Share Blog Content on Your Facebook Fan Page

If you've spent a lot of time designing a blog and have made every effort to monetize it, why not share your blog writing ability on your Facebook fan page? Here are some important steps to take in setting up your fan page within your own personal profile.

Click on “Brand or Product” in the upper right corner. This will prompt you to choose a category. Choose “Website”. In the box labeled “Brand or Product”, enter the name of your blog. Check “I agree to Facebook Pages Terms” and click “Get Started”.

Step #2 – You will be asked to upload a profile picture or logo. If you don’t have one or haven’t decided on the right image, just skip it. You can add that later. Click “Save photo” or “Skip”.

5 Key Benefits of Blog Writing for Small Business

Blogging can be good for business.

According to the U. S. Small Business Administration (SBA), blogging for business provides small business owners with unprecedented ways of engaging large audiences in ways that a business website could never do. So, whether you decide to take care of the blog writing yourself or choose to hire a professional blog writer, blogging is a great opportunity to grow your business. Let’s look at 5 key benefits of blog writing for small business.

Blogging For Business Helps Strengthen Your Brand And Allows You To Stand Out

To succeed in starting a small business today, you must stand out above the crowd. A blog allows you to pinpoint the things that make your business unique. Quality blog content that answers questions and provides useful information will give you the added advantage you need to stand out.

Blog Writing When You Think You Have Nothing to Blog About

Blog writing is one of the best ways to show the human side of your business. You may have been thinking about starting a business blog, but just don’t know where to start or you may even feel that your business doesn’t really fit into the blogging scene. Let’s take a closer look at blog writing even when you think you have nothing to blog about.

Even though business owners understand that business blogging is a great way to attract new customers, some find it hard to see how blog writing can work for their particular business. The following list of blog post ideas could work for just about any business.

New Blog Writing Course at Udemy

"Learn to be a Professional Blog Writer" - Blog writing course.

I'm thrilled to announce the launch of my new 34-lecture Udemy blog writing course, "Learn to be a Professional Blog Writer - No Degree Required." After a decade of freelance blog writing and teaching others how to craft unique blog content, it’s about time I get my act together and put together an online blog writing course, right?!

My success in blogging was made possible by the months of learning, attempting, tweaking, tinkering and trying every option possible. I guess you could say it was mostly trial and error. This course was designed to help you avoid the mistakes I made and bypass the many hours of research. That way, when you make a mistake, it will be a new one of your own.

This course is based on the cardinal rule of blog writing:

“Successful blog writing requires that you write on schedule and that you always place your readers’ interests above your own. “

Monetize Your Blog: Spreadshirt T-Shirt Shop

You may have already thought about opening your own T-shirt printing business, but found the high cost of materials, supplies, and equipment a little overwhelming. Well, now there is a solution to your problem - a virtual T-shirt shop with no overhead! That's right, you can monetize your blog by selling the shirts, but you don't have to buy, print, or ship them. Take a quick look at my first virtual T-shirt shop.

Open your virtual T-Shirt shop at Spreadshirt.com

Content Marketing: Should you hire blog writers?

Hiring experienced blog writers can make the right connections.

Anyone can write a blog article, right? But you see, that's not the main concern of most business owners who understand the importance of blogging. The problem comes when it's time to write a blog article and all the ideas have already been taken, or so some think. If you are really serious about making the right connection with a target audience, the next person you hire should be a blog writer.

An Experienced Blog Writer Gets Ideas From Other People's Heads

It is true, if you can think of it, someone has probably written a blog article about it. A seasoned blog writer understands that all ideas can't be original. The talent and expertise comes into play when a blog writer takes a well-discussed topic and, by creating a different angle to the story, makes the subject fresh and new again.

Teamwork Has Personal Benefits

In my 30 years of sales and marketing, I have probably heard -"There's no "I" in team! about a gazillion times. Well, any cotton-headed ninny muggins can see that! The thing that no one ever bothered to tell me is that teamwork can benefit every member of the team on a personal level - hence, putting the imaginary "I" in team.

Teamwork Brings Different Minds to the Same Problem

Do you agree that no two people's life experiences are the same? If so, that would mean that everything you have learned through your experiences is totally different from your coworkers. Collaborating on an issue not only solves the problem but also creates enthusiasm for learning new skills and ideas. These newly learned skills will benefit each team member for the rest of their careers.

Freelance Writing for Stay-at-Home Moms or Dads

Stay-at-home Moms and Dads make excellent freelance writers.

Do you love to write? Have you ever thought about being a freelance writer, but have let your busy life as a stay-at-home Mom or Dad get in the way of writing? You just may want to give your passion for writing a closer look.

