Don’t let Cyber Monday end without checking out the Bluehost Cyber Monday Deals!
You can save up to 60% today!
• Shared hosting as low as $2.65/mo!
• 60% off Second Account
• 50% off Select Domains
• 30% off WordPress Pro
• 57% off WooCommerce Hosting and more!
No better time to start that new website, blog or online business. Click HERE to learn more or get in on the sale process before they are OVER!
This post contains affiliate links. I personally use Bluehost for my web server.
Filed under Blogging, Special Offers, Tech
Don’t let Black Friday end without checking out the Bluehost Black Friday Deals!
You can save up to 60% today!
• Shared hosting as low as $2.65/mo!
• 60% off Second Account
• 50% off Select Domains
• 30% off WordPress Pro
• 57% off WooCommerce Hosting and more!
No better time to start that new website, blog or online business. Click HERE to learn more or get in on the sale process before they are OVER!
This post contains affiliate links, if you click on them and purchase anything from Bluehost, I will receive a percentage as a Bluehost Affiliate. These commissions help me to run my blog and bring you great content, giveaways and more. Thank you for your help. I use Bluehost for my blog server, I am recommending what I use.
Filed under Blogging, Sale, Special Offers
You are going to be seeing some big changes on our blog in the upcoming weeks. We will be changing our look, and think it is long overdue. I purchased one of the most popular website themes, Genesis Framework, many months ago.
The good thing about Genesis Framework is that once you buy it, it is yours to use for life. This is an extremely good thing when like me, life gets in the way, and your plans to update your website get delayed. I had not decided on a StudioPress Child Theme to go along with my Genesis Framework, and that turned out to be a good thing!
This morning in my inbox, I received an email from StudioPress, letting me know their Black Friday Sale has started early and all New Customers get their themes at 25% Off. If you are a Returning Customer like me, you get your themes at 50% Off! If you are a new customer, buy one theme for 25% off. Start a new order and get the next theme for 50% off as a returning customer! Since you will want a framework and theme, you can still make out like a bandit!
And yes, this includes the Pro Plus Pack, which gives you instant and immediate access to all StudioPress themes — including third-party themes. (It’s more than 60 themes in all, every one with a unique specialty but flexible enough to fit almost any purpose you can conjure up.)
Maybe you’ve had your eye on their newest themes like Outfitter Pro or Authority Pro since they were launched. Great! They’re both included in Pro Plus, which you can get at the discount … or you can buy either of those themes, or both, or any other theme or combination of themes and get 50% off the entire order.
The only “catch” — which isn’t really a catch, because you’re expecting it — is that the offer only lasts for one week.
This Black Friday sale begins today (11/21/17) and ends one week from now (11/28/17) at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
I wasted no time in shopping for my new child theme. The ones I like the best and have been debating over are: Mom Blogger Pro, Lifestyle and Magazine. However, with the Pro Plus Pack being 50% off too and letting me have access to all the themes, that was very tempting!
I finally made my decision and pulled the trigger this morning. I love that I was able to snatch up such a great theme at an even better price. If you have been waiting to purchase themes for your website, you can also benefit by getting great pricing on all kinds of themes. They have a huge selection of themes to create or customize your website whether you are a foodie, author, online retailer, realtor, photographer or any other kind of professional or business.
Don’t miss out on this great opportunity to take your website to the next level for less than you would imagine. To make a great thing even better, BlueHost has some amazing Black Friday deals of their own on low cost web hosting and domains! I have used BlueHost for almost 10 years and recommend them highly. If you need help starting a blog or website check out How To Start a Blog in 15 Minutes.
Let me know if you do purchase a theme or web hosting. I love sharing great deals with you!
This post includes affiliate links, if you click and purchase something , I will earn a small percent of the sale as commission. This is a good thing because you will be helping me continue to build my blog and bring you more great content, reviews and giveaways. Thank you for your support.
If you have a blog or business and you want to create a Facebook Fan Page but don’t know where to start, we can help. If you still have not started a blog and need help, go to our, How To Start A Blog Tutorial first.
