Why You Should Join Facebook Communities

Let's face it, when you're a blogger (especially one trying to monetize) networking is everything. You have to hustle to put yourself out there and get your blog noticed. That's why I love being part of some great Facebook Communities. Not only do you get that networking in but you can also learn a lot from connecting with other great bloggers. Here are some more reasons why you should consider joining in on some Facebook Communities.

It's all in the name...community- Like I mentioned above, fellow bloggers can be very supportive of each other.  We know the struggle, we know that it's hard to get noticed in this huge blogging world. Use this as a chance to get to know some great people with even greater ideas.

Collaborate- A Facebook Community is a great way to collaborate with other bloggers. Want to setup a giant giveaway but you need fellow bloggers to join in? Just post it to a community board! Looking for guest posters while you're away? Find some willing participants by asking within a community. You're not alone out there in blog land!

Common Interest Groups- Obviously life is not all about blogging. (It's not?) There are so many niche community groups on Facebook that are also such a great way to network. For instance, I'm a total planner nerd...it's beyond a hobby. I belong to several "planner girl" communities on FB and I've met fellow bloggers (and non-bloggers) who are as obsessed with planners, notebooks, and all that good stuff, as me. (Planner nerds mean serious business!) The point is, any kind of networking is good exposure for your blog. Join in!

Get help when you need it- Sometimes you may be struggling or just in a blogging rut. It happens to the best of us. Some community groups offer writing prompts or challenges that will help you get those creative juices flowing again. Maybe you have a technical question or just need some feedback on something, a community is a place to ask that question and receive some really helpful answers.

Did you know that within the Northeast Bloggers there are at least two bloggers (just that I know of) who run awesome Facebook Communities?  Val  founded and runs the group All Bloggers United which is awesome for post sharing and social media boosts. Caroline founded Coffee and Creatives, a community where women entrepreneurs can connect.

Do you belong to any great Facebook Communities? Are you a Northeast Blogger that would like to promote yours? Leave us comment below!

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Why Email Marketing is Crucial for Your Blog to Succeed

I’ll be honest, I still haven’t implemented an email newsletter or any type of email marketing for my blog yet, but it’s absolutely on my high priority list. If you’ve noticed, the majority of “big” bloggers out there have an email newsletter! There are plenty of reasons why you need to start using email marketing for your blog (if you want to see it grow) and I’m here to go over a few of those with you.

1. Social media isn’t enough - You can have a ton of followers on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc. and be advertising your blog and posts through those outlets, but let’s face the reality. All social networks are bombarded with post after post, picture after picture, and surely your own additions will be lost in the sea of social media. Not everyone who follows you will be seeing what you post. This is especially true for Facebook. For me, this in particular is very frustrating because I have the most followers through Facebook, but unfortunately Facebook only shows your posts to a very, very small percentage of those people. Since social media is growing larger and larger every day, you need to find another way to reach your blog’s audience (while still sticking with social media, of course). 

2. Newsletters let you share more than one post - The great thing about having a blog newsletter is that you’re able to share more than just one post. You can have a weekly newsletter or even just a bi-weekly newsletter. You can share all the posts you’ve made or just highlight a few of the best ones. This is your chance to captivate your audience with an enticing headline! People will open your email and maybe just quickly scroll through it, but if you have a list of blog posts, there will likely be something that catches their eye.

3.You can find your true fans - For the most part, people who sign up for your email newsletter or updates are more than likely people who are really interested in your blog. It’s easy to like or follow on social media, and if you’ve ever done a giveaway you know how quickly that can happen (and then just as quickly fall through). When people give you their email address, they’re giving you permission to send them emails, which is something much more personal than any social media account. Sharing your blog posts and updates through email is a great way to build a loyal following. 

4. It doesn’t take much time - Thanks to automated programs, all you have to do is set up your weekly newsletter once and it is set to go out to all of your subscribers. You want to make sure you keep your email pretty short and includes lots of links to your blog.