 

Freelance writers earn extra cash at home

There are certainly many different ways to earn some extra money from home. Freelance writing has become a popular choice for those who enjoy writing and want to get better at it. Your goal may be to write a best-selling piece of fiction or write blog articles for the many different businesses who have outsourced all their web content writing. Either way, you should get started now and explore the many opportunities out there waiting.

 

Skills of a freelance writer

Many people hesitate to start a freelance writing career because they don't have a degree in journalism or some other writing field. As a Mom or Dad, you probably already possess the skills of persistence, time management,dedication and patience. All you need to do is to take these skills and apply them to your writing and you'll be one step closer to becoming a successful freelance writer.

Tools of a freelance writer

If you were to start a traditional home based business, more than likely you would be required to purchase training materials and inventory. To launch your career as a freelance writer, here's all you need:

• Computer

• Word Processor

• Internet connection

If you are like most people, you already have all the necessary tools to get started.

Is Guest Blogging Still Important?

Guest blogging is OK as long as it isn't "Spam" blogging!

In January 2014, Matt Cutts, head of Google's Webspam team, made the statement -

 "So stick a fork in it: guest blogging is done; it’s just gotten too spammy." 

Many took this statement to mean that they should not submit a guest article or approve a guest writer under any circumstances. If you will read this entire article carefully, you will find that Mr. Cutts further clarified his comment:

"There are still many good reasons to do some guest blogging (exposure, branding, increased reach, community, etc.). Those reasons existed way before Google and they’ll continue into the future. "

So, what does all this mean to you?

New Blog Writing Course Just Released at Udemy

Learn to be a Professional Blog Writer [No Degree Required]

After spending over a decade writing blog articles for my own blogs and assisting other freelancers in their writing journey, I thought it was time for me to design an online blog writing course. I am excited to announce that I have just published my course, "Learn to be a Professional BlogWriter - No Degree Required" on Udemy.

Why people aren't blogging

Many people see the need for blogging and want to become successful blog writers, but they hesitate for many reasons, including:

• Don't know where to start
• Don't think people will read it
• Don't feel they are good writers
• Don't have a journalism degree
• Feel like what they would write about has already been done
• Don't have the time to post regularly

6 Blog Writing Mistakes That Can Sink Your Blog

Blog writing mistakes can affect search engine placement

It seems that everyone is talking about blogging. Businesses have turned to them as a highly effective marketing tool. A quality business blog can help you increase traffic to your website, establish your business, and allow you to speak directly to your customers. Successful blogging takes a lot of time, patience and commitment. Let's look at 6 common blog writing mistakes that can sink your blog.

Many blog writers assume everyone will read their posts

In this age of text messaging and social media, no one seems to communicate in complete sentences anymore. As a result, people have become scanners. They don't actually read an entire blog post, they scan for words or images to get an idea of what a particular article is about. Bolding key concepts of your post draws the readers attention to them. Eye-catching headings and subheadings makes it easier for your readers to understand the main ideas of your post.

Freelance Writing Just Got Better

Co-written by Ken Bradford & Dr. Deborah Bauers

It has been both a privilege and an adventure in co-writing "Writing Better Web Content" with my good friend and colleague, Dr. Deborah Bauers. This book consists of 14 chapters intended to help all writers at all levels to be better storytellers and learn how to better promote their work.

What makes this book different or better?

There are certainly enough books out there to tell us how to write better content, but most of the books I've read don't go into much detail about applying the lessons being taught to the actual everyday experiences and challenges of freelance writers.

SEO Blog Writing Tips [Infographic]

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Freelance Writers Creating Evergreen Content

Evergreen content is not timeless, just sustainable.

When you think of “evergreen”, more than likely the pine tree in your back yard or at the park comes to mind.  Evergreen content in your blog or website, like the tree,  stays fresh and alive for long periods.

Many companies have built their businesses using evergreen content marketing techniques. Let’s look at how to create evergreen content that stays relevant to your audience.


Companies like eHow, Wikipedia, IMDB, and About.com have managed to build very large audiences on content that others have created years ago.  These companies manage to keep the information evergreen because editors keep the information current.

It is important to understand that evergreen content is not necessarily timeless; it is content that can be sustained to remain fresh and current.

In Business Blog Writing Does The Length Of The Blog Post Really Matter?

Is the length of a blog article related to its quality?

Freelance blog writing is not as simple as posting to Facebook or other social media.  Successful
business blogging takes planning and the time and patience to deliver quality content to your target audience.  There is a lot of discussion on the right length of a good blog post, but in business blog writing, does the length of the blog post really matter?

