Work-At-Home Success University. Course: Blogging For Bucks Lesson 2

Transcription

1 Work-At-Home Success University Course: Blogging For Bucks Lesson 2

2 NOTICE: You Do NOT Have the Right to Reprint or Resell this Report! You Also MAY NOT Give Away, Sell or Share the Content Herein If you obtained this report from anywhere other than you have a pirated copy. Please help stop Internet crime by reporting this to: mailto:success@workathomesuccess.com 2011 Copyright Leslie Truex ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this report may be reproduced or transmitted in any form whatsoever, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any informational storage or retrieval system without express written, dated and signed permission from the author. DISCLAIMER AND/OR LEGAL NOTICES: The information presented herein represents the view of the author as of the date of publication. Because of the rate with which conditions change, the author reserves the right to alter and update his opinion based on the new conditions. The report is for informational purposes only. While every attempt has been made to verify the information provided in this report, neither the author nor his affiliates/partners assume any responsibility for errors, inaccuracies or omissions. Any slights of people or organizations are unintentional. If advice concerning legal or related matters is needed, the services of a fully qualified professional should be sought. This report is not intended for use as a source of legal or accounting advice. You should be aware of any laws, which govern business transactions or other business practices in your country and state. Any reference to any person or business whether living or dead is purely coincidental. URGENT: Your Address Potential Delivery Problems There are a couple of ISPs that are spam trigger happy and unfortunately yours may be one of them. Oftentimes whitelisting success@workathomesuccess.com will remedy this. However, in some cases it is necessary to use a different address.

3 Introduction Welcome to Work-At-Home Success University and Blogging for Bucks! I m excited to have you as a valued student in this four-week training program! While blogging is well known now, many people are skeptical about its moneymaking potential. How can you make money posting stuff for free? It is true that blogs have the potential to make money, but like any other work-at-home venture, whether or not YOU make money will depend on the decisions you make, how you implement what you learn and whether or not you do the work. In this four-week course you are going to learn about blogging; what it is, how it makes money and what steps you need to take to be successful. Before we begin with the lessons, there are three important things that I need to mention to you... 1) Worksheets - The course comes with instructional materials as you see here, but it also includes worksheets. These handouts are crucial to your success so don't skip them. They are designed to help you gather and organize information so that you can use it to be a successful blogger. 2) Audio and Video Materials - When appropriate you'll find audio or video supplements to the instructional materials. These are designed to assist in providing the information in a clear and concise manner. 3) Weekly Lessons - Here is the schedule of lessons for Blogging For Bucks. Week 1 - What is blogging? Blog types Choosing a blog topic Determining if you have enough content to support a blog. Week 2 - Starting Your Blog Three different blog options

4 Setting up the blog Creating/getting content Making a blog calendar Week 3 - Monetizing Your Blog AdSense - Fast and free Affiliate marketing Advertising Sponsored Reviews Sponsorships Week 4 - Getting people to your blog with little or no advertising (or money) The content in the later lessens may look sparse, but each topic area has a ton of information and step-by-step details. Some of the information will be technical, but every effort has been made to walk you through the steps one-by-one. Now that we ve gotten the housekeeping out of the way, let s get to the reason why you re here the lesson!

5 Setting Up Your Blog When it comes to being a super affiliate, fast and free options are NOT where the money is. But, taking advantage of a fast, free option is not without its benefits. The real benefit of fast and free is that you can be up and running in a matter of minutes with virtually no tech hassle. Many successful bloggers started out with free options, but then switched to WordPress, which offers the most functionality and essential tools for bloggers. I'm going to give you instructions for three options. Blogger is fast and free, but has some limitations. At the other end of the spectrum is Wordpress, which is free, but requires you to buy a domain and hosting, and is a little more challenging to set up (unless you follow my instructions!). In between the two is Life Spark Network, which is run on Wordpress so it has most of the perks of a WordPress blog, but it has a free (and paid premium option), is already installed so you don't need to do the tech set-up involved in setting up and WordPress blog. Blogger Blogger is a free blogging resource owned by Google. While the most successful affiliate bloggers use Wordpress, Blogger is easier to set up and use, plus with its relationship to Google, it's easy to monetize with Adsense. The challenge of starting out with a blog is that blogging requires adding content on a regular basis. Content is good because search engines like it, but you'll need to develop a plan for updating your blog at least two to three times a week. The best way to do that is to look at the keyword results list from lesson one and use it to develop content ideas. For example, let's say my interest is in cake decorating. I have done research and found there are many searches on cake decorating. I've also checked Clickbank and Commission Junction where I've