You might wonder if you really need a Facebook Page for your blog or business. Social media is one of the easiest ways to connect with your target market or audience. A Facebook Page allows you to bring targeted content, promotions, sales and giveaways in front of hundreds of thousands of potential customers, clients or readers who are looking for what you have. It also gives you a platform to showcase photos of your work. We know a picture is worth 1,000 words. If you are an artist, photographer, restaurant owner, contractor, decorator, DIY blogger, crafter and more, post fabulous photos of your best work to attract your audience.
Bloggers should use a Facebook Fan Page to interact daily with their audience. They can do this by posting call to action posts that ask a simple question like, what is the last book they read or what is their favorite classic movie. Beyond that, all blog posts should be promoted on your Facebook Page. There are many plugins or widgets that will automatically post to your page as soon as new posts are published.
Businesses can use their Facebook Page to connect with clients and customers and improve customer service by engaging and answering any questions or concerns they may have.
So, now that you understand the importance, let’s get your Facebook Fan Page up and running. I promise, it will take only a few minutes.
The first thing you need is the name of your page. If you already have your business or blog, it is easy, just use that name. If you do not have anything and are just starting, think of a name.
Once you have your name, you might want to check on domains for that name if you don’t already have one. The reason I am saying this, is because you may be thinking small now and just want the Facebook page. However, if you decide to start a website for your business or blog later, and want a domain with that name, you might be very disappointed to find it is not available.
You can research domain names on BlueHost , if you sign up for their low-cost hosting for your website, it includes a free domain! If you do find an available domain for your business or blog, it is a good idea to purchase it while it is available.
Step one, go to Facebook. Click “HOME” on the top of your page. On the side You will see pages and then on the bottom something that says “create a page” and you click that.
After that, you will be directed to a page where you pick a category for your blog. For bloggers, photographers, musicians etc. you should choose the Artist, Band or Public Figure. If you have a cause, choose Cause or Community and so on. Just pick the best category for your page. Then, you can choose a sub-category and add your page name.
Next, it will take you to where you can enter your “About” information. Let everyone know what your page is about. You can also skip this, but the more details you have, the more people will find your page.
Now, you need to add a profile photo. I am also going to cover the cover photo here too. To add photos, you can use your own photos.
If you don’t have any that will work, you can try free photo sites like Pixabay.com. These are royalty free and can be used without any attribution. Type a word or two into the search bar and search for images. When you find one you like click on it and then save in your files.
You can then upload the images to Facebook to customize your page. If you want to add elements to your cover photo you can use FotoJet. Just upload your image and customize.
To add a title you can choose an overlay or just add text directly. Many of the features are available for free. Anything with a special icon is only available if you have a subscription. This screenshot is from PicMonkey which has a free trial or you could use FotoJet or any other photo editing software you like.
You can change colors, sizes and more to really make it your own.
When you are happy, save it to your computer and then upload to your page.
Add your page to your favorites so you can find it easily.
You can customize who the ideal audience for your page is. Do not limit your audience too much.
At this point you are ready to go, you can learn more about promotion and adding buttons etc. but the basic page is done.
So what are you waiting for? Write your first post. Good luck guys, any questions you can ask them in the comments.
As a professional blogger, social media influencer and digital marketing strategist for almost 10 years, there is something that really gets under my skin. I rarely see it myself, because I nipped it in the bud many years ago. However, blogging forums are peppered with posts from new bloggers sharing how they received an email from a PR rep asking them to promote a service or app without any mention of compensation. Even over the internet, I can see the quivering lip of the new blogger, as they meekly ask, if this is okay. Some will try to justify it by saying they really have no right to ask for compensation, because their blog is brand new.
It isn’t just bloggers, who are routinely asked to “donate” their services. Photographers, Magicians, Vocalists, Graphic Artists and DJ’s are often asked by friends to provide their services for free. These well meaning friends will even go so far as to tell them it will be great experience, they will make new contacts and build their portfolio. The way they spin it, they should be so grateful to provide their services for nothing. When people get something for free, they don’t put much value in it. By accepting the gig, they are putting a nail in the coffin of their career. The bottom line is, if they want to be treated like a professional, they need to start acting like one!
Even the newest blogger needs to quit acting like their work has no value, and their time is not precious. This is easier said than done because many newbies have a hard time standing their ground. They may even try to justify taking the job for free, telling themselves it is a portfolio builder.