5. Track activity - While you can also do this with social media, email programs make it much easier to track the activity of your subscribers. You can see how many people opened your email, how many unsubscribed, etc. This allows you to improve these emails and make any necessary changes in order to increase the effectiveness of what you’re sending out. 

Tips for Starting a Blog Newsletter

1. Let people know what they’re getting. Create a page on your blog that lists what they can expect when they sign up for your blog’s email newsletter. Ensure them that you will not share their email with any third party. Let them know how often to expect emails from you.

2. Do not go overboard. People don’t want to see a ton of emails from you all the time. This will likely get you a lot of unsubscribers. Don’t send more than one email a week (unless you have something important to promote, such as a giveaway).

3. Start off small. Creating a newsletter can be a lot of work, especially if you’ve never done it before. Many bloggers create weekly newsletters, but if you’re just getting into it, why not try doing a bi-weekly newsletter? This is even better if you’re someone who doesn’t post that regularly.

4. Offer them something for signing up. This can be a great incentive for having people subscribing to your newsletter. Of course, we all want to be able to grow our email list organically, but sometimes you need that extra little push. Many bloggers offer free e-books, a coupon for their Etsy shop, free PDF files, etc. It may be hard to figure out what you can offer, but don’t let this hold you back from starting the newsletter. If anything, you can start it and then figure out later on what you may be able to offer people. 

5. Test out a “pop up” sign up form. Yes, this is a little bit annoying, but it’s a good way to remind people that you have a newsletter. Also, it’s easy to just exit out of it and continue reading, so it shouldn’t be too bothersome for your readers. Try to set up a form that pops up after a few seconds of them being on the page and also have it pop up only once per certain amounts of visits or so (because if that keeps popping up, people may not want to stay on your blog…)

If you're interested in starting up an email newsletter for your blog, I recommend using MailChimp! It's free for up to 2,000 subscribers. There are plenty of other email programs out there, some free and some you have to pay for. If you're just starting out though, I definitely recommend using the free MailChimp plan. 

What do you think of email newsletters?

If you already have a newsletter, did you see your page views go up because of it?

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Where to Find Props for Food Photos

Hey guys, it's Christina. I'm one of the Maryland/Delaware Reps and blog over at Mom's Messy Miracles. Today I'm sharing with you some ideas on where to find props for your food photos.

I'm far from an expert, but I think my food photos have improved immaculately.

While a lot of food photography is actually using your camera correctly, you can really help your photos by finding some great props. It's kind of become a slight obsession of mine now to look for things I could use wherever we go.

Dollar Stores

At the dollar store, you can buy single plates, cups and bowls for $1. But... do you think about what else you can get there? Grab a roll of wrapping paper for a nice back drop. I have a couple of "wedding" design wrapping paper rolls that are just striped or small really light circles. Also, check in the dish aisle for shelf liners. You can get adhesive shelf liners in different designs that will allow you to make your "table" granite or various wood patterns. 

If you need something seasonal for a few added props in the background, you can grab them at the dollar store without breaking the bank. 

Yard Sales, Flea Markets or Consignment Shops

When you're at Yard Sales, Flea Markets or Consignment shops, keep an eye out for things that you can use.

 

You'll be able to find clear glasses, random plates, bowls and napkins for super cheap at these sales. If you go to a store, you'll usually have to buy a set, but not at a yard sale! I'll also group Goodwill into this because you can find some great pieces there that are sold individually.

Look for oddball white dishes (they're best for most of your food) in different shapes or with different designs. Antique plates can bring a completely different look to your food photos. I've really added to my collection while paying about .50 for each dish. 

Ebay

When you figure out what it is that you want, search for it! If you add primitive or antique to whatever it is that you're looking for, you'll be overwhelmed with great possibilities. 

Finding a lot (meaning a large group of items) or a few items from the same seller is probably your best bet on ebay. 