6 found how-to cake decorating resources and cooking products. Now I need to create a blog that includes information about cake decorating. If I go back and look at my list of keywords, I find words like fondant, wedding cake, cake recipes, cake toppers, etc. All these would make great topics for a blog post. Here's how to get start with Blogger in minutes! 1) Visit Blogger.com. (If you use any Google products or services (i.e. Gmail), you can sign up for blogger through your Google account. At the top of Gmail, click on the link that says "More" and then "Even More". Then click on "Blogger".

7 2) After you create an account or login with Google, click on "Create Blog" 3) Choose a name for your blog. Then enter the blog address. For example, the blog name could be Flat Abs for Moms but the address would be flatabsformoms.blogspot.com if that was available. Blogger has a "Check Availability" link to help you find a blog address. Click on next.

8 4) Choose a template. You can change or modify it later. 5. At this point you can start blogging or customize your blog. Blogger now makes it easier to buy or use a previously purchased domain name, which you can add by clicking on the "Advanced Features". For our purposes, let's click on "Start Posting Now".

9 Adding Content 1) Click on "Posting" from your dashboard. 2) Add a title. Be sure to use a keyword related to your blog or article. 3) Write or paste your article in the body. 4. If you want to add html code into the body of the article (for example an ad), click on the "Edit Html" tab to add it. Otherwise, write in the "Compose" tab. 5. Put keywords related to the article where it says "Labels for this post". 6. Save or Publish. Other editing options for your posts:

10 Other Blogger areas to check out. Take a look at the Settings tab. The defaults are probably okay for now, but check them out so you can see what's there. The Monetize tab offers default placement of Adsense ads. The Comments tab is where you can screen for spam comments... a big problem with blogs. In your Settings, you can set it up so that only registered users can post comments. The Stats tab is where you can learn about the numbers of people viewing your site, from where they found you and what they're reading.

11 WordPress (Wordpress.org) If you're looking to make significant money, you should do what the other probloggers do and that is use Wordpress.org (self-hosted). This option offers the most flexibility and customization. And with Fantastico Deluxe and the release of WordPress 3.0, its easier than ever to install and set-up a blog. There are 5 steps to the process: 1) Buying a domain name. 2) Obtaining web hosting. 3) Installing WordPress and setting you the blog. 4) Adding content. 5) Getting people to visit your blog. Don't worry if you're feeling overwhelmed by all this. We'll be going over each of these steps in detail. Getting a Domain Name and Hosting Choosing a Domain Name Choose a domain name that includes your major keyword. This is to help identify the topic of blog, but also for good search engine ranking. You can use any domain registrar. I use Godaddy for all my domains (30 of them!). 1. Go to Godaddy or your domain registrar of choice. 2. Search for possible domain names based on your keywords. Stick with.com domain names. If your domain isn't available, try other keywords or other variations such as adding "tips", "guide", "solutions" etc. Using the Raw Food Diet example, if rawfooddiet.com isn't available you can try rawfooddiettips.com, rawfooddietrecipes.com, or rawfoodtips.com.

12 3. Purchase your domain. During the buying process, Godaddy will offer you other options such as and hosting. If you plan to follow the details of this book, you can ignore those and simply buy the domain name. Getting Web Hosting. Next you need to obtain a hosting account. You can host at Godaddy, but I prefer Hostgator. I host all my sites there. Its reliable, affordable, has great tech help, and many great features, including Fantastico Deluxe to install WordPress for you. Visit Hostgator to sign up for web hosting. The baby level offers the best service with the ability to add more blogs once you've got this one up and running.