I tell new bloggers they are going to need a strong backbone. Next , they need to respond to the email with confidence. Their response should let the PR rep know that they think the app or service sounds like it would be a great fit for their blog audience and social media followers. Further more, they need to explain they are skilled at creating buzz worthy content that will drive targeted traffic to the brand’s website and social media accounts. Lastly, they need to ask what the compensation is for promoting this content on their blog and social media channels, I guarantee Gloria from XYZ Media is getting paid to find the bloggers and social media influencers to promote this, so why shouldn’t they?
I also prep them about how to respond if they receive a reply from Gloria stating the client has a very small budget and while they are not able to provide compensation for this campaign, they have many other clients and may contact them in the future for paid promotions.
Now, they say that for a reason, they want the new blogger to think, if they throw this away, they will never hear from this agency with any other opportunities. It usually works like a charm, and the rep gets free promotion that they then charge their client for. To make it worse, the blogger goes on the agency’s “Will Blog For Free” List. Their name will never make it to big budget clients, because by accepting the free gig, it showed the rep they are not a professional blogger.
The bottom line is, if you want to be taken seriously, you need to respond confidently, that you can definitely create buzz worthy content to promote the product or service, but you don’t work for free. Go even further, turn the tables and ask them if they work for free? Don’t be afraid, let them know, you are well aware they are not a volunteer at XYZ Media.
I’m not saying you should never volunteer for worthwhile things, but make sure you are not being taken advantage of. The perception some have of bloggers, is that what we do is so easy, or of such little value, we should be glad to have some content to post. They want us to think, they are really doing us a favor.
It is the exact opposite, bloggers are powerful influencers brands can plug-in with to have their product or service promoted to the blog’s audience which likely is their target market. Bloggers have the power to create and amplify stories, experiences, services, images and ideas through their posts as well as ingniting a social media fire storm of tweets, pins, posts, likes and shares on every major social media channel.
Start valuing your work! The next time you get an email from any rep or agency trying to make you feel special because they picked you to promote their client for free, just ask what the blogger compensation is. Go on, you can do it. Be proud of your work. When you feel the butterflies, just ask yourself if the client they are pitching you about is paying them for their services. You know the answer is yes, so why would you let them take advantage of you?
Have you ever dealt with someone asking you to do your craft for free like they were doing you a favor? How did you respond? Please share your stories, I would love to hear them.
Filed under Blogging, Education, Life, Main Page Post, Mommy Ramblings, Resources, Tech
When someone finds out I work from home as a blogger, they are usually very intrigued. Their curiosity leads them to ask me several questions. After answering the same kind of questions, literally, hundreds of times, and my good friends and colleagues constantly telling me to make a post about it, I am finally doing it!
This post will cover many of the questions I have been asked over the nearly ten years I have been blogging. If you are looking to start a blog or just want to learn more, you are in the right place. Grab a cup of coffee or tea and get cozy while I give you answers to my most frequently asked blogger questions. If you still have questions after reading this, leave them in the comments and I will answer them for you.
Believe it or not, earning income from my blog was the furthest thing from my mind when I started it almost 10 years ago. At that time, I did not even believe people could make money from blogging. I started my blog to share my photos (I am a hobby photographer) and tales of our family (I am a wife and mother of 5) with others. I also wanted to create a sort of online scrapbook/journal of our lives for us all to be able to look back on.
A little less than a year into blogging, I started connecting with companies and doing product reviews. I was bitten pretty bad by that bug, and it became a conquest for me to see what kind of products I could get to review. Adding giveaways really brought me traffic. I have to laugh, in the beginning I was so lost. I had some amazing giveaways too and because I was so new, the entries were low, so I started to get some loyal fans who loved the high chances of winning.
Shortly after I started with reviews and giveaways, things started to take off. My pageviews shot through the roof over the course of a few weeks. I was getting many high-end products that more established bloggers were not getting, and the reason was, because I used my advertising and marketing background to my advantage. I have many years of experience dealing with companies and so I knew how to approach them. I did not follow any of the other bloggers, I decided to use what I learned in the corporate world and approach things as a confident, professional entrepreneur. My confidence and digital marketing experience helped me to connect with companies and led to great partnerships.
I have always loved writing, and that along with my insatiable love of photography was another thing that set my blog apart. I saw so many bloggers putting up generic posts with stock photographs. It turned me off, and it turned companies off. When a company wants a top promote a product through a blog review, they want to see authenticity.