Retail Stores

In a craft store, or even Walmart, you'll find so many great options. Try not to get too crazy though. Simple is best when it comes to your food photos. Anything you get shouldn't take away from your food, so keep that in mind while you're going crazy throwing things in the cart. 

I've been buying Fat Quarters (fabric pieces) instead of fabric napkins. I can pick them up for much cheaper than napkins and they're larger if I wanted to cover my whole "table" with it. 

Holiday Clearance

I've been really lucky lately finding super cheap clearance on holiday items. I'm still finding Valentine's Day items and Christmas items! I paid 10 cents for a pack of 10 paper straws last week and found a few more packs this week! I love being able to sneak a little color into a picture with just a straw. The pop sticks were 10 cents, too! 

Yes, some of the holiday clearance will only be useful for said holiday, but many times it'll be good for general use, too. Like those pink and red straws. They're Valentine's Day straws, but I'm pretty sure I can use pink and red any time I want.

Where do you find your props for food photos?

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Spring Cleaning Tips For Your Blog

Seriously, how excited are we all that spring is finally on the horizon? I feel like it's time to thaw out, emerge from hibernation (I wish I could sleep through winter) and get into spring cleaning mode. While you're getting ready to overhaul your wardrobe or turn the house upside down until it's spring-ready, don't forget about your blog. It's a new season and your website needs your attention too, so here are some spring cleaning tips for your blog.

The Sidebar

Is your sidebar a cluttered mess or are there outdated links hanging around there? Take some time to clean it up. Even if you're blogging for yourself, and not for money, a messy sidebar can be so distracting. You want people to focus on your posts not a slew of ads redirecting them to another site. Fix any broken links and also look into updated banners if you belong to any affiliate programs.

The Design

I really try to keep my site updated and user friendly. Sometimes a change in season can give us the kick in the butt we want to change up our blog's design. I'm not saying you need to spend a ton on a graphic designer or brand consultant, I mean little things like your profile picture or maybe even your blog header. You can use free photo sites like Pic Monkey to easily edit pictures or even make your own signage. If you are really feeling the need for a refresh, there are inexpensive templates you can purchase from Etsy for Blogger or WordPress. Just pop over there and take a look at what some of these designers have to offer. Don't forget we have awesome talent in our NE Bloggers group too that can help you with your blog design needs!

About Me Page

I'm sure you're all tired of hearing how important your About Me page is so I won't blab on about that. Why not spruce it up a bit? Add in some more photos (bright, clear ones are best), update any old information and add any new accomplishments you would love to tout. This is your place to promote yourself, so just go for it! 

Content

How about adding some fresh new content to your blog? Is there a series you've been thinking about running or a link up you would love to start with a bloggy friend? Do it! Try it out and if it just doesn't resonate with you (or readers) dump it. You'll never know unless you try. Put yourself out there and reach out to other bloggers, 99% of the time they are so happy to collaborate (especially your fellow NE Bloggers!). Take some time to go through your editorial calendar (if you use one) and plan some great content for spring.

Do you plan on sprucing up your site for spring? Have you set new blogging goals?

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5 Tips for Blogging Etiquette

Let's talk blogging etiquette.  While we like to say there are no "rules" to blogging, as each person's blog is unique to their life and voice, there are some unspoken guidelines all bloggers should take into consideration.  Most of these seem like common sense, but you'd be surprised how often we see these etiquette guidelines broken!

1. Don't steal photos.
Simple enough right?  Don't take photos from another bloggers blog, Facebook page or instagram and say they are your own!  You shouldn't take photos from Pinterest and edit them to look like they aren't from Pinterest.  It's just plain wrong to take another bloggers photos!

2. Don't steal content.
Often times you will see similar ideas for posts on different blogs.  This happens, especially with things like holiday post, recipes and craft ideas- hey there are only so many ideas out there, right?  But, to blatantly copy-paste from another blogger's post?  That is just a huge no-no!