13 Setting Up Your Domain Name With Your Hosting Account Once you ve got your domain name and have sorted out your hosting, then you ll need to tell your domain provider where the website will be hosted. We do this by giving GoDaddy information about your host's nameservers. Don't panic! I've provided step-by-step instructions below. 1. Find the your host provider sent to you with your account information. In it will be details that say "Nameservers". If you use Hostgator or another service with cpanel, you can log into your account and find your nameservers listed near the bottom, left-hand side of the main cpanel page. 2. Log into your GoDaddy account and click on "Visit My Account" under where it says Hi Yourname and then "Launch" by where it says Domains. All your domains will be listed there. At this point, you have just one. 3. Put a check mark in the box next to your domain.

14 4. Click on Nameservers from the options right above your list of domain names. From the drop down list, choose Set Nameservers. 5. A box will pop up with two options. Select Custom. 6. Enter the two nameservers numbers associated with your hosting account (your hosting provider will have ed you this information). 7. Click Save. It can take a few hours for the change to be made. Once complete, when you type in your domain name, it will open at your web hosting account. Whew... you did it. You own a domain name and have a place to post website.

15 Installing WordPress Now that you've got your domain and hosting, you can install WordPress! Again, don't let the word "install" worry you. Today you can install WordPress with a click of a mouse. 1) Login to your web hosting account. You'll be taken to your cpanel. 2) Scroll down until you see Fantastico De Luxe which is a little blue smiley face icon. Click on it. 2)You will be given a list of scripts to install. Select WordPress.

16 (3) Click on New Installation (4) Where it says Install on domain select your domain name from the list. Right now you just have the one domain. Leave Install in directory blank. Choose a Username and Password that you will use to log into your blog when you edit content. Enter the name you will post as (this appears under each post to show the author), your address, the blog s name and description of the blog. For the blog name and description, try to use your keywords because this will help with your SEO.

17 (5) Click Finish Installation. You have now installed Wordpress! (6) Now go to your domain name and check that your blog was installed correctly. Type your domain name into your browser. It should look like the example below except with your website information.

18 Customizing WordPress One of the many great features of WordPress is how easy it is to change the look and format of your blog. Changing the Look of the Default Theme The above sample is the default theme called Twenty10. You can customize this theme simply by changing the header. This can be done the same way on Lifespark Network blogs as well. 1. Login to your WordPress account. Click on "Log in" from the right-hand side bar. 2) Enter your login information to access your Dashboard.

19 3) Click on "Appearance" and then "Header" to change your header or add one of your own. Use a Different Theme At one time, to change the look of your WordPress theme you had to download the theme from one site, and upload it to your blog and then install it. But changes in WordPress has made adding new themes easier than ever. This can be done the same way on Lifespark Network blogs as well. To change your theme: 1) From your WordPress dashboard, click on "Appearance" and then "Themes". 2) Here you'll see all the themes you've installed. At this point, there is just one. But if you install others, they will be here. If you have a Lifespark Network blog, you'll have several theme options available. 3) Click on "Install Themes" tab. You have a variety of options to find more themes. You can click on "Featured", "Newest" or "Recently Updated" to see a variety of themes. Or you can search for themes using the search box. (This

20 cannot be done on Lifespark Network). 4) When you find a theme you like, you can click the "Install" button with it. 5) You'll be asked if you want to activate it once it's installed. If you do, click on the "Activate" option. 6) All installed themes will show up under the "Manage Themes" tab. To change your theme again to one you've already installed, click on the "Activate" by the theme.