Other bloggers were so obsessed with numbers they were churning out content at record speed and their blogs lacked any personal flair. From their posts it was evident, they did not even open the box or try the products. They copied and pasted most of the content in their post right from the company website. Around this time, media contacts and PR agencies were getting wise, and knew that engagement was more important than exaggerated stats.
Many bloggers felt blogging was a numbers game and the blogger with the most followers on social media wins. They took it so far as to use services like Fiverr to buy tens of thousands of bogus followers for their social media accounts. The problem was, since they were fake followers, they did not engage with the content. What good is that to a company? PR agencies and media contacts are wise to that now and care more about engagement. Smaller bloggers with good engagement are a better choice than a blog with inflated numbers of fake fans.
Companies told me they appreciated the authenticity of my blog content. There was no doubt we were using the products, because my detailed photographs and original content clearly showed that.
I had converted part of my third floor to a photo studio shortly after my fifth child was born. I upgraded cameras, bought some Alien Bees lights, got a ton of props and backdrops and was in my glory. When I started blogging my studio came in very handy. Companies loved my photos, and I know it led to me landing products that some would have said, were out of a new bloggers league.
I was getting Stokke Tripp Trapp high chairs 2 at a time plus holding giveaways for the same products. I received all kinds of designer clothing, jewelry, lighting fixtures for my house that cost thousands of dollars, area rugs, appliances large and small, furniture and so much more.
From that point, I began to really get noticed and companies started coming to me. I joined a few blog networks, became an Amazon affiliate and was having a great time.
I started receiving emails from a major blogger network that I signed up with. They had different campaigns you could apply for. Up to that point, I had been dealing direct with companies. I was also a staff writer for a children’s trade publication that introduced me to many established and up and coming companies. This blog network kept asking me to go to a brief online meeting so they could show me how their site worked. I literally dragged my heels on attending for about six months. I finally went, and literally a week later they asked me to write a post for a major television network.
I remember seeing the price they were going to pay me to string together some words and was floored. That was the first time I was paid for creating content on my own blog without reviewing anything or holding giveaways. They just wanted me to write about the channel.
After that post, I was getting picked frequently by that network, and I had joined others. I started working with several blogger networks and was being chosen for all types of campaigns. Some were more creative like creating recipes, throwing parties or coming up with crafts and tutorials using the products they were promoting.
I was asked by that first blogger network to teach a time management course for bloggers. I was paid very well to create my curriculum and produce a video course.
After my course was published to their blogger university, they selected me to be on their creative council. I was one of four bloggers paid to brainstorm and come up with marketing campaigns for companies like Nabisco, Pepperidge Farms, Coca-Cola, Hershey’s and more. It was fast paced, with a quick turnaround time and I thrived because, I work best under pressure. I was a natural because my marketing and advertising background gave me the insight needed to outline the best ways to meet the company’s goals.
Along the way, I was asked to write as a staff writer for other sites and it provided a significant stream of income. I believe in multiple streams of income, and it helped to get my name out there, and looked good on my resume.
My years in social media marketing and advertising helped me to be hired as a consultant for a very large company where I work to evaluate the effectiveness of social media advertising. I do that a few hours a day and I am a staff writer for a major retail coupon site. I not only write three blog posts a week for them, I write website copy for them and post about great deals. I like the variety, and I have a great deal of freedom with my writing on their site, allowing met to put my creative spin on things.
I am currently working on some huge projects for my blog which I will be revealing very soon. They are things that have not been done before, and I am majorly excited to be working on them with some amazing companies. I consider myself very blessed by the opportunities I have been given. I do work very hard, and if you are looking to become a blogger, you will need to work hard.
If the only reason you want to start a blog, is to make money, it will probably be a drudgery for you. I would even go so far, as to advise you to look into something else. I feel that way because I have seen countless others start a blog because they think it is an easy way to make money. Many of them do not even like to write. When they find out the amount of work and time they need to put in, they soon become frustrated. It is not long after, they throw in the towel.
It is easy to see the ones who are not in it for the long haul. Go to any blogging group of new bloggers, and you will see post after post of whining want-to-be bloggers complaining that they have been blogging a whole month and are not making any money. I have to laugh, when I read posts like that. The next thing they say is that they are giving it 3 more months before they give up. I want to tell them to just save themselves the headache, and give up now.
