But what about the posts that are on the edge of greatness? They could do more, but something is holding them back. They’re almost awesome. It’s easier and faster than writing and promoting a new post. Two kinds of posts have the highest potential: Almost awesome at getting trafficAlmost awesome at getting conversions It’s almost a traffic magnet You likely have blog posts (and web pages) that are ranking in the first or second position …on page two. That’s not all bad.
Like aces in blackjack, it’s good to find 1s and 11s in your Analytics. 1. Now you’re looking at a list of phrases. How do colors affect purchases? Infographic. The #1 Conversion Killer In Your Web Design (Are You At Risk?) There’s one web design mistake that absolutely tanks your conversion rates… And once you cure it, you could propel the lead generation / sales ability of your website by as much as 100% OR MORE. Luckily, this mistake has an easy fix—especially if you’re willing to make some small changes to your website. Murder Clutter… Before It Nukes Your Conversion Rates Look: With widgets, plugins, social media profiles, and other junk like that, it’s easy to overload your website with a bunch of garbage you don’t need. And worse, when you do just that, your conversion rates PLUMMET. The simple solution is to DITCH the baggage, and focus on what you NEED visitors to do to grow your business.
In most cases, you need visitors to subscribe to your email list or buy your stuff, and that’s what you should focus on. Related posts? “Badges? (yes, that’s a Blazing Saddles quote :-D) What’s Absolutely Essential For A High-Converting Web Design? Not everyone will agree with me, and that’s fine. Every blog sidebar needs:
Security. Writing. Graphics. How to Create a "Sticky" Floating Sidebar Widget in WordPress. BackupBuddy - the premiere WordPress backup plugin to backup, restore and move WordPress. WordPress Brute Force Attacks, and What You Need to Do About it. WordPress Training by WP Academy. Home of WP Encyclopedia. Build a Simple Website Badge Collection. CSS3 . Info - All you ever needed to know about CSS3.
Useful programs. Leonie Dawson - Amazing Biz, Amazing Life. How To Register a Website Domain Name - How To Make A Website - Your Free, Step by Step Guide : How To Make A Website – Your Free, Step by Step Guide. Getting your first domain name is simple. Here are the 4 steps you need to follow to take the first step in making your first website: getting a domain name. #1. Go to GoDaddy.com Godaddy makes it the simplest and easiest to select a domain name with their domain name search features so if you have trouble getting the right name for you, they’re the best to use. #2. It’s nice and easy, right on the front page. Leave it set as .com for now because these are the most recognizable domain names #3. If you get the big, green light to go ahead, click on ‘add’ and you’re away. #4. If you end up with the dreaded (and not all that uncommon) ‘…is already taken’ then the best piece of advice I can give you is to move on and find another name.
Not only does GoDaddy.com show you whether or not you domain name is available, but it also gives you a list of what other tld’s (the three letters after the domain name eg. .com, .net, .org) are available and other potential domain names that are similer.
Social media. 14 Tried and True Ways to Increase Your Facebook Fan Page… Part 2 | Dennisse Lisseth. Welcome to Part 2 of “14 Tried and True Ways to Increase your Facebook Fan Page” In case you haven’t read Part 1, you can do so here. 7. Logo/Pic of you I am not a graphics artist, I don’t know how to use Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop and I back when I started Exceptional Living, I didn’t personally know anyone that can create a logo to my liking. So I decided to go with a picture of myself as Exceptional Living’s profile pic..
If you have a brand new page or are thinking of starting one and you don’t have a logo, please consider using your pic as the profile pic. If you use a logo for your page, that is wonderful and it works out just as well. 8. This is a feature that has been around for quite some time now. 9. Another way to get noticed by other Fan Pages and their fans is by posting on other Fan Page’s (using your Fan Page of course, not your personal account). Here’s the difference… When you post, choose to post a quote, saying, article, pic, etc. that adds value to others. 10. 11. My Tools by Michael Hyatt. I am often asked about the tools I use in my personal and professional life. I thought I would document them here. This is not a static list but one that I will update as my needs and tools change. Please note: the software tools are for Mac, since that’s the computer I use.
Photo courtesy of ©iStockphoto.com/prill If there’s a tool I am missing or one you think is better than the one I am using, please let me know in the comments at the bottom of this page. Blogging Akismet: This is the plugin I use to control comment spam. Social Media Buffer: This is one of those ideas that is so simple and so elegant, you slap yourself on the forehead and say, “Of course!” Speaking Keynote: This is the software package that single-handedly converted me from PC to Mac. Podcasting Adobe Audition: This is the audio editing software I use. Productivity Chrome: This is my browser of choice. How to Create Content Maps for Planning Your Website’s Content. Content mapping is a visual technique that will help you organize and understand the content of a website.