21 Uploading WordPress Themes There are plenty of free WordPress themes for free and a fee in other places. If you can't find a theme you like, you can try one of the following places. WordPress wordpress.org/extend/themes You could also try:

22 To find a theme that will suit your niche topic, just do a search like health WordPress theme etc. Just make sure that the theme you choose support Widgets. When you find a theme you like, you'll need to download it to your computer. Just click the "Download" option and make a note of where the file goes. The folder will be zipped. You don't need to unzip it. Next you'll need to upload it, but again WordPress makes this easy. 1) Log into your WordPress dashboard, click on "Appearance" and "Themes" 2) Click on "Install Themes" 3) Click on "Upload" and use the Browse option to find the folder you downloaded. It should be zipped still. 4) WordPress will ask if you want to install the them. Once installed you'll be asked if you want to activate it. Some themes have special options with them to make them easier to use. You'll need to check with the theme developer's website for information on how to use features of the theme. Blog Settings Before we start adding content, there are few more items to take care of that will help manage the blog as well as make it search engine

23 friendly. You'll want to follow these steps for Lifespark Network blogs, unless otherwise indicated. Permalinks In order to get better SEO, we need to change the permalinks so that the title of each blog post will be included in the URL. Remember, we're going to want to use keywords as part of the title to help search engines find and rank the site. If we don't change the Permalinks, your blog posts will have URL like By changing the permalinks, you can have a blog post URL that includes keywords like 1) Log into your blog, go to Settings and select Permalinks. 2) Select Customer Structure and enter /%postname%/ into the field:

24 Privacy Settings Next, you need to make sure your privacy settings are on the right settings in order to get better SEO. Go to Settings and click on Privacy and select the option below: Widgets Widgets are like little packages of goodies for your WordPress blog. Essentially they help make your blog easy to use by providing navigation and search functions. WordPress blogs are divided by columns (the most common are 2 and 3 column). One column is the content of your blog posts, but the other columns can include

25 other information such as topics, searches, and more which are added via widgets. There are many widgets that come standard with WordPress. Other widgets can be added through Plug-ins. 1) Go to Appearance and click on Widgets. Here you will find all the Widgets you can use in your blog. I ve circled some good ones to use:

26 Categories and Recent Posts this is good for SEO and is also helpful to your visitors in terms of site navigation Recent Comments gives your visitors some social proof that other people are interested in you blog, and this helps add a sense of community. Links you can add your favourite links, or affiliate links, or trade links with other blogs in your niche. Text you can put html in this code and can use it for all sorts of things. You can put in an opt in box, affiliate banners, videos etc. Search Box makes your blog easier to navigate for your visitors It's easy to use widgets. You simply click on what you want, and drag it over the sidebar box. Some themes may have more than one sidebar area, but many just have one. To put these widgets in your blog, simply drag them from the left hand side and put them in the box you want on the right hand sidebar:

27 Some widgets may offer or require that you add information such as the heading the will appear over the widget or adding additional information to make the widget work. For example, you can add a "Text" widget for an affiliate or Adsense ad. Once you drag the "Text" widget to your sidebar, you then need to paste the code for you ad into the text area. Plug-Ins Plug-ins are one of the best features of WordPress. Plug-ins are little bits of code that add value, increase search engine traffic and more. Lifespark Network plugins are already installed. Some are already running, others you may need to activate. Spam Prevention Plug-ins Spam or splog as its often called on blogs, is a problem. They come in the form of comment spam. You can set your comments so that they have to be approved, but that creates a lot of work for you. Instead you can use a plug-in to manage it for you. WordPress comes with Askimet already installed but not activated. You need an API key to activate it which you can get by signing up at Wordpress.com (you