Once you say you are going to try anything for a set period of time, you already have one foot out the door. You have to have, a failure is not an option attitude if you want to succeed at anything.
It is said, that making a living doing something you love is priceless. I totally believe that, there are many ways to make money with your passion beyond blogging. The internet has opened a lot of doors that we never would have dreamed of , and blogging is not the only way to work from home.
Many people are doing well on YouTube creating video content about everything you can imagine. You will find videos showing people how to organize their homes, sharing what they bought at the store in a shopping haul, demonstrating home repairs or craft projects and so much more. If you have a a passion for something, you can bet others do to and that is how you find your audience.
If you still want to start a blog, the next step is to read my post-How To Start A Blog In Fifteen Minutes.
So, you want to start a blog, this step-by-step guide will get you started with your domain name, blog server and website in about 15 minutes.
Think about what kind of blog you want to start. Maybe you already know, and that is good. If not, the first thing to consider is, the type of blog you want to start. Do you want to have a niche blog that will limit you to one topic or do you want a more general blog that gives you the freedom to post about different topics?
There are pros and cons to both. A niche blog on a subject you are knowledgeable about can help build your credibility as an expert. Some say they rank better and are easier to make money with than a broad subject blog. However, others will say that a broad subject blog allows you to appeal to a larger audience and get more new readers from search engines thanks to the wide range of topics.
In the end, I believe if you are sharing great content, your followers will come whether you have a niche or broad topic blog, so blog about what you like to write about. It is always easier to write about what you know and are passionate about.
Next, you need to think of a name for your blog and register your domain URL. You might think you would rather skip buying your own URL and start blogging on a free site like Blogger or WordPress.com. If I can offer my first piece of advice, it would be to start with your own domain name on self hosted site. I speak from experience as someone who started on wordpress.com. Within 6 months of my blog taking off, I switched to a self hosted WordPress.org blog for a number of reasons.
First, it allowed me to add sidebar ads and affiliate links to monetize my blog as well as being able to use plugins which helped me to customize my blog easily. When you switch platforms, you have to transfer all your content from one platform to another. Many bloggers are not comfortable moving their content over, and so they have to hire someone to do the transfer for them.
Luckily, I am tech savvy and performed the transfer myself or I would have had to shell out a few hundred dollars to have my site transferred. Beyond that, when you do switch, you have to build up your stats again. All of that could have been avoided had I just started on a self-hosted WordPress.org site in the first place.
After you chose your domain name, you have to register it. The first step is to make sure your domain name is available. Go to BlueHost and click GET STARTED.
You will then be taken to a page that shows you the plans. I know you will be thrilled to see that it is not going to cost you an arm and a leg to get started when you use BlueHost. They have some amazing deals on their already low-cost hosting.
The great thing is one domain name is included with any hosting package you pick. The thing I love about BlueHost is that for their Plus, Prime or Pro hosting plans you can host an unlimited number of websites with them for the same price.
That means you pay the same low price a month to host 10 sites as you would 1 site. If you want to branch out in the future and add more sites, you will not have to pay any extra. Right now, the Prime plan is the same as the Plus and so, it is a no brainer to go with the Prime.
Choose your plan and it will take you to the next screen where you can check to see if your domain is available. Just type the name in the new domain box and click on next. If your name is available, you are golden. If it is not, they will give you some alternatives or you can think of something else.
Once you have a name that is available you can advance to the next page where you will fill in your information.
There was a nice surprise on this page. As I was scrolling down, a pop up appeared with an offer to save even more. It said I could get 3 years for the price of 2. The new price was $4.95 a month, and as you can see, it is quite a savings.
The other great thing is with the Prime membership, many extras other companies charge you for things like domain privacy protection, site backup pro and domain registration are FREE. You can add SiteLock security for just $1.99 a month, and I would recommend it. Okay, you are all set, just hit submit and we can move on to the fun part.
Once you have checked out, you will get an email from BlueHost that will have your login information. Once you have that, you are ready to log on to your BlueHost CPanel.
The second icon on the first row under the heading WEBSITE is what you will click to install WordPress.org.