It can be a simple and valuable part of your site’s overall content strategy. This short and simple guide should help you get started. What is Content Mapping? Content mapping is similar to mind maps, but it’s focused on a site’s content. More specifically, content mapping allows you to see your content as it relates to the goals of your client, the goals of your site users and all the other pieces of content in your website (as well as external websites), allowing you to spot gaps (and opportunities) in your content development strategy. I’ll cover two types of content mapping in this guide: Mapping your content to goals (the goals of the client and the goals of site users)Mapping your content to other content We’ll focus on creating functional content maps that can be used (and understood) by everyone involved in the development of a website.
Why Should You Create Content Maps? SocialOomph.com. The Chicago Manual of Style Online. Typinator - the fastest text expander in town. Typinator is the best thing since sliced bread! Michele DeFilippo(Book designer) Typinator is the BEST utility I have purchased in a very long time. I tested a couple of other products before purchasing yours and only Typinator was 100% rock-solid.
Hugh Nagle, Ireland I love Typinator. I have tried the others, but Typinator is the easiest – by far. It is one of four essential productivity apps I could not live without. Michael Hyatt, www.michaelhyatt.com Typinator is faster and less wonky than TextExpander. Jon Stokes, San Francisco, CA Typinator is a killer app to save time and increase productivity! Fred Colantonio Marketing and Internet Consultant By far, the best Mac text expander I've seen.
Jim Cole, Jacksonville, FL One of the most useful programs for the Mac. Wilma Keppel, macupdate.com I'm here to say I'm totally loyal to Typinator! Erik Patrick, web developer This product is brilliant. Snagit, Mac and Windows screen capture software from TechSmith. Context is everything. Recording a video lets the person on the other end actually hear your voice. So the next time a webpage, PDF, or video edit is sent to you for feedback, consider dropping the red pen and record a video instead. With Snagit, there’s no waiting. You can record your video, and share it within seconds. Webcam recording - Toggle between webcam and screen recording during a video to add a personal touch with teammates or clients, no matter where they are. Video trimming - Quickly get rid of any unwanted sections from your screen recordings. Remove ums, ahs, coughs, extra time from the beginning, middle, end, or any mistakes you want to correct.
Editorial Calendar. Did you remember to write a post for next Tuesday? What about the Tuesday after that? WordPress doesn't make it easy to see when your posts are scheduled. The editorial calendar gives you an overview of your blog and when each post will be published. You can drag and drop to move posts, edit posts right in the calendar, and manage your entire blog.
Watch the video Try it out Try the calendar before you install it. Features See all of your posts and when they'll be posted.Drag and drop to change your post dates.Manage your drafts with our new drafts drawer.Quickedit post titles, contents, and times.Publish posts or manage drafts.Easily see the status of your posts.Manage posts from multiple authors. Make it better Thank you to everyone who has given us feedback and helped us improve this plugin. Translate it Again, thanks to all who have already helped make the plugin available in so many languages. How to Customize Your Facebook Page {Tech Tuesday} You can find all of the Tech Tuesday posts in my Tech Tuesday category! Today our Tech Tuesday post is brought to you by Elizabeth from DogFur and Dandelions. Thank you Elizabeth for sharing! If you have any sort of online presence, it’s a good idea to create continuity across all the social media platforms in which you participate.
For instance, having the same username on Facebook and Twitter and Pinterest makes you easier to find. Or using the same logo on all those sites makes you easier to recognize. You want your presence to be consistent across all sites. First, create an image that meshes with your brand or logo. I used a section of the image that’s set as my blog background. If you already have an image you’d like to use, select “Edit a Photo” and upload that image.If you don’t, select “Create a Collage” and then save it as a blank image, before making any changes. For any other program/software, create a background image without text that is 111px wide x 74px high.
Top 10 Free Desktop Blog Editors for Windows. Although many users have gotten used to updating their blogs directly on the web, desktop blog editors have certain advantages, and it would be a shame not to try them out. We've gathered 10 free desktop blog editors for Windows; some are plugins, while others are full-featured standalone applications. Windows Live Writer Windows Live Writer comes from Microsoft and you will have that familiar feeling of working with an Office application while using this desktop blog editor.
When it comes to features, Live Writer is the most complete desktop blog editor of the lot. It has everything that you would like to see in a blog editor - multiple blog accounts, compatibility with multiple blog platforms, rich text formatting, draft saving, post categorization, picture and tag insertion, spell checking, pinging search engines automatically, and synchronizing draft changes on the editor with the blog. What takes Windows Live Writer a step ahead are features such as inserting maps and videos. Qumana. Use a Blogging Template to Write Posts Faster [Video] In this brief video, I share the six-part framework I use to write my own blog posts. This enables me to write faster and with more predictable results.
Start with the headline. Write something that will pull people into the body of the post. Write a great lead paragraph. Make the topic immediately relevant and explain what people will get in the rest of the post.Use a relevant image. Magazines do it. So do newspapers. In addition to this short tip, Stu McLaren previews what we have going on this next month at Platform University. If you haven’t yet checked out Platform University, have a look at the first video.