28 don't need to create a blog there, just an account). You'll receive an with your API key that can be used with Askimet and other plug-ins that need it (not all plug-ins need an API key). 1. Click on Plug-ins. 2. Just under Askimet, click on Activate. 3. Enter the API key and save. All other plug-ins you will need to install. First I'll give you a list of the ones I suggest, and then walk you through the process of installing (don't worry... most involve 3 clicks or less). SI CAPTCHA Anti-Spam - This adds a captcha form to your comments. It's an added layer of protection from comment spam. Easy Contact - You never want to put your address on your website as it will be farmed and you'll get tons of spam. This is a form you can use so that readers can you through your site, with you giving your . Once the plug in is installed, simply create a page called "Contact" and add this code in the HTML tab [easy-contact] (see the content chapter for adding pages). Search Engine Friendly Plug-Ins All In One SEO Pack this helps you to automate SEO for every blog post you make. You can enter title (different from blog title), description and keywords for each blog posts. Appears at the bottom of your posts page. This is already set up in Lifespark Network. Google XML Sitemaps this helps to build a sitemap for you and also pings Google every time you make a change or a new post. This is really useful in getting your blog indexed quickly. This is already set up in Lifespark Network. Google Analytics - Provides statistics on the visitors to your blog such as numbers, how they found you and more. Great for find out what search terms they are using to find you so you can focus on optimizing for those terms. You'll need to have a Google Analytics account, which is free.

29 Social Sharing Plug-ins OnlyWire Auto Poster - Automatically submits every new blog post to a range of popular social bookmaking sites. This is already set up in Lifespark Network for premium members. Add To Any - Provides buttons so people can share you post by , Twitter and a host of other social medial sites. This is already set up in Lifespark Network. CommentLuv- When visitors comment on your site, they often leave their website URL as part of the comment. Comment Luv will give the URL of the last blog post your commenter made. It's like giving a little backlink gift to people who visit and comment on your site, and therefore encourages them to come back again. This is already set up in Lifespark Network. TweetMeme - Includes a little Twitter button on your post that makes it easy for visitors to share your post on Twitter. Monetization Plug-Ins (Lifespark uses a different Ad Management system). Adsense Deluxe Revived - Makes it easy to use Adsense anywhere on your blog. Data Feedr Random V2 - If you'd like to have ads rotate, this plug in can help. Can be used on all areas of the blog. To add plug-ins is as easy as adding themes. 1) Click on "Plug-ins" from your WordPress dashboard. 2) Click on "Add New" 3) For any of the plug-ins I've mentioned above, you can use the search box to find them.

30 4) Click on Install and then Activate. 5) You can deactivate plug-ins any time by clicking on "Plug-in" to see the list of those that are installed. Some plug-ins may need added information. You'll need to read the plug-in instructions. While plug-ins are listed under Plug-ins, usually their option settings are done under "Settings" or "Tools". Obtaining Other Plug-Ins Like themes, you can find plug-ins on other sites that may not be in the search options. You can download to your computer, and upload them to WordPress the same way as themes. Only you'll do it from the plug-ins interface. 1) In your Dashboard go to Plugins and click on Add New.

31 2) Click Upload at the top 3) Click Choose File and find (e.g. located on your desktop) the plug-in you want to upload and click Install Now. When you select the plug-in from your computer, remember you don t need to unzip it, just upload the zipped version. 4) Click Activate Using WordPress Now you're ready to start using WordPress to add content to your blog. First start by adding pages. Pages are the static information that never changes such as "About" or "Contact". At the very least you'll want pages for: About, Contact and Privacy. Depending on your blog you may want others.

32 To make pages: 1. Login to your WordPress dashboard. 2. Click on "Pages" and "Add new" 3. Enter your title and content. WordPress allows you to enter content visually (Visual tab), which is what-yousee-is-what-you-get. The HTML tab is for when you need to add code like embedding a YouTube video. 4. You can save your content in a draft form if you don't finished during a single sitting. There are other features, but may confuse you at this early stage of the game. At this point, if your page is done, click on "Publish". The page will show up in the Page area indicated by your theme. Adding Posts Posts are added the same way pages are, except that you click on "Post" and "Add new". Posts are where you'll spend the most of your time adding keyword rich articles and information for your visitor.