3. Post your disclosures.
If you received product or monetary compensation, you must disclose this information in your post.  This is more than just etiquette, it is actually an FTC guideline.  Be sure to disclose that you received free product or compensation in exchange for your post and use the hashtag #ad when you post about said products on social media.  Remember, these are not blogger "perks," they are considered payment for your services as a writer.

4. Give credit when credit is due.
If you do use someone's photo, with permission of course, be sure to give credit to that person!  The same goes for content ideas- it's courteous to say you were inspired by so-and-so's post or recipe or even to link over to them if you are using one of their ideas in your post!

5. Act professional.
If you are making money as a blogger, you are a professional.  Even if you aren't making money you are building a brand around yourself!  How do you want others to see you and your brand?  Be proud of your work and demand to be treated as a professional by acting like it!

What are you tips for blogging etiquette?  We'd love to hear your thoughts!

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Basic SEO Tips for Bloggers: Importance of Using a Keyword

When it comes to finding blogging tips, you can look left and right and be smacked in the face with about a million different sites providing you with all sorts of tips. Naturally, this can become overwhelming. Some tips are easy to understand and seem so basic that once you read them you feel silly for never even thinking of them. Then, there are those dreaded topics that bloggers, especially newbies, don't even want to look up because it all seems so foreign. Is that what you think when people mention SEO? Because that's certainly how I felt when I first started blogging.

Now that I'm more than a year into blogging and have had time to learn the basics, and so much more, I'm starting to become a bit more comfortable with a lot of those "foreign topics." One of them happens to be SEO. For those who don't know, SEO stands for "Search Engine Optimization' (and yes, I was one of those people who at first had no idea what SEO even stood for...) As a newbie blogger (or even a more experienced one!) sometimes trying to figure out SEO basics and tips for improving your blog can be really intimidating. That's why I wanted to try and break it down into basic, easy to follow steps and advice.

For this post, I want to focus on the importance of using a keyword in each of your blog posts and the steps you can take to really take your blog to the next level!

1. You will need to choose a keyword for your post. Make sure it's something that is relevant to what your post is about. Don't just throw in any keyword! It will make the rest of these steps that much harder. You have the option of using whatever "keyword" you feel fits best, but you can also search for keywords that happen to be trending at the time. A great tool to use is Google Adwords Keyword Planner.

2. Use your keyword in your blog post title. It doesn't have to be just the keyword, but it should definitely be somewhere in the title. For example, if you choose the keyword "baby pajamas" don't just title your post "Cute Baby Pajamas." Make it a little more specific while incorporating that keyword, such as "Five of the Cutest Baby Pajamas for Winter." Boom!

3. If you're using images, save the image with the keyword in the name. Google picks up on this! When people go to Google images to search using your keyword, the bigger the chance your picture (and blog post) will pop up there, too. Example: save your image as "babypajamas.jpg" rather than "image1.jpg"

4. Make sure you’re sprinkling in your keyword throughout your post. Don’t go overboard because people will notice and that will be a huge turn off! Just make sure you're using that keyword a few times throughout your post. It's also important that you try to input that keyword within the first 200 words of your post, because most search engines use that first block of text when analyzing. Wordpress has a widget by Yoast that will actually check your post for SEO and how you can improve it (and there are probably many more widgets out there to help you with this).

5. Use your keyword again in your search/post description. Haven't been using the description option? Start doing it! Your description only has to be a sentence or two, but including the keyword is another easy and simple way to help with your SEO. 

There you have it, folks! Simple steps to help your blog's SEO. Hopefully these were easy to follow and you now have a better understand of some basic SEO. If you have any other SEO tips to share with fellow bloggers, please do so in the comments below!

This post happily brought to you by Valerie, NJ State Rep, who blogs over at In-Between Life.

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How To Use Hashtags

how to use hashtags

One of the biggest social media mistakes a business or blogger could make is not utilizing the power of hashtags. Using hashtags gives you the power to grow your brand's social media organically. What is a Hashtag?