You will be advanced to another screen where you will click the down arrow to select your website and it will show up as the domain for installation. Click NEXT.
On the next page, you will fill out your site name which would be the name of your blog, your admin name that you will log on to WordPress with and your WordPress Password as well as, your admin email. Acknowledge the terms of service and click NEXT.
While WordPress is installing, you will see a bunch of themes on the page. Don’t worry about those and just wait until the installation is complete. I will go over themes once you log into your WordPress site. There are many free themes available as well as some like Genesis that many bloggers use because it is so easy to work with.
When the installation is complete, you will get an email with everything you need to log on to your new WordPress site.
As you will see in your email, the address for your login will be http://www.YourDomainName.com/wp-admin. When you enter that address, you see the log in screen below.
Log in and look at the sidebar, you will see a paint brush icon and the word APPEARANCE. Click it and you will see THEMES. When you click that, you can have fun browsing themes for your blog. There are so many to choose from . There are many free themes you can choose from or you can go with the very popular Genesis Framework.
Genesis is very flexible and makes it easy to customize your blog easily whether you are a novice or advanced developer. The Genesis theme provides a secure, search-engine-optimized foundation that takes WordPress to places you never thought it could go, for a one time purchase price of $59.95. Once you purchase this theme you can use it on as many sites as you have, at any time. That is a super value!
You can then get a return customer discount on a Child Theme that works with your Genesis Framework. There are Child Themes for Lifestyle Blogs, Food Blogs, Business Blogs, Real Estate Blogs and more.
If you are looking for a low cost logo or custom blog theme etc, check out Fiverr. You can find some great graphic artists on there as well as virtual assistants or any other services you need to help you build a great income producing blog.
When you start making that income and need some user-friendly accounting software to help you manage payments, send invoices, manage projects, track time and so much more, try the free trial of FreshBooks. They are helping the self employed and small business owners, including bloggers to easily manage and run their business.
See, that was easy wasn’t it. We will cover more about customizing your blog and the best plugins to install but the hardest part is done! Give yourself a pat on the back, I am really proud of you!
I belong to a few blogging groups on Facebook. I really don’t frequent them, because I have always been the kind of person that does my own thing. A lot of those groups are full of things that bloggers “need” to do, to be successful. What I see now, are many people starting blogs to make money.
When I started blogging, making money from blogging did not even enter my mind. It truly didn’t. I started blogging because I wanted to share things about my family and myself with the world. When I started doing posts about products I loved, that was natural for me, since I was always recommending things to friends and family.
It was not long before I was courted by influencer networks to join them. I was very resistant to join and waited several months before I accepted their invitations. When I was selected for a campaign a short time after and was paid, very well, for a post about a mom’s comedy site, I was shocked. After that, I had constant work coming in, I was paid to create and teach a course for bloggers on that same network, and before long, blogging was a substantial part of my income.
Besides just earning money, there have been other perks like big-ticket items for our home, tickets to area attractions, vacations, large recreational toys and more. I am also invited and paid to attend all kind of events in New York City and the surrounding area.
Blogging has enhanced our lives in many ways. I know the reason I am successful, is because I blog to the beat of my own drum. I don’t follow cookie cutter courses, I don’t get hung up on numbers, I write about what I am passionate about and I use my marketing and advertising background to connect with companies and PR agencies for all kinds of projects.
My blog was the reason I was approached by a large retail promo code site, and asked to be a staff writer for them. Before that, I was a staff write for a children’s industry press publication. I have several streams of income that allow me to work from home, a real blessing.
So, when I see posts from new bloggers asking why after 2 months of blogging they do not have the stats they want and then start complaining, it irks me. When they say they are going to try it until the end of the summer and then… I just want to tell them, get out now and do yourself a favor. When you say something like, “I am just going to try it until…”, your foot is already out the door, so just keep walking.
Blogging takes commitment, there are no overnight successes in anything, so chin up buttercup. If you don’t really like to write, if you don’t want to write about what you know and are passionate about, blogging will be a drudgery for you. Stop worrying about numbers, learn some basic SEO and write about what you love, take photos, connect with your readers. Learn to write better headlines, promote your site and just relax.
If you want to just create niche sites for passive income, they take time too and they often fall flat if you do not have a real desire to write Most “want-to-be-bloggers” lose interest and their sites die out within the first year.