33 A great feature of WordPress is that you can set the day and time you want your posts to go live. So you can spend a day writing many posts, but they can go live later in the week. It can look like you're posting every day, even though you did all the work in one afternoon. The day and time settings are in the "Publish" box on the right hand side of the page. Be sure to hit the "Schedule" button to publish your posts in the future (the button will say "Publish" for posts you want to go active immediately). Adding Photos WordPress comes with a media center where you can upload and store photos for the future. 1. Click on "Media" and "Add New" 2. Choose whether you're uploading a photo or giving the URL of one already online. NOTE: Don't use the URL of other website's photos without their permission. Once a photo is uploaded, it will be stored under the "Media" area and you can access and use it again. You can also add photos and media directly from a Page or a Post. At the top, you'll find icons to add pictures. Click on the media you want. A new box will open. You can use one you've already uploaded into your Media Gallery, or upload a new photo.

34 Categories Categories help organize the site and make it user friendly. You can add Categories two ways. 1) Click on "Categories" under the post heading, or 2) Create them on the fly when writing post, by choosing the "Add Category" option in the Categories list on the right hand side of your posting page. Create categories to help organize your site by sub-topics. For example, if you have a raw diet blog, you might have categories about 'health' and 'recipes'.

35 FTC Rules for Bloggers In December 2009, the Federal Trade Commission enacted a rule that requires bloggers to make disclosures about the money they earn or free gifts they receive. There is some debate about this laws fairness considering the celebrity Tweets and endorsements that often don't have disclosures about what the celebrity earned or received. On the other hand, it's only fair to your readers that they be able to judge the quality of your content by what you're paid. Many consumers have been angered to discover that their favorite blogger didn't really like product X, but only said that because product X paid them. The FTC doesn't however provide specific guidelines on how to make the disclosure. I have put disclosures on my disclaimer page, as well as at the very top and bottom of my blogs. I also let my visitors know that I use or have reviewed the items that I recommend, and screened all ads on the site. You have to decide how you want to handle the disclosures, but make sure you do it to avoid any legal hassles, as well as to create a safe environment for your readers.

36 Creating Great Content Now that we ve got the blog all set up and optimized for the search engines, we now have to create the main money-making attraction of our blog great content! Last week you created a list of 50 to 100 article ideas based on keywords. Now you need to turn those ideas into content. There are 3 main options that most people use when it comes to creating blog content; writing it yourself, outsourcing it, or using PLR (Private Label Rights) content. Writing Your Own Blog Posts The best option when it comes to blogging is writing your own blog posts. Your writing will give the blog its personality and style, as well as put you in the position of expert. Having credibility is important if visitors are going to click on the monetized sections of your site. Further, unique content tends to fare better in the search engines than duplicate content you might get from PLR or using reprint articles. While you can create evergreen posts (posts that never get dated), current news and trends will draw more crowds and help you rank better in the search engines. Keep current on your niche through Google Alerts, other blogs and news sources and then keep your readers up-to-date on the latest happenings. You don't need to be an author to write quality posts. Since most people go online to find information, write content that provides tips, hints, secrets and other information. To help you stay on topic and make it easy for the visitor to get the information, use numbers and bullets to highlight the important details. Write in a style that is both authoritative, yet personal. Tell stories, be entertaining, and yet also provide plenty of practical, useful info.

37 As your site starts getting visitors, you'll develop a fanbase of regular readers who will not only start to buy, but many will also forward your information to their social networks. You can include referrals to your affiliate or other sources in your posts, but you'll want to be careful about "selling" in everything you write. Tip: Some people say that for every fan (regular reader) your blog gets, you will earn $1 off them a month on average. So for example, if you get 1000 true fans, you should get $1000 a month from them (from things like affiliate commissions, AdSense revenue, product sales etc.) Outsourcing If you'd rather hire someone to write for you, you can find many freelancers and article services that can help you. Expect to pay $5-$10 per original article. You can find some places that are cheaper, but you may not get the quality you want. You can check out Elance.com to find writers. Using Private Label Rights Content (PLR) If you are short on time or writing isn t your forte, you could try using PLR articles for your blog posts. This is pre-written content, usually articles (or ebooks, videos...almost anything) that you can buy (sometimes you can find it for free) and can use as your own. The problem with PLR content is that it's not unique and often not well-written. Ideally, you should use PLR articles as a base from which to re-write in your own style. Most recommending changing PLR content by at least 70% to make sure it is unique. To find PLR articles and content, search Google for your topic followed by the words private label rights or PLR. E.g. raw food diets private label rights articles or raw food diets PLR. Alternatively, head over to NicheEmpires.com where you ll find plenty of PLR articles, products and content.