“...the pound sign (or hash) turns any word or group of words that directly follow it into a searchable link.” - Mashable.com

Hashtags instantly will link your social media post to a group of others with the same topic. As a small business owner, using appropriate hashtags can help drive your brand recognition and boost the reach of your advertising campaigns. How to use Hashtags

1. Use the #hashtag symbol (#) before a relevant keyword or phrase.
2. They can occur anywhere in the body of your text - beginning, middle or end.
3. They will not show up in searches if your accounts are private
4. Twitter recommends using only 1-3 hashtags per tweet. Whereas on Instagram, you can use up to 30 hashtags per photo.
5. Using too many hashtags devalues your brand, so do not use them spammingly. An example of a bad tweet would be: #DIY #ValentinesDay #Crafts you can #create at #home with your #kids #today. A better Tweet would be: 15 #DIY #ValentinesDay #Crafts to do at home today with your kids via @mommalewsblog.
6. Using the “@” Symbol will speak directly to an individual’s account, "tagging" them.

Create a hashtag to develop your brand! Although you might want to be creative and quirky, keep it simple and easy to remember.

1. Use no spaces between more than one word in a hashtag
2. It does not matter if your hashtag has a capital or lower-case letters, as your search result will yield the same results.
3. A popular marketing strategy is to use your brand's name as a hashtag ie: #NorthEastBloggers or #BloggersGetSocial. By doing so, you can see all of this person's work in one place.

 

You can currently use hashtags on:

• Twitter,
• Instagram,
• Facebook,
• Pinterest,
• Tumblr and
• Google Plus

Just because a hashtag is on social media, doesn’t mean that your brand’s hashtag cannot be seen outside of the internet.

• While your small business may have a small budget, you can advertise your hashtag on posters, stickers, sidewalk chalk outside of your storefront or any well trafficked public location.

Now that you know what a hashtag is or how to use them, how can you use hashtags to find new followers?

• Use relevant hashtags that are being used in your field.
• See what the trending hashtags are and use the hashtags that are relevant to your business.
• Search hashtags and follow those who are using similar hashtags. For example, locally I often search hashtags like #Princeton or #NJMom and follow accounts using these hashtags because they are targeting the audiences I would like to be following me.

 

Quick tip: Not sure what hashtag is being used for an event, campaign, etc? Search! For example, I recently had a client asking what the hashtag was for the Tribeca Film Festival. We searched Tribeca Film Festival in a Twitter search and quickly found out that it was #TFF14. Hashtags allow you to include yourself into conversations and network with potential new customers or business relationships! The best way to gain followers is to follow others! Engage with your new followers. Be social! You already have something in common!

What are popular hashtags you search or are common in your networks?

 

  Reesa Lewandowski writes at www.mommalew.com and www.njmom.com. You can find her at @mommalewsblog on all social media networks.

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Blogger Tips and Tricks!

Are you on the blogger platform?  Check out these great tips and tricks from fellow Northeast Blogger Amy Marie, who writes the blog Champagne and Pearls!

Check out Amy Marie's post over at her blog!  She discuses some great tips for using the blogger platform such as:

• How to center page links
• Blog links in comments
• Adding a blog signature 
• How to remove the shadow/border around your pictures

Click here to read all the tips in detail and get the codes you need to do the above items!

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The Friday Five Hop and 5 Blogging Resources

Welcome to the Friday Five, our weekly link up for all those Friday Five, Five on a Friday, High Five for Friday types of posts!  Check out our Friday Five post and then link up below!

Today we are sharing five resources with some great tips for blogging!

1. The Ultimate Guide to Growing Your Pinterest 
2. How to Take Your Own Head-shot (with an iPhone!)
3. How to Embed a Tweet in Your Blog Post 
4. Time Management for Bloggers 
5. Lifestyle Blog Post Ideas 

I hope you find some useful information here!

And now it's your turn!  Do you have a Friday Five post to share?  Link up below and be sure to visit and comment on a few others in the link up!


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