Here are some other things for new bloggers to know:
Lastly, reach for the stars! I started in my first year working with companies that one might have said, were way too big for me to be working with. The reason I had dynamic partnerships with these companies, was my confidence and my unique blogging style. They liked my photos, they liked my style, they felt my passion, they loved my advertising and marketing background, and the presentations I made.
I have been blogging for nearly a decade, and I am getting ready to reveal some incredible partnerships with companies that I am ecstatic to be working with. Many are working with us on our home renovation series and others for some tech savvy campaigns and sporting equipment. These are going to be very different from anything we have ever done before and will include blog posts, social media posts and video content.
I will also be filming videos about cooking, baking, using essential oils and DIY. I am excited to get more connected to all of you, and hope you will enjoy the new content. We have so much planned for the rest of this year and 2018. Thank you so much for being such loyal Mommy Ramblings readers. I appreciate and care about you all so much. I have had the pleasure of getting to know many of you very well and have made many friends. I am looking to get to know more of you and share things you want to see.
Let me know what kind of video content you would like to see. Do you want to start a blog and don’t know where to start? Follow my step-by-step guide and get your blog started in about 15 minutes!
Filed under Blogging
Are you looking for an easy way to create stunning graphics that will help make your blog posts pop? If so, let me tell you about some great graphic design software I discovered that makes it amazingly easy to edit photos, create graphics, logs, event invitations, collages, banners for your social media channels, hero images and more.
It is called FotoJet and it is free to use. To make things really easy, their site puts a massive amount of templates and resources at your fingertips. Tired of trying to navigate graphic design software that is so complicated all you get is frustrated? Then you will love FotoJet, because with just a few clicks you can get professional results even if you have no experience. That is because everything is user-friendly and effortless. You can try it for free for yourself right now. There is no registration or downloading required.
I was checking out the site recently and was playing around with some of their templates. I made these Save The Date examples to show you how easy it is to start with one of their designs and change it up to fit your style or the style of a client.
Both of those designs above were made using one of FotoJet’s templates. I just switched out backgrounds, fonts, colors, graphics etc. It was a lot of fun and I could easily undo anything I did not like.
Here are some graphics I made recently made to go with some of my blog articles.
Both of the above images started with a free stock image and I added overlays, frames, texts and other effects to dress them up.
Best of all, the free version gives you many options to create the graphics, flyers, collages, headers and more you need. You will be amazed at just how quickly you can create beautiful Hero Images that will make your posts pop and get shared and pinned all over social media. That means your blog traffic will increase and isn’t that what we are all looking for?
Add text and overlays to your photos or stock images, make graphics for your YouTube videos, create channel art and so much more for free with FotoJet. Check out their tutorials and resources to get your creativity flowing. If you want to do even more, they do have a membership that is less than $3 a month when paid annually. Or pay just $4.99 a month.
We have great news because FotoJet is sponsoring a giveaway on Mommy Ramblings. One lucky blog reader will win a One Year Premium FotoJet Membership! Thank you FotoJet for my complimentary premium membership and for sponsoring this amazing giveaway on Mommy Ramblings. Open to US residents.
FotoJet Premium One Year Membership Giveaway on Mommy Ramblings Rules:
Please enter using the Rafflecopter widget below. Good Luck!!!
I am making it a point to attend more conferences and network with other bloggers this year. One of the conferences I am excited about is the Type-A Parent New York City Bootcamp which is going to focus on brand-blogger relations. Not only is NYC super convenient for me, the focus of the bootcamp is perfect!
Type-A Parent was founded in 2007 and hosts the world’s top conferences for mom and dad bloggers. In addition to the New York City bootcamp, there will be the 7th annual conference in Atlanta. Type-A Parent conferences are packed with powerful networking with the best and brightest parent bloggers along with major brands and firms who want to engage with them.
Influential digital parents like myself will be attending Type-A Parent New York City Bootcamp (Focus: Brand-Blogger Relations) and Type-A Parent 7th Annual Conference (Atlanta, October 8-10, 2015) this year. Will we see you there? Register at Type-A Parent Conferences, the premier events for mom and dad bloggers. Use CODEPARTNERSPECIAL to get 20% off for one day only! Hope to see you there!
Filed under Blogging