Examples Of Blog Elements In Business Blog Writing

 

Let’s look at five elements of a quality blog article and hypothetically assign a word count to each element:

• Title/Heading:  8 words

• Introduction:  80 words

• Conclusion:  75 words

• Call to Action: 70 words

In this example, your article is already 233 words in length and you haven’t written the body of the article yet.  Let’s assume that the body of your article will contain three paragraphs of 75 words each; that would make your entire article 458 words, plus the by-line. This might be sufficient for non-technical articles, but the important thing is – is it long enough to get the job done?

Blog Writers Building Quality Linking Profiles To Improve Visibility

Freelance blog writers must build quality linking profiles.

Successful blog writers understand that certain SEO techniques must be built into each blog article. It is also important to understand that links from other websites or blogs can be the most effective way to improve rankings in search engines.  Since not all backlinks are equal, we will focus on blog writers building quality linking profiles to improve visibility.

There is a certain amount of disagreement on what constitutes high quality linking profiles, but most would probably agree that quality backlinks would be links that meet some or all of the following criteria.

• Link Relevance:  As search engines crawl your website or blog, they use keywords and phrases to try and understand what you do.  Building linking profiles based on a relevant page or specific content will build credibility and will affect where sites rank in search results. 

Blog Writing With On Page SEO In Mind

Freelance blog writers must know SEO basics

The ever changing search engine algorithms make quality blog writing a necessity. As you write your blog article and during your editing process, you should always keep blog writing with on page SEO in mind.  Let’s review some important elements of blog writing with on page SEO in mind.

Your Blog Title Can Be The Most Important SEO Factor

 

SEO experts advise that the title of your blog article should be no more than 70 characters in length. There seems to be no evidence that longer titles will interfere with search results, but 70 characters is the maximum that will be visible in the search. Keep in mind that the title is probably all people will see when you share your blog article in social networks.
Your blog title must tell a potential reader what information will be found in the article and should be interesting enough to encourage someone to click through to your article.

Do You Have 36,845 Followers On Google Plus – That’s OK I Don’t Either!

Freelance blog writers must use Google+ wisely.

Have you ever done a Google search and found an article with a nice profile photo followed by the words “in 36,845 Google+ circles“?

I am relatively new to Google+ and have done a lot of research about how to use this social media platform correctly. The problem I’m having is that after reading 10 different articles on the subject, I have seven different ways to effectively use Google Plus.

If you are also new to Google Plus or just aren’t sure you are using it to your best advantage, I will share some advice that seems to make the most sense.

Google Plus Begins With A Thoroughly Completed Profile

 

The are many elements to your Google+ profile, so we will take a look at some of these elements separately:

• Profile Photo: This should be a 250 pix x 250 pix professional photo. It should not be a photo of your dog in a Halloween costume or the 45 lb. flounder you caught off the coast at St. Augustine. 

Blog Writers Need A Google Word Processor

If only Google could invent a word processor for freelance blog writers.

Most blog writers seem to be in a dilemma about just what type of blog content people and search
engines like and trust. Since Google appears to be making all the rules in online content marketing, it’s about time  the company designs its own specialized word processor. They certainly have the money and blog writers need a Google word processor.

With the new word processor every blog writer could immediately determine just what quality web content is and how to design it to rank best in search results. Here are some ways that a Google word processor could benefit everyone.

Does Your Word Processor Have A “Title Checker”?

 

If you have made it this far, the title of this article was a success. That’s exactly what blog post titles are supposed to do – get the reader past the first paragraph. Some say that a title should be no more than 70 characters. Others say the title should be 12 words or more. Who’s right? The correct answer is – it really doesn’t matter. The title must be relevant to the article, be eye-catching, and cause the reader to at least scan your article.

If Walt Disney Had Been A Blog Writer

Walt Disney would have been a genius blog writer.

Unfortunately, Walt Disney died in 1966, some 28 years before blogs became more than bulletin
boards and discussion forums. Mr. Disney was a genius and there is no doubt that he would have turned the world of blog writing upside down. Through his work he brought the world joy, happiness and a universal means of communication for all people.

Even though Mr. Disney is no longer with us, his life and his experiences can help every blog writer become better at writing and communicating.

Walt Disney Believed In His Goals

 

If Mr. Disney had been a blog writer, here’s how he would have approached blogging:

“When we consider a project, we really study it–not just the surface idea, but everything about it. And when we go into that new project, we believe in it all the way. We have confidence in our ability to do it right. And we work hard to do the best possible job.”