38 I have included a few PLR content sources you can use in this lesson's as well. Autoblogging If you simply want to just automate the whole process and have content posted on your blog while you sleep, there are a few good auto-blogging plugins available for Wordpress blogs. Again, because the content isn't unique and sometimes not high quality, you don't want to stuff your blog with 100% autoblogged content. Instead, use it to supplement the original content you write yourself. With autoblogging plug-ins you choose the content source and the time intervals at which you want the content automatically posted such as daily or weekly. Here are a couple of autoblogging plug-ins: Adding Video Videos are informative and entertaining, making them a great addition to your blog. But you don't have to create videos yourself. Instead you can find videos on YouTube or any other site that offers video embedding. For example, some news shows allow you to embed their videos on your site. To add video to your post or page, you just need to copy the video embed code, and paste it into your post under the HTML tab. You can add video to your sidebar by using a Text widget. Just drag the Text widget to your sidebar, and past the code into the widget.

39 Let s take the example I used earlier, raw food diets, to embed a video from YouTube into a blog: 1) Go to YouTube.com and search for videos using your keywords. 2) Chose the video you want and click the <Embed> button located below the video.

40 3) Choose from the options what you d like, then click on the embed code to select it and then right click on it and copy it. 4) Now paste the code into a blog post. Make sure you have the post in HTML view, not Visual view otherwise this won t work properly.

41 Blogging Schedule Aside from writing or creating content, having enough content is one of the biggest challenges. Coming up with 50 to 100 ideas last week was designed to help you know in advance what you can write about. There's nothing worse than knowing you need to post something, but don't know what to write. Here are some tips for keeping your idea pile flush: 1. Read other blogs. Don't copy their content, but get ideas from what they write about. 2. Read magazines and books related to your topic. 3. Visit Yahoo Answers, social media and discussion forums to find out what people want to know about related to your topic. 4. Keep a notebook or activate audio recording on your phone to keep ideas as they pop into your head. I use Evernote for my phone and desktop to organize ideas. 5. Pay attention to the and comments you receive. These can give clues to what people want to know about as well. 6. Find guest bloggers. 7. Use free articles. This content isn't unique and therefore shouldn't be used often. But if you are really stuck, you can use a free reprint article from a source like EzineArticles.com. You can use it as-is as long as you include the author's bio. 8. Share the love. One great way to help create outgoing links that search engines like, and relationships with other good blogs is by having posts that share your favorite posts from other blog. Often called link love, it is easy to pull together and often the other blog will mention you or link back to you. It's a win-win. 9. Blog about what's going on in the world. Or find wacky and unusual events to write about. Over at MommyBloggingSuccess, I post monthly, weekly and daily events such as National Pancake Day or National Caffeine Awareness month (they are not geared only toward mom bloggers). You

42 can find some fun and informational topics by using what's going on in the world. Another way to keep the ideas coming and your blog organized is to use a blogging schedule. There are many ways to do this. Some people like to have a specific type of blog post each day. For example, a weight loss blog might have a healthy recipe on Monday, a diet tip on Tuesday, a success story on Wednesday, and exercise video on Thursday and a link love post on Friday. You don't have to be that organized however. I do recommend having a calendar on which you list your planned blog posts for the week. In fact, I try to plan for the month. Assignment: 1) Choose the blogging option you'd like to start with whether it's Blogger or WordPress...or something else. 2) Set up your blog. Get your blog optimized for search engines and readers, before adding your content and promoting your blog. 3) Post 10 articles that publish right away. 4) Post 10 more that publish over the next two weeks. (When you the content, you can set the date to publish on a day in the future). Next week: By next week you'll have 5 to 10 articles posted plus a few more waiting to post. Next week we'll add money making material!